Nikon 60mm f/2.8D AF Micro-Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

I am a beginner to DSLR and wanted to play with macro photography, and am really pleased with the results of this lens--crisp, light-weight, economic, and reliable. I manual focus on such intricate shots as reflections on water drops and have never been disappointed with the results. I would recommend this lens for beginners or intermediate hobbyists.

This is by far my favorite lens. In several reviews you'll see that people have said it's great for portraiture. In my opinion, it's great for everything. Even though this is not a zooming lens, I find that I use it more than any other lens in my bag. It's that flexible. The bokeh that it renders is wonderful. However, the most important thing to me is how sharp this lens is. It is absolutely tack sharp. Many people have said that it is one of the sharpest lenses Nikon has ever made. You will not be disappointed. The one issue with this lens is that you need to get very close to your subject if you're doing 1:1 macro work. Like others here have noted, that makes it pretty difficult to use for insect photography. However, that is a known limitation of a lens with a focal length of 60mm... If you want to get away from your subject a bit, you might want to consider the 105mm Micro Nikkor (which I'm sure is just as sharp as this one). If you own the Nikon D40, D40x, or D60, you will have to manually focus with this lens. I have the D40, and that's no problem for me. You can buy the AF-S version of this lens, but it will cost you extra, and for someone like me, it's not worth it. The focusing ring is very nice with this lens. It's well weighted, and doesn't feel flimsy (Nikon put extra effort into this focusing ring, because this is a macro lens, and you need to manually focus when you're doing macro work).

Overall: I HIGHLY recommend this lens to ANYONE with a Nikon camera. You will not be disappointed with its performance one bit, and the macro capability might open some new doors for your photography.

By the way, at the time of my writing of this review, the current price for this lens is $549, sold by "Wall Street Photo" (a crummy 3rd part seller on amazon) - DON'T BUY IT AT THAT PRICE. I say this for 2 reasons:

1.) You can buy the AF-S version of this lens for even less than that

2.) You can buy this lens for about $399 from a reputable dealer like B&H Photo Video

To me, the lens is actually worth $549 (in other words, it's priceless to me), but it's pointless spending that much when you don't have to.

An excellent portriat lens, tack sharp. A little to close for macro if shooting insects, small reptiles etc. With static objects it can not be beat. Been using mine for several years and never been disappointed.

This refers to the lens on a D80 Nikon. The lens replaced many older lenses from the past F70 system era. This 60 mm. was a ton of money to part with for such a narrow range,or so we thought. Not .Crystal clear separation, breathtaking definition of anything close up was quality beyond our wildest expectation.BRILLIANT all round lens too...A TRUE performer, worth every penny. The 60mm.paired with the fabulous sensitivity of the D80,allowed for tripod free shooting. Spokane is close to our local Grand Coulee desert, with its exceptional flowers, we can begin to see them the way reality made them.

This would most probably be the sharpest lens in Nikon's arsenal. The 60mm on a 1.5 crop factor camera would be about 90mm in 35mm format. this lens would be a dual purpose portrait lens + close up lens. The 60mm is a bit short if you want to take insects (but not impossible), and the 105mm or 200mm Micro-Nikkor lens would be better for that, but if you take still life, flowers, objects, food, etc. This lens would be perfect for it. The minimum focusing distance is a bit too close for most insects' comfort.