New lens for my F90x?

George Mann · Oct 12, 2019

Hi again. I am debating over what lens to replace my current zoom with. It is a Nikkor AF 35-70mm f/3.3-4.5 Macro (second version). It has 2 F-stops that it is usable at. F/8 for general photos, and F/5.6 for closeups.

I am looking for a better performing option, with a few more usable F-stops. I am looking at the Nikkor 28-85mm series, or a 50mm F/2 AI, which will be used along with my Nikkor 28mm F/3.5 AI

I already have a well used, unconverted 50mm H.C. Auto (which I love) that I use with my Nikkormat. But I want a newer lens for the F90x.

I am looking for affordable options. Any suggestions?

alentine · Oct 12, 2019

George Mann said:
... or a 50mm F/2 AI, ...

I'm looking also for a standard lens that is sharp wide open and small.
On film, reputation of Nikkor 50/1.2 & 50/1.4 is not that good wide open or even closedown.
Nikkor 50/1.8 is big for a small mechanical body.
Please look at the options mentioned here:
https://www.photrio.com/forum/threa...-iis-40-2-vs-nikkor-pancake-50-1-8-iq.170521/
Thanks.

Sirius Glass · Oct 12, 2019

I use a Nikon f/2.8 20mm to 35mm AF zoom lens and either the Nikon 28mm to 200mm AF zoom lens or the Tameron 28mm to 300mm AF zoom lens.

George Mann · Oct 12, 2019

One thing I forgot to mention is that I loath the rendition (and build quality) of modern glass. So far, I am leaning in the direction of getting the AI version of the 50mm F/2 since it has been my favorite mainstay.

George Mann · Oct 12, 2019

Sirius Glass said:
I use a Nikon f/2.8 20mm to 35mm AF zoom lens

I have little use (if any) for anything below 28mm. Thanks for your suggestions though.

jimjm · Oct 12, 2019

If you already love your 50/2.0 H.C., then the AI version should be very similar. Unlike some other lenses, Nikon did not change the optical formula of this lens when they went to AI.
I have 2 examples of the older 50/2.0 H, and they are both excellent. The 50/1.8 AI or AIS are also very good, even wide-open.
I find the 28mm and a 50mm lenses to be a good combination. 35mm is "standard" FOV for me.
I have the 28-85/3.5-4.5 zoom in both AIS and AF versions, and they're adequate, but nothing special. The 35-70/3.5 AIS is much better, but for the size and weight I'd rather just use the 50/2.0 and zoom with my feet.

George Mann · Oct 12, 2019

jimjm said:
35mm is "standard" FOV for me.

Me too, when "in town". Also, I rely on a wheelchair to get around, so I was think of adding a 35mm as well. But I had originally planned to buying an older version of it to use on an EL, which I had originally planned to replace my other bodies with.

LiamG · Oct 12, 2019

I'd maybe look at a 50mm 1.4 af, which doesn't sell for much more than the ai/ais version, and gives you the option of autofocus as well. The 35mm f2 af is a nice lens too, but for me, it would be too close to the 28mm. I don't like mid-range zooms, but there's many great options- I see 35-70mm f/2.8 af-d lenses around a lot with unreasonably low prices.

benveniste · Oct 12, 2019

George Mann said:
I am looking for affordable options. Any suggestions?

I don't know what you consider modern, nor what you consider affordable, but here are three lenses I'd suggest:

Tokina 28-70mm f/2.6~2.8
35-70mm f/2.8D Nikkor
28-105mm f/3.5~4.5 Nikkor

George Mann · Oct 12, 2019

benveniste said:
I don't know what you consider modern

Plastic-bodied, aspherical lens monstrosities primarily.

benveniste said:
nor what you consider affordable

Under $300?

benveniste said:
but here are three lenses I'd suggest:

Tokina 28-70mm f/2.6~2.8
35-70mm f/2.8D Nikkor
28-105mm f/3.5~4.5 Nikkor

[/QUOTE]

The Tokina I am unfamiliar with, and the 28-105mm has the modern rendition. I like the performance of the 35-70mm f/2.8, but its size and weight make it too heavy and unwieldy on my F90x.

Edit: I told a fellow on the rangefinder forum that I find the size and weight of the 35-70mm f/2.8 to be a bit cumbersome when wheeling around in my wheelchair.

But I like its performance, so perhaps (at the right price).

George Mann · Oct 13, 2019

I am leaning on a 35mm f/2.8 Ai(S) at the moment.

George Mann · Oct 13, 2019

I had forgotten about the Nikkor 35-70mm f/3.5 AiS, which may be a more "convenient" solution.

awty · Oct 13, 2019

My x90s came with a 35-70mm f2.8 D. It weighs 200 grams more than my 28-85 mm f3.5 D . The 35/70 f2.8 is a push pull zoom, I find that a little annoying. Both are old lens. Also have a 28mm - 105mm, D which is pretty versatile. Mostly I just use the 28-85 f3.5 and carry around a couple of manual focus primes for something special. None of the lens cost more than $100.

choiliefan · Oct 13, 2019

If you're willing to go a bit wider check out the AF Nikkor 24-50 3.3-4.5.
I had one and can't fault anything about it.

George Mann · Oct 13, 2019

Well, I have decided that I will look for a 35-70mm f/3.5 Ai-S. Its the lightest of the pro zooms, and has excellent image quality.

benveniste · Oct 13, 2019

George Mann said:
Plastic-bodied, aspherical lens monstrosities primarily.

Understood. The 28-105mm fails on both counts even though I wouldn't consider it a"monstrosity."

George Mann said:
Under $300?

All three can be found at less than that price.

George Mann said:
The Tokina I am unfamiliar with, and the 28-105mm has the modern rendition. I like the performance of the 35-70mm f/2.8, but its size and weight make it too heavy and unwieldy on my F90x.

I'm afraid that you've cut the number of potential autofocus zooms to near zero. All of Nikon's lighter AF zooms are plastic bodied, and the Tokina is heavier than the 35-70mm f/2.8. The Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 is lighter, but again, it's plastic bodied. Ditto for the 35-105mm f/3.5~4.5, although the manual focus version was predominantly metal. I only owned an F/N90 briefly, but I've owned and used my F100 since about 2002, including today. For my mid-range zooms, I first used a 35-105mm f/3.5~4.5, the Tokina 28-70mm, and all three versions of Nikon's 24-120mm. So clearly, my requirements are sufficiently different from yours that I can't suggest which compromises you'll need to make.

New lens for my F90x?

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