The AF/S Nikkor 24-mm f/1.8G ED (749.95 USD) is Nikon's most affordable f/1.8G prime lens. The bright aperture allows for low light shooting and depth of field control. It can be used with FX and DX cameras. The lens is excellent in sharpness and distortion control.
However, the corners of this lens are more dim than those at wider apertures. This is true for our favourite 24mm lens, Sigma 24mm F1.4 DG HS Art (848.00 on Amazon). The Sigma captures 50 percent more light when taken wide open than the Nikkor and it's very sharp so it's our Editors Choice.
Related Reading: Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN Art Review
Design
The Nikkor 24mm (Amazon: $746.95) measures 3.3 by 3.1 inches (HD), weighs 12.5 ounces, and supports 72mm front filters. The Nikkor 24mm comes with a reversible lens cover and an oil seal around the mount. This will allow you to use it even in adverse weather conditions. The AF-S Nikkor28mm f/1.8G ED (Amazon: $696.95) is just a little larger. It measures 3.2x2.9inches, weighs 11.6 ounces and captures a narrower field. The 24mm focuses as close as 9.1 inches—it's not a macro by any means, but it does let you get up close and personal with subjects.
This lens does not feature Nikon's VR stabilization system. It's something that you don't see in a lot wide-angle lenses. However, Canon includes it with the EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM (599.99). Stabilization can be more beneficial for handheld videography with this lens than for still photography.
Only one control switch allows you to toggle between manual and automatic focus. The barrel is dominated by a large, textured rubber-covered manual focus ring. The barrel's build quality is excellent; it is made of the same hard polycarbonate material as used in modern Nikkor lenses.
Related Reading: Voigtlander 10mm/1:5.6 Hyper Wide Heliar E Review
Image quality
The Nikkor 24-mm was tested along with the Nikon D810 full-frame ($1,889.00 on Amazon). The lens's f/1.8 score is 2,872 lines per pic height. This is much sharper than what we expect from images taken by the 36-megapixel, high-resolution D810. Performance is strong across the fame—even the outer edges show 2,508 lines.
Stopping down to f/2 improves the score slightly to 2,930 lines, but it's at f/2.8 where the resolution jumps significantly—the lens shows 3,371 lines there, again with strong performance up to the edges of the frame. At f/4 the lens improves to 3,568 lines; it shows 3,747 lines at f/5.6, and peaks at f/8—3,907 lines.
At f/11, the blurring effect of light causes diffraction which reduces sharpness to 3,836 line. Image quality is not affected by the minimum aperture of f/16. However, it does take a significant hit at 3,209 lines. Distortion is a nonissue—the lens shows about 0.6 percent barrel distortion on a full-frame body, which is barely relevant in field conditions.
Uneven illumination can be a problem. I was able to compare the brightness of my gray flat scene with that of ExpoDisc and Imatest using the Uniformity Analysis Tool. The corners have a 3.5-stop decrease in lighting compared to the center. While the illumination drops by 2-stops at f/1.8, f/2 shows a drop of illumination at the edges.
The drop is mitigated at f/2.8—the corners are a bit dim (-2EV), but the sides are within a half-stop of the center. From f/4 onward things are better—the corners are still about a stop dimmer than the center, but there's no problem at the sides of the frame. That's not atypical for a fast, wide-angle lens—the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 also shows dimming in the periphery of the frame at wide apertures. To give an idea of how extensive the vignette is, the image below shows the same scene at f/1.8 (left), and f/5.6(right).
Related Reading: iPro Lens Trio Kit Review
Conclusions
There are many options for Nikon wide-angle prime lenses. Nikon AF–S Nikkor 24-mm f/1.8G ED is the middle member of a trio which includes the AF–S Nikkor 20mm f/1.8G ED (796.95 on Amazon) and the AF–S Nikkor 28mm f/1.8G ED. You can't go wrong with any of them—just pick which field of view you're most comfortable working with. A third-party lens is our favorite 24-mm. Although the Sigma 24mm F1.4 DG HSM Art is more powerful at maximum aperture, it weighs almost double as much and captures less light.