The Nikkor Z 20mm F1.8 S ($1,049.95) is a wide prime lens with a bright aperture, made just for Nikon Z mirrorless cameras. It captures a wide view, for architectural and landscape work, and has a bright aperture, a plus for astrophotography and vlogging. It’s a strong performer, and a fine addition for Nikon Z owners looking for a bright prime, but not quite as convenient as a zoom. The 14-30mm F4 S is more of a crowd-pleaser, but if your work cries for a wider aperture, the Nikkor Z 20mm delivers.
Consistent Design Language
Nikon has stuck to a consistent look, feel, and size for its F1.8 prime series. The Z 20mm F1.8 looks and handles a lot like the others in the series—currently available in 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm focal lengths. It’s finished in black, with no accent colors or flashy marks. It’s a departure from the gold ring Nikon included in premium SLR lenses.
Optics are housed in a black polycarbonate barrel and the package is sealed to protect against dust and splashes, just like full-frame Z cameras. It measures 4.3 by 3.3 inches (HD), weighs 1.1 pounds, and supports 77mm front filters. A protective hood, front and rear caps, and a soft carrying pouch are included.
Nikon skips including anti-smudge fluorine on this lens. It’s a shame, as fluorine has real benefits for landscape and outdoor photographers—glass that has it is easier to clean and keep clean.
The 20mm is a little bigger all around than the Nikkor Z 24mm F1.8 S. Nikon’s Z primes are, generally speaking, sized a big larger than lenses for competing systems. You can’t use Canon or Sony lenses on a Nikon Z camera, and there’s currently no Z support from Sigma, Tamron, and other popular third parties.
On-lens controls are minimal; there’s just the AF/MF toggle switch and manual focus ring. You don’t get an on-lens function button or aperture ring, though, which is something premium prime lenses for other systems offer.
The focus ring is bare metal with a knurled finish. It takes up most of the barrel, so you won’t have a hard time finding it, and it turns with just a little bit of resistance. The manual focus experience is pleasing for photography. The lens offers a ramped response, so slow, deliberate adjustments change the plane of focus slightly, and quicker turns make more dramatic shifts. Videographers will prefer a lens with a linear response for repeatable manual focus pulls; using the Nikkor 20mm F1.8G for SLRs with the FTZ adapter is an option if you prefer a lens with a mechanical manual focus system for video.
There’s also a bit of breathing visible when setting focus. The angle of view shifts along with the plane of focus, so it shows a blooming effect when racking from near to distant subjects. It’s a downer for using the lens for video shots where focus changes from one subject to another. Most will reach to autofocus, and the 20mm F1.8 does a good job there. It uses dual motors that are quick and quiet to drive its focus, so no complaints there.
The focus ring doubles as a control ring, standard for Z primes. When the camera is set to autofocus, you can use it to adjust the f-stop, ISO, EV, and other exposure settings. The response is hypersensitive, though, making it hard to dial in discrete adjustments, and too easy to make changes inadvertently. It’s an issue we’ve experienced across the Z line, but to date Nikon hasn’t added any sensitivity, response delay, or other functions to improve usability.
Close focus is available to 7.9 inches, measured from the camera sensor. It’s a short working distance from the front element, just a few inches. You won’t get macro results from a wide lens—at best it captures subjects at 1:5.3 life-size, but is useful for shots where you want a big background behind a close subject.
Stabilization isn’t included, nor is it expected. Nikon’s full-frame Z cameras include sensor stabilization, good enough for blur-free handheld exposures at longer durations. I netted clear results at 1/2-second shutter speeds with the lens and Z 7 II.
In the Lab
I paired the 20mm F1.8 S with the 45MP Nikon Z 7 II for testing in the lab and field. Imatest shows that resolution is strong, even on Nikon’s highest-resolution camera. At f/1.8 and f/2, the pair nets photos with very good resolution for the sensor. It enters the excellent range at f/2.8, even at the edges of the frame.
It continues to deliver terrific results all the way down to f/11, and only takes a slight step back in quality at the minimum f/16 aperture, an expected effect of optical diffraction. The aperture doesn’t go as small as f/22, but you still get defined sunstars at f/16, a plus for landscape photographers who like the starburst look.
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Bokeh isn’t something typically associated with wide lenses, but the wide aperture and close focus ability mean you can get shots with the blurred-background effect with this lens. The quality of the bokeh is good, too—highlights are pleasingly rounded when they appear in an image.
Distortion is controlled using in-camera corrections. If you turn them off you’ll see a barrel effect in photos, but most photogs will simply leave them turned on. Even with corrections we see darkened corners at f/1.8 and f/2, but illumination evens out at smaller apertures.
A Wide Prime for Specialists
Nikon Z owners have a growing library of native lenses from which to choose. The Nikkor Z 20mm F1.8 S is, at press time, the widest prime for the system. It sports an F1.8 optical design, a plus for making images in dim and challenging light, capturing footage with a softly defocused backdrop, and night sky astrophotography.
Its immersive view, controlled distortion, and excellent resolution are there for landscape, architectural, and other disciplines where a big view is required. Vloggers who make handheld walk-and-talk videos will also want to take a look. It’s a bit of a speciality lens, as most lenses covering ultra-wide angles are zoom designs.
Nikon has a pair of Z system zooms covering the same angle for photographers who can live without a lens that opens all the way to F1.8, or put more value on one that can zoom out to capture more of the world in one shot. We recommend the Nikkor Z 14-30mm F4 S to most system owners; for $1,300, it covers a useful range of angles and supports front filters. The Z 14-24mm F2.8 S is the high-end choice, with the only real complaint being its $2,400 asking price.
As for other primes, third parties haven’t yet jumped on to support the Z system. Venus Laowa offers some quality manual focus lenses to think about, including the 15mm F2 Zero-D. Using the 20mm F1.8G for Nikon SLRs works too, or the Sigma 20mm F1.4 DG HSM Art in F-mount, as long as you have the FTZ adapter. The Nikkor Z 24mm F1.8 S is the closest in concept, but the 20mm F1.8 S is the only game in town if you want to skip adapters and enjoy autofocus with a prime this wide within the Nikon Z system.
