I own the 28-80 2.8 ATX Pro. I read quite a bit before buying this, though I might have missed something this is what I found:
Tokina 28-80 is noticably better than the older model 2.6-2.8 model. THis is from people who used both. 28-80 has a great clutch focus mechanism. I think the onlyu other good mf/af system is the FTM mechanism on L lenses, but for quick switch to full time MF, it is awesome. I can't stress this enough. It is built like a tank. The low quality control issue I think stems from the fact that this lens had problems focusing really close on Nikon F1's (I think it is called F1). It did it with only that particular body. Focus speed - very fast. Probably not as fast as USM but it is as close as it gets; I do not think I missed a shot because of it. It focuses fine in low light as well. I do not own, or intend to own 28-70 2.8L. So I can't compare. But the images I get from this lens are good in my opinion. It is heavy. Almot as heavy as 28-70, and I think bigger. Actually IMHO 28-70 2.8L feels less sturdy than this lens when I handled it at CW of Oregon (evil). Comes with a hood - never noticed flare that much. I am not an expert either. Bokeh.... Check out : http://evrimgallery.com/Proofs/Thomas/kathy_thomas_r1_06.jpg http://evrimgallery.com/Proofs/JacquelineM/jacq_1_026.jpg http://evrimgallery.com/Wedding/wedding011.jpg I think the first one was wide open, maybe some camera shake since I was in a little awkward position. I could not find better ones online, sorry :-( Let me know if this is good or bad. As for comparison, http://evrimgallery.com/Proofs/Thomas/kathy_thomas_r1_21.jpg was with 70-200 4L , at f4.0. At deltainternational.com, you can find it for $450. I recommend it. It is heavy and big, so I bought Canon 28-105 lens, so I can take it out when I go somewhere and am not planning on a photoshoot. If I am planning on a photoshoot, I will take the Tokina. Quiet AF. http://www.kyphoto.com/thirdparty/tokinaincomp.html lists incompatibilties of Tokina and other 3rd party lenses. 28-70 2.6-2.8 can not be used with Elan II. I think you need a chip upgrade. The 28-80 works fine with everything except that particular Nikon. For lens quality issues, read : http://cybaea.com/photo/lens-quality.html A 28-70 Tokina review: http://www.picture-perfect.net/tokina28-70review.shtml and a 28-80 Tokina Lens review http://lucy.wox.org/~dnellans/photography/equiptment/reviews/tokinaatx280.ht ml Hope this helps :) -evrim > > << George, > > A lot of the reviews say the 28-80 is soft at 80 wide open...have you > noticed this? > > I saw no posts like that about the 28-70...but there are > some things I > liked about the 28-80 better, like the window to show focus > scale and the > better MF/AF switching. > > About the only reason I am not getting the 28-70 2.8L Canon > is that this > range is not my favorite so I can't justify the expense for > it...but on > the D-30 it would be a nice lens to have, and for digital > the top drawer > optics is not as critical as on chromes...but I still want a > decent lens > for the times I stick it on my 1ns for film.... > > > > -- > Harrison McClary >> > > HI Harrison, > Well, lets see - I really never notices it being not sharp > enough at any > setting. I've done some wide open shots when the light was > low, and some of > it was at the 80mm end. I never found it "soft" in the > center, just maybe at > the edges, and even that was not significant enough to be > concerned. But than > again, there are different views on what's a sharp vs soft, > and each one > varies with the photographer. I can tell you that it's > noticeably sharper > than Canon 28-135 IS lens, which I used to have and sold in > favor of Tokina > 28-8- ATX Pro 2.8. I never used Canon 28-70 L, so can't > compare side by side. > But on my shots - either prints, enlarged to 16x20 inch, or > slides on Velvia, > Sensia or Provia and with 4x Schnieder loupe - I was always > happy with > results, again compared to Canon 28-135IS, or 80-200L, or <snip> * **** ******* *********************************************************** * For list instructions, including unsubscribe, see: * http://www.a1.nl/phomepag/markerink/eos_list.htm ***********************************************************
