Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 (My First Wide Angle Lens)

Swndlr · December 25, 2015

Disclaimer : I am by no means a professional or even semi-professional photographer, so if something I say in the review does not sound like I know 100% like I know what Im talking about, then Im sorry to all of the very experienced photographers on the forum (I know there are a few of you). And also, if something that I say in the review happens to be factually incorrect, let me know so I can fix it, I am no genius or know-it-all when it comes to everything camera related.

Happy Holidays to you guys, and maybe even Happy New Year (depending on when I finish writing this) and welcome to my review of my first ever wide angle lens Hope you enjoy the content, and the sexy, over sized photos. Also, for all who may be curious, I picked up this lens and the B+W UV filter at B&H for about $390.

First Impressions

Well, coming from a 50mm f/1.8, it's needless to say that at first I thought that this lens was huge and rightfully so, its slightly over 2X the size of the 50mm in terms of length. The size and weight specifications for each are as follows ~

50mm f/1.8 - 68.58mm x 40.64mm, 162g, 49mm filter thread

11-16 f/2.8 - 84mm x 89.2mm, 550g (~1.2 pounds), 77mm filter thread

So as you can see, there is a rather large difference between the two lenses, and it took some time to get used to, but with time anything will seem normal, and let that be the truth. Im still getting used to the feel, its a bit weird when you've been shooting with a pocket sized lens for over 3 months straight.

Appearance

I know that appearance should not be your determining factor when buying most things, its really performance that matters, but for the sake of reviewing it, I thought it would be nice to give my thoughts on the looks of the lens. And let me start of by saying that it looks nice, definitely adds a cool look to whatever camera body you put it on, oh, and one other thing to note, the lens is for APS-C bodied cameras only. Unfortunately I cannot get a nice picture of the lens on my camera simply because I do not have another camera that I can use to take nice pictures of it But overall it looks good, Im happy with the way the lens hood looks with it, and you can judge for yourself based upon the multiple pictures that are embedded throughout the thread.

Focusing

[spoiler=Focus Meter ]

First things first, it is not silent, by any means. In fact, it is a pretty noisy piece of glass, or at least compared to some other lenses that Ive been able to use. Its especially loud if you compare it to a lens with a stepping motor focus system, which are designed to be silent. But when I've been out and about with the lens it hasnt been a big problem at all, I would see it being a bigger issue if you were to be using the lens for video work but I never do stuff like that, so I have no real input as to whether it would be a big setback for you cinematographers out there (although most cinematographers have larger budgets anyway, so they are probably looking at more expensive glass to begin with).

A few more things to note about the focusing system is that in order to get it into manual focus mode, you have to pull down the little "clutch mechanism" or better described by Kai from DigitalRev as a "wankerthon pully thingy". Some people have reported that their experience with it has been a nightmare and that it isnt built well into their lens, etc. Personally, mine is solid and firm, it does not move unless I move it, and I the focus ring is nice and butter smooth And on top of all of this, the focusing is all done internally, yay

Example Shots

Funny story actually... ermmm yeh I dont quite have those done yet Im sorry, I know its big part of the review itself, but Im still working on a few things and gathering some more shots. I apologize <3

Overall Thoughts + Conclusion

To end this, I can say that I love the lens Its a big change for me and I am really liking wide angled photography, its really something different and fun if you can get the bloody shot right. The quality of the lens is nice, and though it does lack weather sealing, it feels great, has nice heft to it (may or may not be a good thing, depends who you ask), offers solid, sharp image quality, offers a fast aperture, and comes in at a great price. It is surely a great buy for all who are using APS-C cameras who are wanting to explore into wide angled photography, but dont want to break the bank.