Nikon has announced a new 14-30mm f/4 ultra-wideangle zoom to go with its new Z 6 and Z 7 full frame mirrorless cameras, launched last year. It joins the existing 24-70mm f/4 kit lens and 50mm and 35mm f/1.8 prime lenses, and is an important addition to the fledgling Z-series lens range.
Like the Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/4S, the Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 has a retracting mechanism to shorten the lens for storage and portability. The new lens also offers extensive weather sealing for use in bad weather and harsh environments.
What’s especially interesting is that it has a flat front element, which is a first for a full-frame ultra-wideangle lens and allows the use of regular 82mm filters without the need for bulky ultra-wide adaptors. 82mm is still a pretty large filter size, but it does mean landscape, travel and interior photographers will be able to use filters just as they would with a normal lens.
The Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4S is designed for both stills and video, with a smooth and silent ‘multi-focusing’ system which won’t produce intrusive motor noise while filming and is designed to reduce ‘focus breathing’.
It uses Nikon’s Nano Crystal anti-reflective coating to increase contrast and light transmission and also has an interesting customisable control ring. By default is is set up to provide manual focus, but it can also be used for aperture control (especially useful for iris transitions when recording video) or on-the-fly exposure compensation.
This is likely to be an important lens for Nikon as it seeks to make inroads into the full frame mirrorless camera market. There’s a long way to go before it catches up with the range of lenses offered for the Sony Alpha system, but this new 14-30mm ultra-wide lens and the compatibility with existing Nikon lenses via the optional FTZ lens adaptor are all steps in the right direction.
Available: April 2019
Price: £1349 (UK)/€1499 (Ireland)
More information: NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S-Line lens
fotovolo 
Leave a comment