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Thanks for your info on the Spiratone 21/2.
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just to be clear, it is a Spiratone 20/2.8
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You may be interested to know, in my own Kodachrome 25 tests the Zuiko 24/2
out performs the Nikkor 24/2 AIS wide open and at f/8, especially at far
edges and corners. The Zuiko 24mm/2.8 (late model MC) outperformed the
24mm/2.8 AIS Nikkor at f/2.8 and tied at f/8. The f/2.8 advantage of the
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I assume you didn't test closest focus for the 24/2.8 Zuiko. I have tried
to take some closeups of flowers with this lens focused at or near closest
focus handheld. These were at f/4 and flowers in the corners
were rendered as wavy bars looking nothing like a flower. This is
typical close focus aberration of a non-floating element retrofocus lens,
and I didn't observe this with the 24/2.8 AIS-Nikkor I've used, nor with other
floating element wide lenses. However, despite the emphasis of this
paragraph, I don't really do this type of photography with wide lenses
normally, and so paying extra for a floating element wide angle lens
is not cost effective for me in general. Close focus aberrations of
retrofocus lenses go away as the lens is stopped down and also as it is
focused at farther distances. Hence, for landscapes, you don't need
a floating element wide angle lens at all.
What I didn't like about the multicoated 24/2.8 Zuiko I had (not marked
Zuiko MC, so also a late version) was that I didn't get slides I felt met
professional standards for color and contrast. they just aren't as snappy
as the slides I've made with the 28/2.8 Zuiko, 21/3.5 Zuiko,
Vivitar 28/1.9 Series 1, Spiratone 20/2.8, as examples. But this was just
1 sample of the 24/2.8, perhaps it was defective, though it looked fine.
If you want to fork out the $ for a 21/2, 21/3.5, or 28/2, you can get
a superb wide lens (these three will rival and usually outperform similar
lenses from anyone, though I'm just extrapolating about the 21/2 Zuiko as I
haven't used it), and the 28/2.8 Zuiko is reasonably good and inexpensive
used, but the 24/2.8 Zuiko I found rather disappointing. That's why I own a
Sigma 24/2.8 and Spiratone 20/2.8.
My opinion is just my opinion, take it or leave it. I'm not participating
in another lengthy discussion abour relative merits of lenses.
Joseph
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