Nikon AF DC-NIKKOR 135mm f/2 D Autofocus Lens {72}

The Nikkor 135mm f/2 D/DC is a top of the line professional portrait lens with a very unique and unussual feature: a dedicated bokeh control mechanism (separate from aperture and focus controls). It's a well built lens that produces extremely sharp images and is very handy to use.

The DC stands for Defocus Control and it allows a photographer additional control over the bokeh the lens produces. Bokeh is a term used to describe how the out of focus areas areas of an image render, their 'character' and how 'smoothly' they transition from in to out of focus. Out of focus areas are made up of light discs (sometimes called 'circles of confusion') which are created by the optics and aperture. Unevenness in the 'circles of confusion' is referred to as spherical aberration. Nikon's Defocus Control mechanism allows the photographer to subtley dial in spherical abberation (with recommend settings for each aperture) and adjust it's position (in front of or to rear of the plane of focus, via the 'F' or 'R' setting) for smoother more pleasing out of focus areas.

Nikon makes many fine lenses that can produce excellent portraits but this lens is Nikon's best of the best built specifically with portraiture in mind as it's main purpose. The 135mm f/2's has a particularly narrow field that offers more flattering perspective than uncropped 85mm and 105mm lenses, yet it's also much brighter and weighs much less than popular f/2.8 telephoto zooms. The 135mm f/2 D/DC is also a great for use in low light and anywhere placing maximum emphasis of subject matter is needed with uncompromising image quality.

Key Features

• Portrait lens with Nikon's exclusive Defocus Control (bokeh control)
• Photographer can control the degree spherical aberration in background or foreground elements for more creative control
• Tack sharp with astonishingly good image quality
• Super Integrated Coating aids superior color reproduction while substantially reducing ghosting and flare
• Large maximum aperture for shooting in low light and providing shallow depth of field
• Very flattering perspective
• Rear focusing for fast AF operation (requires AF motor in camera)
• Well dampened precise manual focus
• Excellent balance and handling for shooting hand held
• Mechanical Aperture control allows use on widest possible range of bodies and adapters
• D-type lens technology provides distance information to Nikon N90 and later cameras for improved flash metering
• Convenient and compact built-in lens hood
• Non-rotating 72mm filter ring

Available accessories include the CL-38 Hard Lens Case, 72mm UV and Neutral Density filters.