I say those are samples from the new Nikkor 16-35mm f/4 VR lens

By [NR] admin | Published: February 8, 2010

Update: Bob Krist clarified the lenses he used to take the pictures on his blog – 18-70mm kit lens from the old D70 and the 16-85mm. You can read his comments at the end of this thread. And make sure you visit his website tomorrow tomorrow for some interesting news 🙂 (not, the news is not Sony/Zeiss related).

Take a look at this photo from Bob Krist’s blog. The EXIF data is 35mm @ f/6.7 and Maximum Lens Aperture of f/4.1.

What lens could have 35mm focal length and max aperture of f/4? I don’t think such a lens exists (up till tonight that is). Please correct me if I am missing a mode (unless he is not shooting with a different brand name – Sigma, Tamron, etc).

Almost all other pictures on his blog from the past few weeks were taken with focal lengths between 16-35mm (there is only one picture shot @ 36mm). The weird thing was that they were all shot with DX bodies. My understanding is that the expected 16-35 f/4 VR is a FX lens.

I also would like to remind you about this post. Coincidence?

Bob, we know what you got there. Looking forward to seeing your pictures on Nikon’s website tonight. Why didn’t you use an FX body for those shots?

Full EXIF after the break:

Read More »

Posted in Nikon Lenses| Tagged | 52 Comments

“We will have several large aperture prime lenses and light compact zoom lens this year”

By [NR] admin | Published: February 8, 2010

The Japanese site dc.watch published an interview with Mr. Nobuaki Sasagaki, marketing chief for Nikon Imaging (English translation).

On the question about upcoming products:

“明るい単焦点レンズと高性能な小型ズームレンズを投入”

“We will have several large aperture prime lenses and light compact zoom lens this year”

Posted in Nikon Lenses| 31 Comments

We are on – announcements tonight!

By [NR] admin | Published: February 8, 2010

This will be a sticky post with the latest updates, scroll down for the rest of the stories. Similar to last time, I will update this post and create a separate entry for the indirect blog readers.

10:48 pm – It has begun! http://press.nikonusa.com/ is down. Announcement probably @ 11:00 pm, not midnight.

7:31 pm – Bob Krist clarified the lenses he used to take the pictures on his blog – 18-70mm kit lens from the old D70 and the 16-85mm. You can read his comments at the end of this thread. And make sure you visit his website tomorrow tomorrow for some interesting news 🙂 (not, the news is not Sony/Zeiss related).

5:05 pm – Those are the full names of the two lenses for tonight: Nikkor AF-S 24 mm f/1.4 and Nikkor AF-S 16-35 mm f/4.0G ED VR. Nothing else will be released.

2:09 pm – this lens, spotted last night at the Super Bowl is definitely NOT one of the new lenses.

1:45 pm -Take a look at this photo from Bob Krist’s blog. The EXIF data is 35mm @ f/6.7 and Maximum Lens Aperture of f/4.1.

What lens could have 35mm focal length and max aperture of f/4? I don’t think such a lens exists (up till tonight that is). Please correct me if I am missing a mode (unless he is not shooting with a different brand name – Sigma, Tamron, etc).

Almost all other pictures on his blog from the past few weeks were taken with focal lengths between 16-35mm (there is only one picture shot @ 36mm). The weird thing was that they were all shot with DX bodies. My understanding is that the expected 16-35 f/4 VR is a FX lens.

I also would like to remind you about this post. Coincidence?

Bob, we know what you got there. Looking forward to seeing your pictures on Nikon’s website tonight. Why didn’t you use an FX body for those shots?

Full EXIF data here.

8:40 am – The Japanese site dc.watch published an interview with Mr. Nobuaki Sasagaki, marketing chief for Nikon Imaging (English translation).

On the question about upcoming products:

“明るい単焦点レンズと高性能な小型ズームレンズを投入”

“We will have several large aperture prime lenses and light compact zoom lens this year”

7:50 am – Some Nikon events are scheduled in some countries for tomorrow. As you probably know this means announcement tonight at around 11pm or midnight US Eastern time. One of the sources is a known “Nikon” person in a public forum which I will not mention here. I also have two other, independent confirmations. That must be it!

Posted in Nikon Lenses| Tagged , | 231 Comments

The next three days

By [NR] admin | Published: February 7, 2010

The good news: the 24mm f/1.4 and 16-35mm f/4 VR lenses are coming.

The bad news: I don’t have an exact date for this announcement. As far as I know, there is no press conference scheduled for this release next week. The new products can be out as early as tomorrow and as late as Wednesday night. Previous patterns suggests the release should be on Wednesday, February 10th CET (or Tuesday midnight, US eastern time) – exactly a week after the Coolpix announcements.

The rumor is that some German retailers could already place orders for those two lenses. The expected retail availability is end of March, 2010.

New teleconverters are still with a low possibility (80% chance).

Posted in Nikon Lenses| Tagged , | 77 Comments

There is a patent for a new Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm F1.2G lens

By [NR] admin | Published: February 7, 2010

After yesterday’s rumor, a reader posted a link to a Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm F1.2G patent on a Japanese site (English translation):

  • Focal length f = 51.63mm
  • Brightness F = 1.25
  • Overall length: 94.94mm optics

The patent was filed on July 2nd, 2008 and was published on January 21st, 2010. I could not find any reference to this lens in the US Patent Office – it seems that this patent was filed only in Japan (just a reminder that patents do not guarantee a future production version).

I am curious to know if the tips I received are based on this patent or they are coming from different channels.

UPDATE: for comparison, here is the lens diagram of the current Nikon 50mm f/1.2 Ai-S model (source: Nikon):

Posted in Nikon Lenses, Nikon Patents| Tagged , | 93 Comments

Rumor: Nikkor AF-S 50mm f/1.2

By [NR] admin | Published: February 6, 2010
The old version 50mm f/1.2

current version

I keep receiving those anonymous tips (three so far) about a new Nikkor AF-S 50mm f/1.2 lens:

Nikon are working on an autofocus upgrade of the classic 50mm f/1.2. It is still rather far from production however the optical formula is very similar to the Ai-s lens. The auto focus of this lens is different than the currently used in AF-S lenses. The upgraded focusing is what would be consider an evolution and not a revolution. It’s slightly faster on existing bodies. It allows quick stop-to-stop autofocus while maintaining a comfortable manual focusing speed- which is particularly important with the shallow depth of field of a lens this fast. Current models are very much engineering samples and specific ergonomic considerations are still being evaluated.

Could this be the PMA surprise? One of the messages I received said that this lens will be released together with the 24mm f/1.4, which means next week (contrary to the above paragraph which states that this lens is “far from production”). Those are conflicting stories, but are pointing to the same product which is not really in anyone’s expectations for this year. This is what makes this rumor interesting and worth sharing with you.

Since the source is unknown, I will rate this rumor @ 50% release probability.

The old version Nikon 50mm f/1.2 Ai-S is still available @ Adorama.

Posted in Nikon Lenses| Tagged | 119 Comments

A quick giveaway (#5) while we are waiting

By [NR] admin | Published: February 5, 2010

Update #2: the winner is Camille Miller.

Update: this giveaway is now closed. The winner will be picked shortly by the forum mods here.

You can win this Nikon D300s book by David Busch (bibliography | more info). The rules are simple – just leave a comment to this post. I will close all comments on the day Nikon makes its next announcement (probably Tuesday, February 9th @ midnight) and will randomly pick the winner. Of course I don’t believe in “US only” giveaways and I will ship this book anywhere in the world.

More giveaways are coming soon. Stay tuned!

Fine print: The contest is void where prohibited by law. All taxes are the responsibility of the winner. NikonRumors.com is not responsible for anything.

Posted in Nikon D300s| Tagged | Comments closed