Thankfully, it’s not a major issue when the sun is outside the frame. Nikon doesn’t supply a lens hood with the Z 40mm f/2 and I was concerned that flare might be an issue, especially with the low sun at this time of year (November in the UK). It’s not bad, but if you’re shooting a subject that’s moving towards or away from you, you’re likely to spot a slight changing in the framing. Once the lens is in the right zone, it focuses quite quickly on close subjects, but if it’s focussed a long way off, it can struggle.
Another option is to switch to manual focusing or, if you have the control ring set to M/A, you can adjust the focus directly. I found a quick solution was to hold my hand a little further away than the subject and focus on it before taking my hand away, recomposing the shot and half-pressing the shutter release again to focus on the intended subject.
Without the in-camera or software profile being applied, there’s a very slight hint of barrel distortion visible in images shot using the Z 40mm f/2, but it’s not worth worrying about and the profiles eliminate it anyway.įor the most part, the Nikon Z 40mm f/2 focuses quickly and accurately, and it’s compatible with the camera’s Eye detection AF, but on a few occasions it failed to respond to a close subject and stayed focussed at infinity. However, it can also be removed using the profile correction that’s available in Adobe Camera Raw and Lightroom. I don’t find the degree of vignetting objectionable at f/2 when the Vignetter Control is at Normal, but it can be obvious without the in-camera control. It’s worth activating the Nikon camera’s Vignette Control as this reduces the amount of corner shading that’s visible at larger apertures, however, I didn’t see much change between the different Vignette Control levels and use ‘Normal’ as my default setting.Ĭlosing down from f/2 to f/2.8 removes most of the corner shading, but if you switch quickly between images of an identical scene shot at different apertures you’ll see the corners continue to brighten as you close down further to f/5.6.
The best results are seen in the range f/4-f/11, with the f/8 being particularly impressive, but I’d happily use the entire f/2-16 range.
If you check the far corners of images captured at f/2 at 100% on a computer screen you’ll see that they are softer than the centre, but it’s not problematic at normal viewing sizes or in most real-world shooting situations.Ĭlosing down to f/2.8 makes a significant difference to the corner sharpness and by f/4, it’s very good. While it doesn’t hit the same level of performance as Nikon’s S-line lenses, the Nikkor Z 40mm f/2 is no slouch and there’s a good level of sharpness throughout its aperture range. Pressing the magnify button on the back of the camera enlarges the area of the image under the selected AF point to make it easier to focus manually. This doesn’t appear when the camera is set to autofocus mode and the ring is set to adjust focus manually (M/A in the Controls section of the Custom Setting Menu). In manual focus mode, a distance scale pops up on the screen or in the viewfinder when the control ring is moved. The ring moves smoothly and can be rotated with pressure from just one finger or your thumb.Īs there’s no switch on the lens, the focus mode is set via the camera. If the camera is set to manual focusing, the ring defaults back to its traditional function – focusing.
There’s only one ring on the Nikkor Z 40mm f/2 and as usual with Nikon Z-mount lenses, it can be set to adjust aperture, exposure compensation, focus or ISO when the camera is set to autofocus mode. I tested it on the Z7 II and it’s perfect for one-handed photography, but the control ring is ideally positioned for use as you rest the camera in you left hand while holding the grip with your right. But that doesn’t mean that it feels cheap or flimsy, it actually feels nicely made and at 170g/6oz about the ‘right’ weight.Īt 45.5mm or 1.8-inches in length and 70mm or 2.8-inches in diameter it looks great on a full-frame Nikon Z-series camera like the Z7 II, but it’s also a good size for an APS-C format model like the Z50 or Zfc. Perhaps with budget and weight in mind, however, it has a plastic barrel and lens mount. Despite its sub-£250/$300 price tag, the Nikon Z 40mm f/2 is sealed against moisture and dust, so it doesn’t have to be saved for use on dry-weather days.