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Less is often more, especially when you're new to photography. This should also be the motto of the Z5 which at first glance looks like a duplicate of the Nikon Z6. The case is also made of magnesium and is resistant to dust and splashing water. The case design and button layout are also largely unchanged. There are however technical simplifications, but which will not however put off many photographers. New sensor Focus: Fast and precise. I know of no better way to describe this. More words and I'll just confuse you. So let me just phrase it a different way: within the constrains of the Z6/Z7 autofocus system, the lens is not slowing anything down or making it less precise. Have a look below to see the magnitude of uncorrected lateral CA at 24mm, F5.6 on a high resolution Z7 camera body, then hover over 'Distortion + Lateral CA correction profiles applied' to view the results after correction. There's minimal negative impact from the CA correction, but the distortion correction does introduce some softness into the image (pay particular attention to the tree branches). Usually there’s some disparity with sharpness when it’s measured horizontally and vertically, and that’s especially the case with zooms. A lens exhibiting astigmatism may show such a discrepancy, as you can see from the solid and dotted lines in the graph below. The 24-70mm f/4 S has one switch (A/M) and two rings. The zoom ring is the frontmost ring and marked at 24, 28, 35, 50, and 70mm and rotates about a quarter turn from wide to tele (again, there's a "retracted point, which requires moving the lens another 1/8 of a turn from 24mm).
Viewfinder: 1.27-cm/0.5-in. approx. 3690k-dot (Quad VGA) OLED electronic viewfinder with colour balance and auto and 11-level manual brightness controls The Great Room at The Ahwahnee, October 2018, 1:15 P.M. Nikon Z7, Nikon 24-70mm f/4 Z at 24mm, f/4 hand-held at 1/2 second at Auto ISO 100, Perfectly Clear v3.6. bigger or full-resolution. Mirrorless System Lenses Canon RF Lenses Fujifilm X Mount Lenses Nikon Z Lenses Sony E Mount Lenses Sony G Master Lenses L Mount Lenses Micro Four Thirds Lenses Canon EF-M Lenses The Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S is a compact high-performance ultra-ultra sharp lens for Nikon's new full-frame mirrorless cameras. Externally, there’s a wide rubber zoom ring and a narrow, ribbed metal collar used by default for manual focus; however, it is customizable and can be set to adjust aperture values or exposure compensation.Unless otherwise stated, all measurements are performed in conformity with Camera and Imaging Products Association (CIPA) standards or guidelines.
Yet there's that "S" in the lens designation. Nikon's been saying that stands for "superior," or a high end lens specification (as opposed to a lesser consumer specification like the 24-85mm has). We'll get to whether the lens performs up to that "S" marketing claim in the performance section towards the end of this review [foreshadowing: it does], but it's interesting that Nikon is making a mirrorless full frame zoom they claim as high quality that's nearly as small as the most consumer option the company made for DSLRs. And there's good news for videographers, as Nikon has once again done a great job of controlling focus breathing, just as it did in the other members of its Z-mount F2.8 zoom trinity, the Nikkor Z 14-24mm F2.8 S and Nikkor Z 70-200mm F2.8 VR S. With the Nikkor Z 24-70mm F2.8 S, Nikon gives Z-mount shooters a higher-end alternative to the existing, more consumer-friendly 24-70mm F4 S. In the process, it completes a lineup of bright F2.8 zooms that, along with the excellent Nikkor Z 14-24mm F2.8 S and Nikkor Z 70-200mm F2.8 VR S, span the entire range from a 14mm wide-angle to a 200mm telephoto with no gaps in coverage. Display: the Z6's mini OLED display located on the top of the case (to show the parameters engaged) has been replaced here by a dial for selecting the different modes. The rear screen retains the generous 3.2-inch format. However, it has a lower resolution with its 1.04 million dots. Here's a 45 megapixel shot wide-open at f/4, and as the camera-original JPG shows, it's ultra-sharp from corner to corner — and it gets sharper as stopped down until you hit the diffraction limit. You can't ask for better performance than this:
Comparison: Nikon Z5 vs Z6
Yet despite being far more portable, the 24-70mm F2.8 is an even better lens than its already-impressive DSLR forerunner in almost all respects. It has both an extra customizable control ring and button, a really handy OLED info display and excellent image quality despite a somewhat less complex optical formula. In this instance, measured wide-open at 50mm, the Canon doesn’t perform that well, but the Sony Zeiss is the worst offender overall, with very high levels of astigmatism. Even so, while it may look bad when displayed like this on a graph, it may translate into attractive imagery—indeed, some of the most highly-regarded lenses show some astigmatism when tested. On the other hand, the Nikon exhibits practically none—an outstanding result, even though its overall the levels of sharpness don’t quite match its competitors’. Chromatic aberration People have argued over the lens mount specifications and what they mean, but I think you get a fairly clear example of that in this lens: the wide opening and short flange distance has allowed the Nikon lens designers to work some magic in a small space. Every entry-level camera needs a kit lens, and the Z 24-50mm f/4-6.3 is the Z5’s. In fact, in some markets including the UK, the camera is available as a bundle with the lens, while in other territories, such as the USA, it can be bought body-only.
Autofocus is as fast as every other modern lens, and its stepper autofocus motor is silent from more than a few inches away. If it's quiet and you listen very carefully you can hear a very slight whine as it works. For a compact, moderate-speed zoom, the Nikon Nikkor Z 24-70mm F/4 S achieves a very good overall balance in performance, with consistent sharpness an overriding theme.The Sigma fp L has an in-line crop-zoom feature for stills and video, so it is a kit under 900g with a FOV range of 28mm (FF 1x) to 140mm (m4/3 2x) and beyond depending upon the mode (~400mm, 1080p 5.6x). The Panasonic and Leica S/SL cameras also have crop modes, but they require configuration and only for a few steps, like ~APS-C and ~m4/3, rather than the 26-steps of the fp L. This new Z lens has an electronic diaphragm for quiet operation and is designed also for shooting video, with little to no focus breathing (no change in image size as focused). Nikon claims it's dust and drip resistant. Admittedly, with the Z 7 housing a slightly higher-resolution 45.7MP sensor versus 42MP in the Sony A7R II, the new Nikon compares very favorably to both the Sony Zeiss F4 model and the faster F2.8 models, but it can’t be directly compared. The same of course is true for the Canon EF 24-70mm F2.8L II mounted on the 50MP Canon EOS 5DS R. If you’re familiar with any of those combinations, that will give you an indication of the kind of performance you can expect. In-depth comparisons
At the wide end of its zoom range, the Nikon 24-70mm delivers excellent sharpness on the 24MP Z5 in the center of the frame at F2.8, and while the corners are a little softer they're still quite good. Stopping down to F5.6 makes little to no noticeable difference in the center of the frame, but does improve corner sharpness, which is more noticeable on the higher resolution Z7 (compare the peripheries of this F2.8 image vs. this F5.6 image shot on the Z7). Focusing in the corner improves sharpness so slightly that it's reasonable to surmise the lens does not suffer from much field curvature. JPEG: JPEG-Baseline compliant with fine (approx. 1:4), normal (approx. 1:8), or basic (approx. 1:16) compression; size-priority and optimal-quality compression available Interestingly, the Nikon Z5 swaps the single XQD/CFexpress card slot in the Z6 and Z7 for dual SD card slots. (Image credit: Adam Waring/Mike Harris) Build and handling Just grab the electronic focus ring at any time for instant manual-focus override. It works very well, much better than Sony. The Z6/Z7 body and the 24-70mm f/4 make for a very compact full frame solution. A fraction bigger than the Sony alternative, but as you'll discover later in this review, much more than a fraction better.Hybrid AF, AF Phase Detection, AFContrast, AFS (Single), AFC (Continuous), Full Time AF, AF Predictive The sample images displayed on the camera and the images and illustrations in the manuals are for expository purposes only. Dust-reduction system: Image sensor cleaning, Image Dust Off reference data (Capture NX-D software required) There is only slight breathing in this 24-70mm. At 70mm the image gets slightly smaller as focused more closely. They are excellent light options for APS-C and FF systems for Panasonic, Leica, Sony and Sigma cameras.
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