A First Look at Nikon's Insane Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct Lens

The Nikon NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct lens is in another stratosphere in terms of design and well, price. Who exactly is this lens meant for? This first look video takes a look at this unique and interesting piece of glass.

Coming to you from DP Review, this first look video examines the new Nikon NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct lens. The lens has left a lot of photographers both wowed and bewildered by its price. After all, an f/0.95 is about two thirds of a stop faster than already ultra-fast f/1.2 lenses and about 1.1 stops faster than more standard f/1.4 lenses. The 58mm f/0.95 is not the first 50(ish)mm lens with an f/0.95 aperture (and believe it or not, it's not the most expensive either; that honor goes to the $11,500 Leica 50mm f/0.95); several companies make f/0.95 lenses, but Nikon is one of the few to aim for uncompromising optical quality regardless of the size or the price. In some sense, this is very much a show-off piece for Nikon; like the famous Canon 50mm f/1.0L lens, it serves to show what the company is capable of. Check out the video above to hear more about this unique lens. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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7 Comments

Dear fstoppers, could you please tag Alex Cook's posts directly in the title in future? I'm getting tired of getting disappointed every time I click on an article just to discover a linked video again and again...

Here ya go.

I don't get it. Where is this other stratosphere? Is it below another mesosphere and above another troposphere? Perhaps the Ozone layer is where O point 95 lenses exist in the rarified atmosphere.

I'm honestly surprised they didn't integrate AF into this lens. How is anyone expected to shoot sharp images in a time of 40+ megapixel sensors when your depth of field is as thin as a razor blade? Tripod and a subject that's as steady as a rock may help, but 9 out of 10 situations don't fall within that category. I understand the technical challenges in integrating AF into a lens such as this. But even a slow AF would be better than none. For me, the lack of AF is a bigger drawback and the price.

one of the reasons lens is manual focus coz depth of field is so thin and sharp auto focus not that accurate so its time to learn real photography not just point and shoot. if you ever had any lens around 1.4 with perfect light you ruffly get around 4/10 in focus. With some alterations in your camera you can easily get 8/10 in focus without tripods or micro zoom in on your lcd screen

Sound is out of sync, very frustrating watching.

Never Mind