Nikon MF 35-70 f/3.5, AF 28-85 f/3.5-4.5, AFS 24-85 f/3.5-4.5
In Part 1 I looked at the Nikon manual focus 35-70 f/3.5, the AF 28-85 f/3.5 – 4.5 and the AFS 24-85 f/3.5 -3.5, at 35mm as well as a current AFD prime, the 35 f/2. Part 2 covered the 50mm range with an AF 50 f/1.8 thrown in. (Adorama and eBay are likely sources if you’re in the market for any of these lenses.)
Now let’s see how they look at 70mm.
First the scene:
Nikon AFS 24-85mm f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm
As before, the soccer ball in the center is the area of the 100% crops. I’m starting again with f/5.6 because that’s the nearest full stop all these lenses have in common. There’s no prime to compare here, just the zooms at 70mm. First the oldest zoom:
Nikon MF 35-70mm f/3.5 @70mm & f/5.6
Now the 28-85:
Nikon AF 28-85mm f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm & f/5.6
And the more modern AFS 24-85:
Nikon AFS 24-85mm f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm & f5.6
Now the same lenses at f/8:
Nikon MF 35-70mm f/3.5 @70mm & f/8
Nikon AF 28-85mm f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm & f/8
Nikon AFS 24-85 f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm & f/8
Finally, at f/11:
Nikon MF 35-70mm f/3.5 @70mm & f/11
Nikon AF 28-85mm f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm & f/11
Nikon AFS 24-85mm f/3.5 - 4.5 @70mm & f/11
Looks to me like the results at 70mm are about the same as those of the shorter focal lengths — the oldest lens, the manual focus 35-70 is sharpest followed closely by the AF 28-85. The AFS 24-85 lags behind the others. In Part 4 I’ll look at the extremes of the 24-85. I also plan to see how that lens does with closer subjects.
Adorama and eBay are likely sources if you’re in the market for any of these lenses.
