Nikon Z 17-28mm F2.8 Evaluation

Introduction

Ease of Use

Contemplating that it gives a quick and fixed most aperture of F2.8, the Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 lens is surprisingly compact and light-weight, measuring 10cms / 4 inches in size and weighing in at solely 450g (15.9 oz).

It is extra compact and lighter than the comparable Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S lens, which is roughly 30% heavier and makes use of a bigger filter measurement.

Along with utilizing it on full-frame cameras just like the Z6 II that we examined it with, you may as well use this lens on a smaller APS-C physique, the place the equal focal size adjustments to a nonetheless helpful vary of 24.5-42mm.

As demonstrated by the product photographs above and under, the Nikon 17-28mm F2.8 proved to be an ideal match for a full-frame digicam just like the Z 6 II.

Construct high quality is okay, however not fairly pretty much as good as some latest Nikon lenses that we have reviewed. The Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 feels stable sufficient in your hand, regardless of its principally polycarbonate building.

This lens is designed in Japan, but it surely’s truly made in China.

There aren’t any different exterior options on the lens apart from the zoom and shared focus/management rings. The zoom ring is generously broad and has a ridged, rubberised grip band. There isn’t a focus lock change as on many different Nikon zooms.

The lens doesn’t prolong when totally zoomed out to 28mm – in the event you look fastidiously, it is truly at its longest when set to 17mm, though it nonetheless would not prolong previous the top of the lens barrel.

In the direction of the lens mount finish of the Nikon Z 28-75mm F2.8 lens, there’s the second (and smallest) of the lens’ two rings, which may be customised to certainly one of 4 completely different settings.

By default it’s set to manage guide focus, however you may as well change it to regulate the aperture, publicity compensation or ISO velocity. Alternatively you may have it set to do nothing in any respect.

The knurled focusing/management ring is far narrower than the zoom ring, making it harder to find in a rush.

When used as a focusing ring, observe that it has no laborious stops at both finish, making it tougher to know when you may have reached infinity focusing. The ring has simply sufficient resistance to make nice changes to guide focusing, with out having an excessive amount of give.

The Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 incorporates a stepping motor that permits just about silent auto-focusing, making it well-suited to video use.

In use, we discovered the focusing system to be very quiet and satisfyingly quick with the lens mounted on the Z6 II digicam.

The Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 is not totally weather-proof but it surely does profit from having a moisture-resistant building which helps to stop moisture from penetrating the lens, though we would hesitate to make use of it within the rain for a chronic interval.

Nikon state that “The lens isn’t assured to be dust- and drip-resistant in all conditions and below all circumstances.“

The entrance component has a hydrophobic Fluorine Coating that’s extremely immune to fingerprints and particles.

There aren’t any exterior switches in any respect on the Z 28-75mm F2.8 lens, not even one for selecting between auto-focusing and guide focusing.

Observe that there is no such thing as a picture stabilisation system constructed into this lens, as a substitute counting on the digicam physique, which can be a problem in the event you personal a Nikon Z50 or Z fc digicam.

The Nikon 17-28mm lens is equipped with plastic lens caps and a plastic flower-shaped lens hood (HB-107) – there is not any lens bag included. The filter measurement is 67mm.

The hood locks into place and is reversible so you may cut back the scale of the lens for transporting it and storing it at a smaller measurement.

Focal Vary

On the 17mm focal size the angle of view is 104°.

17mm

On the 28mm focal size the angle of view is 75°.

28mm

Chromatic Aberrations

Chromatic aberrations, sometimes seen as purple or blue fringes alongside contrasty edges, are very nicely managed with the Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 lens – the examples under reveals the standard worst-case eventualities.

17mm

28mm

Vignetting

With the Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 broad open at f/2.8, you may see some noticeable gentle fall-off within the corners. Stopping down helps, though to utterly eliminate this phenomenon, you will have to make use of an f-stop of f/5.6 or smaller. There’s additionally noticeable barrel distortion on the 17mm focal size.

17mm

28mm

Distortion

Barrel distortion is clearly evident at each ends of the zoom vary, though it isn’t too pronounced.

17mm

28mm

Sunstars and Flare

The Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 is able to producing good sunstars when it is stopped-down to f/22, as proven under, and flare is nicely managed even when when capturing instantly into the solar.

17mm

28mm

Macro

The Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 is not claimed to be a macro lens, but it surely delivers fairly good efficiency nonetheless in the event you zoom to 28mm. The close-focus level is a powerful 19cm from the movie/sensor aircraft on the 17mm focal size (26cm at 28mm) and it has a most magnification ratio of 1:5.2 / 0.19x on the 17mm focal size.

Bokeh

Bokeh is a phrase used for the out-of-focus areas of {a photograph}, and is often described in qualitative phrases, equivalent to easy / creamy / harsh and so forth.

One of many motive to purchase such a quick lens because the Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8 is to have the ability to isolate the topic from the background.

Nikon was apparently very a lot conscious of this requirement, as they employed an iris diaphragm with 9 rounded blades for a delightful rendering of the out-of-focus highlights.

Primarily based on what we’ve seen, we are able to say that they largely succeeded. Beneath you may discover some examples, however you might be additionally inspired to take a look at our pattern photographs.

Sharpness

With a view to present you ways sharp this lens is, we’re offering 100% crops on the next pages.