Nikkor MC 105 mm f/2.8 VR S
A premium macro lens for Z-series
Nikons
Close-up and macro photography, a favourite of many, has gained momentum in recent times. Macro photography reveals the world that we miss seeing with our naked eyes. Nikon recently introduced two new Micro lenses (that’s the way Nikon chooses to call its macro lenses) – the Nikkor Z MC 50 mm f/2.8 S which was reviewed by Smart Photography in the August 2021 issue, and the Nikkor Z MC 105 mm f/2.8 VR S, which is the reason for this review. The 105 mm Micro lens not only provides a magniϐication ratio of up to 1:1 for extreme close-ups, it can also be used as a medium telephoto lens for portraiture, table-tops, ewellery, landscapes, ϐlowers etc. Let’s see how this lens performs on our test bench…
Design & Build Quality
The Nikkor Z MC 105 mm f/2.8 VR S lens, is lightweight and well made for the purpose. It does not feel hefty and as robust as some old Nikkor lenses, but one has to understand that lenses are designed for taking pictures and not as clubs to bash someone! Also, the lighter the lens, easier it is on the AF motor. Unless misused, the lens should last for several years. The Nikkor ‘S’ logo denotes it as a premium lens for the Z-series camera bodies. The lens is weather sealed. The lens mount is made from metal and a rubberised ring on the mount prevents dust or water splashes from entering the lens. The lens comes bundled with a plastic lens hood. Filter thread is 62 mm and the lens is made in Thailand.
Key Features
The Nikkor Z MC 105 mm f/2.8 VR S is a ‘ϐlat-ϐield’ design lens that is constructed with 16 elements in 11 groups that include 3 x ED (Extra-Low Dispersion) elements to control chromatic aberrations, 1 x aspherical element to suppress spherical aberrations and distortions, elements with Nano Crystal Coat to reduce ϐlare and ghosting, ARNE coat that further reduces ϐlare and ghosting and a ϐluorine coated front lens element that makes it easier to keep the front element clean. The special lens coatings allow you to get crisper images in back-lit situations.
The lens uses a new multi-focus AF drive system for fast and accurate autofocus. The autofocussing is silent which helps in not disturbing close-by live subjects and also helps in creating videos without the noise of the AF motor. The lens’ vibration reduction feature, when combined with the in-camera body 5-axis image stabilisation of almost all Z-series camera bodies, offers about 4.5 stops of advantage in shutter speed.
The Z MC 105 mm f/2.8 VR S lens allows you to do ‘focus stacking’. This is a feature that allows you to get end-to-end super sharp images that’s not possible without using this feature. For example, when photographing a close-up subject or a vast landscape, it is often impossible to get the entire subject in critically sharp focus even at f/16 or f/22. Besides, when using such narrow apertures, an optical phenomenon known as ‘diffraction of light’ causes the entire image to go a bit ‘soft’. When you use ‘focus stacking’, you can shoot at the lens’ optimum aperture (which is generally two stops down from the widest aperture) and still create endto-end sharpness. The ‘focus stacking’ works with all Z-series camera bodies when using a S-series lens. A third-party software (Photoshop, Helicon Focus, Zerene Stacker etc.) is needed to merge the stacked images.
On the left side of the lens is an A-M switch (Autofocus – Manual focus). Right below that is the Focus Limiter switch that helps you to achieve faster autofocus. For example, when working on a close-up subject, there is no sense in allowing the focus ring to turn from the minimum to inϐinity. Hence the Focus Limiter gives you a choice to set the focus limit between 0.29 m – 0.5 m or between 0.29 m to inϐinity.
The lens has a ‘Display’ button. Pressing it will cycle (in the Lens Info Panel) either (1) the magniϐication ratio
(2) the focussed distance in metres/ feet (3) the f/number being used. The Display button also allows you to set the viewing brightness level. The lens also has a Control Ring that can be rotated to set the lens aperture or exposure compensation, depending on what feature you have assigned to it in the camera, via ‘Custom control assignment’. There is also a L-Fn button to which the user can assign a function through the camera body. The lens dimensions are 85 (D) x 140 mm (front of lens to ϐlange mount) and weighs approximately 689 g with the lens hood.
Ergonomics
We reviewed the lens on a Nikon Z6 body. The combo was quite light in weight and I had no trouble carrying it for extended hours. The lens balances well, and is very comfortable and easy to use.
Performance
Note: As a general rule one should update ϔ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ ϔ my Z6 (C: 3.31 and LF: 1.00)
The Z 105 mm f/2.8 VR S lens is sharp at the centre as well as sides/corners even when used at wide open aperture. One-stop down from the widest aperture, I found it difϐicult to see any difference in sharpness between the centre and the sides/corners. You can safely use the lens wide open or one-stop down for any and all subjects, as long as depth of ϐield is not your priority. I did not notice any colour fringing worth mentioning, which is a good thing. When used at f/2.8 (and also at f/4) on close-by subjects, the lens produced good bokeh. I felt the sweet spot was f/4, with f/5.6 being very close.