The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF and the Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
Size of a lens is an important deciding factor when comparing two lenses.Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF is the longer of the two lenses at 134mm. The Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX with a length of 90mm is 44mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF also has a larger diameter of 89mm compared to Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX's 84mm diameter.
Weight of a lens is as important as its external dimensions, especially if you are planning to hand hold your camera and lens combination for longer periods. Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX weighs 530g, 43% (410g) lighter than the Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF's weight of 940g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the 'Wideangle Zoom Lenses in Canon EF Mount for size comparison purposes.
Wideangle Zoom Lenses in Canon EF Mount for Size Comparison
Lens Mounts
Both Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF and Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX has the same Canon EF lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Canon EF lenses are Canon 1D X III, Canon 6D MII and Canon 5D MIV.
Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF is also available in Nikon F (FX) mount.
Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX is also available in Nikon F (DX) mount.
Focal Range
Tokina Opera 16-28mm F2.8 FF has a focal range of 16-28mm and 1.8X zoom ratio . When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.6x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 25.6 - 44.8mm.
Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX has a focal range of 12-28mm and 2.3X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 19.2-44.8mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.