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Tokina atx-m 11-18mm f/2.8 E - Review / Test Report - Sample Images & Verdict |
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Lens Reviews -
Sony Alpha/NEX (APS-C)
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Page 3 of 3
Sample Images
Click on an image to download the full-size variant.
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 200 |
| Focal Length | 18.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/4.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1000s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 200 |
| Focal Length | 14.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 1/1000s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/60s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 13.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1600s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 18.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1250s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1000s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/4.0 |
| Exposure | 1/80s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 1600 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.0 |
| Exposure | 1/60s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/500s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 13.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/320s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.0 |
| Exposure | 1/60s |
 |
| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1600s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1250s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 200 |
| Focal Length | 14.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/6.3 |
| Exposure | 1/800s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 11.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/640s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 13.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/640s |
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| Make | SONY |
| Model | ILCE-6300 |
| ISO Speed | 400 |
| Focal Length | 18.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/8.0 |
| Exposure | 1/1000s |
Competition
The Tokina atx-m 11-18mm f/2.8 E has two primary competitors - Sony's own E 10-20mm f/4 G and the Tamron Tamron 11-20mm 2.8 Di III-A RXD - we have yet to test these making it hard to comment. As you might expect, the Sony lens is the most expensive of this threesome - despite being the slowest lens here. In terms of resolution, it should be in a ballpark similar to the Tokina. The Tamron offers a slightly longer range but is otherwise very similar on paper. There is also the older Sony E 10-18mm f/4 OSS. It's not fully clear whether it's discontinued in favor of the newer E 10-20mm f/4 G though. It remains an interesting choice thanks to its OSS image stabilizer. In terms of sheer optical performance, it's slightly inferior to the Tokina lens.
Verdict
It's nice to see that Tokina is finally back with a new original design. And the Tokina atx-m 11-18mm f/2.8 E doesn't disappoint. Like all ultra-wide lenses, it has a few rough edges but overall, we are generally very pleased with the performance. This is especially true for the resolution chapter. With the exception of 18mm @ f/2.8, it is pretty sharp across the image field. At medium aperture settings, it even approaches greatness. Thanks to comparatively low native image distortions, image auto-correction doesn't need to work hard either - thus maintaining most of the resolution goodness. The original vignetting is very high at 11mm f/2.8 but it's reasonably well controlled at other settings and quite low with auto-correction again. Lateral CAs are an old Tokina enemy and they are indeed visible in RAW files but they represent no problem after processing. The sunstar rendering is decent at medium aperture settings. A weakness is flare in backlit situations, so better use the supplied lens hood.
The Tokina lens follows the brand's long tradition of having a very good build quality. The lens is lightweight yet doesn't sacrifice a solid feel. The control rings are very smooth. The inner lens tube extends slightly when zooming towards the wide-end - there is nothing wrong with this, but it is a little unusual in this respect. The AF is reasonably fast and it's perfectly silent. While it won't affect most users, we'd prefer finer steps of the AF motor though. As is, manual focusing via the focus-by-wire system feels somewhat coarse.
The Tokina atx-m 11-18mm f/2.8 E enters a busy market segment with lots of options to choose from. Besides being a pretty good lens to boot, it is also more affordable than most making it the value king in its class.
Mechanical Quality:
★★★★★
Click here for an explanation of our star ratings
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