abanerjee's reviews

  • Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X 116 PRO DX SD

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    wide, f2.8, study construction, sharp like a knife, color rendition
    limited zoom range

    You can get the Tokina if you're in the USA for $600 at Adorama.com, cheapest place I found it. I bought it from a local store, with tax, at $635.

    I was between the Tokina and the Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 and the price difference of ~$120 really does make you think. But it is worth it.

    For me, the immediate advantage of being able to stop down does help tremendously. The Sigma is great for landscapes, but the Tokina's ability to go down to f2.8 makes it a much more flexible lens and is very helpful indoors.

    I also find that the color rendition and contrast created by the Tokina to be superior.

    reviewed March 31st, 2010 (purchased for $635)

  • Nikon 35mm f/1.8G DX AF-S Nikkor

    9 out of 10 points and recommended
    price, speed, sharpness, great focal length, bang for the buck
    distortion, silent motor not exactly silent, manual focus is meh

    OK: You want an affordable, fast lens at a very useful focal length. You do not want to spend more than a $1,000 and nor do you even really feel like shelling out $400. I would take this over Sigma's f/1.4 30mm lens - unless you're desperate for the extra speed.

    I've had this lens since April of 2010, I believe. For a walkaround lens this is much more flexible than the Nifty Fifty. I'm surprised it took Nikon so long to drop this sucker and I would even recommend this over the 50mm f/1.8 as a second lens.

    Bokeh is also quite smooth.

    Distortion is quite a pain to deal with - but post-processing and the camera's inbuilt adjustments do help. You will notice it on some of your pictures, usually if you're capturing a building or a wall. Easily corrected, however. Construction seems okay. So long as you're not shooting in warzones you're not gonna have a problem, but it does use a lot of plastic. Advantage though: Its so light.

    You'll be happy with it.

    reviewed December 12th, 2010 (purchased for $235)