Unique And Pretty - That's Pretty Unique

on November 16, 2017
The short-range macro lens is an oddity in the optical world. Odd in the sense that the makers of macro lenses nearly always try to get you to buy a longer focal length. Also odd in the ways that it gets used. And this is fine with me - I have gotten odder as I have aged and this sort of thing suits me down to the ground. Todays' example of a good idea is the Nikon AF-S DX Micro NIKKOR 40mm f:2.8 G lens. It is nearly as long as its name...it is what I would consider the go-to lens for Nikon DX shooters - even more so than their excellent 85mm Micro Nikkor. For me it would the go-to for my tabletops. I use a 35mm f:2.8 macro lens as it is - adapted to the Fujifilm system and totally manual as a consequence. Adapter work is quirky and liable to go wrong when we forget to turn the ring or press the button...but the optical results are fine. The Nikon lens under consideration works much the same way, though it is a little stiffer working than the Tokina. Perhaps it just needs more time. It is plastic-barrel construction but metal mounted, and the lens elements are secured deeply in the barrel. Nikon give you a lens hood for it in the box but I think that's gilding the lily - this glass is deep in there as it is. Note that the lens has a rubber dust gasket at the back. The chief problem for some macro users with a lens this short is that they will have to approach the unapproachable - macro subjects like insects, snakes, and federal members of parliament - and the subject might freak out and try to escape. I have no such worry - my tabletop work is still and posed. But I do have the other problem of the short lens - getting enough space between the lens barrel and the object under scrutiny to allow light to fall on it. That's the selling point of the longer focal lengths - they give you lighting room. Still, if you can sneak the flash or steady light around the edge of the barrel - and here I would definitely leave the lens hood off - the performance can be as close as a true 1:1 ratio. You can't get that with some of the " macro " lenses for mirrorless systems unless you are prepared to add extension tubes. I can't tell you if the autofocus is fast or not - it was used on an adapter - but the actual results were spectacular. I do treasure the extra depth of field gained by going to 35mm over 40mm, but the actual framing is very similar. That's true 1:1 on the 1/72 Typhoon.
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