Nikon 28mm -400mm Lens Review

 

Nikon have Just released the rather interesting 28mm-400mm zoom lens, which I can see as being pretty useful in a number of situations.

I had some doubts about firmare match with my Z7, but when I was reassured that everything would work well, I took the plunge and bought this lens. I wanted something with a bit more reach for detail shots and also travel. I tried my Sigma 100-400 on my three legged monopod to see if it was usable a 400 at long shutter speeds, but it did not work out, The VR in the Sigma is pretty lame. So it is out for Architectural details

I skived off this afternoon, to see what this lens can do. Nothing artistic. I had an hour to shoot some stuff in town with the 28-400. I like to test out new gear in real life situations. I have done some minor tweaking and some keystone correction. I did not find the aperture limiting in the old church. I just used a higher ISO. I did not find F8 limiting for this sort of photography.

Wow, the first try-out pictures just to see how this lens handles impressed me. This lens like the 24-200 before it has already exceeded my expectations. The pictures are nice and crispy sharp and the IBIS/VR let me get some sharp shots at 400mm with a 1/30 shutter speed. Distortion is corrected in camera and is done well.

My Z7 with this lens is not particularly heavy and I do not think carrying it around over my shoulder for a few hours will present any problems. Certainly nicer than carrying a camera bag with two or three lenses around.  

I think this is going to be very practical for hiking in the mountains, as it is quite light, when combined with the 14-30. For my more specialized photography, like Architecture, I will still be using a bag full of specialized lenses, as this lens does not do everything well  .

On my big screen they look nice and sharp with lots of detail. I think optically it is better than the 24-200 even in the corners. Im sure if I made some 100% enlargements of the corners I might see something less than sharp. But like most modern lenses they look fine on a big screen at normal viewing sizes. Things like contrast can be tweaked in post.

For those interest in photography rather than pixel peeping, this is a great lens for when you do not want to carry a bag full of gear. 

Here are some examples.

I had a chance for a quick walk along the River Po. The light was not perfect and I was with my wife, who gets impatient if I stop too long to take pictures. Here are the pictures I took. I have done a bit of quick post processing on these shots. 

Are Shift Lenses Still Useful?

 Some time ago I was becoming bored with the mostly scenic photography I was doing, mostly during hikes in the Apennines. Slowly my photography shifted towards architectural subjects, and initially like most photographers, I corrected the geometry of the buildings in post. 

I have always been fascinated by cameras with movements, which allow the manipulation of geometry. Indeed, I had an expensive to feed 5x4 camera back in the nineties. As my interest in Architectural photography deepened, I slowly put together a collection of  shift lenses. Here are a few thoughts about perspective control lenses.

The first myth to get out of the way is that these lenses are hyper expensive. The still valid Nikon 28mm and 35mm PC lenses can be found second hand in good condition for about €300. My early shift lens photography was done with a Nikon D700 and a Nikon 28PC, which cost me less than the cost of a good  lens bought new. I lost nothing when I sold the glorious D700.

The Ghiara Reggio Emilia

I picked up my Nikon 24 TS and 45mm TS for less than €1000 and the excellent Laowa 15mm Zero D shift, cost me a little over €1200. Sure these more modern lenses are not cheap, but compared to the long lenses used by  photographers photographing the natural world, shift lenses are about average or even cheaper than most specialised lenses.   

Secondly, there seems to be a very common belief, that with the powerful photo editing tools we have today, the shift lens has become redundant. I believe this quote from James Ewing from his textbook Follow the Sun. A book  aimed at professionals and students and considered a standard text destroys this myth.

Castel Arquato PC

"You might ask yourself "Do I really need an expensive tilt shift lens" Can't I just correct the perspective later in Photoshop?" The answer is yes you could correct it later, but the tilt shift lens allows you to see and feel the perspective of the images you are shooting. The final crop and ultimately the entire composition will be totally different in a shot that is corrected in post. If you cannot see the image while you are shooting you cannot control the composition and therefore you cannot effectively interpret the building. Correcting the perspective during post production causes a significant loss of sharpness and detail. The Tilt shift lens gives you accurate, sharp controlled images."

I think this says it all.

I can add from experience that it is almost impossible to judge how much extra framing space needs to be left, to take into account the area lost when correcting in post

Traditionally due to the fact that the camera needs to be absolutely level when using a shift lens, a tripod needs to be used when using them. The mirrorless camera has liberated the shift lens from the tripod. With the viewfinder level it is now possible to hand hold the camera whilst using these lenses. IBIS is lets me close down the lens too. This is brilliant for those places where tripods are not allowed, or when you do not want to carry one about. I often use my 24PC alongside my 24-200 for general travel photography.

San Francesco Bologna

But after getting the technical arguments out the way, the thing I most enjoy about using these lenses, how it slows me down to really look at what I am looking at, and what I am trying to convey with the picture I am making. I now tend to spend more time photographing fewer venues, when I visit a place, which I believe makes my photography a little deeper.