I could be off by a lens or two, but here’s where we stand at the end of 2022 with the Z-mount (basically just over four years since first shipments):
- Nikkor FX autofocus lenses — 24 (18 are S-line, 8 are VR)
- Nikkor FX manual focus lenses — 1 (S-line)
- Third-party FX autofocus lenses — 9 (none VR)
- Nikkor DX autofocus lenses — 3 (all are VR)
- Third-party DX autofocus lenses — 4 (none VR)
- Third-party FX manual focus lenses — 70+ (the + indicates some II models)
- Third-party DX manual focus lenses — 44+ (the + indicates some II models, some rebranding)
So, four years in we have 155+ lenses we can stick on the front of our Z System cameras without having to use an adapter. By the time you read this, that number is likely to have grown some more.
If I asked, you’d probably provide me the specifications of a hundred more Z-mount lenses you want, but I still have to ask the question: do we really need more?
Okay, you just fired up your email application getting ready to respond with a “yes". Stop. I’ll include the 8 Nikkors on the Road Map and I’ll grant you as many as perhaps a dozen Sigma and Tamron lenses in the same period covered by the Road Map. How many of you just closed your email? ;~)
I’m pretty happy with where we’re at. Just within Nikon’s own lineup I find myself constantly having to think about which lenses I bring for almost every one of my main use cases (e.g. 100-400mm versus 400mm, f/2.8 or f/4.5 version; or both 24-70mm versions versus 24-120mm and 24-200mm; or 14-28mm versus 14-30mm and maybe even 17-28mm). It already feels like I’m overloaded with excellent choices, particularly when I head off to Africa (two Z9’s and which two or three lenses?).
Are you mostly a consumer who just dabbles at photography and favors size/weight? 14-30mm f/4, 24-70mm f/4, Tamron 70-300mm. Done. That’s better-than-DSLR image quality in any similar set of lenses, too.
Photojournalist? 14-24mm f/2.8, 24-70mm f/2.8, 70-200mm f/2.8 can’t be beat. Done. By “can’t be beat” I mean that as far as I’m concerned given my testing to date, only Sony’s GM trio can match the Nikon set, and it takes Sony’s second iterations to do so.
For almost any scenario I can think of, we’re at the point where I can define a strong two or three lens set that should form the core of your lens use. Supplement that with another choice or two of your own.
Except for…
Yeah, you guessed it: DX. Not that we have the DX cameras yet that require a bigger lens set. In terms of Z50/Zfc, we’ve got three strong DX zooms, one of which performs at near S-line capability, plus four excellent Viltrox primes for those of you who need fast apertures. And many of the FX lenses do overlap into the DX cameras. For instance, the 14-30mm f/4 becomes an interesting 21-45mm on DX. Supplement that with the 24-120mm f/4 and you have an f/4 effective focal range from 21-180mm. Do you need more? (Yes, you need VR, buzz, buzz ;~).
