Tokina Announces 11-16 f2.8 II with Built-In Motor For Nikon

Tokina's 11-16 f2.8 II lens, due out later this year.

Tokina has just announced (you'll need to scroll down a little) that it will be launching a 'II' version of its highly-praised 11-16 f2.8 model, which is the only lens in the world that provides such a fast aperture with an extreme wide-angle perspective. Generally speaking, most ultrawide zooms start around f4 on the wide end. With its f2.8 maximum aperture and extremely wide field of view, some truly stunning low-light pictures can be shot without flash, provided one isn't afraid of cranking the ISOs up into the four digit mark.

If you want to see just what a f2.8 zoom can do under low-light when partnered with a modern digital camera, go to my Tokina 28-70 f2.8 review and scroll to the bottom.

For owners of low-end Nikon dSLRs, this is great news as this lens has a built-in motor, which will allow for AF on all current Nikons. The current lens employed the old-fashioned slotted screw drive, which will only allow AF on cameras with a built-in focus motor (D7000 and up). The lens also features what Tokina claims are improved optical coatings and a new AF mechanism, designed to boost AF speed.

As for pricing and availability, the lens should start hitting stores in April for the Nikon mount version and August for Canon. Price? Well, that's set at 94,500 Yen, which translates to about $1,200. Scared yet? Don't be, MSRPs are often greatly inflated from actual street prices.

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