Any new camera system, such as the Nikon Z series, needs lenses to support it and one of the most important is the high quality standard zoom. There are many fine 24-70mm f/2.8 lenses on the market, so the potential of Nikon's new Z system can perhaps be fairly judged by their new offering, the Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S lens. This promises superb performance, so let's start off our look at Z system lenses and see if it delivers that promise, and indeed if it could tempt us into a new camera system.

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Nikon Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S Handling and Features

Weighing in at 805g, the lens fits well with the Nikon Z7 45.4MP full frame mirrorless camera provided for this review. There is extensive use of reinforced plastics, but the construction quality is excellent and all controls operate smoothly. The lens is dust and moisture sealed, almost a requirement with current lens ranges.

Starting at the front of the lens, the supplied petal shaped lenshood bayonets securely into position. Within this bayonet is a standard 82mm diameter filter thread. The front and rear elements of the lens are fluorine coated to repel dust, grease and moisture. The lens also features Nikon's new ARNEO and nano crystal coatings, offering a high degree of resistance to flare.

Continuing towards the camera body, first up is the manual focus ring, electronic in operation and also fully usable during AF to fine tune the focus position if desired. Focusing is down to 0.38m (1.25 feet) and gives a maximum magnification of 0.22x. Behind this is the zoom ring, clearly marked at 24, 28, 35, 50 and 70mm. The exact focal length setting can be seen in the small OLED display immediately behind. This display, similar to that seen on some Zeiss lenses, initially shows NIKKOR when first switched on, but then changes to show zoom position, focus scale with depth of field indication or aperture. Which function is shown can be selected using the DISP button just to the side of the display. At this point there is also an L-Fn button, which via the camera menus can be assigned to offer up to 21 different custom functions.

Returning to the OLED display, it is certainly useful from a lens testing perspective to be able to select the focal length accurately. It is also a very visible way of showing the aperture in use should this option be chosen. When we look at the distance/DOF option though, the practicality of this is limited. The DOF is indicated by a line that expands and contracts to show the range against the distance scale, but sadly that scale is so short and bereft of actual numbers that it is doubtful that it is actually much use. The principle though is spot on, and somewhat reminiscent of the manual version of this found on Rolleiflex TLR cameras as far back as the 1950s.

There is one final control ring, close to the camera body. This can be programmed to adjust focus, aperture or exposure compensation, depending upon how the photographer wishes to work. This could be useful when making quick adjustments. Just behind this ring we find the AF/MF switch. If a selection is made in camera instead, that will override the lens setting. So, for example, if the camera is set at MF then the lens will not autofocus on either setting.

Optical construction is 17 elements in 15 groups, including 2 ED (Extra Low Dispersion) and 4 Aspherical. There is a 9 bladed diaphragm with rounded blades, aimed to improve the bokeh of the images, the smoothness of the out of focus areas.

In terms of ergonomics, the lens is spot on and all the controls are perfectly placed. Rings turn smoothly, but firmly enough so that they are not prone to being accidentally moved. The OLED display is nice and has some functional merit, but is by no means essential. All in all though, we have here a lens which is extremely satisfactory in use and does the job very efficiently.