Compact and lightweight ultra-wide-angle lens ideal for landscapes, interiors, events and more.

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Lens nikkor Reviews

Competent performer, March 27, 2005
By J. Bert

The Nikon AF20mm f2.8 was designed as a “pro” wideangle lens back in the days when 20mm in autofocus was as wide as you could get. Originally introduced in 1989 it was the AF equivalent of the manual focus design of 1984 and uses the same optical formula as the MF. The subsequent addition of the D chip has changed nothing else. In it’s day an AF 20mm was pretty radical and it was only superceeded in 1993 by wider primes as the pros sought wider and wider views. For most amateurs however 20mm on film will get you into the “superwide” range without breaking the bank. For digital shooters, dealing with the 1.5 magnification factor in Nikon D-SLRs, it becomes effectively 30mm, which is still wide enough for most situations.
Optically it delivers typical Nikon high color saturation and contrast, with distortions well controlled for it’s focal length. While it is reasonably free from flare I strongly recommend the optional HB-4 lenshood designed for it and polarizing will be dificult for film shooters due to vignetting caused by the thick polarizing filter mounts of a “standard” polarizer. Digital shooters should not have this problem because the camera’s sensor is only using the central portion of the projected circle - inside the area of vignetting.
Mechanically it is all metal and well constructed with an nice “solid” feel to it for an AF lens but those of us who still miss the old manual focus “tanks” will find the undamped focusing ring a little too “loose” when manually focused. As part of a planned outfit, it can form the wide angle anchor for a travel kit standardized on 62mm filters. Add Nikon’s 28-105AF 3.5-4.5 and 70-210AF 4.5-5.6 and you have a lightweight kit for either film or digital SLR’s

Sharp, clean, wide…, January 17, 2009
By Hazim Sabanovic

This is a fine Nikon lens made in Japan, very quality built, a trust-worthy kind of lens that will last for a life time. It is very sharp and fast, colors are warm and fine, and the frame is just ridiculously wide if you use it on a film or FX. This is a perfect choice for those who would like to have an extraordinary wide, fast and quality prime lens for less money.

When you look at what other possible options are on offer today - like 14mm prime or 14-24mm zoom - this lens might look little outdated. However, for less than 500 US$, you get all you really need - a possibility to shoot sharp and contrasty, very wide-angle images, in a very low light! Even using it on a DX, it is still very wide, and the quality is immediately apparent, especially if compared with any 18-xxx kit lens. The next step - having a possibility to shoot even wider images under the same light conditions, costs three times the price of this lens! An other advantage of the lens is that it is small enough to put in your pocket, so you can basically always have it with you, ready to combine with any other lens you keep on the camera!

The lens does have a visible geometric distortion, especially used on film or FX, but it is normal to expect in such a wide lens, and it can actually be fun. Anyway, it is easy to fix in post processing.

If you are a DX user, maybe you can consider some other lens specially built for DX, because there is no point of wasting valuable resources for something you do not use in full capacity (due to crop factor).

However, there is no way you will find such a quality and such wide lens for this price. Also, if you plan to upgrade to FX one day - which is probably everyone’s logical step - I do recommend buying this 20mm lens, as it is probably going to also be used by your own grandchildren…

Compact, put it all in the frame lens, March 10, 2009
By R. DeFilippo “Tony D.” (Washington, DC)

I use the 20mm with my D80. My title highlights my two favorite features. I went for the 20 after I analyzed the first month of my shots with the kit lens were over 50% in the wider (18mm) range. With a prime I wanted high image quality, sharpness, simplicity and of course small package.

The 20mm gives you small size, great ability to ‘get it all in’ and in many cases delivers outstanding sharpness. [...]

If your doing snapshot style, group photo’s of people or casual shooting I think you’ll be better served w/ the 18-20mm portion of your kit zoom. This lens does require attention to deliver consistently sharp images.

With that caveat being said I can honestly say that in the 5 or so months I’ve owned it this is my go to, default lens… size matters! Happy Shooting!

Very Good 20mm lens from Nikon, July 30, 2005
By John Kwok (New York, NY USA)

This is an excellent lens for landscape photography, other travel photography, and perhaps even interior photography, if you need to cover a wide area. This 20mm Nikkor is a relatively old design, dating at least twenty-odd years, but it is still a capable performance with fine contrast and resolution. Without question, it is a fine lens for both digital and film photography. If I was still using Nikon equipment, I wouldn’t hesitate adding this lens to my kit.

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