Japan Gear Contemplation

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NIKON Z 8 (26.5mm, f/8, 1/60 sec, ISO64)

A lazy Sunday afternoon on the veranda. I lay down on my sunbed and went through a book that I just bought.

It’s Tokyo Unseen from Lukasz Palka, a guy from Poland who decided to live in Japan. I like his street shooting – channel on youtube so I bought his book for inspiration. As I just recently bought my Nikon Z8 it was right next to me. I still needed to familiarise with the new camera which is far more complex than my Fuji X-Pro2 or Fuji X-Pro3 that I used to shoot for the last 8 years.

NIKON Z 8 (24mm, f/8, 1/50 sec, ISO110)
 NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
 NIKON Z 8 (24mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
 NIKON Z 8 (24mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
 NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)

At that time I owned only the three lenses that I purchased together with the camera. The Z 14-24/2.8 S, the Z 24-120/4 S and the Z 40/2.0.  Meanwhile I added the Z 20/1.8 S, the Z 50/1.8 S and the AF 28/1.8 Z from Viltrox. I used to shoot with the prime lenses a lot recently because I become used to primes again with Fuji. There is something special about primes. I’m not talking about sharpness or clarity, the biggest difference today is that prime lenses mean you restrict yourself to one focal length which support creativity and will improve your images regarding composition.

But on that afternoon I was laying on a sun bed and went through those fantastic pictures of Tokyo. I was not moving around to explore different shooting angles. I just pointed the Z 24-120/4 S at various subjects, zoomed in or out and snapped some images. It was solely to familiarise with a camera that I just bought a couple of days before. So those are just snap shots of the most mundane subjects imaginable. Everything that was within reach without moving my ass out of that comfortable sun bed. They still look good. I think it is because of the pleasing late afternoon light but mostly because of the Z 24-120/4 S on a full frame sensor. It’s just a travel lens but because it offers 120mm on its long end and because the aperture is f4 through the range you can get very pleasing results.

What really sets this lens apart is that it is really sharp even wide open at all focal lengths.  This is the perfect “do-it-all”-lens when traveling. I love to shoot primes but if a standard lens is that good and versatile it is a pure joy to use too. It’s like when I first got my Fuji XF 16-55/2.8 WR. Finally a non-compromise zoom lens from Fuji. It changed everything.

At the end lenses make the system and the Z 24-120/4 S played a major part in my decision to choose Nikon Z. The other lenses were the Z 14-24/2.8 S and the Z 20/1.8 S. Wide angle is very important to me and Nikon really offers great options here.

NIKON Z 8 (24mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO64)
 NIKON Z 8 (24mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO64)

The reason I bought this book was to get some inspiration for my next trip to Japan. This one will be very different. It’s a vacation, my first vacation in Japan. I’m still contemplating regarding the camera gear I will take but most likely it will be this:

  • Nikon Z8
  • Nikon Z 24-120/4 S
  • Nikon Z 20/1.8 S
  • Nikon Z 40/2
  • Nikon Z 50/1.8 S

This gear fits into my Peak Design Every Day Sling camera bag. The Z 24-120/4 S is a no-brainer. This will be my standard walk around lens during the day. Perfect for practically everything. And because the Z8 has a high res sensor I try to get away without a tele zoom this time to keep it simple. The Z 20/1.8 S will be used a lot too. It replaces my favourite lens of all times the Fuji XF 14/2.8 R. This will cover wide angle for me. The other two lenses kind of replacing my Fuji XF 23/2 WR and Fuji XF 35/1.4 R. Kind of because instead of a 35mm lens I will be using a 40mm. The reason is simple: I first planned to replace both Fuji primes just with the 40/2 but meanwhile also got the 50/1.8. And since the 40/2 is so small and light I will bring both.

So I’m traveling with a prime lens kit which is very similar to what I brought on my business trips plus a truly universal standard zoom. The Nikon Z8 is much bigger and heavier than my Fuji X-Pro2 but it also offers some advantages: full frame, IBIS, fast AF, silent operation. On a trip to the USA I would also bring my Fuji gear but in Japan I want to keep things simple and small (for a mad man).

NIKON Z 8 (103mm, f/4, 1/250 sec, ISO800)