Nikon 105mm f/1.4E ED – Officially Announced!

2 days ago I posted an article regarding the rumoured Nikon 105mm f/1.4E ED lens and I was somewhat sceptical about it actually being true. I only posted as I was excited about the prospect of a new lens type which isn’t the typical focal length/aperture combos.

AFS_105_1.4E

Well only a few hours ago Nikon themselves just posted the announcement on their site!

Pricing should be $2,200USD, which currently converts to £1670.00GBP, however once the UK camera retailers start making this lens available for pre-order I’ll update this for the exact pricing.

D5_AFS_105_1.4E-570x689

I am excited about this lens, however I will not be buying it as I have recently bought the Sony 85mm f/1.4GM for my Sony A7R II and I just can’t quite justify owning both.

Jared Polin from FroKnowsPhoto has posted a video on the topic and suspects this could be one of the sharpest lenses when you stop it down.

He stated “Just because you have f/1.4, it doesn’t mean you have to shoot it at f/1.4” and I do agree, you don’t have too.

However I don’t see the point in investing $2,200USD/£1670GBP into a lens if you’re not going to maximise its abilities and shoot wide open. So for me, it will depend on how this lens performs at f/1.4 on whether it’s something I will actually consider buying one day. Yes, shooting at f/2 will be sharper than f/1.4 and it’s faster than shooting at f/2.8, but as I do own lenses that cover this focal range, the extra 1 stop to attain f/2 is not that important to me when you consider the price and I can’t imagine it being significantly sharper than my Nikon 105mm f/2.8 VR Micro, if it’s even in fact any sharper at all.

Shot Taken from Nikon UK Site

Sample Image From Nikon UK Site

The sample images from the Nikon UK site do look good with regards to the separation and compression. However after the recently hype over the Sony G Master lenses and their perfectly rounded Bokeh Balls, the first thing I noticed with the above image was the inconsistent Bokeh Ball shapes within this image. Is that a deal breaker for me? Not really… However I do wish I could zoom in to see 1:1 Sharpness at f/1.4.

Will you be buying this lens? If so, what are the potential benefits of this lens over anything you currently own…

To review more sample images and for full Nikon UK Press Release, Click Here.

Tech Specs

  • Focal length – 105 mm
  • Maximum aperture – f/1.4
  • Minimum aperture – f/16
  • Lens construction – 14 elements in 9 groups (including 3 ED glass elements and lens elements with Nano Crystal Coat or fluorine coat)
  • Angle of view – 23°10′ (15°20′ with a DX-format camera)
  • Minimum focus distance – 1 m
  • Maximum reproduction ratio – 0.13 x
  • No. of diaphragm blades – 9 (rounded diaphragm opening)
  • Filter attachment size – 82 mm
  • Dimensions – Approx. 94.5 mm x 106 mm (diameter x height, distance from camera lens mount flange, based upon CIPA guidelines)
  • Weight – Approx. 985 g (based upon CIPA guidelines)
  • Supplied accessories – LC-82 82 mm snap-on Front Lens Cap, HB-79 Bayonet Hood, CL-1218 Soft Lens Case, LF-4 Rear Lens Cap

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