Nikon 105mm f/2.0D DC Nikkor AF Reviews

Rating
Reviewed by:
(Intermediate)

Review Date
December 29, 2003

Overall Rating
5 of 5

Value Rating
5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
3.80 of 5,
5 votes

Review 1 of 19

Price Paid: $660.00 from eBay

Summary:

All the good you hear about this lens is true. It is built like a tank and outstandingly sharp. It can be pricey, but it is well worth it. Defocus Control is fun, but I don't think most users will use it much. I have owned the legendary MF 105mm f2.5 and the MF 105mm f1.8 in the past and this AF lens is much better.

Strengths:

Well built, very sharp, built in hood.

Weaknesses:

price (if purchased new).

Similar Products Used:

MF 105mm f2.5, MF 105mm f1.8, MF 100 f2.8 Series E.

Customer Service:

not needed

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Rating
Reviewed by: Somsak
(Intermediate)

Review Date
December 21, 2002

Overall Rating
5 of 5

Value Rating
4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Review 2 of 19

Price Paid: $604.00 from Web Thaisecondhand.c

Summary:

Nice design, good handling, easy to control, solid, fast lens. This lens has characteristic of its own. So it works as it is and gives the result of uncomparable to others. The DC control is something that cannot find in other lens. We can blur the backgroud just an inch behind the focus point. I took one a photo with just face in the frame and print out at 20 x 24 inches. Almost could not see the grain from Kodak MAX 400. What else I can ask for? I really enjoy this lens thought it is very expensive. But after seeing the result, I forgot about the price I paid now.

Strengths:

Easy control and good for both autofocus and manual focus. I use it both on my F3 and F4.

Weaknesses:

Expensive

Similar Products Used:

80-200 F4.5

Customer Service:

Never

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Rating
Reviewed by: Quang Tran
(Intermediate)

Review Date
July 7, 2002

Overall Rating
5 of 5

Value Rating
5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Review 3 of 19

Price Paid: $0.00

Summary:

Light, sharp, and expensive. Given that for the same price you can get a AF 80-200mm 2.8D. Having said that, I bought this lens for it's smaller size, weight and wider aperture. An 80-200 is too difficult to hand-hold in low light. Mounted on an F-80, it is balanced and easily hand-held at slower shutter speeds that would require a tripod for my big and heavy afs 28-70mm. Very well suited for available light photography, especially roaming around wedding ceremonies with ISO 800 hand held. Has defocus ring for softening tightly cropped portraits which is very handy because hardly anyone has baby smooth skin. Turn the ring left or right and you can blur the image in front of or behind your subject. This lens is sharp and picks up the details of facial skin without the defocus dialled in.

Strengths:

Sharp images with excellent colour. Wide f/2 aperture compliments light weight, and hand holdability for low light photography. Pretty fast focussing as well, although not as quiet or quick as AFS. Defocus control is very handy to have at the twist of you wrist. Also I've never encountered any flare or ghosting with this lens.

Weaknesses:

None

Similar Products Used:

None

Customer Service:

Not required yet

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Rating
Reviewed by: kronik23
(Expert)

Review Date
June 9, 2002

Overall Rating
4 of 5

Value Rating
4 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
4.20 of 5,
5 votes

Review 4 of 19

Price Paid: $500.00 from Private Seller

Summary:

After reading so many glowing reviews on this lens, I have to say that I am dissapointed to say the least. This lens, incomparison to my AF 85mm f/1.4D lens is much softer from f/2 to f/5.6, with significantly lower contrast (which some may like fo portraits). Compared to the AIS 105/1.8, this lens is a bit sharper wide open, but comparing my shots similar to my AIS 105/2.5 shots, this lens comes in last place. I am now back to my old AF 85mm f/1.4D- why I ever sold that lens in the first place is still a mystery to me.

Strengths:

Build quality is first rate for Nikon. Autofocus is fast, and background blur is smooth. Built in hood is very handy.

Weaknesses:

Fairly soft compared to my AF 85mm f/1.4D and just a tad behind the older AIS lenses in sharpness and contrast, but with better bokeh (background blur). Fairly large, but similar in size to my AF 85/1.4D with the hood attached. The DC control is quite interesting, but doesn't give smooth bokeh, instead it creates sperical abberations, splitting up out of focus areas and making backgrounds seem harsher. This may be a strength to others, especially if they like to create special effects in backgrounds, which may work well with lights at night.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon AIS 105/1.8, 105/2.5, 85/1.4 Nikon AF 85/1.4D Leica APO Summicron 90/2 Asph

Customer Service:

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Rating
Reviewed by: bishop
(Intermediate)

Review Date
April 22, 2002

Overall Rating
5 of 5

Value Rating
5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5,
1 votes

Review 5 of 19

Price Paid: $450.00 from HK

Summary:

I love to shoot flowers and this DC lens is just great due to the fantastic shallow depth of focus and the right magnification. Using with PK-12 tube the performance doesn''t decline. The sharpness is better than 85/1.8 AFD and 105/2.5 at close range.

Strengths:

Bright but sharp at wide aperture. M-A mode for easy MF. Rear dust cover (I love it!!!)

Weaknesses:

Loose aperture click.

Similar Products Used:

85/1.8 AFD 105/2.5 AI

Customer Service:

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