Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S

Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S vs Nikon 24mm f/1.8G ED

First, let’s take a look at how the Nikon 24mm f/1.8 S compares to its Nikon F sibling, the 24mm f/1.8G ED:

While the Nikon 24mm f/1.8G is a great lens, you can clearly see that the newer Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S outperforms it in many ways. First of all, as the above charts show, it is significantly sharper wide open. Stopped down to f/2.8 brings the best out of the 24mm f/1.8G and it gets very close, but as you continue stopping down to f/4, the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S just takes off, reaching better center, mid-frame, and corner performance.

Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S vs Nikon 24mm f/1.4G ED

What about the much older Nikon 24mm f/1.4G ED? Let’s take a look and compare:

From the above comparison, it is clear that Nikon needs to upgrade the 24mm f/1.4G with a newer version as soon as possible so that it can actually take advantage of modern high-resolution sensors. The Nikon 24mm f/1.4G starts out significantly worse in the center frame, and even though its resolving power increases as you stop down, it never reaches the same level of performance as the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S.

Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S vs Sigma 24mm f/1.4 Art

Lastly, let’s take a look at how the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S compares to the highly-regarded Sigma 24mm f/1.4 Art:

Although the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 Art starts out stronger in the center frame, its corners are quite weak in comparison due to the pronounced field curvature it exhibits. As both lenses are stopped down to f/2, the sharpness of the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S improves significantly in the center, reaching very impressive levels, while the Sigma only improves gradually. Stopped down to f/4 and smaller is no competition – the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S is clearly better than the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 Art, especially in the extreme corners.

Overall, based on the above comparisons, it is clear that Nikon’s new optical designs for the Z mount are leaving its F mount counterparts in the dust, even when comparing to Sigma’s best Art-series lenses. The difference is very clear in both our lab and field tests, with the Z mount lenses showing much better sharpness and contrast. We have been seeing a similar pattern with other Nikon Z mount lenses, and it looks like the trend will continue…