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Hands On Review – Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Lens

Sep 17, 2015 by JP Danko 5 Comments

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Review Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Nikkor Lens

The Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G was released back in the fall of 2014.

I originally ordered this lens way back in the spring of 2015, but due to production delays at Nikon, I didn’t get my hands on one until just a few weeks ago – which ended up being a great deal on an open box / store demo copy from B&H.

In this hands of review of the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G Nikkor ultra-wide prime lens I am going to review why I purchased this lens in the first place, where this lens excels, and my hands on experience of using the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G in the field.

(You’re not going to get any full resolution crops, resolution charts or test graphs – so if you’re looking for that kind of a lens review, check out the DxO Mark review here.)

Why I Purchased The Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G Lens

I am a commercial photographer, so most of my work is with prime lenses.  My shots are planned well in advance including lighting setups, camera position and lens selection.  I don’t often need that quick change-it-up on the fly ability offered by zoom lenses (and when I do, I rent one).

When I look through my Lightroom catalog, the vast majority of my work is at 50mm or wider – for whatever reason, I tend to rarely shoot telephoto.

My two workhorse lenses right now are the Sigma ART 50mm f/1.4 and the Sigma ART 35mm f/1.4.

I briefly thought about picking up the Sigma ART 24mm f/1.4, but to be honest, I really don’t like 24mm very much – its never quite wide enough.

So to round out my lens selections, I decided to skip 24mm all together and go with the 20mm ultra-wide instead.

The Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G is the second widest prime lens available from Nikon.  If you want to go even wider, there is still the 14mm f/2.8 D (or the awesome 14-24 f/2.8 ED zoom – more on lens options in a moment).

However, my main reason for purchasing the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G is for underwater photography.

Review Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Nikkor Lens

Right now, I use a flat port underwater housing.  The flat port introduces around a 1.3 to 1.4 magnification factor, so underwater with a flat port, a 20mm lens is roughly equivalent to a 28mm (as far as field of view goes anyway – chromatic aberration and pincushion distortion are amplified).

20mm (28mm equivalent) is a great focal length for underwater – any wider and there is too much wide angle distortion – any longer and you can’t get close enough (you generally have to be very close underwater).

The Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G also has a flat front element and takes standard 77mm diameter filters – meaning I can use it with my flat port underwater housing without vignetting.

It also means that you can use it for landscape photography with all your standard filters (like the polarizer I used for the photo below).  I have even used this lens with Cokin P series square filters without vignetting (although you have to take off your UV filter first – if you use one).

Review Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Nikkor Lens

Build Quality and Specs

The Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G is mostly plastic and hence feels very plasticy.

I suppose this could be seen as a good thing because it is pretty lightweight – but honestly, it just feels a little cheap for an $800 lens.

This lens doesn’t feel nearly as solid at the Canon 20mm f/2.8 USM that it is replacing or the Sigma ART 35mm f/1.4 and Sigma ART 50mm f/1.4.

As far as the specs go, according to DxO Mark, this is the best 20mm lens available at f/1.8.  In other words, it is very sharp even wide open at f/1.8.

An anecdotal comparison to images from the Canon 20mm confirms that the Nikon 20mm is much sharper, has much less vignetting and less apparent distortion too.

Overall I would say that the build quality is average, but the optics are excellent.

Review Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Nikkor Lens

Where the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G Lens Excels

Obviously this lens is for full frame cameras.  If you are using Nikon’s DX format – there are much better ultra-wide angle DX lens options available for you.

Like I previously mentioned, the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 is a great choice for underwater photography.

However, it is also a great choice for landscape photography.

Time lapse photography is another area where having an ultra-wide prime is a great option.

And finally, the ability to open up to f/1.8 for astrophotography is invaluable!

It might not sound like much, but going from f/2.8 to f/1.8 lets in about one and a half stops more light – or in other words – the difference between shooting the milky way, northern lights and meteor shower scene below at f/1.8, ISO 3200, 20 seconds and f/2.8, ISO 6400 (much more noise), 30 seconds (stars start to blur).

Review Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Nikkor Lens

Other Ultra-Wide Lens Options

First of all, the sticker price on the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G is $800 – that’s pretty good value for a high quality, fast prime lens in my books.

For roughly the same price there is also the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 DG HSM ART.  However, I’m just not a big fan of 24mm – it doesn’t really qualify as ultra-wide.

Now, if you wanted to go even wider, there is the Nikon 14mm f/2.8D ED.  However, the 14mm is $2000 – so in my mind this is a rental if I ever need one.

If you wanted to cover the entire focal range with a zoom there is the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 G ED zoom.  This is another $2000 lens – so if you really need to go down to 14mm, going with the Nikon 14-24 would be better value than going with both the 14mm f/2.8 and the 20mm f/1.8 – with a little bit of a compromise on aperture.

The Nikon 14-24 f/2.8 has a reputation as one of the best ultra-wides on the market – zoom or prime.  I have used one on a number of occasions and if it wasn’t for the gigantic bulbous front element, I probably would have opted for the 14-24 instead.

The 14-24 f/2.8 is also a massive, heavy lens – whereas the 20mm f/1.8 is surprisingly compact and light weight.

On the Canon side, there is the Canon EF 20mm f/2.8 USM.  I have used the Canon 20mm f/2.8 for years on my Canon rig, and to be perfectly honest – the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 is a much much better quality lens (at least optically – not so much on build quality).

I found the Canon 20mm f/2.8 to be soft with heavy vignetting and really bad distortion – of course it is about $300 cheaper.

And finally, there is the Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L.  I’ll admit to being a little jealous about this lens – 11mm – 11 freakin’ mm!

With a domed port, this is probably the best underwater lens available.  However, it also has a massive bulbous front element so you could only use it with rear filters (not really as much of a problem as it may seem)…and it is $3k.

At f/4 its also not really suited for astrophotography – unless you’re image stacking.

Review Nikon 20mm f/1.8 Nikkor Lens

Conclusion

Overall, the Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G  is a very high quality lens with great value for $800.

The build quality is not as good as Nikon’s more expensive ultra-wide angle options – or Canon’s $500 20mm f/2.8 either for that matter, but for the price, I can’t complain too much.

Optically, ultra-wide primes don’t get better than this – very sharp, even at f/1.8, minimal vignetting and minimal distortion.

The Nikon 20mm f/1.8 G with its compact, lightweight size and flat front element is ideal for landscape photography and time lapse.  The ability to go to f/1.8 is great for astrophotography – and of course it’s great for underwater photography too.

If I have one complaint – I often find 20mm isn’t wide enough!

However since any options to go wider cost significantly more, when I do need to shoot ultra-ultra wide angle, I rent.

What Ultra-Wide Angle Lens Would You Buy?

What do you think?

What is the best ultra wide angle lens option?

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Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: lens review, nikkor, Nikon, nikon 20mm, nikon 20mm f/1.8

JP Danko: from diyphotography.net

About JP Danko

JP Danko is a commercial photographer based in Toronto, Canada. JP
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water, or use a camel as a light stand.

To see more of his work please visit his studio website blurMEDIAphotography, or follow him on Twitter, 500px, Google Plus or YouTube.

JP’s photography is available for licensing at Stocksy United.

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