Photography Life

PL provides various digital photography news, reviews, articles, tips, tutorials and guides to photographers of all levels

  • Reviews
  • Learn
  • About Us
  • Forum
  • Search
Home → Reviews → Cameras and Lenses → Nikon Z 40mm f/2 Review

Nikon Z 40mm f/2

By Spencer Cox 61 Comments
Last Updated On November 29, 2022

«»

Table of Contents

  • Specifications and Build Quality
  • Optical Features
  • Sharpness Comparisons
  • Verdict
  • More Sample Images
  • Reader Comments
Disclosures, Terms and Conditions and Support Options
guest

guest

61 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Sean
Sean
January 27, 2023 3:42 am

I just ordered a “like new” copy of this lens from mpb for $218 after a referral code discount. There are a lot available which seems a bit strange considering it is not a bundled kit lens and the positive opinions of it. The Panasonic 20mm 1.7 was one of my favorite m43 lenses, so I am looking forward to it.

0
Reply
HMS
HMS
December 1, 2022 2:42 am

Thanks for this thorough review. I’ve had the 28mm lens for a while and am enjoying it on both the Z6 and Z50. Just ordered the 40mm and its due to arrive in a couple of days; looking forward to it. I’ve never had any problems with plastic lens mounts and doubt that I’ll ever have any with these small lenses. You’d have to be exceedingly rough on your gear to break the lens at the mount. I’m typically not a prime lens guy but consider these lenses to my cheap, cheerful and light lenses for walking around with.. :-)

1
Reply
Gukin
Gukin
November 28, 2022 5:57 pm

2020’s version of beloved nifty fifty.

1
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Gukin
November 28, 2022 7:21 pm

It serves a very similar purpose! And it’s lighter and sharper than a lot of older 50mm “nifty fifty” lenses.

0
Reply
Alan Wilder
Alan Wilder
November 24, 2022 4:37 am

I happen to love the lens as the 40mm f/2 prime is what I sorely since my days of shooting Leica with a 40mm Summicron. Regarding the lens mount, my fix was to simply swap out it out with the the metal mount from a used FTZ adapter (about half the price of new). Fortunately, it was an easy DIY job that fit perfectly. Not only was back focus/alignment was unchanged but you gain the rear rubber dust gasket of the S lenses. Not mentioned in the review is that the plastic mount design does not have the rubber gasket feature. Don’t expect Nikon service to make the swap for you even if you provide the parts, It’s only a DIY job. Regarding the lack of fluorine coating, I simply use a Hoya HD filter to protect the front glass and has a feature similar to fluorine coating.

8
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Alan Wilder
November 24, 2022 4:48 am

Wow! I never figured that you could swap in a metal mount yourself, at least not without side effects. Well done. I’m way too inept mechanically to try that myself (I dropped my engineering major in college and pretty rapidly switched to journalism) – but I’m glad it worked for you.

1
Reply
Alan Wilder
Alan Wilder
Reply to  Spencer Cox
November 24, 2022 5:23 am

It’s an easy job, just remember to re-use the black metal screws that came with the 40/2 lens, not the chrome FTZ screws. The black metal screw have coarser threads to better secure to the lens’ plastic body.

3
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Alan Wilder
November 24, 2022 5:27 am

That’s fascinating. If all it involves is unscrewing four screws twice, swapping the mounts, and screwing them back in, even I could manage that! You’ve definitely expanded my mindset today.

1
Reply
Alan Wilder
Alan Wilder
Reply to  Spencer Cox
November 24, 2022 12:26 pm

You’re almost, there are also 4 smaller screws on the side that secure the rear baffle with the rectangular opening to the mount. Three are identical and the fourth at the 12:00 position is slightly different, so be careful to keep track of them. Obviously is best to own a decent set of precision screwdrivers that nicely fit the screws (I got mine from RadioShack years ago but I’m sure you can get them on Amazon). Don’t forget to insert the rubber gasket from the FTZ adapter before dropping the metal mount in place or you’ll have a gap. It fits perfectly. Here’s a picture of the finished product: file:///C:/Users/alwey/Downloads/2406911.pdf

0
Reply
Mike Apoc
Mike Apoc
Reply to  Alan Wilder
December 12, 2022 3:51 pm

I like to take a crack at this DIY. Thanks for writing about it. Your link however points to the PDF in your own drive. Any way to post this in a public place like DropBox for others to access? Thanks again for the great idea.

0
Reply
Alan Wilder
Alan Wilder
Reply to  Mike Apoc
January 29, 2023 7:56 pm

Here’s a link with a picture of the finished lens I posted in FM forum: www.fredmiranda.com/forum…/1770415/0

0
Reply
Moon
Moon
Reply to  Alan Wilder
November 24, 2022 12:45 pm

Wow, this is awesome to know, thanks Alan. 😃🍻

0
Reply
Thomas Herren
Thomas Herren
November 24, 2022 12:53 am

Great and informative review, thank you very much!
I recently bought the lens when it was discounted and I use it in my peoplephotography when 50mm are a bit too long. Of course, the S-line 50mm prime lens is clearly better in sharpness and rendering, and I also find the bokeh of the Z 40mm a bit on the “nervous side” in some cases. But overall it is a very capable lens that fits well on the Z5. I don’t mind the plastic mount at all; none of my other Nikkors can be mount that smoothly as the Z 40mm.

1
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Thomas Herren
November 24, 2022 4:45 am

Glad you liked the review, and thanks for adding your experiences, Thomas. The 40mm f/2 makes good tradeoffs in my opinion, considering that any lens this small will have its share of tradeoffs. The plastic mount still frustrates me, but you should read the comment below by Ken where he made some good points in favor of it.

0
Reply
Pascal
Pascal
November 24, 2022 12:21 am

As always, great review Spencer!

I have the 28 / 2.8 lens and use that on my Z50. The lens becomes a 42mm on a DX camera. This is great for street and general work around combo. It is small and light and people don’t really notice you. IQ is very good too. Love that lens!

0
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Pascal
November 24, 2022 4:42 am

Thank you, Pascal! My 28mm f/2.8 review should be up within a week, as I tested that lens concurrently with the 40mm f/2. The two perform pretty similarly overall, but each one has its strengths and weaknesses. I’m glad you’re enjoying yours so much so far.

4
Reply
Jeff
Jeff
November 23, 2022 9:47 pm

Thank you for a great review Spencer.

I have both the 28 and 40 that I use on my Zfc and sometimes on my Z7ii bodies. If Nikon brings out a Zf, these will be perfect.

I have a couple of Z7ii bodies that I use with my 20 or so AIS and D lenses in MF mode. For example I have the 28 1.4D which is legendary. As a direct comparision, the 28 2.8 directly compares very favourable to a lens that I love and I feel the same with my 40 2.0, which is significantly better than my 40 2.0 Ultron.

I also have the 1.8 primes. The compact primes are not in the same league as those, but the 1.8 primes do not have the benefits of the compact primes’ small size.

So these compact primes are ideal for their use case.

0
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Jeff
November 24, 2022 4:40 am

Nikon seems to be positioning their camera lineup for a Zf in the future. Both of the retro-style lenses (this one and the 28mm f/2.8 SE) are full-frame lenses, and just the name Zfc heavily implies “Zf crop”! But who knows, and the pandemic also messed up their release schedule somewhat.

I hope the 40mm f/2 and 28mm f/2.8 do well enough to convince Nikon to make more lenses like this. A set that adds a 20mm, 60mm, and 85mm muffin lens (or really any set covering ultra-wide to short telephoto) would be a great match for the light weight of mirrorless cameras.

1
Reply
Connor Bowen
Connor Bowen
November 23, 2022 3:09 pm

I enjoy using this lens as a medium and small lens to carry between my 14-24 2.8 and 70-200 2.8 (you barely notice it in the bag) but it comes in handy for “normal” shots and doubles as a fun lens for pictures of the wife or friends.

2
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Connor Bowen
November 23, 2022 3:11 pm

Glad you’re enjoying the lens. Now that you mention it, 40mm is just about the perfect split between the 24mm focal length of the 14-24 and the 70mm focal length of the 70-200. A 50mm would be too close to 70mm, and a 35mm would be too close to 24mm!

1
Reply
bg5931
bg5931
Reply to  Connor Bowen
November 23, 2022 4:39 pm

Before moving to mirrorless, I often used an 18-35 + 70-300 setup for hiking in the mountains, occasionally with a 50 in the middle. So I can very much relate to your setup.

1
Reply
Mr. Parasini
Mr. Parasini
November 23, 2022 2:01 pm

Good review as always, but thanks, I prefer Canon rf 35mm f1.8 macro is stm.

1
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Mr. Parasini
November 23, 2022 3:05 pm

I’ve used that lens and was a big fan of it! It’s not quite a pancake or “muffin” lens like this one, but the price is good ($400 with the current sale), and it’s obviously much better for close-ups than the 40mm f/2.

1
Reply
Ken
Ken
November 23, 2022 1:43 pm

One thing people seem to overlook about the plastic mount is that it provides weather sealing without the need for a gasket. Metal/metal interfaces wick water like mad. Plastic/plastic and plastic/metal typically do not. This still falls under “cost reduction” motivation, but it isn’t just down to the cost of the metal mount itself. By going plastic the complications in assembly of adding the gasket found on the metal Z mounts is avoided further reducing cost while still maintaining weather sealing features.

And of course as places that rent thousands of lenses a month will tell you there really isn’t any sort of durability issue with plastic mounts, but people are entitled to their opinions about plastic mounts regardless.

3
Reply
Spencer Cox
Spencer Cox
Author
Reply to  Ken
November 23, 2022 3:02 pm

You’re one of the first people I’ve ever seen defend plastic lens mounts, but honestly those are great arguments. I hadn’t considered the waterproofing concern. In any case, Nikon could have circumvented the issue by offering the regular 40mm f/2 with the plastic mount, and the 40mm f/2 SE with a metal mount for a higher price.

2
Reply
Jeff
Jeff
Reply to  Spencer Cox
November 24, 2022 1:15 pm

I just think it is a minor issue. I suspect that if you had 1,000 40mm 2.0 lenses, 2 might break because it had a plastic mount. 20 might break for other reasons. Might be a different issue with a super telephoto – but you know – with the right plastic – it might be the superior choice.

Multiply the price of the lens by 2/1,000 just to put a number on how trivial this issue is.

0
Reply

Learn

  • Beginner Photography
  • Landscape Photography
  • Wildlife Photography
  • Portraiture
  • Post-Processing
  • Advanced Tutorials

Reviews

  • Camera Reviews
  • Lens Reviews
  • Other Gear Reviews
  • Best Cameras and Lenses

Photography Tutorials

Photography Basics
Landscape Photography
Wildlife Photography
Macro Photography
Composition & Creativity
Black & White Photography
Night Sky Photography
Portrait Photography
Street Photography
Photography Videos

Unique Gift Ideas

Best Gifts for Photographers

Subscribe via Email

If you like our content, you can subscribe to our newsletter to receive weekly email updates using the link below:

Subscribe to our newsletter

Site Menu

  • About Us
  • Beginner Photography
  • Lens Database
  • Lens Index
  • Photo Spots
  • Search
  • Forum

Reviews

  • Reviews Archive
  • Camera Reviews
  • Lens Reviews
  • Other Gear Reviews

More

  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
  • Workshops
  • Support Us
  • Submit Content

Copyright © 2023 · Photography Life

You are going to send email to

Move Comment