p.1 #1 · Help please. Nikon 40/f2, 26/2.8, or VM 35/1.5 Nokton on a ZF for family travel
Help please... I'm looking for honest opinions / guidance... Upcoming family travel, and I'm looking to take my ZF and only one lens...
I have a Nikon 40/f2, Nikon 26/2.8, and a Voigtlander 35/1.5 Nokton type 1 w/ TTartisan adapter w/ electronic contacts. My heart says take the Nokton... but does anyone think the images will be better than the 40/f2 if I'm using both stopped down?
Current thoughts:
• 40/f2: I set it at F/4 and shoot. Results are good, but I'm somewhat uninspired. This is the baseline. Is there a better enthusiast "dad cam" lens on a ZF?
• 26/2.8: Thought I would love it, but it distorts faces/people more than I was expecting having swapped from a VM 28/1.5. Maybe skill / technique issue on my end. Lens is super small/light.
• VM 35/1.5: I keep buying M mount lenses and adapting them b/c I can't afford an M. I always somehow regret this, but the ZF and electronic contacts make this experience less bad that previous tries. My skill isn't great and the focus assist can only do so much, so I'm always shooting stopped down for people shots. 250g for the lens and adapter is still 100g better than a z mount voitlander 50/F2 APO.
• I've also though about swapping the lenses for something interesting, not sure what that would be with a small(ish) size.
• I've also thought about buying lottery tickets to maybe afford a GFX100RF or an M that charges via USB-C...
If anyone has used some of these lenses, what would you take for family travel (and what should I sell). Thanks!
p.1 #4 · Help please. Nikon 40/f2, 26/2.8, or VM 35/1.5 Nokton on a ZF for family travel
Have you considered the Ultron 40/2? Focus confirmation, better bokeh (IMO) than the Z 40/2, very small even when adapted (if you get the older pancake style). My absolutely favorite walkabout documentary MF lens.
The new Z Septon 40/2 is the modern replacement for it.
p.1 #5 · Help please. Nikon 40/f2, 26/2.8, or VM 35/1.5 Nokton on a ZF for family travel
If you're most comfortable with autofocus, stick with that. The 40 is an easy pick, IMO. You could always consider an autofocus adapter for the M glass as well.
Some alternatives that I like are the CV 40 f/1.2, the Nikon 28 f/1.8G, Nikon 35 f/1.4G, Nikon 35 f/2D, Nikon 35 f/1.4 Ai-S, and the Leica 35 f/2.8 Summaron. Some are bigger, some smaller. When I used the Zf, the CV 40 or Nikon 40 was generally my first pick.
p.1 #6 · Help please. Nikon 40/f2, 26/2.8, or VM 35/1.5 Nokton on a ZF for family travel
Best overall lens for travel for Z cameras at this time is the 28-400mm that is great for stills and also designed with its Synchro VR that provides 5.5 stops of stabilization.
For natural appearing faces a focal length greater than 70mm is important. Less than 50mm and anything closer to the camera is going to be distorted which is evident in photos showing people with big noses, hands, and feet, when not very carefully composed.
p.1 #7 · Help please. Nikon 40/f2, 26/2.8, or VM 35/1.5 Nokton on a ZF for family travel
Ahat07261983 wrote:
Upcoming family travel, and I'm looking to take my ZF and only one lens...
I have nearly the same set of lenses for my ZF. When I am photographing people outside the studio, like environmental portraits on the go, which is probably the most common type of a photograph taken on family vacations, I always go with an autofocus lens. In your case, that would be the 40mm f/2. It's just silly to be manually nailing the eye focus if the camera does this so effortlessly, while the subject is almost always impatient. A photographer, pausing everyone to manually focus every few minutes can easily ruin a vacation (or even the marriage!
But when I'm by myself exploring a new city, I really really enjoy slowing down and manually focusing my VC 35mm f/1.4 Nokton, or the VC 40mm f/1.2 Nokton. Those lenses exist to please not just your eyes, but your fingers.
From the IQ perspective, you already know that they all begin to converge around f/4 or f/5.6 anyway.
p.1 #8 · Help please. Nikon 40/f2, 26/2.8, or VM 35/1.5 Nokton on a ZF for family travel
I adore the little 26mm. It is a nearly perfect wide focal length, but I am mostly shooting scenery/landscapes/etc.
My only complaint with it is the hideously fugly lens cap!!! I was trying to use it without the adapter, but you have to remember to take the lens cap off before you turn on the camera if you do that, which is also completely unacceptable. Nikon completely dropped the ball on the lens cap/connector/psuedo-hood thing, but the picture quality is actually wonderful.
