THERE isn’t much that is really, truly exciting in the lens world. Mostly, companies just try to make their own versions of something else. But that’s not the case with the Nikon 40mm f2 Z.

There aren’t many 40mm lenses on the market with autofocus. And this one is checking off all the right marks. It’s small, has autofocus, and boasts beautiful image quality. But perhaps best of all is that it’s only US$299.95. Quite honestly, it’s an impulse buy. And it’s the best lens outside of a nifty 50 you can get for that price.

The Nikon 40mm f2 Z isn’t very complicated. Looking at the front, you see the 52mm filter thread, which means this is a small lens. Nikon truly embraces the idea that mirrorless should be small while also being functional and having great ergonomics.

Look at the top of the lens. Besides the focusing ring, there aren’t any other controls on it.

The Nikon 40mm f2 Z lens is said to be weather resistant, or at least those considerations were incorporated into the design.

Overall, there’s nothing that makes this lens stand out much. It’s made of plastic on the outside, but it isn’t plasticky feeling in a bad way. It’s solid, hard plastic. It’s also quite small.

The Nikon 40mm f2 Z is simple enough to use. In fact, it’s very straightforward. Mount the lens to the camera, point, focus, and shoot. It’s that simple. The only control on this lens is the manual focus ring. If you want to manually focus, you have to first engage that control through the camera. Again though, there’s no point in doing this. The Nikon z6 II doesn’t have the most advanced autofocus, but it’s reliable enough for most of what a passionate photographer may need.

Focusing with the Nikon 40mm f2 Z is quick in single focus situations. If you’re not trying to do serious work with the lens, then you’ll be just fine. The production version will be even faster.

(SD-Agencies)