Nikon Nikkor Z 35 mm 1:1.4 review – Brighter is not always better

It may be hard to believe, but Nikon hasn’t produced an f/1.4 prime lens for the Nikon Z series until now, some six years after its debut. Given that it’s often considered the sweet spot, it’s perhaps surprising that it’s taken so long: the ability to create a beautiful shallow depth of field effect and optics that need to be big, heavy and expensive.

One might naturally assume that this 35mm f/1.4 will replace the existing 35mm f/1.8 S lens, which was one of only three lenses released when the Z series debuted. However, both will continue to exist, with the older f/1.8 S actually being more expensive than its new f/1.4 sibling.

This goes against the conventional wisdom that f/1.4 is generally better. The reason for this is the S designation, or lack thereof, on the 35mm f/1.4 lens. Without it, we know that this is not a lens designed for sharpness and maximum optical quality.

Those who haven’t invested in a 35mm lens yet may be wondering which one to buy, while those who already have an f/1.8 may be considering trading it in. In this review, we’ll take a close look at what makes the most sense for both 35mm newbies and those who already own one.

A classic focal length for street and documentary photography, a 35mm lens offers a fairly wide angle of view that can capture most of the scene. This makes it well suited to other subjects, including nature portraits and even some types of landscape photography. Its wide aperture also makes it well suited to working in low light.

At £649, this isn’t a cheap lens, especially considering it doesn’t benefit from the ‘S’ designation, but it’s significantly cheaper than the existing f/1.8 lens, so that’s something to think about. That being said, you might also want to consider Nikon’s other wide-angle lenses, including the Nikon Z 40mm f/2 (£299) or Nikon Z 28mm f/2.8 (£244) if you’re looking to save money and don’t necessarily want that exact 35mm lens or the wide-angle f/1.4 aperture.

Nikon Z 35 mm 1:1.4 – Features

The lens is made up of 11 elements in 9 groups (including 2 aspherical elements). This is a less complex design than the 35mm f/1.8 lens, which also has 11 elements in 9 groups, but the f/1.8 also includes 2 ED elements, 3 aspherical elements, and nano crystal coated elements. It’s no surprise, then, that despite having a larger aperture, the f/1.4 and f/1.8 lenses are very similar in size and weight, with the f/1.4 being only slightly longer and a little heavier. There are 9 aperture blades that help create the bokeh (out-of-focus areas).

This isn’t a lens that would be called a macro lens, but it does have a minimum focusing distance of 0.27m. Considering that this is coming from the sensor and not the end of the lens, some types of close-up shots are possible with it. However, since it’s a wide-angle lens, you won’t be able to fill the frame with small subjects like flowers, but for depicting such subjects in their wider surroundings, it works well. The maximum magnification is 0.18x.

Although the lens does not have any special coating, all parts are sealed to resist dust and moisture, so it should survive shooting in less than perfect weather.

As mentioned, this is not a lens with the S (sharpness) designation. It is also worth mentioning that VR (Vibration Reduction) is not included. This should not be a major problem at this focal length, as all full-frame Z models have integrated image stabilization (IBIS) anyway.

It is of course possible to use this lens with a Z-mount APS-C camera like the Nikon Z50. This will give you a focal length of 52.5mm, which is also good for street and portrait photography.

Nikon Z 35mm f/1.4 – Structure and handling

I wouldn’t expect a lens like this to be particularly bulky and heavy, but it’s pretty impressive that it’s only slightly larger than the f/1.8 version. I imagine the appearance of a 35mm f/1.2 lens will add considerable weight and bulk, but for now there’s no discernible difference between using this and the 35mm f/1.8 lens.

To that end, it balances quite well with full-frame models like the Nikon Z7 II and Nikon Z6 III, and feels quite light on larger bodies like the Nikon Z8 and Nikon Z9.

A large ring takes up about half of the lens barrel and can be used for manual focusing. There are no fixed stops at either end of the ring, but it does provide enough room to make fine adjustments.

The 35mm f/1.4 lens doesn’t have many external controls. There’s no switch to switch between manual and autofocus, and no custom function buttons. However, the lens does have a control ring that allows you to change various settings, such as the aperture.

This is different from the f/1.8, which has no such ring. It’s also a click-free ring, which is useful for video work – in fact, this might be why anyone who primarily shoots video might prefer the f/1.4 to the f/1.8 lens.

An HB-115 lens hood is included, which extends the lens end of the 35mm f/1.4 by about one-third of the lens length. It can be reversed or removed when not in use.

Nikon Z 35mm f/1.4 – Autofocus

Focusing is quick and quiet in most situations, sometimes depending on the body used.

I’ve used this lens a lot for street photography, where you generally need the fastest autofocus possible to react to events happening in front of you. I’ve used it with both the Z7 II and the Z8, with the Z8 performing better/faster as expected.

I found it helpful to turn on Eye AF for a lot of my work. This included portraits, so it was definitely useful – the focus was spot on pretty much every time. It can be useful for street photography, but sometimes it can pick up the wrong eye.

Nikon Z 35 mm 1:1.4 – Image quality

The images produced by this lens are very good, with a good level of sharpness and detail. However, as it is not an S lens, you should not expect the ultimate in image quality, and it is fair to say that the 35mm f/1.8 surpasses it in many ways.

The f/1.8 lens is sharper, but even the f/1.4 lens has some issues with chromatic aberration, which occurs in high-contrast scenarios, while the bokeh is a little rough and sometimes lens flare can be an issue.

If you already own the 35mm f/1.8 and think that switching to f/1.4 would be an upgrade, it’s not – at least in terms of overall image quality. While there might be some improvements in image quality for low-light photographers who can shoot at f/1.4 compared to f/1.8, overall you’ll be worse off if you trade in your f/1.8.

Now it’s probably true that most people won’t compare the images taken with both lenses side by side, so when you’re first thinking about which 35mm lens to buy, the cheaper price of the 35mm lens might lead you to conclude that it’s the better buy for you. Probably only pixel peepers will be able to see much of a difference in your images, so if you’d rather save money at the expense of the best image quality, this makes a lot of sense.

Lens flare can be a problem with any lens, but a lens like this one without a special coating is even more susceptible to it. I like the effect on this photo of my daughter, but the lens flare does sacrifice contrast and detail. If you move the camera just a little out of direct sunlight, you’ll get a much better result.

Here I can also see that there is a significant chromatic aberration visible in the towers of the stadium in the background of the shot. It’s probably only noticeable because I pointed it out to you, but it’s unlikely you’d see the same thing with the f/1.8 lens. However, it was a particularly bright day and I was shooting directly towards the sun, so it would be challenging for many optics.

Here’s a look at the bokeh. This is a pretty subjective opinion, but while it’s reasonably pleasing, there are nicer models out there. However, for a 35mm lens at a lower price, it’s not too bad.

With the integrated lens correction, I can’t see any particular problems with unsightly vignetting, even when shooting at f/1.4 and with subjects where this would be clearly visible.

Nikon Z 35 mm 1:1.4 – Conclusion

Overall, there is a lot of good to be said about the Nikkor 35mm f/1.4 lens. It may be the cheapest or the sharpest, but it offers a good compromise between the two for those who are fans of this particular focal length.

It’s perhaps surprising that it’s taken Nikon this long to produce an f/1.4 lens for the Z series. The latest available Nikon lens roadmap doesn’t show any more f/1.4 lenses, but almost everything on that roadmap has been released by now, so there are likely some entirely new lenses coming that we don’t know about yet.

It would probably make sense to produce a range of other prime lenses in this mid-range price range, with the 50mm f/1.4 and 85mm f/1.4 lenses being obvious competitors.

The important thing to note is that the 35mm f/1.4 lens is not a replacement for the 35mm f/1.8 lens. In fact, it is worse in many ways. Don’t be fooled into thinking that a wider aperture must be better – in this case, it isn’t. The f/1.8 is sharper and has fewer optical issues – but you’re paying a premium for that, so that’s OK.

If you already own the 35mm f/1.8 lens, I certainly wouldn’t trade it for the 35mm f/1.4, with the caveat that it might be better suited to you if you do a lot of low light work or maybe video. However, if you’re a first-time 35mm buyer and can’t decide between the two, go for the f/1.4 if you’d rather spend the money on something else, but go for the f/1.8 if you want the best optical quality possible.

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