Nikon AF 28-85mm f/3.5-4.5 : Specifications and Opinions

Reviews

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Giion

sent on 18 Aprile 2021

Pros: Colors rendition, contrast because of pure glass inside; good sharpness and zoom range, cheap.

Cons: It is not very luminous

Opinion: I use it mainly MF on a Fuji xf with adapter. It is a pleasure to work with such combination. The so called macro (1:3.4) is quite useful too. Because of pure glass inside it is able to render a very nice 3D effect, as many old lenses, in comparison with many modern plastic lenses that are inside of objectives. It is very good too for portraiture works.

Giion

sent on 18 Aprile 2021

Pros: Colors rendition, contrast because of pure glass inside; good sharpness and zoom range, cheap. .

Cons: It is not very luminous

Opinion: I use it mainly MF on a Fuji xf with adapter. It is a pleasure to work with such combination. The so called macro (1:3.4) is quite useful too. Because of pure glass inside it is able to render a very nice 3D effect, as many old lenses, in comparison with many modern plastic lenses that are inside of objectives. It is very good too for portraiture works.

Overlord

sent on 27 Dicembre 2020

Pros: Good sharpness, especially when stopped down little bit. Very low price

Cons: Lateral chromatic aberations might be significant issue

Opinion: Good choice for a budget use (I bought it for 58 USD). If you are fine with 28 mm as a widest focal length. There is a uncommon macro functionality, but only at 28 mm. Sharpness is good, but purple fringing is an issue. Autofocus is maybe faster than D lenses, but it is kicking when focus is achieved. I had the same excperience with a Pentax lenses some years ago.

The following opinions have been automatically translated with Google Translate.

Renzo Tramaglino

sent on 19 Giugno 2025

Pros: Sharpness, contrast, fluidity of dials, ergonomics.

Cons: A few too many games but with a little attention it is not influential, slightly lower yield at the edges than the best current lenses.

Opinion: I used the 24-120 f4 G on the D700 as my main lens and when I switched to the D750, I needed a lens that performed well but was a little less bulky for the old lady who retired. Having had bad experiences with the AFD 28-105 I thought I would buy this also because I have a 70-210 f4 same series and period and it's zooming from the ring (on bearings). I've ever had. This 28-85 does not have the same fluidity as the telephoto but it comes close to it, much better maneuverable in any case than the current zooms. It also shows a nice contrast superior to the optics of the period, even the later D's I remember using, rispetto.al 24-120 is only a little inferior. In the center it is always sharp, at edges from 4.8 upwards it has a fairly uniform center edge rendering that improves again to 8-11, the 24-120 does better in this, it can be used safely at f4 with the edges already sharp almost as in the center. In any case, the 28-85 remains an excellent lens suitable for digital, cheap but very performing, which does not look bad with the current ones.

Simone Rota

sent on 14 Gennaio 2024

Pros: All the good has already been said by those who preceded me

Cons: None given the price, I abandoned it after years of use only to favor smaller and lighter lenses

Opinion: The example I had is of the first AF series. I've used it on film, mostly slides, and digital d700. Great all-rounder in both uses. I think it's superior to the later aspherical zooms of the af-d series because it's sharper at TA and because of its overall more plastic rendering. Slightly warm colors. Impeccable on film, it was a perfect travel companion and reportage with f90x. Replaced for the weight with the smaller 35-70 f3.3-4.5 and for the dismissal of the digital where it also performed very well. On digital, on the one hand, it has a sharp but less contrasted rendering, very pleasant and slightly "vintage", on the other hand, it is affected in some cases by side light. Minor defects are distortion, relevant for architecture: at 28mm it is regular barrel, easily corrected; Present in various forms over the entire focal range. TA vignetting. The AF is slow compared to modern lenses, and yet... Coupled with the D700, when called upon for some ceremony, it didn't miss a beat, perhaps also because it was assisted by the flash illuminator. Thanks to the d700 no problem even in sports photos used in af-c.

Aledrog

sent on 21 Febbraio 2023

Pros: Price - quality

Cons: Slightly dark and large

Opinion: IN coupled with the d700 also gave me some monstrous photos (in a positive sense) at the modest price of about sixty euros. At that price you will not find anything better. It doesn't hit all the shots, but most of them are extremely pleasing. Highly recommended. The yield on sky and clouds is delicious, but this is perhaps also thanks to the d700.

Decris

sent on 05 Settembre 2022

Pros: Robustness, compactness, global yield, AF, colors

Cons: Vignetting, chromatic aberrations

Opinion:

Jacopo Pasqualotto

sent on 11 Aprile 2022

Pros: Very robust to be an AF, extraordinarily fun on Aps-c with the wide-angle macro mode, which allows close-up thrusts well set with a remarkable perspective and immersive effect in the scene; maintains its brightness for a long time: f 3.5 constant from 28 to 35mm, f 3.8 from 35 to 50mm, f 4 from 50 to 70, and f 4.5 from 70 to 85; they pull it behind you for four bucks, af responsive and quite fast. FLUID MAF bezel also in manual, has a diaphragm ring and is written "Made In Japan" !!!

Cons: It stretches a little zooming in and rotates the front lens.

Opinion: In a word: funny ! I have the first version, the one with the thin and knurled plastic maf ring: even nice to see, it is a nice brick without annoying optical kit games. It does not vignette and does not produce flares, on D700 and D200 it is a pleasure and balances well with the 2 old women. Mount the unusual 62 filters. It covers a very useful range for trips, and the macro mode is very fun, as I said above. Sturdy plastics and zoom rubberized bezel with excellent grip, a little less than that of the maf, but you get used to it. It does not immediately become a dark cave like some modern varifocals when zooming in on the canvas: it retains brightness for a long time. It suffers from aberrations and physiological drops at TA, but recovers well if closed by at least one stop until f11. For what it costs, it is worth trying !!!

Pedro.76

sent on 19 Ottobre 2021

Pros: Everything that a handyman of those years can have, and he is cheap...

Cons: For the era in which it was designed and marketed, absolutely nothing!

Opinion: A historic all-rounder, not surprisingly produced for 13 years. Robust and mechanically very good. Fluid and precise rings. Af not particularly fast, but more than enough to bring home great shots. It returns excellent colors and resolution, not as sharp as modern lenses, it also allows digital cameras to get very delicate shots. I use it on digital as on mechanical fm and totally manual. Really satisfied.

Brimix

sent on 29 Gennaio 2020

Pros: It is located at 2 mechanical money other times solidityMacro acceptable

Cons: Don't try it

Opinion: It's not lightning but it's accurate And I'm frankly satisfiedThe colors really give me the feeling of using the film Aesthetically it's also pleasant fluid movementsMorbido to the touch Macro manual not professional but effective For those who do not mind frills in qu esto case there's substance Taken x curiosity at 60 euros I keep it

VittorioDonadini

sent on 14 Maggio 2018

Pros: Sharp, excellent construction and solidity. Fluid rings, used price. Not for last Made in Japan. Does not suffer the backlight. Limited distortion.

Cons: For what I've spent, nobody.

Opinion: Taken used, but in impeccable condition. Whoever bought it never used it. Paid €60. I work on D 700, fantastic, excellent colors, very sharp, the AF is not lightning but satisfactory. Makes three-dimensional images. The construction, then. ... you can see it's stuff from other times. I always carry it with me, as a generic, also good for landscapes and portraits. Perhaps the macro function does not convince me fully, but otherwise I recommend it. If you find some specimen kept well take it, for what it costs it is worth it. Definitely better than the recent G's. Few frills but so much substance. Too bad it's not 2.8 but you can't have it all. If you like strength and weight is not a problem, you will definitely be satisfied. Rated 9.5.

Piergiovanni Pierantozzi

sent on 09 Aprile 2015

Pros: Excellent sharpness and mechanical construction

Cons: Weight and size, focus and manual adjustments

Opinion: I bought this 90 years old aim to use it on FF Sony A7, almost out of curiosity. I had read some reviews on the internet, including http://kenrockwell.com/nikon/2885af.htm who spoke very good vintage of this goal. After you've tried on several occasions on the Sony FF and also on a Nikon APS-C I had confirmation of optical and mechanical quality of the lens. I bought in a shop in Milan, advertised here on Juza, and I can say that is true of most of the 170 euro paid, shipping included. Photos taken are very sharp and are comparable with those taken with fixed focal. It also has the ability to take pictures in the macro focal 28 mmm, where, however, it takes some skill to achieve them. Of course you need to manually focus, as it was once on the old film camera, and Sony with the adapter ring you must also manually diaphragm. All operations you back in time, but I would say quite simple and straightforward to do. The results are there andgive satisfaction. Percontro is a perspective all metal that has consequently a certain weight and size with the addition of the adapter ring is quite relevant