The 2.8/24-70 S is the finest standard zoom I have ever used and its versatility is phenomenal. But the 1.8/50S is jaw dropping. It isn't just the spectacular sharpness wide open, but the overall rendering, the falloff wide open, the rendering at middle apertures, the depth rendition, colour purity, it's simply stunning. The difference is hard to quantify but there is a special magic to the 1.8 50 S that only the very best lenses have. A future classic.

Hey Everyone ! I certainly hope this video helps you when comparing the Z lenses. I was actually surprised by how well the 24-70 F2.8 held up against the prime lenses. Yes I will be making a very similar video with the 24-70mm F4 its already shot just need to find the time to edit ! As always thank you so much for watching and Please stay safe stay home!

Tank you Ricci. It si really usefull. I’ll be happy to look the comparaison with the 24-70 f4.

Finally. Have been waiting for this for months. Thx!

Excellent info, thanks very much. I still only have the f4 24-70 so I’m really looking forward to your next video.

I really enjoy your videos and am learning so much from them; and I also really appreciate all the care and effort you so obviously lavish on them. So, thanks again and my best regards to you.

A super thanks to let you know how useful this video was, and that it really "settled" the prime vs zoom debate in the current range of Nikon portrait lenses.

As always you do an EXCELLENT job and showing the specifics of a product and the practical comparison. Love your work. Keep it up.

Thanks for spending time making this video. Very interesting to know how much little difference there is between the primes and 24-70. Time to stop my impulse buys and streamline.

I appreciate your efforts, and love your "See for yourself." approach to these comparisons. It makes the results very clear. Thanks again, Ricci!

Very valuable, thank you very much. I especially appreciated you skipping to the main differences at times, rather than sticking to a strict structure. Very well done.

Much respect for the time and effort you spent creating this video. Very good information, well presented. Thanks!

Thanks for doing these comparisons Ricci! I think consumer choice so far has mostly been limited to supply rather than technical attributes; people are still waiting for Z lenses that aren’t out yet, so have compromised their buying choices down to what is available. However, nice to have the choice of all these primes now. Would like to see how the 50mm f/1.2 gets on!

Great. Very helpful. Thanks for putting in the effort. Much appreciated.

Thank you for these tests. They really help. Best channel for Nikon users.

Great review! This shows how good the 24-70mm f2.8 lens is as it compares very well with the primes which I didn't expect.

Well done. Great insight. I think it also goes to show how good the 24-70 is given how it can hold its own against the primes. Thanks for the insight!

Thank you Ricci! This was fantastic.

As I just picked up the Z6 kit and ftz, this was great video to come across

Love your video's. Very informative!

THAT is a very informative and useful work (not that the previous video were not ;-) ). Many thanks for the effort !

Now that was fascinating, really appreciate you sharing these findings Ricci, the 24-70f2.8 is a fantastic wide angle zoom, better than anything offered elsewhere I'd say. The 50mmf1.8Z is off the scale amazing and one I'll be buying very soon. Thanks a ton for sharing this with us, still waiting for the 70-200z2.8 ! lol, stay safe buddy.

Thanks Ricci for your honest comparison, as always. Nice t-shirt btw

Great video, well done! I have the 50mm 1.8s and the 24-70 2.8s...sold everything else. Now I only need a proper tele!

Thanks for this very interesting comparison. I hope to see something on the 20mm f/1.8 sometime.

Thank you, Ricci. This is a delightful comparison. I do not own the Z 24 prime, but own all the others. I’ve never actually done the comparison, so I’m grateful for this.

Fantastic video Ricci thank you. The 24-70 Z 2.8 is incredibly impressive, as is that stunning 50mm.

Thank you very much for putting it together. You've sold me on the 50. I think it would be interesting to see flare characteristics, how it handles sun stars (starbursts), and coma. Thanks again.

Great video. Waiting for the 24-70 f4 comparison. I have the 24 and 50 mm because it is so dark in Sweden during the winter. Will be interesting to hear about the f4 zoom. And later-on about the upcoming super-zoom.

Thanks I know this took a lot of effort and I appreciate your Chanel I and waiting on the Nikon 85mm 1:2 hopefully

Thanks Ricci For the comparison , was great to see the differences. I personally like more the 24-70 f4 because Weight and slide. Therefore I will be happy to see the next video.

Very interesting comparison! I love it very much and my respect for your engagement! Your review could be even more relevant if you would test the extrem corners. This imho is especially for wide angel lenses very relevant as long as they are often used for landscape and architecture. Additionally a review with longer distances would be perfect to check the lenses also for landscape photography.

i am also looking forward to hearing from you to test the 20mm f/1.8S comparing with 24-70 f/2.8, like you did with 85mm f/1.8S. thank you so very much once again :)

Very helpful video, thank you for all your hard work in putting it together! You helped me tremendously in deciding which prime lenses I’d like to add with my Z7. I think I will purchase the 50mm 1.8 but that will probably be the only one so I can save my money and get the Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S. Thanks again!

Thank you so much for great info again and need to share this one on my FB :) and hope you don't mind.

Very useful! Thanks for sharing this!

Your videos are very specifically what is most informational.

Am amazed at how close the zoom is to the primes. Thank you. Very useful to me.

well done with the comparisons!

I think this was very informative. A big thumbs up.

Very useful video, great work. Thank You.

This was a very helpful video thanks!

Thanks from Switzerland! As always: great comparison, very helpful. Now that I have the 24-70mm f/2,8 and the 50mm I won't have to bother about the 24mm and the 35mm. Thank you for the solid testing.

Thanks for your test. I've tested (briefly, but with emphasis on the far corners ) the Z7II with the z24-70 2.8 and found it most impressive. At 24mm only the most extreme reaches of the corners were soft and even then, only a very little. Vingetting and distortion are well controlled for a zoom as well.

Thank you so much for this very informative vlog. You have essentially confirmed how good this 24-70 f2.8 is. I own a copy of this lens and I don't regret a single penny I spent on it. Unless you really need the low light performance any of the primes on the wide end are hardly justifiable for stills, with the exception perhaps of the 20mm f1.8. Can't wait to see the performance of the upcoming 14-24 f2.8!!!

Been waiting for this one 👍🏼

For me, what you demonstrated is the Z 24-70 is the better choice for a landscape lens. Such lenses are seldom if ever shot below f/5.6 where the Z 24-70mm lens is not bettered at any focal length by any of the primes and where narrow depth of field is not prized. The 50mm lens is clearly preferred for the streets, low light, concerts or the like. My bag contains both the 50mm and zoom lens as well as the Z 70-200mm, 300mm PF and 500mm PF. No room or need for anything else, yet. Thank you for the excellent video.

Your videos are the best available to compare the Z line. Thank you!

Great review! Thank you very much!

Ricci, great work. This was a really useful analysis. The last 6 months of owning the 24-70 F2.8 have given me exactly what I needed compared to the kit 24-70 F4. My only concerns now are: should I even keep the kit lens and do I need to replace my F-mount 20mm F1.8 with the Z 20 1.8S? I hope you have some vlogs planned that will help me decide! I must confess that a 50mm lens has never really fit with what I like to do and I got a 35 1.8S at such a good price early on that I'm happy to retain it as a more discrete option for various street and indoor situations. Keep up the good work.

Hello Ricci, thank you for this impressive and very important test. I have the 24-70mm 2.8. Unfortunately I once sold the 50mm 1.8 and I'm considering buying it again. But it's not my favorite focal length, the 50mm. But there is one exception: the Z 50mm 1.2. That absolutely fascinated me. Due to your test, the 24 mm and 35 mm Z lenses are now out for me! You are a great photographer!

Excelent work! Thank you

Great video and really useful for me. Currently got the 24-70 f4 and looking either to step up to the f 2.8 or picking a prime. Looking forward to the same comparison with the f 4. I like to shoot some macro and have some Meike ext tubes which work brilliantly with the f4 at 70mm so I'd need to check close focus range of each lens as I know the 85mm is not much use close in. Incidentally, I've got a Z6 so I assume the differences will be relative.

as a beginner not understanding entirely the difference between lenses, this was so damn helpful. thank you for this

For my fashion and make-up portrait work I’ve recently switched to Nikon (the Z7II) and after getting used to it, I am so impressed with the Z-system. Not only the quality and handling of the camera, but esp. also the IQ and consistency of the lenses. I’ve tried other platforms as well in a 2 month side-by-side trial period, but for my style of shooting and line of work, overall the Z-system came out on top. I even find myself using the Hasselblad less than before. I don’t know how well you control the lighting and white balance of the test setup, but what struck me in your tests as well as I did in my work is how well color-balanced the Z-lenses are. Almost no visible difference between lenses. That makes work in post so much easier than some of the competitors and the cameras I’ve used before. Esp. in fashion, color is key. Of course the H6D is a notch up, but not by that much. I started with a few primes (50 and 85) and of course the 24-70/2.8 and 70-200/2.8 but I can’t wait for the 104/1.4 in Z-mount... Thanks for your great videos and thorough approach. Much appreciated.

Fantastic! Thank you. Very helpful and eye opening.

That's just what I wanted to know. Plus you do the same sort of practical tests that I do. Thanks

There are tons of folks reviewing cameras and lenses mostly amounting to option. I am drawn to your channel for lense reviews as it's in-the-face data to back the inference compared to colored opinion. Specially when comparing lenses one on one. Thanks for the vids. Your videos have helped me zero in on the lenses I'd pick up with the z6 with much confidence. Cheers

Ricci, thanks so much for the comparisons! Always interesting to see how the Nikon lens roadmap performs. Any chance of doing a comparison of the 50mmZ mount against the 58mm Voigtlander 1.4?

Thank you! Actually this really was a helpfull video.

Thanks for this video. After watching, I bought a Nikon Z 50mm 1.8S.

Thank you very much for the test and effort that you put in! Hope will see a 24-70 f2.8 against the f4 🙂 Great work, keep it up!

Excellent comparisons, sir! It shows just how good the Nikkor S 24-70 zoom really is! I wonder how the Nikkor S 24-70 f/4 would stack up in terms of sharpness, to the 24-70 f/2.8, both at f/8. Thanks, Ricci.

Another great test. I have the 24-70 2.8 and it is good enough for what I do.

Thanks Ricci. Your analysis is just SO useful. I was about to by Canon with 1.8 primes, but Nikon quality brought me here.

A very big help. Thank you so much!!!

The 24-70 2.8 is definitely a no compromise lens. Coupled with IBIS a very versatile lens as well. I can certainly attest to the wonderful image quality of the 50mm 1.8. Loved using it on vacation in low light situations. The images have a nice pop to them, and such wonderful edge sharpness.

Hey Ricci thnx for ur hard work.. don't worry about the lenth of the video for these kindof videos.. u would have included the performance at f4 , maybe f8 too for sm lenses

Thanks Ricci, super useful comparison, thanks for the effort and for sharing your thoughts. What an incredible performance from the 24-70 2.8. Simply amazing. How do you find the bokeh characteristics on the 24-70 2.8?

Ricci....finally. Asked for this for few times...thanks so much 🙏🏻 was in the verge of pulling trigger for 2.8 zoom or 35-85 combo....have enough details to take that decision now 🙏🏻 currently have 24-70f4 and 50mm 1.8 S...

Great Video ..I am loving my f2.8 24-70 even more but I am now keeping my 50 mm 1.8 and the 85 f1.8 and glad I didnt get the 35 and 24

This was very useful as what to buy.

Amazing video, thanks!!!

Very nice video 👍

Thank you for the best, no B.S, comparisons on the web! The 50 1.8 S was the first S prime I got it was obvious at 1:1 that it was better than any other 50 I have used. I have 6 lenses in the 50-58 range. The only one that came close in the very center was the Sigma 1.4 ART but it fell aparts moving away from the center. I bought a 24-70 2.8 when it became available here and it was surely the best mid zoom on the planet but due to its size and weight, I use the f/4 version much more often. The 85 1.8 was one I was very anxious to use and I took it directly from the store to a blues bands who wanted photos of their performance. That lens stays in my walking around sling bag so it and the f/4 24-70 are permanent fixtures in that bag. Time to finally sell off almost all my F mount lenses. The only lens I really want now is the 70-200 2.8 but it is not available yet here, and with the wedding season a bust this year, there is no big need for it. The Z cameras are a delight to use but the real reason to get one is the native lenses. There is not a clinker in the lot. The only S prime I do not have is the 20mm and it is sure confidence building to know that whatever I pull out of my bag is going to be up to the task.

Given that in your prime comparisons between the Z and their equivalent G versions, the Z's tend to excel - I think that more than anything this video speaks to how extraordinary the Z 24-70 2.8 really is. Thanks for all your work!

I have the 24-70 and complemented it with the 85 for the focal length. I think I have all I need. Great video as always. The 24-70 is bag of primes.

I own both the 24-70mm & 85mm - I was rather surprised how well the zoom stood up - even against the 50mm. Am glad I bought both lenses. The other aspect all of these lenses is how well Nikon have nailed CA - virtually non-existent. Thanks for your effort here, Ricci - much appreciated.

I just don’t know how to thank you. Very very helpful.

Looking forward to the f4👍

very good review

Hi. Great video. I really enjoy watching your videos. Can you also do a comparison between Z24-70 2.8 vs z50mm 1.2? I am really struggling with this decision.

Great idea for a video. That zoom is truly impressive. I was surprised to see just how different the bokeh was between the 50mm 1.8 and the 24-70mm. In the shots where it's zoomed to 2:1, if you look at the numbers on the lens behind the colourchecker chart, the 50mm had somewhat busy looking bokeh with pronounced edges, while the 24-70mm has more of a hazy kind of look. As the owner of a 50mm 1.8S for 5 months now, I can safely say it's my favourite lens.

Thank you for a great review. What is better for a new photographer, 24-70 F2.8 S lens used for $1,600 or 24-70 F4 and a 50mm prime lens? I am interested in portraiture and how-to videos.

Thanks Ricci!

Very nice review. Great job. FW 2 was where I decided to migrate from D to Z. Dissatisfied with D glass (1.4G primes!) I wanted to move on. I feel FW 3 can still be improved in a couple ways. AF needs to be structured in usability. Menu options that do not impact my main image choice need to become invisible. I only shoot raw, so don't bother me with options only impacting JPEG. That said, we need more transparency from the Nikon sphinx as to what impacts raw. Better support of shots with planned DoF where I give the camera the back-end and front-border of my desired DoF. Now I have to turn to manual, focus on one end, read the distance in the viewfinder, focus on the other end, read the distance in the viewfinder, take my smartphone, open its DoF calculator and so on. Meh. The lenses. When I bought the Z 7, I considered a zoom. That would be the first in over 40 years of Nikon or over 50 years of photography. I did not think the f/4 was good enough for my liking and waited for the f/2.8. Test shots indicated what you relay here. Holding the camera with the f/2.8, I was very enthusiastic at first. Driving back home, I though, "you never shot zooms". "You want discrete perspective choices, and very conscious awareness of that as you always had." "That f/2.8 was impressive." "That f/2.8 was big and heavy and looked very intimidating, more so than a 50/1.8 or 85/1.8, or even the f/4 zoom." "I'm going to buy the Z 7 & 35/1.8 bundle." By now, I bought the 24, 35, 50 and 85 and consider to add the 20. Added up, there is more money in the 24-85 range than in the f/2.8 zoom. Generally on planned shoots I would walk around with two lenses. 1 person portrait shoot? 85 & 50. 1 person and small group portrait shoot? 85 & 50. 1 person and large group portrait shoot? 85 & 35. Large "people group" events, 35 and 24. 24 is about the widest I would use in such circumstances. Etc. Would I leave the other lenses at home? Maybe, but they could be in a case, in the car, as backup and for handling surprises. Zoom slows your brain training down for you to learn to see photographically, which the brain does not do naturally, from birth. If you are functionally blind to one eye, there is a survival force to learn to see photographically. Else not. So we need to shoot a lot, consciously, and study what we did (not mindless chimping.) Shooting a prime for a considerable time helps (a fixed angle smartphone could even help here.) Unplanned walk-around shooting with the Z 7 (to avoid the smartphone - mine does raw, actually not bad)? I consider the DX almost pancake zoom for the Z 50 for that.

Thanks for sharing. This 50mm is the (only) reason why I'll probably choose Nikon over Canon. My best combo could be Z7II + 50 + 24-70 F4. But I could deal with Z6II and 50 F1.8 only ! I subscribe

well done! I don't even own a Nikon but enjoyed nevertheless :-)

It will be nice compare how these lenses (also 24-70/4) work against the light (sun).

Thanks for your time for making the video

Very useful. Thanks a bunch. Big thumbs up. ;-)

Thank you! I wish you would make a video comparing the 3rd party Z lenses. The Viltrox Z 85mm 1.8 looks promising. Also, rumor says they'll make a bunch more 1.8 primes for Z mount...

Some time has gone by, would love to see this comparison for the 24-120 F4 z lens :)

Great Video! I have a question for you. I have the Nikon ZF with the 40mm kit. If you could only buy one more lenses between the 50mm 1.8s or the 85mm 1.8s?

Great video Ricci. I was thinking about buying the 35mm f1.8 but it would seem that the only advantage over my 24-70 f2.8 would be weight. Look forward to your comparison with the 24-70 f4.

Hey Ricci, thanks for the video. Just wondering, I own a z6 with the 50mm 1.8s, but doing portraits and coming from a d810 I feel the z6 isn't "sharp" enough, at least to my eyes. Do you think replacing my z6 for a z7 would solve the issue? I've seen people say it's not worth the money and there's not much difference between the z6 and z7 quality, so would like to read your thoughts. Thanks!

I was waiting for this one. I have the same experience with my 24-70 2.8 compared to my 50 1.8. I see no difference in image quality. The 24-70 2.8 is expensive but formidable.

Thank you !!

Awesome video, would you recommend shooting weddings solely with the 24-70 2.8? I like the convenience of not changing lenses in the middle of a wedding

Nice Video 👌 could you test the Sigma 18-35 1.8 on the z50 Body? Greetings