Nikkor AF-S 85mm f/1.8 G (CX) - Review / Test Report - Sample Shots & Verdict
Lens Reviews - Nikon CX

Sample Shots

The following sample shots were taken with a Nikon V1 and converted from NEF to Jpeg via Capture One.

Click on a thumbnail to view the original file (opens in a separate window).

Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/4.0
Exposure 1/1000s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/2.5
Exposure 1/500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure 1/4000s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/3.5
Exposure 1/640s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure 1/800s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/6.3
Exposure 1/1000s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure 1/2500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/2.0
Exposure 1/1600s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/1.8
Exposure 1/2500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/5.0
Exposure 1/60s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/4.0
Exposure 1/640s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/4.0
Exposure 1/320s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/3.5
Exposure 1/1600s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/4.5
Exposure 1/400s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/5.0
Exposure 1/800s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure 1/2500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure 1/500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION
Model NIKON 1 V1
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0mm
Aperture: f/1.8
Exposure 1/1600s

Verdict

The Nikon AF-S 85/1.8 struggles a bit at its largest aperture on the tiny CX sensor, but stopped down the results are very good to excellent.

As can be expected from a lens designed for a much larger sensor, distortion and vignetting are no issues at all. CAs are very low, too.

The build quality is on a high level and in line with other Nikon consumer prime offerings. Thanks to an AF-S drive, the lens focuses virtually silent and is fully compatible with the FT1-adapter (within the limits of the adapter itself, that is). AF speed is quite fast for a lens in this class.

The blur potential of the lens is of course somewhat reduced compared to cameras with larger sensors. Still, the bokeh quality is on a high level, the only real issue is the quite high amount of bokeh fringing.

For anyone who already owns the lens (and also a F-mount camera with larger sensor) it's certainly worth exploring the capabilities of the AF-S 85/1.8 on a CX camera.

For those who only own a CX camera, the lens may be a candidate to deliver images with narrow depth of field (narrower than with native lenses at least). Combined with the necessary FT-1 adapter, the setup becomes rather bulky and also somewhat expensive, though. In addition, the lens does not really perform too well at the largest aperture when mounted on a Nikon 1 camera. On the other hand: if narrow DOF is what you're after, choosing a Nikon 1 camera was not the best idea to start with anyway...

Optical Quality:    
★★★★★
Mechanical Quality:
★★★★★
Price/Performance:
★★★★★

Click here for an explanation of our star ratings


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