Such an excellent lens for macro photography

The depth of field is a fundamental property of the lens and f-stop. The manufacturer has little control over this, but prospective buyers should not be surprised to see some blurry images. In some circumstances it is necessary to use manual focus because the autofocus may select the wrong plane.

Flawless autofocus; Manual focus very easy; Lightweight; Short overall length

Narrow depth of field

Gary Wolstenholme reviews the new Nikon AF-S DX Micro NIKKOR 40mm f/2.8 Lens, an entry level macro from Nikon.

Excellent sharpness; Good build quality; Great value; Light weight and compact

Focusing can be slow

Wether you're shooting portraits, food or nature-indoors or outdoors-the AF-S DX Micro-NIKKOR 40mm f/2.8G's rounded 7-blade diaphragm renders a beautiful, natural background blur (Bokeh) at its wider aperture settings. Selective focus helps to isolate the subject, creating out of focus backgrounds.

Bought this one second-hand some years ago and it has proved itself to be an extremely useful lens - doubling as a 'standard 60mm (equiv)' and a fast macro. Sharpness is excellent but bokeh can be rather 'busy' in some lighting - especially dappled woodland sunlight.

Very sharp! On full frame cameras; you can get useful results if you stop down to F/8 or more

7-blade iris makes for 'busy' bokeh; Auto-focus not the quickest

Overall this is a very impressive and inexpensive lens that should bring true macro photography within the grasp of most DX-format camera users. There are a few minor weaknesses, the most obvious of which is relatively sluggish focusing in AF mode, but there is nothing serious to dislike about this...

During my two month journey with the Nikon 40mm f/2.8G DX Micro, I had a number of opportunities to use the lens for different types of photography. I tried it out for macro and landscapes during my trips to Yellowstone and Colorado mountains, shot an engagement along with Lola and took pictures of...

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I purchased this to use with my Nikon D3200 for close shots as the 2 lenses provided with the camera are great but are of little use for quality close up photos of very small items with small detail.

Was very impressed on this Nikon 40mm Lens. At first i was a little upset but then i played with the settings and boom happy. I use it to take close up pictures with my Live Coral that i sell online. Gotta get closer then i 60 or 105mm but for the price it was def worth the purchase.