NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/250 sec, ISO64)
These images are from the first days with my new camera the Nikon Z8. This time I shot with the travel zoom: The Nikon Z 24-120/4 S.
Travel zoom still has a kind of negative touch for me. Sure they are very convenient as one lens covers all your needs but they are usually full of compromises. Usually they are just slow and most of all not really sharp especially on the long end. It’s the same with standard zooms with the exception of the f2.8 kind. Those lenses are usually awesome but also big and heavy.
I have shot a lot with the Z 24-70/4 S when I got a second hand Nikon Z6 for my mother in law and I wasn’t impressed so initially I was prepared to get the Z 24-70/2.8 S. But of course there is no substitute for range and so I decided to give the Z 24-120/4 S a try. I bought my new gear during Nikons summer sale and an additional discount from the camera shop because of an exhibition so even if I would not have liked the lens I could sell it without loss.
Spoiler alert: I have not sold it yet and here is why:
NIKON Z 8 (40mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO64)
But first things first. When I finally got the Nikon Z8 I was a little shocked by the weight of the camera. Putting on the Z 24-70/2.8 S didn’t help either. That lens is 800g, the Z 24-120/4 S is 630g and that’s a difference that you can feel. Furthermore I initially plan to get away without a tele zoom on my first vacation. My rationale is that I can easily crop into the image and still end up with sufficient resolution thanks to the 45MP sensor of the Z8.
Of course you can only crop in if the image is sharp at 120mm on pixel level. The good news is it that it is sharp even if you pixel peep. This is a lens that is sharp at 24mm and at 120mm and everywhere in between. And the even more amazing news is that this lens is already sharp wide open at f4. There is no need to stop it down to f8 in order to get a useful shot which is often the case in standard/travel zooms.
You see that I use the term travel and standard zoom because many would not perceive a zoom lens a travel lens if the range is not at least 24-200 or higher. But as mentioned above on a high resolution body you can crop in to get to 200mm and would still end up with 16MP if my calculation is correct. And 16MP is still plenty in the real world.
NIKON Z 8 (81mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/11, 1/125 sec, ISO200)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/11, 1/125 sec, ISO200)
I already figured out that sharpness is excellent on this lens. I think it is a step ahead of the Z 24-70/4 S but I have not compared the two on the same camera. So of course it could be the high res sensor of the Z8 which makes all the difference. I don’t shoot Siemens stars or brick walls. I only care about real world results. If a lens sucks it is immediately obvious and the same is true if a lens is excellent. Above two mages shows you the original image and a 100% crop of the image. I stopped down to get some meaningful depth of field but I think we can’t complain about the level of detail here.
So the Z 24-120/4 S doesn’t suck but is it excellent? That is a little more difficult to answer. If compared to f4 standard zooms no matter if 24-70 or 24-105 or 24-120 the answer is yes. It is excellent. But I also got the Z 14-24/2.8 S and it is obvious that this lens is in a different category. Both have the S moniker but they are different. The Z 24-120/4 S is clearly an S lens but the Z 14-24/2.8 S is an S gold lens if you will. I have not shot with the Z 24-70/2.8 S but I guess the difference is similar. It is not a matter of sharpness, the Z 24-120/4 S is as sharp as it gets, it’s colour and contrast where I see the difference. But a wide range standard or short range travel lens that is as sharp as the f2.8 zooms and comes close to them regarding colours and contrast is something truly special.
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO64)
The title of this blog post of course is a song title. Most of my blog posts borrow song titles. I already established that this lens is a rose to where is its thorn? On a full frame body 120mm and an aperture of f4 allows for some subject isolation. If you think of it is not far of the subject isolation capability of the XF 50-140/2.8 OIS WR on a Fuji body.
And like the lens from Fuji the only real weak spot of the Nikon Z 24-120/4 S is its Bokeh. It is not super bad but it’s not good either. You really have to take a careful look at your background before you take an image. Otherwise the Bokeh can be a little busy. But if you are careful this is a competent portrait lens too as it not only offers 85mm but also comes close to 135mm which is my favorite focal length for close portraits.
And while it is not a macro lens it is perfectly fine for flowers and butterflies. So this lens is truly universal much more so than a 24-70/2.8 can ever be. So in that regard it is a true travel lens.
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO100)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO450)
One word regarding the other travel lens options from Nikon: There is a 24-200 but it is rather slow (200mm/6.3) and according to some reports not that sharp at all. I see no benefit to choose that lens over the 24-120 as I already mentioned above. But there is also a 24-400. This lens is a different story. Of course it is even slower with f8 at 400mm but the range is just crazy. From wide angel to super tele in one single lens. I can see where this lens would make perfect sense and in good light f8 is not a big deal at all. I would happily use such a lens to shoot surfers from the pier or beach. For the beach it’s the perfect lens because I never feel comfortable to change lenses there. And the lens isn’t that huge or heavy either. It’s only about 90g more than the 24-120 and still 80g lighter than the 24-70/2.8.
But back to the Z 24-120/4S. I love to shoot prime lenses but I think the 24-120 is perfect. From wide to real tele in one lens with a rather fast aperture that can be used wide open without compromising image quality. I think I will happily use this lens during the day to take the majority of my shots like I did with the XF 16-55/2.8 WR from Fuji. A lens that I really loved. The Nikon Z 24-120/4 S has a better range, is sharper on the long end and is even 25g lighter. There is only one thing to say: “We happy? Oh, we happy!”*
*Pulp Fiction
NIKON Z 8 (110mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO500)