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Nikon AI-S/D Primes and Tokina's 'Famous' "Angenieux" AT-X Pro II

Jason Honeycutt

Jason Honeycutt

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I did a comparison thread, asking what people liked more, the Nikon 85mm AI-S vs. the D. With the Nikon mount now available, I thought I'd compare some lenses that one could use. This is my first time using my Scarlet or 'any' RED (myself), I usually just direct so hopefully these look okay. I used a look that I created in Red Cine X, the only variable is the ISO, I didn't want to tweak the levels and brightness too much so I could keep everything as equal as possible. This is what I used;

Nikon 28mm 2.8 AIS
Nikon 50mm 1.8 D
Nikon 85mm 1.4 AIS
Tokina 135mm 2.8
Tokina 28mm-70mm AT-X Pro II

I'm curious what everyone thinks but in my humble opinion, as far as my favorite lens...

#1/#2 - NIKON 85mm AI-S / TOKINA 28mm-70mm AT-X PRO II
I'm torn between the look of the 85mm and the Tokina 28-70. I think the Tokina has a 'drier' look but has a great 'pop' to it with a vintage feel. The Nikon 85mm is fantastic, super buttery... but obviously with a prime, you're limited, especially with the pinpoint focus.

NIKON 85mm AI-S:
_NikonAIS85mmCU_zpsded8b51b.jpg

_NikonAIS85mmMS_zps9ae065fa.jpg


TOKINA 28mm-70mm AT-X PRO II:
_Tokina28-702628AT-XProIICU_zps8fcebd77.jpg

_Tokina28-702628AT-XProIIMS_zpsc59e1236.jpg


#3 - NIKON 50mm D
I was shocked at how good and crisp this 'cheapy' $110 lens looks, not just 'for its price' but in general. I think it even has a little 'character' to it for being such a new lens, very rich.


_NikonD50mmMCU_zps91c31113.jpg


#4 - NIKON 28mm
This is a great lens, this shot looks a little underexposed but there's a lot of 'weight' to the image I think, but I only put it #4 on the list because it's a rare occasion for something wide like this... but I love it.

_NikonAIS28mmMS_zpscf0fc0af.jpg


#5 - TOKINA 135mm
I got this on Ebay for for a steal at $7 so hey, figured I'd try it out... kinda disappointed so far though, very flat. I'm curious, however, how it'd look outside if you want the vintage 'flat' last 70's look.




 
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The Tokina is built like a tank and can give you some very nice images! I'm thinking about selling my Canon mount version of this lens because I'm moving up to cine glass, otherwise I would keep it ;)
 
Matt Gottshalk said:
I love my Tokina 28-70.

Use it on my AF-100 and the Scarlet/Epic.

It's got that Angenieux mojo going on.
Click to expand...

I saw this video on Vimeo shot on the AF100, with the Pro I version of the lens...

https://vimeo.com/22643428

It's SHOCKING how cinematic these basic (but nice) shots are. When I saw this video, I would have bid anything to get this lens. I saw the Pro II version sprint up on eBay. I've heard from various camps saying they like the Pro I or II, someone did charts on the II saying it was better. I dunno... it's splitting hairs, they're both ridiculously nice and versatile lenses. Anything that's in the 'ballpark' (parking lot?) of a Optimo, I'm down with. I like how the black pops without losing detail... and the whites don't blow out. There's just a real richness with them. I'm still messing with it outdoors, trying to replicate that look of the Vimeo video... I like this new 'look' I made but I haven't gotten, what I think, is the similar results. I'm going to test it, however, at a similar landscape in the San Fernando West Valley to see the layers of depth from the landscape and see how it looks. I'll post that hopefully next week.
 
Mine is the Pro I version by the way... great little zoom! I'm to lazy to list it for sale, but if any one reads this that is interested in it let me know ;)
 
I've got a Pro I.

Excellent at any f-stop above 4. Anything below and it's extremely soft, even moreso at 70mm.

Anyone else experiencing softness at f 2.8? From what I'm seeing of the test shots above, if that's shot at f 2.8, my lens must be a dud.
 
Jason Honeycutt said:
I saw this video on Vimeo shot on the AF100, with the Pro I version of the lens...

https://vimeo.com/22643428

It's SHOCKING how cinematic these basic (but nice) shots are. When I saw this video, I would have bid anything to get this lens. I saw the Pro II version sprint up on eBay. I've heard from various camps saying they like the Pro I or II, someone did charts on the II saying it was better. I dunno... it's splitting hairs, they're both ridiculously nice and versatile lenses. Anything that's in the 'ballpark' (parking lot?) of a Optimo, I'm down with. I like how the black pops without losing detail... and the whites don't blow out. There's just a real richness with them. I'm still messing with it outdoors, trying to replicate that look of the Vimeo video... I like this new 'look' I made but I haven't gotten, what I think, is the similar results. I'm going to test it, however, at a similar landscape in the San Fernando West Valley to see the layers of depth from the landscape and see how it looks. I'll post that hopefully next week.
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That's funny because I am pretty sure Erik bought his based on my review of it over at DVXuser.

ETA yup:

http://eriknaso.com/gear-talk/the-journey-to-find-the-tokina-at-x-pro-28-70mm-f2-6-2-8/
 
It definitely has lower contrast at f2.8 but the sharpness is still there. Here is a fun little video I shot entirely with this lens (version I) at f2.8 on a 60D. When you shoot RAW or DSLR or anything for that matter, I think a lot of it comes down to color grading to pull the true sharpness of the image out...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_oOYyQViOY
 
Adam Johnson said:
Mine is the Pro I version by the way... great little zoom! I'm to lazy to list it for sale, but if any one reads this that is interested in it let me know ;)
Click to expand...

You might want to hang onto it for a while... the demand for these is going way up, but don't just give it away. The auction I won, there were almost 100 people 'watching' and bidding, I came in at the end and sniped it... I know, I know, you're not supposed to do that but everyone does.

You can't even find these two anymore... you can find the cheaper versions Tokina made of this after (like the "SV") and the one before, but the only Angenieux versions are these two. Here's a comparison of yours (the Pro I) to the Angeniuex itself... basically identical;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKD98G59snA

And here's the Pro II compared;

https://vimeo.com/38152106
 
Shervin Mandgaryan said:
I've got a Pro I.

Excellent at any f-stop above 4. Anything below and it's extremely soft, even moreso at 70mm.

Anyone else experiencing softness at f 2.8? From what I'm seeing of the test shots above, if that's shot at f 2.8, my lens must be a dud.
Click to expand...

Actually, all of that was 2.8... the wideshot was around, probably, 30-35mm? The CU was probably around 55-60mm. I'm loving this lens, seems super sharp so far to me. Hopefully your lens isn't getting a haze or something.
 
I know! It is impossible to track a good copy of this lens down, especially Canon mount!!! Yeah, I will probably just hang on to it for a little while...unless someone gives me a reasonable offer.

AJ

Jason Honeycutt said:
You might want to hang onto it for a while... the demand for these is going way up, but don't just give it away. The auction I won, there were almost 100 people 'watching' and bidding, I came in at the end and sniped it... I know, I know, you're not supposed to do that but everyone does.

You can't even find these two anymore... you can find the cheaper versions Tokina made of this after (like the "SV") and the one before, but the only Angenieux versions are these two. Here's a comparison of yours (the Pro I) to the Angeniuex itself... basically identical;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKD98G59snA

And here's the Pro II compared;

https://vimeo.com/38152106
Click to expand...
 
John Bauer said:
Is this the lens you are talking about? http://www.photozone.de/Reviews/276-tokina-af-28-70mm-f28-26-at-x-pro-ii-lab-test-report--review

How can you tell the good Angenieux Versions apart from the not so good ones? And one more question, does the lens have hard stops?

Thanks a lot.
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Here's the best source I could find on this series of Tokina zooms.

http://nikonglass.blogspot.com/2009/11/tokina-at-x-pro-28-70mm-f26-28.html

After a LOT of searching eBay I found the most sought after, original version "Pro I" in a Nikon mount with the 77mm screw-on hood. Fantastic lens and yes they have hard stops, but a pretty short focus throw. My experience is you can shoot at a f/2.8 with it, but performance is definitely better at f/4.

Worth spending the time to find one, paid about $400 for a very clean example if I recall correctly.

Edit: One additional bit of info about these lenses. The International version is rated as an f/2.6-2.8, while the Japanese market-version is labeled as simply an f/2.8. They are the same lens. My recommendation is find a 77mm (not 72mm!) screw-on hood Pro I, F/2.8 version from a Japanese seller, then you'll know you're getting the original Angenieux design.
 
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John Bauer said:
Is this the lens you are talking about? http://www.photozone.de/Reviews/276-tokina-af-28-70mm-f28-26-at-x-pro-ii-lab-test-report--review

How can you tell the good Angenieux Versions apart from the not so good ones? And one more question, does the lens have hard stops?

Thanks a lot.
Click to expand...

I'm so sorry, been away from the board for a while. From what I've researched, the only Angie-build is the AT-X Pro I and II only, just those two models. I know there are variations of the newer AT-X's but they're not the Angie build anymore. It's not AT-X Pro DX, D, or anything else... just "AT-X Pro II". Also, a key red flag is the F/stop. It's a 2.6/2.8. Some of the other ones have a different speed.

I mean, honestly, Tokina is a solid company though and it'd be hard to go wrong if your just got one of theirs but there's just a certain "weight" to the Angeniuex look that I love. Even in my test shots at the top of the thread, it's a huge difference between the 135mm "prime" lens and the AT-X Pro, which is a zoom. How often does a zoom look better than a prime? Rarely, unless we're talking an Optimo, which is probably my favorite line of all time.
 
Hi Jason, although official history on these great zooms is hard to come by, there are a couple distinguishing features that help clarify what's what. Like you said the 'Pro I or II' models are universally considered the only Angie-derived versions. The Pro I has a 77mm screw-on hood and the Pro II has a 77mm bayonet-hood. Where it gets tricky is when the Japanese domestic-market versions are factored in, these were labeled 'F2.8' rather than the internationally labeled 'F2.6-2.8' but are otherwise indistinguishable. The Pro I F2.8 model I bought direct from a Japanese seller matches the international version in every conceivable way I can see (including performance), and I've read of Japanese shooters confirming the labeling discrepancy a few times.

It'd be great to get ahold of a serial number list to sort out the production history further, but I'm thinking that's unlikely :/
 
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