I’ve never really done a side by side comparo with lenses on a camera. For this little test I used a Nikon D300s and set up camp at the top of Mulholland. the setup was exactly the same except for one minor difference that I’ll get to in a minute. I set the Nikon at the widest setting (14mm) and for the Tokina, I set it on the 14mm mark on the zoom ring. Both were taken at f/8 BUT I forgot that the camera was on aperture priority mode and the camera switched from 1/1000 to 1/800 for the 14-24. I matched the exposure in Lightroom so that there wasn’t any exposure disagreement. That being said, this was more or less a sharpness test than a exposure accuracy test. Next time it will be set on manual. 😉
I feel like Ken Rockwell.
Click for full size image.


Looks like the Nikon is still a winner here.
Hi Matt,
Thanks for posting this. I’ve shot a bit with the Nikon 14-24, and a lot with the Tokina. I have to say, I think that the Nikon projects better than the Tokina; but when you look at a real world scenario (like you’ve done here) the perceived differences can be quite minor. Good job!
I.
What was the verdict in your opinion?
I think the Nikkor 14-24mm is just slightly sharper. But if you aren’t pixel pinching, you’ll need know the difference.
Was it an older Nikon 14-24? Not a G right?
A G with nor F-stops would not be cine-mod-able, correct?
Yes, Cine-Mod is possible. Nikon G lenses are not the best candidates though, considering there is no aperture control. There are some mount adapters such as the Nikon to Eos mount adapter from Fotodiox that utilize the small lever at the back of the lens to allow you to control the aperture even on a G lens. But that’s about the extent of the usability.
Gotcha thanks. Guess I keep on waiting list for Tokina then! Ha