The Search Is Over

© LightFrame Photography

I've always regretted selling my Nikon 24mm f2 Ai lens. It wasn't the sharpest wide angle lens, doesn't have AF and the distortion is quite simply unacceptable for landscapes. But why I liked the lens so much? It's compact and fast (large aperture). Plus Nikon still hasn't produce a reasonably priced and compact fast wide angle prime lens. I bought the 35mm f2 AFD thinking that it can replace the 24 but it wasn't wide enough. My favourite lens is a 50mm and I wanted something wider to go with that and 35mm is not wide enough. I let go of the 35mm and waited and waited and waited... And yesterday, while browsing around at YL Camera I saw a little gem tucked right at the corner of their used display counter. It wasn't a 24mm f2 Ais or a 28mm f2 Ais but close. It's the classic 28mm f2.8 Ais. The best part is it's in pristine condition. Almost brand new. And it came with a price tag I couldn't resist. Even though the lens is one stop slower than my previous 24mm f2 Ai but this lens can focus really really close. Up to 0.2m and the image stays sharp because it has CRC (Close Range Correction). Plus it's one of Nikon's sharpest wide angle prime with almost perfect distortion control. This lens is a completely different creature to Nikon's current 28mm f2.8 AFD or the previous 28mm f2.8 Ai. When the world is going crazy about all the newest cameras and lenses, I'm very happy to have found this old classic.