Nikon NIKKOR Z DX 12-28mm f/3.5-5.6 PZ VR Lens

Perfect general purpose focal range for photography. Although this lens is marketed as a video centric camera it also works great for photography. Zoom is smooth as the exact focal length is shown in the live display. Although not as wide as a 10-18, 12mm is fine for most situations and the 28mm means that there is no need to constantly switch lenses.

A Fun Versatile Lens!

I wanted a wider lens for my Z50 with the 2 kit lenses (which I enjoy and are surprisingly very sharp), so I researched this lens for a while before purchase.I gave it a try and fell in love with it. It's great for indoor family shots, landscape, and street photos. It's as sharp as the kit lenses and actually can give some very good bokeh results if you know how to use if for that.The Power zoom feature is actually very kool, it allows single finger zooming whether your using the viewfinder or monitor, which makes it easier than the kit lenses.I was worried that the difference between 16mm (24mm FF) and 12mm (18mm FF) would not justify the cost. That 4mm difference is more than I expected, it's perfect for indoor/family functions.The 18mm to 42mm zoom range ... MoreI wanted a wider lens for my Z50 with the 2 kit lenses (which I enjoy and are surprisingly very sharp), so I researched this lens for a while before purchase.I gave it a try and fell in love with it. It's great for indoor family shots, landscape, and street photos. It's as sharp as the kit lenses and actually can give some very good bokeh results if you know how to use if for that.The Power zoom feature is actually very kool, it allows single finger zooming whether your using the viewfinder or monitor, which makes it easier than the kit lenses.I was worried that the difference between 16mm (24mm FF) and 12mm (18mm FF) would not justify the cost. That 4mm difference is more than I expected, it's perfect for indoor/family functions.The 18mm to 42mm zoom range makes it great landscape/street lens as well.The VR allows low light photos to be captured at surprisingly low SS.I'm surprisingly pleased with this lens....It's a versatile, easy to use, fun lens...a Keeper!

A truly superior lens for travel

I am really enjoying the Nikon Z 12-28 lens. I use it with the Nikon Z50 for the convenience of lighter and smaller equipment. We are talking only 7.2 ounces for this lens (with the Z50 the total package is about 1.73 pounds). Additionally, this lens has VR (Vibration Reduction) which the Z50 does not have so the benefit is obvious. The lens is offered at a fair price considering all its features. For example, it will close to f/25 and has seven rounded aperture blades.I took quite a number of photos in the evening, and I am quite happy with the performance of the Z 12-28mm in subdued lighting.By the way, always stop by the B&H store in Midtown 420 9th Ave., New York, NY 10001. There are lots of fantastic photographic equipment there and they treat you like a ... MoreI am really enjoying the Nikon Z 12-28 lens. I use it with the Nikon Z50 for the convenience of lighter and smaller equipment. We are talking only 7.2 ounces for this lens (with the Z50 the total package is about 1.73 pounds). Additionally, this lens has VR (Vibration Reduction) which the Z50 does not have so the benefit is obvious. The lens is offered at a fair price considering all its features. For example, it will close to f/25 and has seven rounded aperture blades.I took quite a number of photos in the evening, and I am quite happy with the performance of the Z 12-28mm in subdued lighting.By the way, always stop by the B&H store in Midtown 420 9th Ave., New York, NY 10001. There are lots of fantastic photographic equipment there and they treat you like a best friend!

An excellent and affordable wide-to-standard zoom

I bought this lens to replace the 10-20mm + FTZ for my Z50 (v2.50) and Z6-2. The 12-28mm is lighter, smaller and covers a more useful focal range. I was attracted to the lens since it covers a field-of-view as wide as I ever need, but also zooms out to a “normal” length, allowing photos with little-to-none of the perspective exaggeration you can get with wide-angle lenses. The lens gives an equivalent view of 18-42mm (53mm when shooting square), making it a wonderful lens for general photography. I mainly shoot cars, trains and trolleys but also photograph general subjects when out walking around.When using the 12-28mm on the FX Z6-2, file size does get knocked down to 3,936 pixels, but that’s still large enough to view Flickr posts on a 4K monitor, which is about ... MoreI bought this lens to replace the 10-20mm + FTZ for my Z50 (v2.50) and Z6-2. The 12-28mm is lighter, smaller and covers a more useful focal range. I was attracted to the lens since it covers a field-of-view as wide as I ever need, but also zooms out to a “normal” length, allowing photos with little-to-none of the perspective exaggeration you can get with wide-angle lenses. The lens gives an equivalent view of 18-42mm (53mm when shooting square), making it a wonderful lens for general photography. I mainly shoot cars, trains and trolleys but also photograph general subjects when out walking around.When using the 12-28mm on the FX Z6-2, file size does get knocked down to 3,936 pixels, but that’s still large enough to view Flickr posts on a 4K monitor, which is about all I do with my files.Despite its light weight, the lens feels solid and well made. Both the zoom and focus rings operate smoothly, and the lens mounts and dismounts with a precise feel. I wish reviewers who complain about plastic lens mounts would state the issues they’ve had with them. I’ve owned numerous lenses with plastic mounts and never had any trouble with them. The plus and minus symbols on the monitor can be used to zoom the lens on the Z50 (and presumably the Z30 and ZFC) but can be turned off in the menu if you just want to zoom manually. Unlike most electronic zooms I’ve used, the 12-28mm zooming is very precise and doesn’t overshoot or lag. I wish there was a tad more resistance when turning the zoom ring, but that’s just my personal preference.My one complaint with the lens is when zooming on the Z50 a long horizontal bar appears at the bottom of the viewfinder screen indicating the lens is being zoomed. Maybe this has some purpose for video, but I find it distracting and annoying when taking photos. This bar doesn’t appear in my Z6-2 and there doesn’t seem to be a menu item in the Z50 to turn it off. Hopefully Nikon will rectify this in the next firmware update. But this doesn’t detract from what is a very useful lens for the Z system.

Best Zoom For Z30

What a great lens! Very useful zoom range for an ASP-C body, and perfect fit/finish/weight for the Z30.Great image rendering with the expected Nikon look. The Power Zoom integrates VERY well into the system, and through adjusting the settings you can make it work as you want [fast/slow in changing focal lengths]. Super useful on a slider for Dolly Zoom effects.

Dont think just buy it

Everytime you think on a cheap lens comes 'Oh well I will be get less and not state of art in image quality'. This does make sense unless we're talking about the lens on out discuss.FOA we have a small, weather sealed lens that keeps the same size when zoom in.Second we dont get big zoom in order to get the very best IQ possible and it is! At least the same quality you get using 50-250mm which is a great lens btw.And last but not least.. 360 bucks?! C'mon y'all! A great reason to stay in Nikon world! 18-40 is so useful and you dont want 18mm f1.4 as for landscapes f5.6 -8 is the correct way ya know.Just buy it

Great addition for Z30 & Z50 (or Zfc)

This lens provides high quality images for a very reasonable price. It is also quite light in weight. I recently bought both a Z30 for video and Z50 for travel. This lens fills the Nikon wide angle gap in Z DX lenses. The power zoom is quite nice and I expect the feature will be valued for vlog creators. I needed a wide angle view to record aircraft cockpit video and this is wide enough for the task on my Z30. If you have a Nikon Z30, Z50 or Zfc, just buy this lens.

Much better than expected!

I've only had the lens a few hours, so I still need to put it through its paces. I did have some initial thoughts I'd like to share for those considering purchasing this.What I like: small size, light weight, internal zoom, ultra-wide to normal focal rangeWhat I don't like: plastic mount (I knew it had this type of mount)I am pleasantly surprised by the "power zoom". I was afraid it might zoom very clumsily, but it does so quickly, smoothly, and quietly. Apparently you can slow down the zoom speed for slower video transitions. I'm using it for still photography, though, so I'll keep this setting as is. This lens feels like a normal (non-power), internal zoom. Nikon did a great job with this lens!

Nikon NIKKOR Z DX 12-28mm f3.5-5.6 PZ VR Lens

An excellent price and delivered quickly, postage included. The lens is extremely good. It's a tad sharper than the 16-50 in the centre and much sharper in the corners at all focal lengths. I don't notice any lag or overshoot with the electronic zoom, although I do miss seeing the zoom setting on the barrel - you can't find the focal length of a photo on playback without going through several pages of useless data (Z50). Overall better than I expected. I love the fact it goes to 28mm which makes it much more versatile.

Some Peripheral Blur Sometimes, But I Love this Lens

I'm really glad I purchased this lens. I bought it to shoot an event and it came in very handy to shoot group shots as well as candids on the dance floor. The Power Zoom was a huge feature. Compared to the effort needed to turn the lens barrels on the Z50 kit lenses, the Power Zoom for this lens made it really comfortable and easy to use. There was no perceptible lag in zooming. Overall, the optics were good, but I did find a couple of shots at 12 mm and wide open where the people on the edge of the frame were noticeably fuzzy. I would buy this lens again without hesitation.