Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S Overview

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Introduction

The Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S is an expert super-telephoto prime lens for Nikon Z-series full-frame mirrorless cameras.

It is described by Nikon because the the smallest and lightest 400mm lens that the corporate has ever created.

It contains a complicated optical construction comprised of 19 components in 13 teams, together with 1 ED ingredient, 2 super-ED components, 1 SR ingredient, components with Nano Crystal coat, and a fluorine-coated entrance lens ingredient.

This lens has a 9 blade diaphragm which creates a sexy blur to the out-of-focus areas of the picture.

It is geared up with an optical vibration discount system that gives 5.5 stops of built-in stabilisation and has a mud and drip resistant design.

An inner focusing mechanism means the lens barrel would not transfer, and it provides a minimal focusing distance of two.5 m (8.21 ft) and a most magnification ratio of 0.16x, while utilizing entrance screw-in 95mm filters.

There is a configurable ring on the lens barrel which lets you management both aperture, publicity compensation or ISO pace.

This lens can also be appropriate with the Nikon Z 1.4x and 2x teleconverters, providing focal ranges of 560mm and 800mm respectively.

The Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens is offered now priced at £3299 / $3299 within the UK and the US, respectively. It’s designed in Japan and made in China.

Ease of Use

Weighing in at 1245g (2 lb 12 oz) with the equipped tripod collar fitted and measuring 23.5cm (9.3in.) in size, the Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S is kind of a big and heavy lens.

Given the lengthy focal size that is on supply, although, it is truly one thing of a technological accomplishment by way of its total dimension and weight, being extra akin to a typical 70-200mm f/2.8 zoom lens.

It does really feel slightly unbalanced when utilizing it with a smaller sized digicam physique just like the Z6 II that Nikon offered for us to check it with, as proven within the product pictures.

It could be far more at house mounted both on the bigger Z9 digicam with its built-in grip or with the MB-N11 battery grip fitted to the Z6/Z7 sequence cameras.

We had been in a position to comfortably use it for a number of hours hand-held with out having to make use of a tripod or monopod, which makes it a really versatile, light-weight, travel-friendly telephoto possibility.

Construct high quality is excellent for what’s in spite of everything a professional-level lens. With a largely steel development, the Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S feels very stable in your hand, and it commendably has a steel mount.
Word that this lens additionally has a weather-resistant design to assist shield it in opposition to mud and moisture.

There are three switches on the left hand aspect of the Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens.

The highest one is the primary of two L-Fn customisable operate buttons. In the primary digicam menu, you may assign one among 21 totally different features to this button, together with AF lock, metering, topic monitoring, framing grid show and so forth.

The center one is a swap for selecting between auto-focusing and handbook focusing.

The underside one is a spotlight vary limiter swap with two settings, Full (Infinity-2.5 m) and Infinity-6m.

On the appropriate hand aspect is the memory-set button, which you should use to to avoid wasting the present focus distance.

The built-in 5.5 stops of picture stabilisation are essential when hand-holding such an extended lens, and the system fortunately works very properly, guaranteeing that you may shoot at slower shutter speeds than 1/four-hundredth and nonetheless get sharp outcomes (clearly relying in your approach).

When used with the Z9 digicam, Synchro VR combines the in-lens and in-camera VR methods for as much as 6.0 stops of compensation.

Word that there is no such thing as a exterior management on the lens for turning picture stabilisation on or off, which signifies that it’s a must to dip into the digicam’s menu system.

Sadly there is no such thing as a OLED knowledge show on the lens barrel, both, as featured on a few of Nikon’s different Z-series lenses.

There’s one other operate button marked L-Fn2 positioned in the direction of the top of the lens barrel which may also be customised.

There are an additional three unmarked buttons on the identical ring which is able to duplicate whichever setting you assign to the L-Fn2 button, guaranteeing that you may all the time entry one of many buttons irrespective of the way you’re holding the lens.

In the direction of the lens mount finish of the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens, there’s the primary (and smallest) of the lens’ two rings. This lens might be customised, too.

By default it’s set to manage aperture, however you too can change it to regulate publicity compensation or ISO. Alternatively you may have it set to do nothing in any respect.

On the centre of the lens, you’ll discover the focusing ring. It has no exhausting stops at both finish of the focusing ring, which makes it harder to concentrate on infinity.

The ring has simply sufficient resistance to make nice changes to handbook focusing, with out having an excessive amount of give.

The focusing ring is ridged and the management ring is knurled, serving to you differentiate between them by contact when taking pictures by means of the viewfinder.

Proper on the finish of the lens barrel is an anti-slip rubber grip for extra steady handheld use.

This additionally helps so as to add to the high-quality and durable really feel of the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens.

This lens has been designed to be as fast and quiet as potential when autofocusing. That makes it ideally positioned for each stills taking pictures and video.

Capturing with the lens proves it to have nearly unerringly correct and fast autofocus within the majority of conditions, with barely any searching in any respect. It’s additionally impressively quiet, too.

A detachable tripod collar is included, in the direction of the lens mount finish of the lens.

You possibly can place it wherever you want across the Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens, permitting you to connect the digicam to your tripod or monopod in no matter place you want it.

A detachable foot can also be included, which has two totally different tripod attachment threads (one on the entrance, one on the again).

You should use the dots on the tripod collar to match up with the traces on the lens itself to completely align it, too.

Additionally included within the field is a big lens hood (HB-105), which inserts onto the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S’ 95mm filter thread, and a lens case (CL-C5).

The hood locks into place and is reversible so you may scale back the scale of the lens for transporting it and storing it at a smaller dimension.

Focal Vary

The Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S gives an angle of view of 6° 10′.

Chromatic Aberrations

Chromatic aberrations, sometimes seen as blue or purple fringes alongside contrasty edges, weren’t particularly obvious in our check pictures, solely showing in very excessive distinction areas.

Vignetting

With the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens set to its most aperture, there may be some gentle fall-off within the corners, which you will have to appropriate in post-processing.

Distortion

There’s some very delicate pin-cushion distortion in each the JPEG and Uncooked information, however it’s in no way pronounced.

Macro

The Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S isn’t a macro lens, providing a minimal focusing distance of two.5 m / 8.21 ft mixed with a most magnification of 0.16x.

Bokeh

Bokeh is a phrase used for the out-of-focus areas of {a photograph}, and is normally described in qualitative phrases, reminiscent of clean / creamy / harsh and so on.

Within the Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens, Nikon have employed an iris diaphragm with 9 rounded blades, which mixed with the utmost f/4.5 aperture and lengthy focal size ends in very good bokeh in our view.

We do realise, nonetheless, that bokeh analysis is subjective, so we have included a number of examples beneath in your perusal.