Yes - seems that only Nikon is honest and then they get penalized for their honesty by people that do not understand the physics. It is NOT just Nikon whose Macro lenses close down at the shortest focal distances - it is ALL Macro lenses from every manufacturer - only Nikon displays the true F stop while the others just display the widest aperture as long as the lens is still considered 'wide open' - it is misleading - Nikon is honest and professional about this and pretty much everything else.
10:00 "It may not allow you to get to F2.8." is a misrepresentation of what is going on here: All lenses apertures are at infinity and only at infinity. So a F2.0 lens is only really F2.0 at infinity. The moment you focus closer than infinity the actual aperture begins to reduce. (This is true for all lenses) This only really becomes relevant in macro photography though. It is something known as "effective aperture". Nikon is the only camera brand that does not display the lens aperture but the effective aperture on their macro lenses. Put more simply: The closer you focus the less light will hit the sensor. At 1:1 Magnification a F2.8 lens will give you the same amount of light as the same lens at F5.6 at infinity. Oh and "Focusing distance" is always measured from the sensor. "Working Distance" is the distance from the front of the Element to the Subject 👍
As a professional gardener, this video has been sent to all my colleagues with the note to watch at minute 5:07. As a Nikon lover, thanks for going easy this time. I have put away my pitchfork for the week.
The fact that a lens set to f/2.8 shows f/3.5 is actually a honest representation of what is going on - as the aperture moves away while you focus close, the cone of light that you capture becomes pointier, and less light reaches the sensor. You can also imagine that the light from your subject gets spread over a greater and greater area when the magnification increases.
I'm not going to ban you in the way that you bash Nikon lately but you didn't really do a fair test. First of all, macro lenses aren't supposed to be fast. They're not for sports and wildlife. This lens has two motors because one is for normal mode and the other is for macro. When it's in macro more the focus is going to be slow because it's made for fine adjustments because you're dealing with a shallow depth of field. You also don't shoot moving subjects such as a bee on a flower that's blowing in the wind. That's not how macro photography works. I've seen many other reviews on this lens and tests by people who actually shoot with a z6/7 II on a regular basis.I don't know if you own a s body or just borrow one when you need to do a review. You still don't seem to understand the focus system on them. Framez repeated your focus test in one of his videos and proved how good the z6 II is and that you weren't using it correctly. If anyone is already using a Nikon fair and are thinking of going mirrorless, don't be scared to stay with Nikon. I went from a d750 to the z6 II and its way better than the d750. I rarely miss focus on portraits. No more focus and recompose. Switching to Canon or Sony isn't the answer if you like the files from Nikon. There's a new firmware update that's supposed to come out this month. We still don't know what's going to be improved but every time Nikon comes out with an update it just makes these cameras that much better. Remember, the z 6/7 II have dual processors. We haven't even seen the potential in these cameras yet. They'll be able to able more in firmware updates than the competition.
Any idea of when the new firmware is schedule to be out? Jared's knock on the autofocus if to the z7ii with the 50mm 1.2 lens forced me to creat and post a test myself on its focusing abilities, that vide is here ruclips.net/video/YXvNYcXHTbk/видео.html. Agreed that the two process opens a lot of potential for other improvements. Hopefully nikon will continue to update firmware on the camera...
@@jfranco3281 right now it's a rumor that the update is this month. I'm interested in seeing what advances from the z9 will be passed down to the z6 II.
Autofocus is fast enough ... I am using this lens since Mid June probably from the day one it got launched in India. I also have Sony A7RIV and 85mm F1.4 GM , what Jared telling here is a bit overcooked. I know he wants Nikon to improve on its Autofocus but just ranting unnecessarily on a good product is bad 👎.
@@SATYAJIT18101983 I have the 84gm and two Sony a7r3 s. I went with Nikon becuase I wanted a high resolution camera that also shoots 4k60 and better raw files. Sony released the A1 but that was too much camera for me. Had they released an a7r4 with 4k60 I would of been all over it ...
I've had this lens since launch. It's a fantastic lens, far better than the old f mount version. Colors, micro contrast, sharpness are off the hook, and no chromatic aberrations. It's a homerun for Nikon. No issues with AF on a Z 6.
And wasted OLED digital screen on the lens. As a Nikon DSLR shooter, I always wonder too, why the f did nikon added this thing to lens, just made it heavier and no one will even use that. Just made me think it is not too late to change to sony ecosystem for mirrorless.
@@mukmin01 I did use the Sony mirrorless system when Nikon was toying with the Nikon 1 system but shifted back to Nikon when it came up serious with the Z mirrorless system.
I was indeed waiting for Jared's review on this lens. Doesn't matter to me if it's slow AF, not pun intended. I don't shoot action and it's NOT made for action. But it is very useful for my job.
I don't use AF for macro shots, just put the focus ring to 1:1 magnification and Roll the camera back and forth to get the insect in focus. Works well with my sigma EX.
Ive been using this lens on a z6iii and out of curiosity started trying to catch barn swallows in flight zooming around the beach. The autofocus with the z6iii is excellent and even with this 105mm f2.8 MC VR I was able to get the birds in focus most of the time. If a macro lens I use primarily for portraits is fast enough for flying barn-swallows, it's fast enough. Maybe it works better on the z6iii so my experience is different. Who knows. Also, focusing at the minimum focus distance at a wide aperture is going to challenge even the best autofocus systems when your subject is moving.
I’ve had this lens since launch and agree with this take. The AF is a little slow when doing macro work but the rendering and sharpness is just phenomenal. Overall I love it.
I got this lens in the spring. Its absolutely fantastic. It is spectacularly sharp. It renders well. Personally, shooting macro, I almost always use manual focus, and a tripod. It just so good. While I agree that this lens is not as zippy to auto focus as my other primes, I have gotten great results using it as a portrait lens. In conjunction with eye AF, it has worked very well indeed. I use macro most often in the autumn, so I am stoked to give it a good run out in the coming months. If you are in the Z system, this is a no brainer upgrade over the old F mount 105, in my opinion.
May not be fast focusing, but half the time, people don't use AF when doing macro (at least I don't). If I'm doing wildlife, MAYBE. But if I'm doing flowers or whatever, I'm using manual focus and focus peaking for more accuracy.
I loved the Nikkor 105mm when I was shooting with the D850 ... I held onto that lens when I switched to the Zs. I traded the 105mm F-mount in when I got my 105mm Z-mount S lens and more or less got it at half price when all was said and done. I LOVE this lens ... it makes no difference to me if it is "slow to focus" because I am setting up my camera on a tripod and I am using the focus shift function. Accuracy, for me, is more important than how fast the camera grabs the subject. It doesn't hunt for the subject and that is fine with me.
both the 105 and 50mm have a 1:1 reproduction ratio, which is why the 50mm gets closer as it needs to to achieve the 1:1. both lenses will make the penny the same size on the senor.
Really sweet colour there. I've never seen that in a macro before. I loved my EF 100mm USM a bit less the IS L but never got colours like that. Kudos to Nikon.
@@oftensalty photographing bees with MF is next to impossible, they move way to erratically to be able to predict where they'll move next and they change their positions all the time. So neither picking a point and waiting for the bee to come to it doesn't work (as you may be waiting minutes for a bee to move exactly there) and with erratic movement you can't hope to move the camera or focus fast enough to hit them. Spray and pray is the only option.
@@biglebowski3486 For live, moving subjects eye autofocus is the way to go. Or you could try to do it old school and spend 10x the amount of time and miss half your shots................
For live subjects (insects) it can be important to be able to use AF, but for static subjects, like flowers, it's not critical, so it sort of depends. I know most of the time (since I Don't photograph insects but rather other non-moving subjects like plants) I just use MF and focus peaking. Then again, I don't think any of Nikon's macro lenses were necesary blazing fast at focusin either (I know my older 105 AF-D lens was slow and loud).
There's some weird stuff in this review. Both, the 50mm and the 105mm offer 1:1 magnification. You can get closer with the 50mm, but your subject will be exactly as big in the image, as a shot taken from further away with the 105. And, while not an excuse for slow AF, if you wanna get very close, I'd suggest going to the minimum focus distance in MF and focusing by moving the camera. Ensures you're at the absolute maximum magnification, though you should shoot in high burst, because you're gonna miss Focus a lot.
Good review and I can agree with most of the points presented after shooting this lens on a Z7II since the lens was released. I actually practice my macro shooting on bees. If you can get good at hitting bees on flowers in a breeze everything else is easy. I've gotten better with practice and I can understand how the focus hunting JP shows can happen. It's certainly not a simple thing to shoot. While it was mentioned, focus stacking with this lense on the Z7II can create some amazing images that are really mind blowing. The caveat is of course, you have to have static conditions. Also this lens crushes for great portraits.
10:48 Jared….. after being a professional photographer and equipment reviewer for this long are you seriously still this lacking with knowledge on macro, that you think getting a wider focal length macro lens would let you get a tighter macro shot just because it has a closer focusing distance? The only reason a wider lens allows you to focus closer is to compensate to maintain the identical 1:1 reproduction ratio of the 105mm. Minimum focusing distance means nothing more than working distance. What really matters is reproduction ratio/magnification. Also, not only Nikon lenses stop down when focusing closer with a macro lens, they ALL do this. It’s just Nikon that accurately and honestly displays the changed aperture. All other companies hide the true aperture as you focus closer. Come on man you should know this stuff.
Missing Portraiture examples. I've used the old 105vr for 10 years as my portrait lens. I've always loved the close focusing ability of it for portraiture.
If he did the comment section would be full of 40-50 years old's screaming at him for doing something wrong because Nikon isn't the best. Oh wait... that's every video ever released on Nikon Mirrorless bodies and lenses.
This is the sharpest Macro I’ve used and when I’m shooting macro most of the time I’ll manually focus. BTW isn’t image quality and the colors one of the top reason’s to choose a camera, after all it’s the image that you show people. When you buy a TV do you look for one with the best image or do you gripe that the remote lags slightly when changing channels compared to the TV next to it with crappy image colors.
Would love to know from Jared whether, WHEN Nikon's focusing system catches up - which it will do (and Sony/Canon won't have much more headroom to improve theirs) whether that will make Nikon's offering better given how often he has said the files, the colours, the images (when in focus) are his favourite...
To be fair to Nikon, most macro lenses are relatively slow focusing. Due to the shallow depth of field inherent to high magnifications, most have "long throw" focus that emphasizes accuracy over speed. The Canon RF lens is unusual in that respect. In addition to using the focus limiter, another way to work with macro lenses is a "trap focus" technique. Turn off AF and preset the degree of magnification you want (possibly using that display you don't like). Then just move the entire camera and lens closer to, farther from the subject until focus is achieved. Some cameras even can be set to release the shutter as soon as focus is achieved. Jared, you recommend people who want a "closer shot" switch from the 105mm to the 50mm macro. That won't accomplish anything. Yes, using the shorter focal length will move you closer to the subject, but it won't increase magnification at all. The Nikon 105mm has a minimum focus distance (MFD, measured from the sensor plane, as you stated) at which it will render 1X or 1:1 magbification. The Nikon 50mm macro has an MFD of about 6.5 inches, at which it will render exactly the same 1X or 1:1 magnification. In other words, at their closest focus distance both lenses will render exactly the same image area (depth of field may differ). You wanted a tighter crop of the image and the only way to do that is to increase magnification. There are several possible ways to do that. A different lens capable of greater than 1:1 is one way. There are some that do 2:1 or even higher. Another way is to add an auxiliary lens to the front of the 1:1 macro lens. A third, and probably the easiest way is to add macro extension tube(s) between the macro lens and that camera body. While either auxiliary lens or extension tubes are being used, the macro lens will not be able to focus to infinity... But it doesn't need to.
I ordered on from Allen's Camera back in July, hoping in comes in soon. I want to use it for my senior portrait sessions especially since I started doing videos too. The macro photos would be an amazing way to create "backgrounds."
I would love to see a remake of this video using the Z9 to verify that the Autofocus is MUCH better, as well as if it still changes the widest aperture at a minimum distance.
You captured some beautiful images. Definitely print some of those. Curious, were you shooting with the silent shutter enabled? Silent shutter slows down af significantly.
Fair enough review and spectacular results from this lens. The Z MC 105's are still hard to get (back-ordered). I have the Z MC 50 and it's amazing as well. FWIW, if I'm hand-holding macro, I'm generally in Single AF using Continuous High (Extended) frame rate. I actually don't want Continuous AF here. If I rattle off 10-20 frames, there's always a keeper in the bunch that nails focus exactly where I want it. You can also focus-stack these short bursts in post, with minimal edge cropping. I'd use this approach in any system for macro. Until someone invents "insect eye AF"... this works great for me 🙂
The trick for insects is MF, just chose the magnification you want and move the camera. I also would recommand an aperture of f/16 to f/22 for 1:1 shots, cuz even at f/18, the DoF is so shallow you will barely get an entire bee in focus.
@@pierrevilley6675 that’s what I discovered in practice. (the moving the camera). This is my first macro and I love everything about but the focus acquisition. The files are gorgeous and practically flawless other than only 1 out 10 are close to want I want. I’m also hand shooting which isn’t helping matters. Seeing he had the same problem I had on a z6 with his z7 2 worried me. I’m hoping a z7 3 will be as good as that Sony.
@@Dmarcoot Acquiring the focus is the biggest challenge in macro, it is even more a problem when you have to shoot one handed to hold a leave behind your subject (to have a nice green bokeh background, instead of a Space vacuum like black), or hold the branch the subject is sitting on (to prevent it from moving in the wind). But it is also what makes macro so rewarding. If it is your first macro Lens, then you might use this advice : Always use a flash (z cameras don't have an integrated one, so you'll have to invest)+a diffuser (handmade ones works well). Natural light macro don't usually look as good as flash.
@@Dmarcoot acquiring focus on moving insects on plants blowing in the wind is extremely hard on any system. You’ll notice the canon shots Jared showed was of stationary bugs and none were of bees moving or flying.
Hey Jared! I always try to check out Allen's Camera whenever I'm looking for gear and I always make sure to go to your affiliate link. I've picked up some great gear there but my favorite is my Canon 400MM f/5.6L. Thanks for turning me on to a great small business! We need to give these little guys all the love we can, especially now!
It makes sense to measure the minimum focusing distance from the sensor, because the focal length + distance from sensor gives you the magnification ratio.
Enjoyable video, Jared and I hope you enjoyed Italy and Germany. Been a long time since we’ve had a Squarespace Rapid Fire critique of someone’s 10 best photos. I miss them!! Great learning tool!
if you recommend this for wedding photos or landscape, what's the difference between this and the 70-200 mm f/2.8 at 105 mm? (except for the closer focussing)
hey Jared! I recently bought the105 z and I am curious about what you say for slow focus if you check in menu settings in the A3 section you notice there to adjust how fast the lens focus when the object passes the front of the lens. I tested it many times and I think is very accurate and fast! I hope to check it again and if I have the right send me feedback! thank you a lot!
I don't understand what's the problem with slow AF. Pointing out the obvious? All macro lenses have slower AF than portrait lenses because of a long focus throw. Turn and turn and turn the focus ring just to get from mfd to infinity, instead of maybe only a quarter turn. Familiar? That applies not only in manual but also in AF. Even if there are two separate AF motors inside, the motor still needs to work harder to push the focus group across the focus range.
I think for the hobbyist this type of lens is in my holy trinity as it can be used for macro which is alot of fun, you can get impressive pictures quite quickly and its good a short telle portrait lens. Im not a fan of the classical holy trinity of 2.8 zooms unless you are professional event photographer (and then absolutely)
odd tat u chose to compare AF under diff scenarios. the nikon w a moving insect on a flower and leaves while the canon on some static circuitry. really odd
Yes, you are entirely right...although jared seems to ignore or misunderstand physics and states that its 'something all the Nikons do' rather than stating this is someone all macros do at 1:1 regardless of brand. It's a nice subliminal knock on Nikon. We shall see if he members to mention this in his Canon 100mm Macro review.
@@richardmurray1858 yes all macros do it, but only Nikon delivers the true number to the user. The others just show the default numbers and people don’t know what the actual number really is. Somehow Nikon being accurate is being turned into a negative.
nice review but can we expect a software release for z6ii/Z105 to improve the focus or is it too late and it it requires a new Z 105 development ? by the way, I have a z6ii and a 35mm F/1.8 and I am surprised in AF-S, half shutter press mode (not af-on to hear the beep), the AF is sometimes wrong (collimator is green, i hear the beep), even at F4, F8 on obvious subjects (flowers,...). AF-S working perfectly. I am close but not so much, depth of field should be enough, I don't have parkinson yet so i am very surprised. so, what you decribe here makes me think about that 35mm.
Excellent video. If one needs a dedicated lens for use ups and closer working distances, yes, a macro lens is well worth it. I happen to agree, that the 105mm macro is a more useful lens. Mainly due to working distance and that it has a great optical perspective for portraits and people photography, plus all general things. The 50mm is good, especially if you do copy work. If you don't need a dedicated macro lens, many zoom lenses have close up capabilities. Depending what focal length you use on the zoom, will determine how close you can get. Nikon even had a 200mm macro lens. The real options can be endless.
At 14:00, the sperm thingies on the hibiscus are called anthers, part of the stamens. And the bees are all female... Anyways, nice video, I am almost converting to Nikon.
I guess as a manually and tolerant AF focusing Gh5 owner, the Nikon might be step up. But then again, as bursting for most "moving" images that are not landscape you will have some sharp pictures, hopefully. You might not burst Canon or Sony in the same way, but do you need 137 sharp images of a bee flyby.*Yes if its for work, Yes if you are willing to go thru them all. You still don't know what you have and what you missed, if make myself understood . In some way its fun to go thru burst in LR with a gh5. What to delete and what to save its a easy job...:)
I only take macro picture i have a d7500 With a tamron 90mm ,,, bue i want to know if value to buy a z5 With triste New nikon macro ,,, or upgrade to other camara
Hi jared Can u compare this Lens image quality with lowa 105 2:1 macro? Can u use a raynox dcr 250 on this lens n tell us how good or bad this lens is going to be?
I'm not really a believer in the value of presets but I must say, some of the sample presets you presented during the break in the video look really good. Especially Skittles . I'm going to wait until you add buttercup and rice crispies to the pack before I place my order. Great work though
what do you mean by slow? Its a 105mm macro for god sake, it does the job it needs to do. Its not a stallion on a race course. Please stop comparing everything with the same yardstick.
I been follow this channel for over 8 years and I never get any free from this guys. Every time I see the add sign for this and that I not do it anymore not luck for me hahahaha
On a different note: I have been reading about adaptors that allow the use of different brands of lenses and bodies. This seems physically possible now with the mirror setup out of the way. Megadap Sony to Nikon, Metabones Nikon to Canon etc. Have you tried any of these? Are they for real? If I could put my 500pf or a Sony 200-600 on a Canon R5 without suffering in performance, that would be really cool. I am not ready to spend the 13k on a Canon wildlife lens and I don't think the f11's or the 100-500 will do it for me. However, the R5 and shorter RF lenses hit the mark.
I recently ordered this lens to replace the old F Mount 105mm micro as I found it too slow to focus on my new Z7II (going from my D750) i really hope the new S lens is faster than the old lens with the FTZ adaptor on the 7Zii otherwise i am going to be very disappointed :(
All brands of Macro lenses limit max aperture based on minimum focus distance but it's only Nikon that accurately represent this to the user.
Yes - seems that only Nikon is honest and then they get penalized for their honesty by people that do not understand the physics. It is NOT just Nikon whose Macro lenses close down at the shortest focal distances - it is ALL Macro lenses from every manufacturer - only Nikon displays the true F stop while the others just display the widest aperture as long as the lens is still considered 'wide open' - it is misleading - Nikon is honest and professional about this and pretty much everything else.
Jared - read this one!
Jared does not even care. He bashes Nikon and that’s it…
Ironic too, because Nikon’s the brand he shot and reviewed equipment for at the start of his career to even make his channel what it is today…
10:00 "It may not allow you to get to F2.8." is a misrepresentation of what is going on here:
All lenses apertures are at infinity and only at infinity. So a F2.0 lens is only really F2.0 at infinity. The moment you focus closer than infinity the actual aperture begins to reduce. (This is true for all lenses) This only really becomes relevant in macro photography though. It is something known as "effective aperture". Nikon is the only camera brand that does not display the lens aperture but the effective aperture on their macro lenses.
Put more simply: The closer you focus the less light will hit the sensor. At 1:1 Magnification a F2.8 lens will give you the same amount of light as the same lens at F5.6 at infinity.
Oh and "Focusing distance" is always measured from the sensor. "Working Distance" is the distance from the front of the Element to the Subject 👍
As a professional gardener, this video has been sent to all my colleagues with the note to watch at minute 5:07. As a Nikon lover, thanks for going easy this time. I have put away my pitchfork for the week.
But stay off the mulch!
Haha hilarious, love this comment!
I know. Just got a nikon z 50 not too long ago and I'm like ugh
@@kais295 Z 50 is so nice.
The fact that a lens set to f/2.8 shows f/3.5 is actually a honest representation of what is going on - as the aperture moves away while you focus close, the cone of light that you capture becomes pointier, and less light reaches the sensor. You can also imagine that the light from your subject gets spread over a greater and greater area when the magnification increases.
It appears that the Canon focuses on a stationary subject and the Nikon was trying to focus on a moving subject.
Does not compute.
Yes, Jared. Closest focusing distance is measured from the sensor, for all lenses.
I was never sure about that, thanks for clearing that up
@@detectivejonesw and normally you got a mark on the body, where the sensor is
I'm not going to ban you in the way that you bash Nikon lately but you didn't really do a fair test. First of all, macro lenses aren't supposed to be fast. They're not for sports and wildlife. This lens has two motors because one is for normal mode and the other is for macro. When it's in macro more the focus is going to be slow because it's made for fine adjustments because you're dealing with a shallow depth of field. You also don't shoot moving subjects such as a bee on a flower that's blowing in the wind. That's not how macro photography works. I've seen many other reviews on this lens and tests by people who actually shoot with a z6/7 II on a regular basis.I don't know if you own a s body or just borrow one when you need to do a review. You still don't seem to understand the focus system on them. Framez repeated your focus test in one of his videos and proved how good the z6 II is and that you weren't using it correctly. If anyone is already using a Nikon fair and are thinking of going mirrorless, don't be scared to stay with Nikon. I went from a d750 to the z6 II and its way better than the d750. I rarely miss focus on portraits. No more focus and recompose. Switching to Canon or Sony isn't the answer if you like the files from Nikon. There's a new firmware update that's supposed to come out this month. We still don't know what's going to be improved but every time Nikon comes out with an update it just makes these cameras that much better. Remember, the z 6/7 II have dual processors. We haven't even seen the potential in these cameras yet. They'll be able to able more in firmware updates than the competition.
Any idea of when the new firmware is schedule to be out? Jared's knock on the autofocus if to the z7ii with the 50mm 1.2 lens forced me to creat and post a test myself on its focusing abilities, that vide is here ruclips.net/video/YXvNYcXHTbk/видео.html. Agreed that the two process opens a lot of potential for other improvements. Hopefully nikon will continue to update firmware on the camera...
@@jfranco3281 right now it's a rumor that the update is this month. I'm interested in seeing what advances from the z9 will be passed down to the z6 II.
Autofocus is fast enough ... I am using this lens since Mid June probably from the day one it got launched in India. I also have Sony A7RIV and 85mm F1.4 GM , what Jared telling here is a bit overcooked. I know he wants Nikon to improve on its Autofocus but just ranting unnecessarily on a good product is bad 👎.
@@SATYAJIT18101983 I have the 84gm and two Sony a7r3 s. I went with Nikon becuase I wanted a high resolution camera that also shoots 4k60 and better raw files. Sony released the A1 but that was too much camera for me. Had they released an a7r4 with 4k60 I would of been all over it ...
@@SATYAJIT18101983 you believe that is good portrait lense for weddings?it is fast?
I've had this lens since launch. It's a fantastic lens, far better than the old f mount version. Colors, micro contrast, sharpness are off the hook, and no chromatic aberrations. It's a homerun for Nikon. No issues with AF on a Z 6.
I bet it… that F lens was the same like for 20 years ago hahahaha.
Canon do it better this time in their 100MM macro lens.
Jared has been consistent on 2 points when it comes to reviewing Nikon gear - autofocus is slow and images are fantastic.
Which is actually True
And wasted OLED digital screen on the lens. As a Nikon DSLR shooter, I always wonder too, why the f did nikon added this thing to lens, just made it heavier and no one will even use that. Just made me think it is not too late to change to sony ecosystem for mirrorless.
And he shoot raw..
@@mukmin01 I did use the Sony mirrorless system when Nikon was toying with the Nikon 1 system but shifted back to Nikon when it came up serious with the Z mirrorless system.
Focus Speed king: 90mm f/3.5 Macro IS PRO ... guess by who? So sharp you have to wear gloves.
I was indeed waiting for Jared's review on this lens. Doesn't matter to me if it's slow AF, not pun intended. I don't shoot action and it's NOT made for action. But it is very useful for my job.
I don't use AF for macro shots, just put the focus ring to 1:1 magnification and Roll the camera back and forth to get the insect in focus. Works well with my sigma EX.
Or just use back button focus with single point mode...
I agree. Manual focus, and then just move forwards or backwards to get the right focus, in a lot of cases.
using this lense for 10 weeks now for all my portraits. this lense is amazing.
I've been wanting to do the same but I think the 85mm 1.2 is around the corner
Ive been using this lens on a z6iii and out of curiosity started trying to catch barn swallows in flight zooming around the beach. The autofocus with the z6iii is excellent and even with this 105mm f2.8 MC VR I was able to get the birds in focus most of the time. If a macro lens I use primarily for portraits is fast enough for flying barn-swallows, it's fast enough. Maybe it works better on the z6iii so my experience is different. Who knows. Also, focusing at the minimum focus distance at a wide aperture is going to challenge even the best autofocus systems when your subject is moving.
I’ve had this lens since launch and agree with this take. The AF is a little slow when doing macro work but the rendering and sharpness is just phenomenal. Overall I love it.
That's the most careful Jared has been pointing out Nikon shortcomings. Must've had tons of flacking, LOL!
I wouldn't consider a 105 macro for bug pics. My long zooms are fantastic and I get to keep my distance from bees and wasps!
@@lsaideOK Not too brave then? :)
Jared is being super nice about it. I mean why would you need quick autofocus or eye tracking for macro insects? Jeez
Maybe the "beep" beep" beep" of the money truck?
@@doghouseriley4732 If you have a 105 and you're close to something that's moving slowly, you want that autofocus to be fast
I got this lens in the spring. Its absolutely fantastic. It is spectacularly sharp. It renders well. Personally, shooting macro, I almost always use manual focus, and a tripod. It just so good. While I agree that this lens is not as zippy to auto focus as my other primes, I have gotten great results using it as a portrait lens. In conjunction with eye AF, it has worked very well indeed. I use macro most often in the autumn, so I am stoked to give it a good run out in the coming months. If you are in the Z system, this is a no brainer upgrade over the old F mount 105, in my opinion.
May not be fast focusing, but half the time, people don't use AF when doing macro (at least I don't). If I'm doing wildlife, MAYBE. But if I'm doing flowers or whatever, I'm using manual focus and focus peaking for more accuracy.
That is a super sharp lens, as long as you don't need fast focusing system
I usually use Manual Focus for these type of Macro shots
Am owning this lens since mid of June and I can tell you the autofocus is adequate and I can feel it rather fast.
I loved the Nikkor 105mm when I was shooting with the D850 ... I held onto that lens when I switched to the Zs. I traded the 105mm F-mount in when I got my 105mm Z-mount S lens and more or less got it at half price when all was said and done. I LOVE this lens ... it makes no difference to me if it is "slow to focus" because I am setting up my camera on a tripod and I am using the focus shift function. Accuracy, for me, is more important than how fast the camera grabs the subject. It doesn't hunt for the subject and that is fine with me.
both the 105 and 50mm have a 1:1 reproduction ratio, which is why the 50mm gets closer as it needs to to achieve the 1:1. both lenses will make the penny the same size on the senor.
I glad you said that. I really do question this guy's level of expertise, as he often makes quite fundamental mistakes.
Really sweet colour there. I've never seen that in a macro before. I loved my EF 100mm USM a bit less the IS L but never got colours like that. Kudos to Nikon.
This might be my favorite review of yours I've watched so far!
For macro work, usually pros don't use AF because manual focus is just easier. But fair point still.
Doesn’t apply to Jared
I’m not a macro shooter but I would have thought with such a shallow DoF that manual focus with peaking highlights would be the way to go.
If there isnt eye af and face tracking he doesnt want to hear it
@@oftensalty photographing bees with MF is next to impossible, they move way to erratically to be able to predict where they'll move next and they change their positions all the time. So neither picking a point and waiting for the bee to come to it doesn't work (as you may be waiting minutes for a bee to move exactly there) and with erratic movement you can't hope to move the camera or focus fast enough to hit them. Spray and pray is the only option.
@@biglebowski3486 For live, moving subjects eye autofocus is the way to go. Or you could try to do it old school and spend 10x the amount of time and miss half your shots................
For live subjects (insects) it can be important to be able to use AF, but for static subjects, like flowers, it's not critical, so it sort of depends. I know most of the time (since I Don't photograph insects but rather other non-moving subjects like plants) I just use MF and focus peaking. Then again, I don't think any of Nikon's macro lenses were necesary blazing fast at focusin either (I know my older 105 AF-D lens was slow and loud).
@@oftensalty Focus peaking works great with an F2.8, I only have a little bit of trouble using it with an F1.7
Welcome home Jared hope you had a great trip in Germany and Italy
I’m getting the z7II as an upgrade from my D810. I already use the sigma 105 macro is it worth picking this one up? Great video Thanks
There's some weird stuff in this review. Both, the 50mm and the 105mm offer 1:1 magnification. You can get closer with the 50mm, but your subject will be exactly as big in the image, as a shot taken from further away with the 105.
And, while not an excuse for slow AF, if you wanna get very close, I'd suggest going to the minimum focus distance in MF and focusing by moving the camera. Ensures you're at the absolute maximum magnification, though you should shoot in high burst, because you're gonna miss Focus a lot.
Good review and I can agree with most of the points presented after shooting this lens on a Z7II since the lens was released.
I actually practice my macro shooting on bees. If you can get good at hitting bees on flowers in a breeze everything else is easy. I've gotten better with practice and I can understand how the focus hunting JP shows can happen. It's certainly not a simple thing to shoot.
While it was mentioned, focus stacking with this lense on the Z7II can create some amazing images that are really mind blowing. The caveat is of course, you have to have static conditions.
Also this lens crushes for great portraits.
Jared need inspects eye autofocus … his autofocus miss if not ..
10:48 Jared….. after being a professional photographer and equipment reviewer for this long are you seriously still this lacking with knowledge on macro, that you think getting a wider focal length macro lens would let you get a tighter macro shot just because it has a closer focusing distance? The only reason a wider lens allows you to focus closer is to compensate to maintain the identical 1:1 reproduction ratio of the 105mm. Minimum focusing distance means nothing more than working distance. What really matters is reproduction ratio/magnification. Also, not only Nikon lenses stop down when focusing closer with a macro lens, they ALL do this. It’s just Nikon that accurately and honestly displays the changed aperture. All other companies hide the true aperture as you focus closer.
Come on man you should know this stuff.
Turn up the focus speed and attachment speed and intensity
Missing Portraiture examples. I've used the old 105vr for 10 years as my portrait lens. I've always loved the close focusing ability of it for portraiture.
Please compare the sony 90, cannon 100 and the nikon 105 macro lenses
If he did the comment section would be full of 40-50 years old's screaming at him for doing something wrong because Nikon isn't the best. Oh wait... that's every video ever released on Nikon Mirrorless bodies and lenses.
With also the sigma 105mm version
@@ReclusiveEagle the more comments the better the video performs in the algorithm. Win win win
@@PyroKalfje yeah. Totally agree
What is the best Canon camera for Macro photography? Thank you (price is not an issue)
This is the sharpest Macro I’ve used and when I’m shooting macro most of the time I’ll manually focus. BTW isn’t image quality and the colors one of the top reason’s to choose a camera, after all it’s the image that you show people. When you buy a TV do you look for one with the best image or do you gripe that the remote lags slightly when changing channels compared to the TV next to it with crappy image colors.
good point, but with images people can always adjust colors in post. but you cant adjust slow focus or blurry photos in post.
I just got my RF macro this week, I sure am jealous of the Nikon price.
Magnification ratio: Nikon 1:1, Canon 1:1.4. Quite a difference. Pity there is not a word about it in the video
Would love to know from Jared whether, WHEN Nikon's focusing system catches up - which it will do (and Sony/Canon won't have much more headroom to improve theirs) whether that will make Nikon's offering better given how often he has said the files, the colours, the images (when in focus) are his favourite...
06:44 did I hear that right? Yeah I did, Jared is not afraid to weird and awkward that's why I like his reviews!
To be fair to Nikon, most macro lenses are relatively slow focusing. Due to the shallow depth of field inherent to high magnifications, most have "long throw" focus that emphasizes accuracy over speed. The Canon RF lens is unusual in that respect.
In addition to using the focus limiter, another way to work with macro lenses is a "trap focus" technique. Turn off AF and preset the degree of magnification you want (possibly using that display you don't like). Then just move the entire camera and lens closer to, farther from the subject until focus is achieved. Some cameras even can be set to release the shutter as soon as focus is achieved.
Jared, you recommend people who want a "closer shot" switch from the 105mm to the 50mm macro. That won't accomplish anything. Yes, using the shorter focal length will move you closer to the subject, but it won't increase magnification at all. The Nikon 105mm has a minimum focus distance (MFD, measured from the sensor plane, as you stated) at which it will render 1X or 1:1 magbification. The Nikon 50mm macro has an MFD of about 6.5 inches, at which it will render exactly the same 1X or 1:1 magnification. In other words, at their closest focus distance both lenses will render exactly the same image area (depth of field may differ).
You wanted a tighter crop of the image and the only way to do that is to increase magnification. There are several possible ways to do that. A different lens capable of greater than 1:1 is one way. There are some that do 2:1 or even higher. Another way is to add an auxiliary lens to the front of the 1:1 macro lens. A third, and probably the easiest way is to add macro extension tube(s) between the macro lens and that camera body. While either auxiliary lens or extension tubes are being used, the macro lens will not be able to focus to infinity... But it doesn't need to.
I ordered on from Allen's Camera back in July, hoping in comes in soon. I want to use it for my senior portrait sessions especially since I started doing videos too. The macro photos would be an amazing way to create "backgrounds."
Great review. Love Longwood Gardens. Miss the great east coast gardens living in Tulsa.
Your love for anything Canon is not hidden.
I would love to see a remake of this video using the Z9 to verify that the Autofocus is MUCH better, as well as if it still changes the widest aperture at a minimum distance.
You captured some beautiful images. Definitely print some of those. Curious, were you shooting with the silent shutter enabled? Silent shutter slows down af significantly.
Fair enough review and spectacular results from this lens. The Z MC 105's are still hard to get (back-ordered). I have the Z MC 50 and it's amazing as well.
FWIW, if I'm hand-holding macro, I'm generally in Single AF using Continuous High (Extended) frame rate. I actually don't want Continuous AF here. If I rattle off 10-20 frames, there's always a keeper in the bunch that nails focus exactly where I want it. You can also focus-stack these short bursts in post, with minimal edge cropping. I'd use this approach in any system for macro. Until someone invents "insect eye AF"... this works great for me 🙂
I have this lens on my z6. I concur with everything he says. It’s good knowing you had exact same experience shooting bees outside
The trick for insects is MF, just chose the magnification you want and move the camera. I also would recommand an aperture of f/16 to f/22 for 1:1 shots, cuz even at f/18, the DoF is so shallow you will barely get an entire bee in focus.
@@pierrevilley6675 that’s what I discovered in practice. (the moving the camera).
This is my first macro and I love everything about but the focus acquisition.
The files are gorgeous and practically flawless other than only 1 out 10 are close to want I want.
I’m also hand shooting which isn’t helping matters.
Seeing he had the same problem I had on a z6 with his z7 2 worried me. I’m hoping a z7 3 will be as good as that Sony.
@@Dmarcoot Acquiring the focus is the biggest challenge in macro, it is even more a problem when you have to shoot one handed to hold a leave behind your subject (to have a nice green bokeh background, instead of a Space vacuum like black), or hold the branch the subject is sitting on (to prevent it from moving in the wind).
But it is also what makes macro so rewarding.
If it is your first macro Lens, then you might use this advice :
Always use a flash (z cameras don't have an integrated one, so you'll have to invest)+a diffuser (handmade ones works well). Natural light macro don't usually look as good as flash.
@@Dmarcoot acquiring focus on moving insects on plants blowing in the wind is extremely hard on any system. You’ll notice the canon shots Jared showed was of stationary bugs and none were of bees moving or flying.
I missed that part - what Canon Lens/Camera did you use for comparison?
Hi, do you know if the focus speed and accuracy increased with the Z8 and Z9?
Hey Jared! I always try to check out Allen's Camera whenever I'm looking for gear and I always make sure to go to your affiliate link. I've picked up some great gear there but my favorite is my Canon 400MM f/5.6L. Thanks for turning me on to a great small business! We need to give these little guys all the love we can, especially now!
hey, man, nice video
wpyld you recomend this oense for concert photography???
regards
It makes sense to measure the minimum focusing distance from the sensor, because the focal length + distance from sensor gives you the magnification ratio.
Enjoyable video, Jared and I hope you enjoyed Italy and Germany. Been a long time since we’ve had a Squarespace Rapid Fire critique of someone’s 10 best photos. I miss them!! Great learning tool!
Is the focus acquiring much faster on the Z9?
Great lens 105mm my favorite for portraits
Would you recommend getting this new for the z system, if you already have the old macro vr?
if you recommend this for wedding photos or landscape, what's the difference between this and the 70-200 mm f/2.8 at 105 mm? (except for the closer focussing)
hey Jared! I recently bought the105 z and I am curious about what you say for slow focus if you check in menu settings in the A3 section you notice there to adjust how fast the lens focus when the object passes the front of the lens. I tested it many times and I think is very accurate and fast! I hope to check it again and if I have the right send me feedback! thank you a lot!
105 mc can replace my 85mm for wedding or have issues like slower focus?
I the camera is set on single AF + 'Pin', the focus is quick without hunting.
I don't understand what's the problem with slow AF. Pointing out the obvious? All macro lenses have slower AF than portrait lenses because of a long focus throw.
Turn and turn and turn the focus ring just to get from mfd to infinity, instead of maybe only a quarter turn. Familiar? That applies not only in manual but also in AF. Even if there are two separate AF motors inside, the motor still needs to work harder to push the focus group across the focus range.
I think for the hobbyist this type of lens is in my holy trinity as it can be used for macro which is alot of fun, you can get impressive pictures quite quickly and its good a short telle portrait lens. Im not a fan of the classical holy trinity of 2.8 zooms unless you are professional event photographer (and then absolutely)
Hahahah I love how Jared consistently mentioned how slow AF in nikon system
odd tat u chose to compare AF under diff scenarios. the nikon w a moving insect on a flower and leaves while the canon on some static circuitry. really odd
Thank you so much for review nikkor z MC 105mm
Love macro photography.
Will the results be as good with a z50?
Auto-focus sensitivity and speed setup in camera could be a factor?
good review. Ive been on order since July and now I'm told realistically not to expect it much before Xmas! Its not just focus that's slow LOL
I thought ALL macro lenses increased aperture after zooming in ??! You mentioned in review that only Nikon macros do this
Yes, you are entirely right...although jared seems to ignore or misunderstand physics and states that its 'something all the Nikons do' rather than stating this is someone all macros do at 1:1 regardless of brand. It's a nice subliminal knock on Nikon. We shall see if he members to mention this in his Canon 100mm Macro review.
@@richardmurray1858 yes all macros do it, but only Nikon delivers the true number to the user. The others just show the default numbers and people don’t know what the actual number really is. Somehow Nikon being accurate is being turned into a negative.
Again a biased statement by him, he knows it very well . Check his review for SIGMA Macro lens for E and L mount
I have the old version of the 105 Mac. Should I replace it with the new one for uses with my new Z9 or the différence will not significant enough
nice review but can we expect a software release for z6ii/Z105 to improve the focus or is it too late and it it requires a new Z 105 development ?
by the way, I have a z6ii and a 35mm F/1.8 and I am surprised in AF-S, half shutter press mode (not af-on to hear the beep), the AF is sometimes wrong (collimator is green, i hear the beep), even at F4, F8 on obvious subjects (flowers,...).
AF-S working perfectly. I am close but not so much, depth of field should be enough, I don't have parkinson yet so i am very surprised.
so, what you decribe here makes me think about that 35mm.
Will the AF be faster on the Z9?
Excellent video. If one needs a dedicated lens for use ups and closer working distances, yes, a macro lens is well worth it. I happen to agree, that the 105mm macro is a more useful lens. Mainly due to working distance and that it has a great optical perspective for portraits and people photography, plus all general things. The 50mm is good, especially if you do copy work. If you don't need a dedicated macro lens, many zoom lenses have close up capabilities. Depending what focal length you use on the zoom, will determine how close you can get. Nikon even had a 200mm macro lens. The real options can be endless.
Can this be used for scanning with the es-1 and es-2?
This lens is nearly as good at portraits as it is at macro, and the focus motor for general use is great.
That was interesting, thanks
Can this lens double as a portrait lens? If I were to take it to a convention and take cosplay photos I would be able to get that portrait effect?
Jared! Min focus dist. = always messured from the film / sensor! Best wishes, keep inspiring and froing, GREETS
At 14:00, the sperm thingies on the hibiscus are called anthers, part of the stamens. And the bees are all female...
Anyways, nice video, I am almost converting to Nikon.
I guess as a manually and tolerant AF focusing Gh5 owner, the Nikon might be step up. But then again, as bursting for most "moving" images that are not landscape you will have some sharp pictures, hopefully. You might not burst Canon or Sony in the same way, but do you need 137 sharp images of a bee flyby.*Yes if its for work, Yes if you are willing to go thru them all. You still don't know what you have and what you missed, if make myself understood . In some way its fun to go thru burst in LR with a gh5. What to delete and what to save its a easy job...:)
oh man that Doom themed I shoot raw shirt is too good!
Why didn’t you try focus stacking on the Macros?
on those thin depths of field close up i find servo mode works really well (canon), it keeps it in focus.
I only take macro picture i have a d7500 With a tamron 90mm ,,, bue i want to know if value to buy a z5 With triste New nikon macro ,,, or upgrade to other camara
Hi jared
Can u compare this Lens image quality with lowa 105 2:1 macro?
Can u use a raynox dcr 250 on this lens n tell us how good or bad this lens is going to be?
raynox- yes,you can
I switched from Nikon to Sony. Dam I miss Nikon colors, micro-contrast and bokeh. That's what's keeping the brand alive.
but now, you have sharp eyes, or not ?
@@PatrickFeldhusen and sigma and Tamron lenses
All macro lenses limit max aperture based on minimum focus distance. Both my Nikkor and my Sigma do that!
I'm not switching to canon or Sony because this lens is a bit slow.
Macro lenses will focus breath regardless.
Use the focus limiter instead.
Very good
I'm not really a believer in the value of presets but I must say, some of the sample presets you presented during the break in the video look really good. Especially Skittles . I'm going to wait until you add buttercup and rice crispies to the pack before I place my order. Great work though
Awesome
The F stop limit at the open end is not limited to Nikon lenses - my sigma 105 2.8 does exactly the same and I've heard other lenses doing this too.
Amazing lens awesome review
what do you mean by slow? Its a 105mm macro for god sake, it does the job it needs to do. Its not a stallion on a race course. Please stop comparing everything with the same yardstick.
I been follow this channel for over 8 years and I never get any free from this guys. Every time I see the add sign for this and that I not do it anymore not luck for me hahahaha
I'm surprised Fro doesn't know this, but focus distance (minimum focus distance) is from the sensor plane, not the front of the lens.
On a different note: I have been reading about adaptors that allow the use of different brands of lenses and bodies. This seems physically possible now with the mirror setup out of the way. Megadap Sony to Nikon, Metabones Nikon to Canon etc. Have you tried any of these? Are they for real? If I could put my 500pf or a Sony 200-600 on a Canon R5 without suffering in performance, that would be really cool. I am not ready to spend the 13k on a Canon wildlife lens and I don't think the f11's or the 100-500 will do it for me. However, the R5 and shorter RF lenses hit the mark.
I recently ordered this lens to replace the old F Mount 105mm micro as I found it too slow to focus on my new Z7II (going from my D750) i really hope the new S lens is faster than the old lens with the FTZ adaptor on the 7Zii otherwise i am going to be very disappointed :(
Any focus breathing issues?
can you re do this with the new firmware?
L-Fn is not a lock button! Lens Function customisable button.