Characteristics that make a great lens great...,

Over the years I've bought and sold too many lenses. Always in the quest for those must haves, be it IQ or functionality. Primes, of course, stand the test of time and deliver as expected most of the time (although Nikon has produced it's share of lemons). Zooms are a whole other story, some great and some just plain terrible. One of my best purchases in the last couple years has been the Nikon 70-200 f4.

Let's talk about design and results. The above mentioned has not stood the test of time yet, but the design is fantastic. It zooms and focuses internally, yet in a small compact package. These qualities led to my purchase of the f4 over the much hailed 2.8. The more I use this lens, the more I enjoy it. Lens design is a very overlooked aspect and one that should not be ignored.

Do you consider these characteristics when purchasing a lens? What do you feel makes a lens great? (aside from IQ which is a given).

Yes I try to. The base of the lens called the bayonet (I think) being metal instead of plastic is one of the things I look for.

I worry a great deal more about the eye (and brain) behind the lens than about the lens itself. Having no means to improve my current kit, I can only try to do the best I can with what I have. Which is not to say I wouldn't become extremely discriminatory, if life's luck should turn to my favor.

I look for well built, cause of the work environment I'm in it gets knocked around.
So look for the les t be well sealed.

Bill16 said:

Yes I try to. The base of the lens called the bayonet (I think) being metal instead of plastic is one of the things I look for.

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I'm sure you mean the mount Bill... The bayonet would be the front (Lens hood) if you think of it in terms of old civil war guns a bayonet was a removable knife at the end of the rifle.

Thanks for the correction! Yes the mount then is what I meant!

skene said:

I'm sure you mean the mount Bill... The bayonet would be the front (Lens hood) if you think of it in terms of old civil war guns a bayonet was a removable knife at the end of the rifle.

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I think the best lens yet is the 5-2000mm f/1.2 VR2 pancake. The one that takes the 49mm filters, not the old version that used 55mm.

All lenses are an exercise in compromise. Every lens I have I purchased because I have a specific need for something that lens offers that others don't.

Rick M said:

Over the years I've bought and sold too many lenses.

Do you consider these characteristics when purchasing a lens? What do you feel makes a lens great? (aside from IQ which is a given).

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Yes. Absolutely. I've also gone through a lot of lenses.

AF mechanism is important with most of my lenses except for my Zeiss lens. AF has to be responsive, accurate, and quiet.

IF, sharpness, bokeh rendition, contrast and flare resistance are some of the characteristics that I look for.


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The "bayonet" and the "mount" is in this case the same. So, my friend Bill16 was right: lens bayonet - Google Search

Woohoo I got it right after all! Lol Thanks buddy for the helpful info!

DraganDL said:

The "bayonet" and the "mount" is in this case the same. So, my friend Bill16 was right: lens bayonet - Google Search

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You can go a long way down a very expensive road looking for the perfect lens i know this because in the 35mm past I tried that road,
My desire now is for lenses that fulfill my coverage needs at a price I can run to,it may not have the best resolving power or give the greatest bokeh but it allows me to take pictures of subjects that interest me.

So what makes a great lens to me is can I afford it will it help me frame the pictures I see in my mind,starting from there any other benefits are a bonus.

@Bill16:

Actually, a "bayonet" is a TYPE of a "mount", the way the lens is attached (mounted) to the camera body or the filter or the hood are attached to the lens so the phrase we are using here should read "bayonet mount", as opposed to a "screw mount" whereas the lens (or the hood or the filter etc.) is mounted/dismounted in a "screwing in/out" fashion - most of the filters are mounted this way, as well as many lens hoods and some of the (nowadays quite obsolete) lenses (like the famous m42, for example)....