BruceSD,
I understand your preference for rich, vivid colors.
My first question would be if you checked the settings on your cameras? saturation, contrast, or picture profiles as important settings for out of camera jpegs.
It has been mentioned already that CCD and CMOS sensors are per se colorblind. But Nikon's color science has been very consistent since the D1 (1999).
I have Nikkor lenses ranging from 1959 to 2025. Their optical quality for sure improved over these years, especially with optimized designs and much better coatings. Apart from having character or being clinical perfect, their color rendition (when used with the identical camera settings) are very similar. I don't recognize a wide variation at all.
Hence, I am concluding preliminary that your rich colors are mainly determined by the camera settings and only to a minimal degree by the lens.
P.S> I am shooting exclusively NEF format with a neutral profile (for optimal image data) or flat (for video). This approach enables the widest range of color adjustments in post.
