Lens review

Nikon Nikkor AF-S DX 18-70 mm f/3.5-4.5 IF-ED

8. Vignetting

In this category Nikkor has its first serious failure. The compact size and the large focal length range has to result in vignetting, which we are not afraid to call huge.

The situation is worse in wide angle mode, with a wide open aperture, when relative light fall off in the corners reaches as much as 50% (twice the diaphragm value). Stopping down the lens helps, but just slightly. For f/4.0, vignetting reaches 42%, for f/5.6 it drops to 28%, and for f/8 to 20%. Even stopping down the lens to f/11 does not make the vignetting level satisfactory, which would be 10% or less.

In the middle of the focal length range the situation is fortunately better. For 30 mm and a diaphragm of f/4.0 the light fall off in the corners of the frame is 23% (0.75 the value of the diaphragm). For f/5.6 it drops to 13%, and f/8 it decreases to a satisfactory level of 10% and less. For a 50 mm focal length and a wide open aperture the vignetting value is 24%, for f/5.6 it is 17%, and for f/8 it is only 9%.