Nikon 20mm f4 AI
s/n: 114066
Edit: Timm Chapman responded and indicated that this is a pre AI type K lens that has been converted to AI. There is no optical or size difference. I bought this version based on Ken Rockwell’s review, his is the same and was not identified as such, as Timm said, semantics…
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This is the second lens made famous by a gifted photographer that I’ve purposefully hunted down and purchased, the first one being the Nikkor 105mm f2.5 AI used by Steve Mcurry (he used the AI-S version) for the iconic picture of the Afghan Girl. The Nikkor 20mm f4 AI being used by Galen Rowell because of its focal length and compact size. I grew up reading Galen’s books, dreaming of the pictures found within and the Owens Valley which is where he lived and did a lot of his climbing and photography is one of my favorite areas of the United States.
I almost didn’t get to own one. I’m constantly trimming my lens kit down as I used to be a lens junky. Once a photographer, do you really stop jonesing for new glass? I had bought an F6 which would mount my manual focus lenses but as I would work very hard to get into position to take a bunch of pictures, being tired I would blow the focus on a few. I needed those shots and I’m not less of a photographer if I use AF lenses so I decided to sell every last manual focus lens I owned. I found out about D series lenses and the crinkle finish auto focus lenses and started buying them. I just switched one addiction for another until which I realized I missed the manual focus part of my whole photography kit.
I sold my F3 and the FE2, I gave away my FG to my son. The F6 will mount the AI and AI-S but the experience isn’t the same. I thought about it and decided to build a small three lens manual focus kit that I could keep in a small camera bag. I decided on the 20mm f4 AI, the 50mm f1.8 AI-S and the 35-200 f3.5-4.5 AI-S with a Nikon FG. Three lenses and a flash that is reasonably inexpensive and durable. I can shoot manually and with aperture and shutter priority. That’s my manual focus kit and the reason I bought this lens.
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