I find the Nikon lens 50mm f/1.8 S, made for the Z Cameras, to be a very useful lens. It is not too big or heavy and it compares well with even my best lenses like the Zeiss Otus series. Here is DXOMARK’s comparison of the two. The Otus 55mm rates higher than the Nkon 50mm S lens, but it is hard to see why from the numbers. The 50mm is sharper by several point, is equal in both distortion and vignetting, has less aberration than the 50mm S. Only in “transmission” does the Otus win out, so there is some subjectivity somewhere in these final scores.
From my own use of the Zeiss Otuss 55mm, it is more even in center and edges than the Nikon 50 s and I still feel the better all-around lens, IMO. However, the little Nikon 50mm S f/1.8 is plenty good enough for a lot of jobs. I have gotten used to the short focus throw and the focus-by-wire. I have a handle on that by now. It is not a problem, especially with the Nikon Z7’s LiveView and EVF and magnified focus.
But standing in a very wet microclimate in my high boots and balancing each footstep as I tried to set up my tripod, the difference between the Nikon 50mm f/1.8 S on the Nikon Z camera and the Zeiss Otus 55mm f/1.4 (with the FTZ adapter) is very little and the savings in size and weight is great.
I am working in a tiny micro-climate where grow Michigan’s Showy Orchids, a small group of them. It is wet everywhere, with ferns and vegetation packed together. Each step is a guess and a hope since the ground is not level. I have to use my tripod to lean on as I can.
For me, the new Nikon Z7 is more and more the way I’m going. I can’t wait to use other brands of lenses, like the Sony E-mounts, on the Z7. The Voigtlander 65mm Macro, which I have had for a long time, is waiting for the new TeChart adapter to arrive.
