I was wondering if many Nikon mirrorless users were still using F-mount lenses with a FTZ adapter. I know Nikon has came out with quite a few Z-mount lenses at this point, but was curious as to whether anyone has stuck with a particular F-mount lens for their mirrorless camera.
I still have and intend to keep a bunch of DSLRs so I'm always going to have F-mount lenses.
Have used my 24-70mm, 70-200mm FL & 500mm f/5.6E pf on my Zfc, Zf since their launches respectively & just picked up a Z9 and haven't noticed anything that makes me want to upgrade to Z mount versions.
I still use a few F mount lenses with the FTZ, primarily a 70-200 f/4 since Nikon hasn’t made one for Z mount yet…
There are several “cult classic” F mount lenses with no Z equivalent, such as the 28mm 1.4E, 58mm 1.4G, 105mm 1.4E, etc., that are worth using on Z bodies.
I have moved on to fully Z mount lenses basically because they are generally better optically and some are much lighter and smaller. Having said that, lenses like my old 400mm f2.8E FL VR, 500 f5.6 PF, 70-200 f2.8E FL VR, 105 f1.4E are still superb lenses in their own right whether on F mount or Z mount. I only moved on from the 400 f2.8 as it was getting a little too heavy and was really a bit short for my mostly birding duties. I could also easily have kept with the 500 PF but I ended up needing the money to help fund me getting the Z 600TC. Another part of the reason for me to move on is that many of the F mount lenses were starting to be old, possible failures start and then parts become an issue etc. I just decided to go all Z mount and be done with it.
I have a ZF, and I have plenty of experience with older F lenses, but haven't bothered with the FTZ because:
1) If you value small size and balance, the FTZ+F lens setup often winds up being ungainly compared to modern solutions.
2) If you don't already own those legacy lenses, the cost of buying them + FTZ doesn't look so great, especially if point number 1 matters to you.
3) FTZ won't bring autofocus to AF-D lenses, which IMO were the best value and the real cult classics of F-mount.
4) FTZ isn't needed to use old manual focus Nikkors.
F-mount (DSLR) lenses have different optical designs as they are further away from the sensor. They seem to have less vignetting, all else being equal, with the tradeoff being size and weight. I like my 105E, Voigtlander 58, and 50 Art.
My main Z lens kit is AF-S G lenses, a few manual F-mount lenses, and a few Voigtlander lenses. But I'm using the 40 f/2 as a lightweight lens a fair bit again, and I use the 50 MC for film scanning. I just generally have preferred the look of the F-mount and Voigtlander stuff to the Nikon Z glass, so that's what I've ended up going back to. Plus it's nice being able to stuff a Z8 and F6 in a bag and share lenses.
I recently got into birding, the Z 180-600 is a great lens for the price, but that f6.3 was at times limiting. Not wanting to drop big $$$ for a 600/4 TC I purchased a F-mount 500/4E FL and run it with a FTZ2. Works very well, though it feel strange to hear again the VR and the focus mechanism click and clack.
jcw1982 wrote:
I was wondering if many Nikon mirrorless users were still using F-mount lenses with a FTZ adapter. I know Nikon has came out with quite a few Z-mount lenses at this point, but was curious as to whether anyone has stuck with a particular F-mount lens for their mirrorless camera.
I use (w/FTZ):
MF
Nikkor AI 50/1.4
Zeiss ZF 100/2 Makro-Planar
Zeiss ZF.2 135/2 Apo Sonnar
Zeiss ZF.2 21/2.8
AF
AF-S Micro-Nikkor ED 105/2.8G VR
AF-S ED 70-200/4G VR
I still own a D780, but I use it much less than my Z6. I'm planning to sell the D780 and buy a second MILC, but I don't currently see any Nikon mirrorless cameras that meet my needs. The Z5II could probably be a candidate, but I don't like the lack of a top screen.
If (and when) I'll swap my D780 for a MILC, I'll keep most of F-mount lenses (I'll sell the AF-S 105 Micro because I have the 105 MC).
I could swap the 70-200/4G for a Z 70-200/4 VR S if Nikon will make it.
The 500PF because I can’t justify the cost to upgrade what is a nearly perfect lens (especially cause I’d have to buy a new 1.4x too).
The other two because I also shoot them on X and GFX, so buying new Z lenses would leave me with too many pricey portrait primes. And the 58/1.4 also because Nikon has made no lens like it for Z.
Yes, I still use the FTZ. I will admit I end up using it less by the year, but I still have F mount lenses that don't really have a Z (and in some cases E mount) alternative. Such as the Sigma 28mm f1.4 and 40mm f1.4 lenses. I also still use some F mount lenses that I feel are still good enough for how often I use them. For example, my 70-200 f2.8 and 300mm f2.8 lenses. At this point, unless I need low light handling, I usually end up using my Sony 200-600mm f6.3 (which I got before the 180-600 was announced). If you are looking to pick up a lens like a 24-70, for which there are a lot of options for I would go Native Z mount, then adapted E mount, then adapted F mount, but if there is a unique F mount lens you want to use, or a good F mount lens you can get a really good deal on I would not hesitate to use the FTZ.
I've got a bunch of FTZ and FTZII adapters, plus a Novoflex FTZ. Why? I've got numerous manual-focus F-mount lenses, some still competitive in terms of image quality, and a few that have no Z equivalent (like the 17-35/2.8** or 80-200/4 zooms). They're not worth much to sell, but being manual focus they will still be functional when the focus motors in my Z lenses have died and there aren't any parts to fix them. Also, the manual focus Ai-P and ZF.2 Nikon and Zeiss lenses that have communication with the bodies transmit EXIF info and are controllable from the Z camera bodies, so FTZ is better than dumb adapters for that one sub-group. I never bought, or wanted to buy, any of the screw drive AF lenses, so that particular FTZ incompatibility is not, and will never be, an issue.
**My AF-S 17-35/2.8D lens started out as an auto focus lens, but recently self-converted to manual focus (for the second time), so I removed the shorted-out electronic contacts and clipped the flex cable out of it. The manual-focus action on this lens is actually superior to most old-style helical mechanisms.
My FTZ lives on my fMount 400mm f2.8 but I still have 6 fMount lenses in total that get played with occasionally. I'll never get rid of them or my DSLRs.
DWOfPaul wrote:
Yes, I still use the FTZ. I will admit I end up using it less by the year, but I still have F mount lenses that don't really have a Z (and in some cases E mount) alternative. Such as the Sigma 28mm f1.4 and 40mm f1.4 lenses.
I tried Sigma 28mm f1.4 and 40mm f1.4 lenses on E-mount, my copy of 28mm was probably not the best, it was somewhat soft wide open. 40mm is among the best corrected lens. Once I bought 35mm DG DN f1.2 I sold 40mm as 35mm f1.2 Art is way tighter than 35GM, it's actual focal length is more like 38mm. Only advantage which 40 had over 35 was non existent LoCA. Now we have mark II of Art and Viltrox 35mm, who have perfected this lens even further.
I use adapted 24-70mm f/2.8 non-VR, and a 70-200mm f/2.8 FL ED. If I stumble upon a used Z-mount version of either one, I'd switch. It's a cost thing for me.
