Tokina AF 100mm F/2.8 Macro at-X 100AF PRO D - Nikon

I received the lens today, and was a little concerned about the condition of the Tokina box - one corner had that crinkly-crushed look (small, but still...), and the top flap was popped out of the box. After opening it, however, the lens appeared to be in pristine condition. One sour note was that this did NOT come with a USA warranty from wikideals, but I figured it was no big deal with Amazon's return/exchange policy, which is great. Took the lens for a quick test drive on my D7100... autofocus worked like a charm. The limiter switch made focusing in telephoto mode nearly instantaneous and virtually silent. Macro focus was fairly quick as well, albeit a bit noisy in comparison to telephoto focusing. Not LOUD, mind you, but fairly audible as compared to my Tokina 12-28 and Nikon 55-200. All my daylight shots were taken at ISO 100, with varying F-stops. Initial macro shots were pretty good - I was very pleased for handheld results. I couldn't see any sharpness issues that I could distinguish from depth-of-field issues. Telephoto shots were encouraging, but not quite as sharp as I'd expected. I withheld judgement on both macro and telephoto until I was able to get the camera and lens at home (I was shooting at work), and do some auto-focus fine-tuning using a very handy chart I've been using on all my lenses. As it turned out, I needed to adjust the auto-focus fine-tuning to a -8 setting for this lens to reach top performance. (Not a surprise - Ken Rockwell had mentioned he needed a -10 on his D7000 and a -7 on his D3.) FYI, I also checked DXOMark and compared like lenses before choosing this one, so my sharpness expectations were set pretty high... especially so, since my Tokina F/4 12-28mm DX lens is incredibly sharp at 28mm. (There's minor softness in the corners at 12mm if you pixel-peep.) In fact, at 28mm, my Tokina zoom surpasses all my other lenses in terms of sharpness, with the possible exception of my Nikkor Prime F/1.8 35mm. This new Tokina 100mm, however, may end up in that class as well. After fine-tuning, I ran some macro shots against a quarter on a flat surface, as well as a small dish of jewelry. Macro was outstanding, and I could clearly see depth-of-field issues versus focus issues! Wherever the focus was, was razor-sharp! I also tested a quick test distance shot from across the room (about 20 feet), shooting at a lampshade with the light on. The lampshade is cloth, and I could see individual stitches - heck, I could even see where the fabric had tiny "hairs"! I'll be taking this lens for a test drive several more times this week, but if the above results stand up, then this is likely to become my main medium telephoto lens and not just my macro lens! I'll post a follow-up on the weekend and let you all know how I feel about the telephoto performance of the lens. There's no doubt that as a macro lens, this is stupendous. :) ******************* UPDATE 8/5/2014 ******************* After I wrote this, I couldn't help myself - I ran some more quarter and dime shots using a tripod. This time, however, I ran the F-stop all the way down to F/32... all I can say is that I am absolutely stunned by the macro quality, especially with the lens stopped down. I'm not sure there IS a sweet spot for aperture settings on this lens, at least regarding sharpness! Jury is still out as a telephoto... as I said, I'll update this on or after the weekend. :) ******************* UPDATE 8/5/2014 ******************* No need to wait until the weekend. I decided to take the lens out and take some shots off my back deck at sunset. All my pictures were RAW at ISO 100, F/2.8, and telephoto only. Shutter speeds ranged from 1/60 to 1/2000, depending on what I was shooting... the telephoto capabilities of this lens are WONDERFUL. Bokeh is great, sharpness is great... I have NO complaints about this lens in either macro or telephoto usage. Great purchase - don't hesitate. Get one. :) ******************* UPDATE 8/21/2014 ******************* Still thrilled with the lens, but I ended up re-doing the auto-focus fine tuning. After shooting many images as a telephoto lens, I was a little frustrated with inconsistent sharpness - sometimes it would be amazing, other times, soft when I pixel-peeped. (Macro was perfect regardless - just telephoto was an issue.) Today I had an opportunity to re-do the tuning calibration outside, where the lighting was much better. I found that I needed to increase the AF fine tuning to a -9. Just for the record, a -10 worked well in the tests... but I did some real-world shooting at both -9 and -10, and it appeared to me that -10 was the way to go - we're talking MINUTE difference here, though... although the difference between -8 sharpness and -10 sharpness is pronounced. If you buy this lens (and you should!), make sure you evaluate it for AF fine tuning if you're going to use it as a medium telephoto - as a macro, though, it's not needed.

This is my second lens after Nikon 50 mm f1.8. I bought this at the recommendation of some tattooed youtube photographer for my Nikon D750. And I'm glad I did even though I am just a amateur and do not make a dime from photos: Pros: -- Two in one lens -- for portrait in full frame as well as Dx bodies and superb macro lens -- Takes super sharp pictures, the colors it produces are jaw dropping -- its just a joy to shoot with -- It feels very sturdy well built, made in Japan ( My Nikon 50mm 1.8 is made in china and is plasticy not as sturdy) -- Great value - price is cheap for the quality it provides, outperforms its expensive rivals per several photo gurus -- Seems to hold up its value well -- used ones are not much cheaper Cons: -- There are two extra steps with limit/full switch to activate autofocus mode -- read instructions carefully -- though its super easy -- Autofocus is slightly slower than my 50 mm ( not by much and has not posed a problem so far for me) Should a beginner buy it? -- If you are on tight budget -- do some research on macro extention tubes -- they may be enough for your needs and will save you money. If you are not making money from photos, all these gears are men's toys can be expensive hobby. -- If money is no matter or you really love photographing tiny objects and are thinking to buy a macro lens -- go for it -- its difficult to find a better alternative with better quality and value without spending much more P.S - I've attached a lime flower on my potted lime plant. Its taken indoor at night, handheld and is one of my first attempts at macro photo, so the imperfections are most likely mine rather than lens/camera

This is the second Tokina Lens I've bought (the first being the 11-16). I have to say, what a fantastic lens, at around half the price of the competition. Tokinas have a few quirks, the most unusual being the focus clutch. I still don't like it. It works, but it's too awkward, especially for this lens. The push-pull action requires so much force that you'll loose the shot every time, even on the tripod. Nikon's over-ride system is so much nicer, and you get so used to it that Tokina's attempt is just so damn clunky (and believe me, it comes with a noise too). I keep forgetting when I have a Tokina on, and keep trying to over-ride the focus. I can't get used to it, and am not sure I want to. The build quality is first rate. Seriously, this is build quality you'd expect on a lens for 3 times the price. it's heavy, and heavy is good. the Optics are also first rate, it's incredibly sharp. Without spending hours taking photos of charts, I don't see any chromatic aberrations, and sharpness is very good. The Bokeh is nice, and when you have a look at the diaphragm blades you'll see why. They are an engineering masterpiece. This is a beautiful lens, and at a damn good price. The front element is recessed a hell of a long way, why I don't know. This is an external focusing lens (meaning it gets longer as you focus - pretty much doubling it's length) so maybe it's to accommodate the focus rail. what ever the reason, you don't want to get this thing dirty, it's too deep to clean properly, so buy a filter. It comes with a lens hood, but with the recessed front element you'll wonder why - buy a filter, and you'll use it. This isn't a 'G' lens, so it has an aperture ring. this really pissed me off until I found the lock, which locks it into the auto position. I kept getting error messages when I set the aperture on the camera, as the ring had to be in the right position, and it moves every time you mount it on the camera. I'm so far past aperture rings, that I never checked it. This is more operator error than a fault, and those of you using older bodies need the aperture ring (who reads the instructions anyway right?) Speaking of bodies, it's a full frame prime lens, at 100mm, so on a crop frame Nikon you get 150mm. it's great for Macro, as you get some distance from your subject, but as a portrait lens, be prepared to walk........ a long way (if your studio/conditions allow!) Focus is slow, but when you see how far it moves, you'll allow it this fault. Setting up hand held macro shots can be hard to get an initial focus to work with, and doing it all on manual is frustrating. I guess I'll get better as I get used to the focus range. I almost gave a hermit crab a heart attack one day as I constantly re-positioned him as I just couldn't get the initial focus right. again, operator error rather than a fault, but I've never had as much of an issue as with this lens. (The little fella just gave up walking away after a while and I got some great shots). There's no image stabilization either, not a big issue for macro, but for normal shots, 150mm is long with out VR. You could spend all you money on name brand lenses, and only have one or two. Or you could buy a couple of Tokinas (as I have) and have a more diverse kit. And if you read some of the technical reviews, you see several of the Tokinas blow away the name brand lenses anyway. buy it. The more I use it, the more i like it (I just hate the damn focus clutch) A great investment, and I recommend to all

I am new to macro photography. It is very different from regular or wide angled photography so I am writing this as an inexperienced macro photography. I bought this lens because I have the Tokina wide angle lense (11 - 16mm) and I was impressed with the lens quality. In addition the price of this lens in within my budget. I am used to 50mm lens with aperture of 1.8 or 1.4 where you create your own minimum depth of field. I am stunned by how narrow the depth of field can get on a macro lens. I do find I need a tripod to keep the camera steady. I find the auto focus sometimes has difficult getting focus and will focus in and out endlessly in certain very close up situations. However the switch to manual focus is very easy after you can gain focus on whatever you want. So far, despite my inexperience I love the effects that are created with this macro lens and the vibrancy of the colours. I have on occasion gotten something so in focus the detail is amazing. For the lens itself, I have no complaints, sturdy, seems well made. I had to attached and remove several times before my camera recognized it but now I don't have any problems at all. Again I am new to this and just exploring macro photography where the possibilities and effects are endless.

I continue to be impressed by the image quality of this little Tokina. By little, I don't mean the focal length. The equivalent Micro-Nikkor 105mm VR is longer, has a larger diameter, and weighs nearly 50% more. Which is better optically? I couldn't say. These two are so close in quality, your photographic technique will make a far greater difference than any inherent optical quality difference. You still want to know which has better optics? According to people who compare such things for a living, The Tokina is as sharp as Nikon's 105mm macro. It has no coma. It has no chromatic aberration. It has almost no distortion (less than the Nikon). And, it has wonderful bokeh (quality of out-of-focus areas). On the downside, the Tokina uses a screwdriver focus drive, which means autofocus won't work on lower end Nikon DSLRs (check your owner's manual), although the great manual focus works fine. Also, the Tokina doesn't have vibration reduction, and it doesn't have as 'brag-worthy' a name as the Nikon. So, if you need VR or you desire the status of the Nikon, buy one. If you want superb optical quality that's at least as good as the Nikon, you don't mind lugging around less weight, and it doesn't bother you to pay less than half as much for it, then the Tokina might be just the ticket. it has been for me. BTW, if you plan to use your modern 100mm class macro on a pre-autofocus, 35mm Nikon, then forget the Micro-Nikkor AF 105mm f/2.8G VR. It has no aperture ring and won't work, but the Tokina has an aperture ring. It functions just as well on my Nikon F2A and FE and on my wife's D40 as it does on my F100 and D700--in manual-focus-only mode, at any rate.

This lens is really good for the money and takes exceptionally clear photos, but there are a few quirks that users probably need to be aware of. First of all, the 2.8 "fixed" aperture will not exactly work for every Nikon camera. I am using a D7000. I am unable to manually lock the aperture in the lowest 2.8 setting. The lowest I can go is around 3.3. The lens also appears to have a manual setting of 2.8 thru 20 on the lens ring, but manual aperture settings will not work on most Nikons. You must have a professional grade body for this to work... something along the lines of a D700 or D800 (please research this for yourself before buying). If you're like me and have a "better than average" Nikon, simply set the aperture in 2.8, otherwise you're camera will register an error. Secondly, this is a Macro lens (as advertised). It sets everything to 100 mm (again as advertised) which is about 2x zoom of what the normal eye will usually see. It also works great for portrait shots as well, but do not expect the auto focus motor to zip into action and focus on the first try. It's a little slow, and it has some trouble focusing in low light situations. I actually found that the manual setting is a little easier to work with and quite frankly a little more fun. This is making me a better photographer. Lastly, as others have already suggested in other reviews, switching the lens from AF (Auto Focus) to MF (Manual Focus) is a little strange at first... it is this push pull action on the end of the barrel. Once you get used to it, it really isn't that bad, but it does make a click... so be careful not to frighten off your subject if switching between MF and AF when you are "up close". All in all, I am very happy with this lens. For the price, it does an exceedingly great job. My test photos are very crisp and clear. Zooming in (using the camera's zoom or Photoshop) produces a very clear picture with great detail. If you don't have a ton of money to spend on a lens... this is one that you will probably like.

*** I'm adding this as a 1 Star and will also be leaving a review/comment for the vendor ie Wiki Deals. *** The good news is this lens is sublime, I luv it, and used it (past tense) several times a week. → The BAD NEWS is Wiki Deals is a grey market vendor and therefore the manufacturers three year parts and labor warranty is null & void. My copy of the lens lasted almost 18 months (1/2 the normal warranty period) before the aperture blades started sticking wide open after each shot making the lens absolutely unusable. I had mailed in my 'warranty card' (useless paper in this case) but when I spoke with a very helpful gentleman at Kenko Tokina US Inc (factory authorized repair center for Tokina in the USA) he had to be the bearer of bad news and let me know Wiki Deals sells only Grey Market Tokina Lenses in the USA. So, if I want this lens repaired it is going to cost somewhere in the vicinity of $140 + Parts + Labor. This on a lens purchased for a bit over $400. To be clear, I am not looking for sympathy. I am simply cautioning any future buyers that they are, in fact, purchasing grey market merchandise. Just FYI and best of luck to all. This really is an excellent rendering lens. But, Buyer Beware if you save a few bucks on the purchase end, it may very well come back to haunt you later. Final Note: If enough people b*tch about this 'review' dragging down the ratings I will consider another avenue for highlighting the issue above. Until then, here it will stay as IMHO after sales service is a very real, and very significant, part of the purchasing/using experience. Early 2019 UPDATE: All of the above stands in regards to the referenced vendor supplying only Gray Market lenses and therefore NO WARRANTY. However: I am compelled to point out that the 'stuck aperture blades' issue has resolved itself by me continuing to use the lens until the blades loosened up. I am thrilled to be using this lens again as it is truly a stunner in terms of image quality/rendition. I hope this saga has been helpful to someone/anyone and I want to stress that I LUV this lens and shoot with it all of the time. I use it on a D90 (less so lately), a D7100 (which is a joy), and now a D800e (which is other worldly!) Best of Luck and Enjoy!

Thanks to the low price and high quality, I think this lens is likely to be many people's first macro lens. Thankfully, it is also a truly fantastic lens in its own right, and fits an interesting niche. 100mm is a good length for those starting out with macro photography, as it's not so close that you must use a tripod and rails. Similarly, at 2.8 this lens is fast enough to cover a broad range of DOF without giving such a razor thin focus area as to create mostly blurry pictures. Yes, the bokeh is very nice on this lens, but you don't want a picture that's JUST bokeh. It's also a solid addition to a fledgling lens library as 100mm is a very flattering portrait length, and the sharpness of the lens results in very flattering pictures. The focusing, as discussed in other reviews, requires a body capable of supporting plain AF lenses, or it becomes a manual focus lens. That's fine if you're using this lens exclusively for macro, but for portraits or walking around, having AF is pretty important. I'm using this lens on a D90, and the focusing is slower compared to an AF-S lens, but the only real complaint I have about the focusing time is due to the fact that it's a macro lens. I find myself usually using the AF to get close and then quickly switching over to manual. Switching to manual is incredibly easy on this lens, although it does make a noise and will jar the camera body slightly, so if you're in the middle of intense macro focusing, be sure how you plan to focus BEFORE setting up the shot. The Nikon lens equivalent does cost more, and most of what you're paying for is the VR support. VR is useless if you're using a tripod, but can be very helpful if you're looking to do on-the-fly macro or candid portraiture. It really depends on what you're looking to do. I think for many casual photographers looking to get into macro, or who are comfortable with taking a tripod for macro work, they'll already have a zoom lens with VR that covers the same range as this lens. Is it worth almost double the price for VR and faster focusing? That's up to the photographer to decide, but this lens easily matches or beats the Nikon equivalent. It's a great way to start taking macro pictures, and the lens is of such a high quality that it's likely to stay in your kit for years. The lack of VR makes it a little trickier to use as a plain walk-around lens, though.