The Nikon Z8 can do anything. I’ve come to realise its weakest feature is the guy pushing the buttons: me.
For videography, it has professional-level features that are far beyond my current capabilities; in terms of photography, it can capture more images in 10 seconds than I could fit onto my first hard drive. It’s an impressive piece of kit for sure.
But with such a capable body, coupled with an amazing high-resolution stacked sensor, comes a problem: you need amazing glass to make the most of it. Fortunately, Nikon has you covered. There’s a plethora of excellent lenses that cater for any scenario. They’re sharp, control aberrations well, and offer beautiful bokeh, contrast, and colour reproduction. Arguably, you pay a price for this—but as the old adage goes, you get what you pay for.
I personally love using prime lenses because I like their simplicity and the way you start to see compositions more naturally. I’m also a sucker for bokeh, and thanks to the Z8’s insanely fast shutter speeds, courtesy of the electronic shutter, you can shoot wide open even on sunny days.
However, there’s no denying that when you’re travelling and exploring a new location, a prime lens can be rather limiting. There’s only so far you can “zoom with your feet” before stepping into traffic and risking life and limb for that shot. With that in mind, I found myself hankering for a more versatile lens that would take me further than the 70mm my old 24–70mm f/4 offered. I knew exactly what I wanted: a lens lauded all over the internet as one of Nikon’s best Z-mount options, and the closest thing they offer to a “one-and-done” solution. This is, of course, the 24–120mm f/4 S.
Being an S-Line lens, it’s predictably sharp, optically excellent, and weather-sealed. It’s also not particularly bulky; 630g is manageable when you consider it could be the only lens you need to take on trips and holidays. The benefit is clear: you can grab contextual shots using the 24–35mm range, then punch in for more detailed compositions with the 70–120mm range. It’s worth mentioning that at 120mm it’s still optically superb. I recall using the old 24–120mm f/4 F-mount on my Nikon D850, and you definitely lost sharpness at those longer focal lengths.
I therefore jumped at the chance to pick one up on eBay when I found a like-new second-hand copy going for a fraction of the cost of a new one. When it arrived, I also had the chance to visit Bath with my wife and take it for a test drive.
Coupled with the Z8, it’s a fantastic pairing. You get the distinct feeling you could handle anything that’s thrown at you. Even ramping up the ISO due to the f/4 maximum aperture isn’t a major issue now, thanks to the AI noise reduction built into Lightroom.
After a few hours walking around Bath and grabbing some lunch, I had plenty of opportunities to test the lens and confirm it was a good purchase. The upsides were exactly as expected: convenient, superb image quality, versatile, and fairly ergonomic. However, I still feel that, in my heart of hearts, I prefer a prime lens. The issue with using a zoom is that when you look at your images afterwards, there can sometimes be a lack of cohesion—whereas using the same focal length for an extended period usually provides an overall “feel” and gives the set a unity. Perhaps it’s just an illusion, but there’s no doubt that when I return from a trip and all my photos from the X100VI are shot at the 35mm equivalent focal length, they seem to mesh together beautifully.
As such, there’s no doubt I’ll keep the lens. But I need to be more self-disciplined with it: I think I’ll try to use the markings on the barrel to ensure I’m taking shots at specific focal lengths for specific purposes—35mm for context, 50mm for isolated scenes, and 85–120mm for close-ups.
Do you prefer prime lenses or zooms? Have you tried the Nikon 24–120mm? I’d love to know whether it’s just me that stresses over the lack of cohesion between shots taken with a zoom, or if it’s a genuine thing.
Below, you’ll find the photos from my trip to Bath—all taken using the 24–120mm and the Nikon Z8.
