- Nikkor AF-S 85mm f/1.8D
- Tamron SP 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro
- A used Nikkor AF-S 80-200mm f/2.8D (this lens is one touch)
The dilemma is basically to choose a lens which is good quality glass and serves more than 1 purpose. Read reviews about all the lenses and tested two of them. Now I would start from end of the list.
Nikkor 80-200 is a very good glass from Nikon with a special feature that was became popular in late 80's, push&pull or one-touch technology. Nikon adapted it for many lenses and this is one of the most successful ones. I tested this with the lens which I was going to buy. The feel of the lens itself is very good as I always like the ergonomics in designs of Nikon products. However, the only problem is a little slower autofocus than its successor 70-200. However the good thing is IF and the lightweight body. Its needless to say that this lens doesn't have any VR (Vibration reduction, which I think is sometimes helpful on the streets while I shoot in low light). I rejected the lens for following reasons
- The lens has slow autofocus and it has to be faster if you are shooting wedding or such events where the subject isn't in your control.
- It has a little problem of sharpness at rear end of the focal length.
- Last but not the least, the expert's opinion on the one-touch technology. It is only good when new, but after a while the barrel gets jammed up and shifting focal length will be the worst problem.
Then come the duo of Nikkor 85 f/1.8 and Tamron 90 f/2.8 macro. I was almost determined to buy the Nikkor as that has a focal length of perfect portraiture lens (in most reviews the 85mm focal length is specified for portrait photography) and a very wide maximum aperture of f/1.8. One added reason for me was its a 'D' type lens and I have an inhibition that 'D' type lenses are always good. Now the Tamron one is a macro lens for starter and I have been given recommendation for this 90mm SP Di macro by atleast 3 of my nature photographer friends. According to them the lens is worth more than its price and I have been bowled over having been seen the quality of the photos. Sharp images, no ghosting as I also tested the lens, bokeh is good (don't know if Nikkor 85 has better ones, as I din't test that) and the macro option is pretty good. Autofocusing is good, even in low light. At maximum aperture, the lens performs at its best with no delays in autofocus, sharp images, nice bokeh and almost no chromatic aberration when I included the light source and over exposed them. But yes in some cases it produced flares/hotspots of magenta-green for hard light source. After that I can include what I had read in the reviews. Most of the reviewers are real life photographers sighted the the difference in the nature and purpose of these two lenses. As both the lenses are good in their own domain, but most of them said that Tamron in this case has an edge over Nikkor because of 3 reasons (as found in most reviews)
- Tamron has better bokeh
- The lens is sharper than Nikkor at widest apertures and produce better colour.
- Tamron is a macro lens which can be used as a normal telephoto lens as well.
However the two factors for which Nikkor has an edge are the
- Nikon-Nikkor compatibility
- wider maximum aperture which allows atleast 2 stops of more light and in low light photography 2 stops is a big deal.
- Also 5mm of difference in focal length is not a deciding factor but at times can be tricky. You can crop, but you can't increase the picture area. But according to me it can be ignored as I mostly shoot with 50mm, hence have a habit of moving forward and back while composing my photo.
So here's the deal, I go for Nikkor and don't look back again as its compatibility is maximum with my Nikon. Also for me one added thing apart from the reviews is 'D' type lens. But if I buy Tamron, then I get better bokeh, sharper photos at widest aperture and almost same speed of autofocus along with an added macro advantage (which is the actual USP of the lens over Nikkor, but not for me).
Hence I decided to go for a third party glass after a long time and test my fate again for this lens. Oh! One more thing is the price. Tamron is Rs. 18,000/- off the street and Nikkor is Rs. 20,500/- with warranty.
P.S. I will post some photos as soon as I get hold of the lens and field test it.
