A. T.

Hello my UHH family,

I'm interested in an FX wide angle zoom for a nikon D500. I have a 28-300mm FX lens that I use on my full frame DSLR; however, I would like to have an FX version that would have a wider angle, possibly 14 or 18mm that I can use on my D500. The 28-300mm will work just fine but it makes the wide angle 42mm which makes it impossible in areas where I'm not able to physically move back far enough to get the shot. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I would really like to stay with a Nikkor lens.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Since you also have a full frame camera, a lot of the answer is going to be driven by just what you want to do and how much you are willing to give up on the long end. 28-300 is just short of 11:1 zoom ratio. There aren't a whole host of similar choices for full-frame, especially that go wider.

I shoot D500s and D850s. And I mostly use a 24-120mm on my D500. Of course that is only about 35mm on the wide end, but it is 180mm on the long end. A second D500 usually has a 17-55mm f/2.8 DX zoom, which is close to 24-80mm equivalent. I use the D850 if I know I'm going to be doing serious wide angle shooting with either a 24-120 f/4, 24-70 f/2.8, or 14-24 f/2.8.

I also have a full-frame 16-35mm AF-D lens in the DX backpack. It's not a very good FX lens, but is really pretty nice on the D500 since the corners get cut off. It's roughly equivalent to 24-52mm and is one of my lighter lenses. You could also use a 14-24mm f/2.8, but that lens is really heavy and only gives you 21-35mm equivalent.

Just for reference, the 16-80mm f/2.8-4 DX zoom is equivalent to 24-120 full frame. I don't like that lens...too expensive and too mediocre, and really f/4 over almost its entire range. But almost everyone but me really loves it. If you find a new one, it will be just short of $1200. Used probably $900. Very nice used 24-120 AF-S Nikkors are pretty abundant for less than $500.

A. T.

Okay, I also shoot with a D850 that I use for portraits and landscape, the D500 for action shooting and a D4s for low light shooting or when I'm not sure what the lighting will be. I use a 28-300 FX on my D4s for walk-around to keep from carrying more than one lens when I know that I will need reach as well as wide angle shots. I really don't need another wide angle zoom, it's just a want to increase my action capture rate. The D500 is much faster focusing than my D4s so that's the only reason for wanting a wider FX zoom for the D500. Of course I could use the 28-300 but as I mentioned, 28mm on the D500 is 42mm equivalent so now I've just lost my wide angle.

Bill_de Loc: US

I have the Nikkor 14-24 F/2.8. It works fine on the D500, but if you are looking for wide angle view, you may want to consider using it on your D850. Also, it is a heavy lens for the size. Since both of your cameras can handle an older lens, Nikon AF FX NIKKOR 14mm f/2.8D is another option.

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larryepage Loc: North Texas area

There's also an 18-300 zoom, but it's a DX lens...about 16.5:1 ratio. I've never used one. There were also 18-200 and 18-140 DX zooms. Not nearly as many superzooms for FX as for DX.

ClarkJohnson Loc: Fort Myers, FL and Cohasset, MA

Obviously, the crop factor on the D500 is working against you if you are seeking an FX lens. To get really wide on the D500, you would need a wide DX lens starting at 10mm (e.g., Nikon DX 10-20) or 11mm (e.g., Tokina 11-20). I am not aware of any zoom that gives both ultrawide in addition to long focal lengths.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

I know you are looking at a wide FX lens for your D500 without knowing your reasons. The 14-24 f2.8 is a lens I have never used but it has excellent reviews. If I had a D500 that is not the lens I would like to fit to my camera that has a much smaller sensor than FX.
Without knowing your reasons, as I said, why not using a DX lens with your D500? Those are lenses specifically made for the DX format covering the whole sensor.

I have an old Nikon 12-24 f4 AF-S that I use with my also old D7000. I can use it with my FX camera between 16 and 24mm and for me that is all the wide angles I will ever need. Nikon also has other options like the 10-20 f4.5-5.6 which is lighter, smaller and cheaper than the 12-24 f4.
The problem with FX lenses is that many times they are not wide enough for the DX format.

SkyKing Loc: Thompson Ridge, NY

…used AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8G IF-ED…it’s a pro lens…you can pair it with the AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR…
…I am using the 16-80 that was made for the D500 and the 80-400 (gave the 70-300 to my daughter because it always seemed to be a little short)…now I am filling in with prime lenses as my mood dictates…

starlifter Loc: Towson, MD

I have a Tamron 15-30 2.8 G2 version which does everything I need and is super sharp. One curious thing about it is it's bigger than my 24-70.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I have a 14-24, which I bought a decade ago. It does not get much use. It is a great lens but very inconvenient. It's bulky and does not fit in my bag with all the other stuff I keep in there. Most of the time I need a really wide lens it's for static scenes (landscapes), and taking panoramas works just fine for me. The only time I found it really useful was at a wedding in a small room with a lot of people. It was a dynamic scene and trying to do panoramas there can be challenging.

The 14-24 does well straight on. If the lens is tilted up or down, you get significant perspective distortion effects, with verticals leaning in or out. The front element sticks out significantly and there's no convenient way to put a filter on it. That's not really a problem because the only filter I use is a polarizing filter and polarization is strongly dependent on the angle of incidence, so for a wide angle there's a large variation in polarization across the frame. It's even very obvious with a 24mm focal length. But the lens sticks out so far that the lens hood provides little protection.

The 14-24 gives good images but if you're interested in something like that I think you'd be better off renting one to see if it works for you.

GLSmith Loc: Tampa, Fl

I use my D-500 in some extreme areas. One of my go to lenses is the 18-300. Light weight, ability to clearly focus withing a few inches of the camera. I favor this lens over the 28-300. The 18-300 is designed for the DX series as well. Attachment was taken with the 18-300 @ 300mm from about 1200 yards @ 1/8000, F/13 ISO 125

Warhorse Loc: SE Michigan

I shoot my D500 with a DX 10-24 3.5-4.5 for wide angle, and a DX 18-300 as a walk around.

ColoPete

I am surprised that no one has yet mentioned the Nikon 16-35 f4G lens. I love mine on my D850 (FX). It is very sharp with good image quality and on a DX camera, would give you 24-52 mm zoom, plus you can also use it as intended on an FX body. For shooting on a DX body exclusively, I would use a dedicated DX lens like the 10-24 f 3.5-4.5 which is smaller and lighter but also very sharp.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

The only way to get that kind of zoom range and get the wide end is with a DX lens.

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

Since the Nikon D500 is a DX lens, the 18-300 or even 18-400 lens should be fine. I have the Sigma 18-300 on my Canon and am very happy with it. Back when I bought it, there was an appreciable difference in price with the Tamron 18-400.