Nikon Lens Nikkor AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED, Black

About six years ago, I was doing really well and could indulge my hobby by buying the best lens. After two months of soul searching I got the best, the 14-24mm f/2.8Here's the thing. I got that lens out three times in all those years. Why? because it was inflexible, had a very short range, weighed a ton, and had a large curved front element which protruded so that you could not fit filters on it in the normal way - you had to buy a special rig, and fit huge filters onto that.I kept it through owning two cameras, the D810 which I sold and upgraded to the D850. Still that lens sat there, unused, until two months ago I put it on sale. I found a 16 - 35mm (this lens) on sale, used, and persuaded the very nice man selling it to let it go very reasonably, and when I got it, it was like brand new, which was a releif. More to the point, when I first put it onto my D850 the difference was amazing, in usability and weight. It takes 77mm filters, though I would suggest you use slim frame versions and only one at a time (at 16mm anyway). Some people moan about the distortion and vignetting you'll get with one of these, but the truth is, if you shoot RAW and use the profile on your computer, in Lightroom or Photoshop, that is automatically corrected. If I shoot JPEG on the D850, there is an auto distortion control (in the shooting menu) which also corrects both distortion and vignetting. You won't see the problem if you use the right tools - and many recent Nikon DSLR's do have auto distortion correction built into them. My D810 had it too, years ago!Image quality is breathtaking. I shot an internal wall with a calendar and ornaments on it, at F8 and there is absolute clarity, sharpness and focus, and the colour is perfect, a tiny fraction warm (yellow). The 14-24mm was slightly cold (blue).The lens is weather sealed and should be safe in light rain, though I would never do that to be honest. It is slightly shorter than my older lens, it is much lighter, and much easier to handle the camera as a result. The lens also has a good VR system fitted to it, so if you have to hand hold at 1/30th or slower, the lens will usually capture things very clearly - like all such technology, if you push this to half a second, you'll get some usable shots but I would raise the ISO a little to avoid plunging to such slow speeds.This is a belter of a lens - I was really stupid with my 14-24mm, I didn't even know why it was sitting in my dry cabinet unused for so long. I have already used this lens on a few landscape and seascape shoots and the results are gorgeous (after post processing) and at the wide end, despite what all the official reviewers tell you, the difference between 16 and 14mm is definitely not worth sacrificing the usability, filter mounting, VR feature and weight of this one. I wish to heaven that I had not been seduced to buy the other lens, I dread to think what images I have missed by not having anything wider than 24mm with me, when my 14-24mm was left at home deliberately.Another aspect of this is cost. I was always conscious of the large front element of the 14-24mm and was afraid of damaging it on location, whereas the 16-35mm is just a normal lens and I have no worries.The ONLY thing someone warned me about, in the buying cycle before I got it, was to watch for dust. The lens is internal focussing, but if you observe the front element, it does move in and out as you zoom (not as you focus though). I was warned that dust can enter the lens via that moving element, around the metal sides between it, and the lens barrel. For that reason, I put a good quality UV filter on it to keep dust away from that area. I have never done that before, but it does not affect the image one iota - just don't buy a cheap filter.I am delighted, though I paid under 500 GBP for my used example. Not sure the full price would have me so enthusiastic, but with the upsurge in mirrorless cameras and lenses, this may not be the time to pay over a thousand for a DSLR lens, as prices are set to tumble and you may find this one discontinued by Nikon one day soon. Hope you find a bargain like me - but the review is not about price, I am far happier with this one that I ever was with its big brother, so avoid the same mistake, if you need ultrawide, this is the best nikon unless you go for primes instead, in which case, get the 20mm f/1.8G - but that is a story for another day.