Yesterday I asked the question about whether you wanted another wide angle zoom, given that Nikon has patented some new designs. I got a lot of responses in a very short period of time, which is usually the indication that this is a topic of deep interest to the target market. Lenses are still a liability for Nikon in the Z mount, and will be for several years as long as Nikon goes it alone.
The basic answer, near overwhelmingly, was no. A couple of you thought that if there was a clear price or size benefit you might be interested, but several also pointed out that since the two current wide-angle zooms both take filters, there isn't the need for another lens as there was in the F-mount world. In terms of the pricing difference needed, it would have to be 25% or more to get you to be interested (in other words, 14-30mm f/4 at US$1300, 16-35mm f/4 at <$1000).
More interesting was the answer to my other question, which is what lenses you might still want. I'm going to try an experiment here and list as many as possible. I've compiled your requests, making as few alterations as possible, though I've consolidated a number of "like" proposals together into one lens spec. After I present the list, I'll have a new question ;~).
- 8-16mm f/4 DX
- 11-33mm f/4 DX
- 12mm f/2.8 DX
- 16-60mm f/4 DX compact
- 14-80mm f/2.8-4 DX
- 56mm f/2 DX 1:2 macro
- 10-14mm f/4
- 10-18mm f/4 or f/5.6
- 12mm f/2.8
- 14mm f/2
- 16-50mm f/8 (scuba tuned, for close up work)
- 17-50mm f/4
- 19mm f/3.5 PC-E
- 20mm f/4 small
- 20-50mm f/4 collapsing
- 20-60mm f/4 small
- 20-70mm f/4
- 24mm f/1.2
- 24-35mm f/2
- 24-70mm f/2
- 24mm f/3.5 PC-E
- 24mm f/4 small
- 28-300mm f/4.5-6.3
- 35mm f/1.2
- 35mm f/4 small
- 35-105mm f/3.5-4.5 collapsing
- 45mm f/3.5 PC-E
- 50mm f/4 small
- 70-180mm f/4.5-5.6 macro
- 70-200mm f/4
- 75-150mm f/4
- 85mm f/1.2
- 85mm f/3.5 PC-E
- 85mm f/4 small
- 105mm f/1.4
- 120-350mm f/4.5-6.7 collapsing
- 135mm f/2.8
- 180mm f/2.8
- 200mm f/2.8
- 200mm f/4 macro
- 300mm f/4 PF with built-in TC
- 400mm f/4 PF
- 400-600mm f/5.6-6.3 compact
- 500mm f/5.6 PF
Note the DX lens demand, despite Nikon having only one DX camera (buzz, buzz). Three consumer zooms are not enough, Nikon. The market demands more, and there won't be any third party companies trying to fill in any autofocus lenses for Z DX any time soon. So if Z50 sales basically flat-line, Nikon only has itself to blame. Same as they do with the D500. (Seriously, the D7500 and D500 would have sold more units if it had a complete lens lineup.)
I suspect if Nikon made all 44 of those lenses you defined, you'd all be happy ;~). But even if Nikon agreed with you and produced exactly those lenses, it would be six years before you saw them all. So...you get three choices. Just send me the numbers of the three lenses on that list that you'd most like to see Nikon produce for the Z bodies. I'm already sensing a pattern based upon these responses and others I've received in the past, but I want to see if I'm right.
