Comparing 85mm lenses - Z 85mm f/1.8 S vs the F mounts

As we continue our way through comparing the Z mount primes, in this video we've pitted the 85mm f/1.8 S lens agains the AF-S 85mm f/1.8G and the professional AF-S 85mm f/1.4G to see which performs better in terms of sharpness, bokeh and everything else.
Watch on to find out which one we prefer!
In this video:
Z 85mm f/1.8 S - bit.ly/Z85mmf18S
85mm f/1.4G - bit.ly/85mm14Gs
85mm f/1.8G - bit.ly/85mmf18G
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[@Vahagraphy]

The 1.4 G at 1.4 is fantastic. Beautiful bokeh and renders a pleasing image. I had one and sold it. Kind of regret selling it. Also had a 1.4 D cult classic lens, sold that too. The Z 85 1.8 is nice sharp lens, but the G is something special. good job guys.

[@JB-ou6fl]

I prefer the skin tone on the f/1.4G compared to the f/1.8S based on the pictures you showed us. Thanks for doing this comparison video.

[@LiamFyfe]

The z 85mm is such a beautiful lens, the af works incredible in lowlight and you can shoot so confidently at 1.8 as its so sharp wide open, i used one lots for shooting indoor climbing competitions and recently traded it in for a z70-200 2.8, although the latter is also a fantastic lens i really do miss the z85! If the future 85 1.2 is as sharp wide open and as snappy as the current 85 i will 150% be ordering one! For my photography work of reasonably close, tricky lighted sports the z85 1.8 alone is a must!

[@Narsuitus]

I have been shooting an 85mm f/1.8 pre-AI manual focus Nikkor lens since 1969. I have been shooting with an 85mm f/1.4 auto focus Nikkor lens since 2016. Both are F-mount lenses and both are great portrait lenses.

[@KyleClements]

I was lucky enough to pick up an 85mm /1.8D lens at a garage sale for $50. It was attached to an old film body, and the owner had no idea the two could be separated and the lens portion could still be useful for digital cameras. Great lens, I just don't use it enough to justify getting the 85mm Z mount version. I'm one of those 28-50-105 shooters vs. 35-50-85.

[@TonysComfortKitchen]

I have the 85mm 1.4 g lens. Bought it for my old D810 and now use it on my Z6ii and it's a great lens 😊

[@davidroberts6766]

I have the z85 f1.8 and really like it alot. I also own the 85mm f1.8 F mount. I am debating the 85mm f1.4, maybe used, because, I still love shooting my D850 and adapted it could still be very useful on my Z cameras. The added advantage of the AFS 85mm f1.4 lens, for me would be a super high quality lens on my F100, which I also still shoot. Thanks for the video!

[@dominiclester3232]

Another nice video, thanks! I appreciate that most users want an 85mm lens for portraits, but spare a thought for landscapers who want to know how the edges perform wide open please. I’m guessing the Z might win that one? A nerdy sound flag: at 6 mins Kon is phasing because he is too close to Becky’s mic. At 7 mins Becky is not phasing because Kon is a couple of feet further away...yep, boring but useful.

[@harvymckiernan93]

Since owning the Z version, I've sold both the 1.8 and 1.4g versions. As you mentioned, the purple fringing was not recoverable. My 1.4g was sharper stopped down a little, which defeated the purpose of owning the 1.4g. My last straw with the 1.4g was a wedding where the Groom and men were wearing purple!....Aaargh! Lightroom couldn't differentiate between the fringing and them! If I want super butter soft bokeh, the 105 f1.4g with the Ftz adapter is my goto. Otherwise, its the 85mm 1.8s. Looking forward to seeing how the 85mm f1.2 performs. Maybe then, I can consolidate the 85 f1.8 and 105 f1.4

[@michealhall4512]

This same thing is what did in the 135mm F2.0 DC for me ... Terrible chromatic aberration. A bride and her bridesmaids looked positively radioactive! It caught me off guard as I hadn't experienced that much fringing with the lens under other shooting conditions. I put it on a shelf, where it remained for a number of years until last Winter when I traded it in with a bunch of other gear to help finance my purchase of a couple of Z9s a and a number of lenses ... Including the Z 85mm 1.8 S which is a stellar performer. Still would love a 135mm S series lens ...

[@harvymckiernan93]

@@michealhall4512 Haha..."Practically radioactive!" Thats so spot on! Yes, the Z package is so much lighter too. The only F mounts I've kept are the 105mm f1.4g Ed and the 200-500mm f 5.6. For now anyway😊 Although the 85mm 1.8s is absolutely brilliant, I find I use the 105 f1.4g more. This may change with the 85mm 1.2s

[@larrymyers3940]

This video helped me tremendously so THANK YOU SO MUCH for putting this together. I also subscribed, of course! Blessings!

[@andyvan5692]

great topic becky, and also to add to this, this is a great portrait lens option, even considering the f 2.8 105 mm MC lens!!- I have BOTH, but the 105 is NOT hand-holdable, esp. at full apature (2.8), and at close focus, as there is a lot of motion blur possible, and you need shutter speed, a TRIPOD, or BOTH to get a stable, and focused shot! However with the 85mm f 1.8 lens, this hand hold capability is there, and getting focused shots, is an easy task; so just depends on what you are shooting, macro/still life, or Portraits.

[@norm7257]

Well done, Becky! Outstanding wild sheep 🐑 images… I use the 85mm micro Nikkor 3.5 G lens on my D500 and D7100 for close up and portrait images. It’s very good for both purposes, and an excellent value - I bought it to get a bit more working distance for photographing bees and wasps, compared to my 60mm micro Nikkor. I shoot portraits at f/5.6 and macro at f/11 -f/16, so the f/3.5 max aperture is not a concern, and I wouldn’t shoot sheep 🐑 at f/1.8 under any circumstances… my go-to sheep lens remains the 80-200 f/2.8 ED zoom. By the way, those brown sheep are cows 🐄.

[@TheSeniorGolfMan]

Great video. I like my Sigma Art 85mm f1.4, however, I shoot weddings and find it slow-ish focusing. Is the Z 85mm 1.8s fast or just as slow as the 2.4G. Thank you.

[@bmwohl]

Very nice. For fewer dollars than one expensive zoom, I've gotten the Z mount 20 f/1.8 28 f/2.8 40 f/2 50 f/1.8 85 f/1.8 and 105 f/2.8. Yes I've made some camera shops happy, but I really think this group of lenses shows off well the Z mount possibilities. Nikon USA helped with some nice discounts over the last year.

[@davidroberts6766]

Yes, that was my choice as well, plus the 24-120mm f4 zoom. My thought was if I really want a fast zoom, my F mount AFS E f2.8. zooms are still incredible glass. Since I plan on keeping and using my D850 for the foreseeable future, it made no sense doubling up on f2.8 zooms. The Z f1.8 primes are fantastic, and frankly, I kinda love my 40mm f2. Still the 85mm f1.4 does entice!

[@57sapke]

Great video, I sold my 1.8g and bought the 1.8s and waiting for the 1.2s or 1.4s

[@charlesdavis6371]

glad to see this. I have both 1.8 versions - but not the 1.4. I'll think on this.

[@andyvan5692]

also becky, one thing, could you do a 105 lens comarison too?, as this is a good topic, as my 105 F mount lens is great for portraits too, and does NOT have the hand-holding issues, that I found out the z mount one does, even though they share the same F-stop capability, almost that is, as the Z mount goes down to F 64, the F mount only goes to F 32.

[@photoreviewed-com]

Happy to share, keep up the good Nikon work! :)

[@nickcucchiara]

Great video, I'd like to see the 85mm 1.4 compared to the newest version Tamron 90mm 2.8 macro Di 1:1 VC USD in the same setting as a budget option for portraiture.

[@michalsvojanovsky8025]

Well, quite a surprise conclusion, all reviews say that 1.4G is softer than 1.8G and 1.8S is very sharp and has the best rendering. I would say, it cant be possible for 1.4G to win over 1.8S. But years ago, I bought Sigma 85/1.4 for great reviews, and it was horrible lens, that load of CA was even worse than 1.8G. Thx for review ;)

[@zygmuntziokowski7877]

Thanks for the comparison.

[@SurferKroky]

The killer feature of the 85s is how sharp it is wide open. That’s the game changer. No longer will you have battle with having to stop down so much and ramping up the iso when lighting gets tricky.

[@thejohnnerparty]

I would be interested in the Z1.2 S vs G1.4 comparison.

[@jamiej.tilleyphotographyar5177]

I have been using the 1.8g on my d750 for about a year now. I use it most frequently to shoot live music in dimly lit clubs. I have found that at 1.8, I very frequently miss focus when focusing on the outer regions of the lens. If I'm shooting vertical for example, and the subject's face is in the upper region of the frame, I will focus ( using auto focus and single point focus ) on the subject's eye. The camera will focus and I will take the shot, but looking at the photo afterwards, the eye is soft and the focus will instead be on the microphone or something. If I focus with the central region of the lens this problem goes away.

[@davyoshi5788]

Merci pour cette vidéo, c'est très difficile de trouver une vidéo comparative entre le 1.8g et le 1.8z. J'ai le G et je voudrais bien le Z

[@randallbrander8157]

I would recommend the Z30 with the Megadap ETZ-11/21 adapter and the Sigma 56mm F/1.4 DX/APSC lens will outdo both of those lenses that you were showing off in this video. The only problem with that lens is that it is so sharp that my nose takes up the whole picture. 😊 The equivalent to the APSC/DX lens is the Full Frame FX Sigma Art 85mm f/1.4.

[@bfs5113]

I'm adapting my EF 85 f/1.2 L II.

[@alstuart8801]

Ive a 1.4 F mount 85.. love it!

[@muscleheadzzzz]

Just recently got the Z6II. Debating whether to get the 85 1.4G F mount or the 85 1.8S. Any thoughts on this?

[@SurferKroky]

If low light performance is important I would go with the native S lens. So so sharp wide open

[@thisisbenji90]

1.8S looks sharper to me, but I much prefer the rendering of the 1.4G.

[@TerryKontopoulos]

Yes a great video, but I will disagree with the comparison of the G & S as the two photos of Kon at 1.8 the S is WAY sharper!... Did you have the right names? The collar of the T-shirt it is almost blurred in the G... Maybe I'm wrong but seeing them in my 32" full screen the difference is huge!... I would like you to clarify if the photo at the RIGHT hand side it is the named S lens?

[@ryanbell6537]

Very helpful!! Thank you!!

[@alexmirza5210]

Perhaps the 1.8S is "sharp", but in this comparison it seemed to fall behind in 3D- look, it seemed literally "flat" by comparison to the 1.4G. Why?

[@chrispeden979]

I’m gonna respectfully disagree. My 1.8G was way better than the 1.4G. I’ve now moved to the native Z and am loving it.

[@Vahagraphy]

BTW when I did own the 1.4 G I did do a review on it. Here it is, with sample images. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mXPHi6yflJyfn7M Damn I was skinny here. hahah. Time to start working out again lol . This was my go to for bridal portraits for years and years. I sold is for $950 US dollars 7 months ago after years of use.

[@jimporth8128]

Thanks!

[@graysofwestminster]

Thank you very much Jim! 🙏

[@lucasmartinez4248]

Interesting, it seems like all other reviews I've found consider the 85 1.8s yo be a lot sharper than the 1.4g...

[@Youtuberkt]

So waiting for s line 85mm f/1.2

[@jindrichnejedlyphotography]

Exactly, I can't wait either

[@borisgalos6967]

Now that this is out I expect Nikon will announce the new 85/1.2 this week. Thanks for triggering ironic timing.

[@jaimeduncan6167]

I had no idea that Konstantin Kochkin was such a fantastic photographer.

[@graysofwestminster]

thank you very much!

[@gemstyxwalls1419]

What about 85mm 1.8 F mount?

[@WimBals]

The 85mm f/1.4 is the clear winner. The results from the 85mm 1.8z lens look sterile and lifeless to me.

[@TasteofTaboo]

I'm super disappointed with my 85 1.8G because I want the z version but my shitty G is so razor sharp wide open, has zero fringing or other awful artifacts and the focus is always on point with my z6. maybe I need to wait for the 85 1.2 z

[@nieznajomy7269]

please don't mislead people. The Nikkor 85 1.8s is sharper than the 85mm f1.4 G

[@FstopPicturesByAlunDavies]

I want a 85 1.4 d

[@eddiecarrascojr]

It's hard to tell the difference. All 3 lens produce amazing portraits. Glad I didn't need the pay $900 for a lens.

[@afryhover]

I thought the Z lens looked best.

[@peterwolf3001]

sell the lot and buy a Z9 mate