Marco Aries

Nikon’s first autofocus 24mm was commercialized in 1986 and in 1991 it was updated with a rubberized focusing ring, today’s subject, and in 1994 to the D version. The lens is made of plastic, it weights around 250g, it is 46 to 48mm long and it has an external diameter of 64mm, with a 52mm front thread. The iris has 7 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f2.8 to f22 without half steps. The focusing ring is rubberized, it turns 80 degrees, minimum focusing distance is 30cm it uses the screw dive af system. The Nikon F mount has a flange distance of 46,5mm. It is compact, lightweight and it feels right at home both on native F mount Nikons and adapting to mirrorless bodies. The focusing ring is a tad narrow and the throw could be longer, but it is precise nonetheless. Sharpness wide open is very good in the center, only falling off toward the edges. By f8 it gets very sharp, with still some fuzziness left in the corners It has a noticeable barrel distortion. Chromatic aberrat

This is the second version of the Nikkor 80-200 and the first with autofocus, produced between 1988 and 1992, recognizable by the autofocus range selector here. Let’s take a closer look. The lens is made of metal, it weights around 1280g, it is 17.6 to 18.8cm long and it has an external diameter of 86mm, with a 77mm front thread. The iris has 9 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f32.8 to f22 without half steps. The zoom and focus barrel is rubberized, it turns 120 degrees, minimum focusing distance is 1.5m and it uses the screw dive af system. Above the aperture ring there’s the auto and manual focus selector, while near the front there’s a ring to select the autofocus range. Zooming happens internally, but the front turns when focusing. The Nikon F mount has a flange distance of 46,5mm.   It is big and heavy but it lacks a collar or even a spot to put one, so you have to be very careful or it might break the mount of your camera. It does feel more secure on a Nikon film

     The lens is made of plastic, it weights around 200g, it is 45 to 52mm long and it has an external diameter of 64mm, with a 52mm front thread. The iris has 7 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f2 to f22 without half steps. The focusing ring is rubberized, it turns 140 degrees and minimum focusing distance is 25cm. The Nikon F mount has a flange distance of 46,5mm. It is compact and light and won’t throw off the balance of your camera, but as all lenses of this series I find the aperture ring annoying to use. Sharpness wide open is good but not great in the center, with visibly darker and softer corners. By f8 it gets sharp all over the frame. And here you can see how much it distorts. Chromatic aberration can be seen even up to f8, but it’s usually not too distracting. Colors are fairly natural with good contrast and low saturation. Specular highlights can be big and soft or have hard edges and radial gradients. Flares and ghosting are very well controlled even when s

 The Zeiss Sonnar 55mm f1.8 was released in 2013 for Sony E mount, as part of the line of lenses produced in collaboration between the two brands, that unfortunately doesn’t have the best reputation. The lens is made of metal, it weights 281g, it is 70,5mm long and it has an external diameter of 64,4mm, with a 49mm front thread. The iris has 9 blades, the aperture lacks a physical control and it goes from f1.8 to f22 -   without half steps. It has a 7 elements in 5 groups design, with a concave front element. The focusing ring has a shallow texture, it is electronic without hard stops, very smooth with good resistance and minimum focusing distance is 50cm. It has a very minimalist and sleek design that I appreciate, along with the small size and light weight. So light in fact that once it is mounted on the camera you don’t even notice the most of its weight is in the front.   Sharpness wide open is good but not exceptional all over the frame, with minimal vignetting. By f8 it gets shar

  In recent years, Canon FD lenses have regained popularity thanks to people on the internet praising them and eventually leading to prices rising like a cake in the oven. What most people don’t know is that before FDs, specifically from 1964 to 71, Canon made FL lenses and they can be found for cheaper, b ut are they any good? Well, today we’re taking a look at the Canon FL 135mm f3.5 The lens is made of metal, it weights around 420g, it is 86 to 101mm long and it has an external diameter of 61mm, with a 47mm front thread. The iris has 8 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f3.5 to f22   without half steps and near the mount there is an auto/manual selector. The focusing is rubberized, it turns 220 degrees and minimum focusing distance is a 1.5m. The Canon FL mount is the same as the FD, with a flange distance of 42mm. The aperture ring is narrow, but having   a grippy texture and being on the front of the lens, just before the nose gets smaller, make it easy t

The lens is made of metal, it weights around 620g, it is 9,6 to 12,4cm long and it has an external diameter of 72mm, with a 62mm front thread. The iris has 7 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f2.8 to f22   without half steps. The focusing ring is rubberized, it turns a little less than 90 degrees and minimum focusing distance is 60cm. By pressing this button, it can focus closer, but only at 35mm. The autofocus uses the screw drive system. The Nikon F mount has a flange distance of 46,5mm. Although on the heavier side, it operates pretty smoothly. The focus throw is short but precise and the only real complaint I have is the same for all the lenses in this series: the aperture ring is awkward to use. Sharpness wide open is good at 35mm, with some softness in the corners, but it loses a lot all over the frame at 70mm. By f8 it gets much sharper and it has more detail on the long end than the wide. There is some chromatic aberration, but it is mostly barely n

In 1979 Nikon introduced the Series E as a cheaper alternative for those who couldn’t afford their main line lenses. They were engineered to be simpler and less expensive to build, with allegedly cheaper components, but without sacrificing image quality. The lens is made of metal, it weights around 700g, it is 14,9 to 16,8cm long and it has an external diameter of 72mm, with a 62mm front thread. The iris has 7 blades, the aperture is clicked and it goes from f4to f32   without half steps. The focusing barrel is rubberized, it turns 160 degrees and minimum focusing distance is 1.5m. At 70mm it can turn past that to 56cm. The Nikon F mount has a flange distance of 46.5mm. As all of the vintage zooms in this range, it is heavy and somewhat unwieldy, making your system very front heavy. Sharpness wide open is poor at 70mm but improves at 210. The difference is especially evident in the corners. By f8 it gets sharp, but still lacking detail and corners at 70mm are a bit fuzz