Shooting Wide - moving from 50mm to 24mm

I've been on the lookout for a wide-angle, manual focus, Nikkor lens; I've been waiting for the right deal on the right lens. It is a little bit of voodoo; the right lens to me would be an extremely high quality lens, that shoots better than it looks, and is a bargain at the price that it is bought. To keep it fun, it should be a bit of a learning experience to find and use the lens.

Up until now I've shot primarily with an F2 50mm lens. This lens is the "normal" focal length lens for the 35mm format, and as an amateur photographer it has made me move around. Moving, and getting closer to your subject, is something other photographers have instructed me to do and I must say there is an intimacy that exists when you move closer. For the past year I have had 2 main lenses - the 50 mm which I use 95% of the time, and a 135mm.

I have loved using the 50mm and I haven't felt I missing something by not using a zoom or having something wider to shoot with. At first I felt that I needed a whole outfit of lenses, but the reality is that when I started to take photos - the 50mm did just fine. Most of the shots I wanted to take could be done with the 50; to shoot wider I just moved backwards. Most of the time this worked, but when it didn't work I had to rethink my composition. I think the goal and the reason why most photo students are required to use a 50mm almost exclusively is precisely because it makes you forget the gadgetry and worry more about the subject.

So, the 50mm f2 which is fast and super-sharp was a great lens for all occasions. But, I do like the look of wide-angle lenses, and so I've kept an ear to the ground for a 28mm Nikkor. I ran across some non-Nikkor lenses and even a 28mm f3.5, but nothing that was the right combination of quality, speed, and price, until now.

I just got a Nikon 24mm f2.8. It is a lens that stands out in the Nikon lens line because it was the first lens to incorporate CRC (close range correction) - a lens design that incorporates a floating lens element and is still in production (as an AF lens) today. It is very sharp, reasonably fast, and the price was very good.

What makes it even a little more interesting is that it has been factory cleaned and refurbished in Japan. When I looked at the lens for the first time I was wow'ed. The glass simmers - it looks brand new. Considering it is from around 1970, it has been well taken care of. I really appreciate that used gear in Japan is sometimes sent back to the manufacturer to go over. It doesn't make it take better pictures necessarily, but it sure looks pretty and moves very smoothly.

With this new lens in hand on my now somewhat beat up Nikon F, I went out after work one day with Mark. The sun was setting and by the time we got out of the car the light was just after-glow. I hadn't anticipated shooting in such low light when we went out so I had brought mostly color 100 ASA Fujichrome. But, luckily Amie's brother happened to have given me a roll of Tri-X that I had stuck in a pocket in this bag. I still haven't replenished my supply since the wedding, so it was pure luck that I had this roll on me.

At first I lemented lacking that extra stop of speed (f2.8 compared to f2), but after a moment I realized that with this lens being so wide, 1/30th is no big deal. The rule of thumb is that you should shoot, hand-held, no slower than the reciprical of your focal length. So, with a 50mm lens you would want to shoot at 1/50th or faster. With this 24mm lens I could shoot at a 30th - no problem.

But, I've been pretty good down to 1/30th with a 50mm lens, so figured I could go to 1/15th and see what happens. I took a couple of shots and called it a day. I had no idea if the film was going to come out, but my light meter told me I had a fighting chance. I didn't push the film because I wanted to see what I could get with this lens for sharpness.

I've been using T-Max liquid developer for all my recent B&W film and I just haven't been too excited about the results. I picked up some Xtol powder, but it is a pain in the ass ratio of 5 liters (which is a gallon and a quart) which won't fit in any container I have handy. So, I'll save the Xtol for another day and I went back to my tried and true Microdol-X at 1:3 dillution. I had to mix up a fresh batch because I haven't used it in months. I measured out grams of the powder and mixed water and developed the film. I wasn't sure how it would be, but I've got to say it delivers every time.

So, it appears that holding steady to 1/15th is do-able (I need to drink less caffeine and I can probably get rid of the softness). I wasn't bracing myself as I normally would, just to see how I would do standing straight. I'm not quite there without bracing. The lens performed very well, though the compositions aren't all what I would want them to be. If I go back I think I will go wild shooting different angles to capture the beauty and drama of the scene. But, this was a field test and as far as it goes - the results were positive.

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next time: fuji fortia