sduford's reviews
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Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical IF SP AF
10 out of 10 points and recommendedGood build quality, very sharp, small, excellent valueNo HSM type autofocus, very short focus throw.I think this lens offers killer value. It's image quality rivals the Nikkor 17-55mm F/2.8 and this at a third of the price and half the size.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $450)
Build quality is excellent for the price and image quality really surprised me. This lens has excellent image quality even wide open. Contrast and colour rendition are top notch. I'm very happy with what I got for the money with lens. It has quickly become one of my favourites.
I only wish ti would go a little longer, like 60 or 70mm. -
Sigma 50-500mm f/4-6.3 EX DG HSM APO
9 out of 10 points and recommendedAwesome zoom range, well built, sharp, versatile.Heavy, requires a lot of lightThis lens works very well when mounted on a tripod or monopod. I would not recommend it for hand-holding as it is very heavy and gets very long when zoomed out. The small maximum aperture and long focal length also means that you need a lot of light and/or use high ISO.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $1,000)
It does get a bit soft at 500mm, but I find it surprisingly sharp throughout the range, as long as you use F/8.0 or F/11.0. It isn't bad wide open in the lower half of the range. -
Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO Macro
10 out of 10 points and recommendedSuper Sharp, Handles Great, Versatile Focal LengthnoneThis is my favourite lens. It is super sharp and I find the focal length to be ideal for macro work. Shorter lenses are too short for bugs, but longer ones are too long for larger things like butterfiles and flowers.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $600)
It is very well built and handles beautifully. The lens collar and foot are great for switching to a vertical orientation without having to reset your tripod position.
This lens works great with the Sigma 1.4x TC for even more working distance or magnification. -
Nikon 20mm f/2.8D AF Nikkor
8 out of 10 points and recommendedSmall, well builtLots of CA and distortionI was somewhat disapoitned with this lens on my D200. It showed a lot of CA when wide open, and also has a fair bit of distortion. Contrast is good but sharpness is just average.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $300) -
Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor
9 out of 10 points and recommendedSmall, sharp, contrastyPlasticy, no AFSThis lens is a great bargain and should be in every Nikon user's bag. It is small, light, fast, and produces very good image quality even wide open.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $100)
Focus is via the old arcane screw drive on your camera but it works well enough on such small lenses. It is made of plastic but that means it's also very light. -
Nikon 35mm f/2D AF Nikkor
9 out of 10 points and recommendedVery sharp & contrasty, small, lightCould be fasterThis is the new standard lens for Nikon DSLRs, offering the equivalent of a 52mm lens on film.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $300)
It is even sharper then the 50mm F/1.8 and it is very contrasty. It will focus down to a superb and very handy 8" (20cm) and it has no noticeable distortion.
Highly recommended, unless you have the much larger and pricier Sigma 30mm F/1.4. -
Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor
10 out of 10 points and recommendedSuperb image quality, well built, fastno AFSThis is a superb lens. It is 979% as good as the F/1.4 yet it is much smaller and cheaper.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $400)
Build quality is not all metal but still very good. It is the old style auto focus but it nonetheless operates very fast and precisely. Filter size is 62nn. A very nice and compact lens.
I find it a bit long for portraits on a DSLR, but we currently have no alternatives. -
Nikon 105mm f/2.8D AF Micro Nikkor
9 out of 10 points and recommendedVery sharp & contrastyShort working distanceThis is an old classic and an excellent lens. It is very sharp and obviously optimized for closeup work, but still works well enough at longer range.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $500)
I was personally disapointed witht he fact that focal length reduces to around 60mm at 1:1 magnisifaction. THis means that the working distance just wasn't good enough for bug photography. Because of that I traded up to a Sigma 150mm.