Wide Angle manual lenses recommendations

Is there any older wide angle manual Nikon lenses worth buying (if they even exist)? By wide I am talking about 10mm to say 12mm for use on a crop body.
I know there are several AF choices of more current lenses eg. Sigma 10-20 (older and newer versions) Tokina 11-16 (older and newer versions) and the Nikon 10-20 DX. Having read reviews on the latter mentioned, each one has some sort of issue that slightly puts me against any purchase. When it comes to shooting really wide I would be ok with using a manual lens, so any info on same would be appreciated.

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Not sure of any old wide angle MF lenses, but I am a big fan of the Tokina 11-16 you mentioned. If the AF bugs ya with the whirring of the screwdrive, the clutch system used to switch between MF and AF is pretty handy and quickly becomes MF. If you need a wider lens, check out the Rokinon 8mm f3.5, which is not a rectilinear lens. Its a manual focus fisheye but with the profile in Lightroom, you can straighten out the lines if you prefer. I use my 11-16 fifty-to-one compared to the 8mm, but its still fun to shoot with once in a while.

Honestly I'm not sure if one exists, but it's possible. Just remember Nikon didn't offer film cameras with crop sensors so by the time they started making DX DSLR bodies, they made AF lenses to go with them. I don't know if they ever made anything wider than 14mm for 35mm bodies.

Hopefully someone who knows for sure will be able to give you a definitive answer.

Originally Posted by hark

Honestly I'm not sure if one exists, but it's possible. Just remember Nikon didn't offer film cameras with crop sensors so by the time they started making DX DSLR bodies, they made AF lenses to go with them. I don't know if they ever made anything wider than 14mm for 35mm bodies.

Hopefully someone who knows for sure will be able to give you a definitive answer.

I was thinking the same as so far I have been unable to find any info on such a lens.

Nikon made a 13mm, a couple of 15mm, a few 18mm, a slew of 20mm in AIS... Their old MF lens were quite good... I don't understand your fascination with manual focus... nearly every Auto Focus lens made can be turned OFF to be manual focus lens.

I also wouldn't get too excited by what may be perceived as quality in today's universe... The older lenses were not corrected for various optical issues...but most all, new and old, can be corrected today with software...

Echoing what Fred mentioned about a current AF zoom, have you considered the zoom lens made by Tokina? It's the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8. They came out with a new version of the lens in case you decide to go with a preowned copy. Our former moderator, Don Kuykendall who has since passed, raved about it. I've never tried any Tokina lenses so can't give you any firsthand experience with one.

Tokina website info

B&H listing for the current lens (which is on sale right now)

B&H listing for the first version that has been discontinued


Current Tokina 11-6mm f/2.8

Originally Posted by FredKingston

Nikon made a 13mm, a couple of 15mm, a few 18mm, a slew of 20mm in AIS... Their old MF lens were quite good... I don't understand your fascination with manual focus... nearly every Auto Focus lens made can be turned OFF to be manual focus lens.

I also wouldn't get too excited by what may be perceived as quality in today's universe... The older lenses were not corrected for various optical issues...but most all, new and old, can be corrected today with software...

It is not a fascination as such with manual lenses , more a case of looking for a bargain as in some cases there are some older bargain lenses out there.
Also when shooting ultra wide landscape with the use of grads and or polarisers, I find manual focus is the way to go, so the AF is just a feature that I wouldn't use on an ultra-wide.
I probably will end up going for a newer one but just exploring all options at the moment.

Originally Posted by hark

Echoing what Fred mentioned about a current AF zoom, have you considered the zoom lens made by Tokina? It's the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8. They came out with a new version of the lens in case you decide to go with a preowned copy. Our former moderator, Don Kuykendall who has since passed, raved about it. I've never tried any Tokina lenses so can't give you any firsthand experience with one.

Tokina website info

B&H listing for the current lens (which is on sale right now)

B&H listing for the first version that has been discontinued


Current Tokina 11-6mm f/2.8

I know it seems to get great reviews for sharpness, however many people claim it is bad with flare and I like shooting sunsets. I have certainly not ruled it out and might end up with it