A smart ultra-wide, the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED Lens Reviewfrom Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED Lens Reviewblends a desirable broad field of view with a sleek form factor, a bright design, and a sophisticated optical layout. The fast f/1.8 maximum aperture excels in difficult lighting conditions and also offers increased control over depth of field. The optical design incorporates both aspherical and extra-low dispersion element to minimize spherical and chromatic aberrations for greater sharpness and clarity. Also, both Nano Crystal and Super Integrated Coatings have been applied to reduce flare and ghosting for improved contrast and color accuracy. Balancing the optical attributes, the lens is also characterized by a Silent Wave Motor that produces fast, smooth, and quiet autofocus capabilities, along with the ability to manually override focus at any time for more selective control.

F-Mount Lens/FX Format    Aperture Range: f/1.8 to f/16    Two Aspherical Elements, Two ED Elements    Nano Crystal & Super Integrated Coatings    Silent Wave Motor AF System    Rounded 7-Blade Diaphragm

Ultra wide-angle prime is designed for FX-format Nikon F-mount cameras, however can also be used with DX models where it provides a 30mm equivalent focal length.

Bright f/1.8 maximum aperture benefits working in low-light conditions.

Two extra-low dispersion glass elements are used in the optical construction to reduce a variety of chromatic aberrations and color fringing for a high degree of clarity and color neutrality.

Two aspherical elements are featured to control spherical aberrations and distortion in order to produce notable sharpness and resolution.

Nano Crystal and Super Integrated coatings have been applied to lens elements to minimize surface and internal reflections for a marked reduction in lens flare and ghosting.

Silent Wave Motor affords quick, quiet, and precise autofocus performance along with full-time manual focus override. A rear focusing design is also used, where only the rear lens group is moved during focusing, to maintain the overall length of the lens during use and to promote faster focusing speeds.

Related Questions and Answers

Q: 1. Question for you night shooters: Any downsides to using this lens for night photography? Milky way, star trails, etc. Seems it would be ideal. I have a 17-35 2.8 and a 24-70 2.8. Would either of these be a better choice?

A: This lens is absolutely sharp and completely up to the task. I own both the 24-70 2.8 and the 20 1.8 among many others and I would use the 20 1.8 for astrophotography as mentioned before the 24-70 because it is a better focal length and faster lens more suited to this specific task.

Q: 2. Will this lens work on my D800?

A: AbsolutelyAbsolutely. Many days I use this lens as my walk-around lens.

Q: 3. Is this lens compatible with my nikon D3200?

A: Yes, this will work on your D3200. The DX crop factor of the D3200 will yield a 30mm equivalent. My Nikon 20mm f/1.8 is a fantastic wide lens with superior detail for landscape and great low light lens on my D700 and current D850.

Q: 4. Will this lens take a CPL filter or any other screw-in filters?

A: Yes, but you might want to re-think using a polarizer with an ultrawide lens, at least when there is a lot of sky in the frame. You'll need a different polarizer angle for different parts of the sky and any one setting will leave some parts of the sky looking different.

Q: 5. Is this compatible with a Nikon FM10 film camera?

A: No. Although the camera will mount the lens, you won't be able to adjust the aperture since the lens does not have an aperture ring and the camera is fully manual.

Q: 6. Nikon d5000

A: Yes

Q: 7. At its current selling price, is it a USA or Import version lens?

A: In situations where B&H offers both a USA and an imported version of a product, we label each version clearly and explicitly. If a product does not have an indication either way, it is understood to be by default a USA product. In situations where only a USA version is offered it will not be labeled USA.

Q: 8. Is it Made in Japan?

A: Mine was made in China. I don't use it a lot, but I have been pretty pleased so far.

Q: 9. How well will this perform handholding on a Nikon D800E?

A: I normally use a tripod for most of my landscape photos taken with lens; however, the handheld photos taken with the lens are very sharp. I try to keep the shutter speed 1/125 or higher when handholding, but have still gotten good results below this speed using the lens indoors. I am very happy with the photos using this lens with my 800E. It has become one of my favorite landscape or indoor lenses.

Q: 10. Has anyone tried it with a Hoya R72 filter ? Hotspots ?

A: I used it with a converted Nikon D800 720nm and I had no hot spots.