Tokina AT-X 535 PRO DX AF 50-135 mm f/2.8 review - Build quality

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Tokina AT-X 535 PRO DX AF 50-135 mm f/2.8

22 September 2007

Arkadiusz Olech

3. Build quality

One of the Tokina's advertising campaigns in Poland suggests that only tanks are sturdier than Tokina lenses. By looking at the 50-135 f/2.8 we can say that there is not much exaggeration in this slogan. Lens is really good designed: sturdy, massive and with nice oval tripod adapter. We could not find any parts made of poor quality material.

Tokina AT-X 535 PRO DX AF 50-135 mm f/2.8 - Build quality

Zooming ring is large and comfortable. Zooming does not cause lens to change its dimensions - all optical elements are moving inside. Thanks to it there is no danger of sucking dust and dirt and there are no problems when using various filters (in this case they must be 67 mm in diameter).

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Focusing ring is even bigger and works precisely and smoothly. We discovered one small flaw: switching from AF to MF mode is done by moving ring towards camera body. This movement is not smooth but step and often you can loose focus when you try to switch.

The lens construction is similar to Sigma 50-150 mm. It consists of 18 elements in 14 groups. One element is made of Low Dispersion glass and there are also some aspherical lenses.

Tokina uses new WP (water proof) coating on the front lens which can help removing any water stains or bruises or even fingerprints.