Comparing Nikon 135mm with Sigma 135mm lens in the field

[@AndyMillerPhotoUK]

You guys may need to redo this with the Plena.

[@cditfurth]

I have the 135/1.8 from Sigma and the Tamron 70-200/2.8 G2. At events, the Tamron stays at home and the Sigma takes fantastic pictures from f1.8. Extreme sharpness, good contrasts, great colors. Used on a 45 MP camera, you can crop. That being said, the 135 is a great portrait lens. I'm a big fan of the Z lenses, but this Sigma on the FTZ is without competition. Alright, that's my opinion.

[@smallbatchsessions6892]

Sold ! Getting one this year for the Z9. I’ve been wanting this lens since it came out and for some crazy reason haven’t pulled the trigger. Wanted it for my d850 . Now for both

[@terrywbreedlove]

I have the 135mm F2 Nikon AIS manual focus lens. I shoot it with my F3hp and usually Kodak TRI-X400 film. Love the combination of all three.

[@JulianGarrick]

I'm a big fan of the Sigma 135. I accidentally brought it along to an athletics event I was covering last year. I gave it a go, and everything was great including the autofocus speed, which surprised me. Colour rendition and contrast were amazing, and focusing on a single athlete while totally obliterating the background at 1.8 made for great action shots. Ended up using it for much of the day in tandem with the 70-200. Its obviously not designed for that purpose, but it did a hell of a job.

[@one42chrisp]

I use my Sigma on a D5 for shooting volleyball in poorly lit gyms, it works great, have been very pleased with it and it is very sharp.

[@luispacheco9683]

I had the sigma, too heavy and too restrictive, although a fantastic and sharp lens. I sold it and bought the 70-200mm for my D750. The problem of the 135 f1.8/f2 is the minor advantages in weight and aperture, that are not enough to compensate the flexibility and quality of the 70-200mm f2.8.

[@alstuart8801]

I'll stick with my Nikon 85 f/1.4 for portraits.

[@ulfmoller8701]

My initial thoughts halfway through the video is I find the Nikkor 135 seems to be more "forgiving" and have softer contrast but in a good way. Skin tones also seem more natural and warm than Sigmas. The Sigma seems almost "too" sharp and contrasty in my eyes. I would rather use the Nikkor if I could choose! In the mean time I am happy to use AF-s 85/1,8 G and AF 180/2,8 as my go-to portrait lenses on my D4.

[@magnusnorden]

I own both of them, got the DC for my D700 back in the days. There are rumours about defocus functionality for the upcoming Z 85mm, looking forward to see that one

[@gyozakeynsianism]

Also looking forward to hearing about that 85 Z with DC. If the rumors are true that would become my aspirational lens.

[@randallbrander8157]

I agree that is a catchy tune. Never thought about 135mm lens for shooting. Now you got me interested. Just got the Nikkor Z 105mm MC and love it. Testing out the Z 28mm f2/8 and the Z 40mm f2 lenses too.

[@thebmorephotography]

Use the Sigma 135 1.8 and it’s fantastic even better on Z9 than it is on my D850s. Great video keep up the good work

[@christianbertuol4950]

does it focus properly? on my Nikon d750 several photos are out of focus

[@dah7772]

Love this channel. If I ever travel across the pond I will be sure to come visit the store. Keep up the fantastic work.

[@acronymphotography]

WooHoo. We got “surprised” on the roadmap today! I’m so excited for a fast fast fast 85 or 135.

[@natachamurphy621]

Yes please to a 135 Z lens

[@alberte58]

If Image quality is the only concern the Carl Zeiss 135mm f/2 Apo-Sonnar T* ZF.2 [=F mount] is an excellent candidate. It has 11 elements in 8 groups, weigh 920 grams, performs excellent from f/2.0-f/11 in all area’s of the image circle [centre upto corners] Performs much beter at f/2.0 and f/2.8 then the NIKKOR 135 mm f/2 AF DC D lens. Available on the second hand market.

[@ronaldsand3000]

That Nikon lens renders superb image quality and the all metal build quality is outstanding

[@oscarjeong9438]

Now we have Nikon Z Plena 135 mm .... can you compare all of those?

[@nogerboher5266]

The f2D DC is one of the best micro-contrast lenses ever made, right up there on par with old Hasselblad, Contax, Leica, Zeiss and Voigtlander lenses. Out of the bunch, Zeiss and Nikon make by far the best glass, especially when it comes to micro-contrast aka. ''3D pop'' or as people nowadays call it ''Zeiss pop.''

[@cjmadridtv4289]

I have 135 dc planning to sell but after reading this.. guess no

[@daylanbrawley631]

@@cjmadridtv4289 I just got the 105 DC 8 days ago. It’s incredible. I tried it at F2 and the images are beautiful, did an studio shoot at f9 (I usually shoot studio work at minimum f8) and the photo were utterally insane. Keep your 135. It seems the brands don’t make their lenses with character anymore

[@cy9nvs]

I know it's kind of a niche lens, but if you ever get the 135 f/1.8 Plena, a comparison to the Sigma would be nice.

[@NikCan66]

Great comparison

[@SkyCourage-Studios]

First and foremost to Kon on the editing on the video 📽️ great job man 👍🏿 the music really got my attention... the Nikon 135mm F/2 DC is a classic film lens I suggest any pro with Nikon should have one in there bag... With the comparison that you were able to shared was very great and telling.. I believe this lens is really for portraits only in my opinion and I like the fact that you were able to use a family not a lot of people know about this lens hopefully Nikon in the Z market we'll make one..I also believe that this land is I feel for weddings as well rather than you carrying a heavy 70-200 any day don't know to much about sigma lens all I know that it's heavier.. thank you for sharing the 135mm lens

[@praetorian65]

The Sigma is very sharp but just lacks the character of the Nikon. I used to own the 105mm DC and tried to use it a D7200 (this was a long time ago), but just felt with the pixel density of the sensor (it is like using a higher res full frame really) it just didn't perform as well as the 85mm 1.8G. I would love to see Nikon make a new 135mm for Z mount with the same emphasis on rendering rather than absolute sharpness.

[@joepeters938]

An ideal in-the-field comparison that was even shot amidst lovely fields! Thanks indeed.

[@MrMillennium2007]

Nice comparison. However, Nikon AF-D 135 Defocus is a dedicated. Portrait lens. It's meant to be soft, warm and yet sharp, surely if the user fully understands how Defocus is applied, and at what lens-to-subject distance. Stigma is a great lens. Unfortunately Stigma art lens don't last long with wedding photographers. They say they need to replace them after 60,000 to 70,000 clicks. On the other hand Nikon will last longer. Usually a human time or longer. Just my two cents input. Regards.

[@michaelgeorge9525]

Were your models an actual real life family ? They will be absolutely delighted with those beautiful photographs you both took . They won`t care which lenses you used haha Great stuff . How to make people happy . Love it .

[@stephenspiteri_zunkus]

There is a third option in the Samyang/Rokinon 135mm. This is a manual focus only for F-mount but I managed to adapt it to the Z mount by covering the contacts with some insulation tape and connecting it via an FTZ adapter. This lens is phenomenal. Absolutely no chromatic aberration, controls flare nicely, beautiful rendering and soooo sharp at F2. When mounted on a Z9 you can program a function button to enlarge to 100% both in evf or back screen and back to full frame view by a second click. So easy. This lens has just been released in its second generation with quick AF for Sony. Let’s hope they bring out a Z mount variant.

[@pedrotorres9499]

Had the Nikkor 135 F2DC, front focussed issues on my D850. Ended up selling it. However, the photos taken with it were glorious if the lighting was soft and it focused properly.

[@steventhomas7622]

Back when the Z system was introduced and the first roadmap chart appeared, I did show a 135mm lens. I hope its removal is not a sign that they don't plan on this focal length in the Z lineup.

[@terrywbreedlove]

Hard to justify the 135mm when the new 70-200 F2.8 lenses perform so good

[@gyozakeynsianism]

True, the rendering is excellent considering what it is. But Nikon Rumors suggests that the next Nikkor Z 85mm will include Defocus Control (the same basic idea is included in the Nikkor 135 shown here, though Becky and Kon don't test that feature). The idea is to have some control of the out-of-focus aberrations in order to get the best bokeh possible. The Nikkor DC 135 (and its little cousin, the DC 105) are really portraitist's lenses. So I suspect the next couple additions of longish fast glass to the Z line will have DC and will have superior rendering to the 70-200 f/2.8.

[@gyozakeynsianism]

@@UnconventionalReasoning And works natively on Z with full AF and electronic aperture, and is much sharper and has massively better optics, and is a zoom, and has surprisingly good rendering, and is one of the holy trinity of fast zooms, and takes teleconverters. And is about three decades younger.

[@gyozakeynsianism]

@@UnconventionalReasoning I don't. It's just you told barely half the story when you made your comparison. Not only is the S 70-200 very competent at portraits, it's also overall a clear winner.

[@dominiclester3232]

Nice, thanks. Yes it is surprising that a Z 135mm is not on the map, but they are obviously taking their time on the more popular 85mm f1.2 Z which, I’m guessing, is going to be very impressive!

[@briantafelmeyer7337]

Why are the Z cameras stopping down the aperture to the set aperture up to f/5:.6 ? That is handicapping the autofocus especially in low light situations. It doesn’t matter whether live view is on or not or z or f mount lenses.

[@arvinoutlaw1189]

I have used and Love the Sigma Art 135mm 1.8g on the Z6, and I Loved it. I just recently traded it for the Nikkor 105mm 1.4ED. I haven't used it yet for potraits, but I hope I haven't made a mistake on the trade.

[@laurencemoss8049]

The lens I use is , The Zeiss Apo Sonnar 135mm F2 . I also have the Nikon 135mm f2.8 . I prefer the Zeiss over the Nikon. Another lens I have but not shot it yet is the rare Sigmatel 135mm f1.8 in a M42 mount . I've still not found a compatible mount for use on my D850 .As for now it's a paperweight .

[@maxdmachy]

Recently tried out the Sigma 135mm on the Z5 in low light/ just interested in AF reactivity - I'm not a pixel peeper & don't want my subjects to use tons of makeup in order to look acceptable. The speed of AF acquisition is simply awesome in situations I would reasonably use. At some point beyond it drops if course

[@norm7257]

Is that the 100 Acre Woods made famous by Winnie the Pooh 🧸 ? Very nice photos! At 135mm for portraiture you might want to shoot at f/5.6 to have good sharpness for facial features, with nice bokeh for the background, and good subject/background separation.

[@stephenspiteri_zunkus]

Oh and there is also the older Nikkor 135 ai-s f/2.5. Works just as well as the D variant and it is lighter still. This is the lens that was used for that famous portrait for National Geographic, the Afghan Girl.

[@simonloreykjrsgaard2619]

Pretty sure that it's the 105mm you're talking about. I own it myself

[@stephenspiteri_zunkus]

@@simonloreykjrsgaard2619 Ooops... you're right. I made a wee of an error there. I own the 105 but dad had lent me his 135 ai-s f/2.8. It's actually quite similar to the 105 but with added compression of course.

[@simonloreykjrsgaard2619]

@@stephenspiteri_zunkus Ahhhh got you! No worries:) I would like to try the 135/2,8 some day, but I don't really need it at the moment. Let's hope i get my hands on a copy some day!

[@motofocus3355]

Vivement que Nikon nous fasse un Nikon Z 135mm et aussi un Z 105mm (autre que le MC) ...

[@gyozakeynsianism]

The rumored upcoming Z 85mm 1.2 supposedly includes the DC (Defocus Control) feature included in this Nikkor DC 135. It's designed to allow the user to shape out-of-focus aberrations in order to maximize bokeh quality. So maybe future fast portrait-length primes (I guess about 85 to 200) will include this feature.

[@johntravena119]

Great! Watch the price on these skyrocket too.

[@svendamljanovic4824]

Thank you for comparing those lenses! Keep fingers crossed for a z-Version.

[@obedbrinkman]

love my 135 ai-s

[@michealhall4512]

Had both. Still have the Sigma. When the Nikon was good, it was amazing! But ... Too finicky on focus and waaaaay too much chromatic aberration. (Crazy purple halos all over the place). I bought the lens to shoot it wide open. The Sigma focuses fast and accurately and is sharp as a tack with lovely OOF rendering. It's size doesn't bother me in the least, but I always shoot Dx series bodies and now the Z9 and it works stunningly there. Would love for Nikon to update their 135 for S series. I'd definitely take a hard look at it. If the Nikon Rumors post about the forthcoming 85mm 1.2 having DC are true, I hope they have ut in the 135 as well. Perfect and sharp is really nice, but it'd be great to be able to dial in some "character" as well!

[@gyozakeynsianism]

"the Z9 and it works stunningly there." That's so good to hear. We keep hearing about how well adapted lenses are working on the Z9 (Matt Granger did a whole video series on it). Sounds so promising. I'll never own top-tier camera but I'm looking forward to when some of the secret sauce from the Z9 starts coming down to the lower tiers of the Z lineup.

[@BernardSolomon]

We're you shooting RAW or JPEG?

[@efhurtado]

Interesting comparison; thanks for the initiative. I have to say it, not that loud, my second choice for lenses would be Sigma. That 135/f1.8 looks like a must have.

[@gyozakeynsianism]

Nice comparison. What a lovely model family! I actually thought the Nikkor was plenty sharp where it counted: at the center. I guess it's not really a landscape lens! I could imagine it being a more-than-decent low-light lens depending on the subject, especially on a body that can do AF with it. I'm a little disappointed you guys didn't play around with the Nikkor DC's star feature, the "Defocus Control" which shapes aberrations to improve out-of-focus rendering for portraits. That being said, the Sigma just looks like a beast of a lens! No Winnie the Pooh though. Oh bother.

[@rayharr1]

nice relaxed video... Of course, the overall impression and mood of the captured moment should first and foremost match the subject. Taking individual requirements into account, the extreme sharpness of some digital optics is less important for me these days. For my work, I prefer a balanced and natural look - I would never swap my Nikkor 135mm f/2 / D800 with the Sigma - the DC delivers very good results from f/2.8.

[@fredkrieger278]

Great job as usual.

[@paulmontgomery6257]

Nice one. I'm still loving my 135/2.8 AIS.

[@poripaira8890]

The only concern about Sigma is the firmware compatibility with Nikon bodies .I got myself a Sigma 150-500mm zoom for my existing D3x and the D700 about 12 years ago. Still works perfectly on both bodies until today. In 2012 I bought the D800 and years later the D750. The lens autofocus is completely useless on both cameras. The afs on the cameras keeps blinking when set to auto focus. Only manual focus is possible on both the camera. Still works perfectly with the older bodies though. But its enough of Sigma for me.

[@hopoutside]

I luv my Sigma 135mm for portraits. I affectionately call it “chunky monkey”…it’s got good weight to it!

[@rogermanning4353]

I agree, Nikon needs a 135 in Z mount. BTW, way to go Konstantin rockin' that hat like Seth Miranda! Get him as a guest sometime . . . maybe as a fill-in for Becky in the next couple of weeks. Cheers!

[@MMPAspergerian]

I'd take the Nikkor 135 f2 DC over Sigma, all day!!! Sharpness isn't everything and they severely lack microcontrast.

[@dennisg4196]

Not sure about the comparison. The F2 D is a 32 y/o lens design. However, it does autofocus fine on my D850. Nice video.

[@osangulon]

As a portrait lens, I would always prefer the Nikon over the Sigma. It reproduces the contrast much more naturally and has a pleasant image tone. Sharpness is more than enough in the center, the edges are negligible. The Sigma has a very high contrast, I would take it for technical shots. I quite like it when the contrasts remain as they are.

[@brucecrossan2284]

I had the Sigma lens which I loved and regret selling to finance my way into the Z system. I especially liked it on my D500. . . where it behaved like a 200mm f2.5. I would really love Nikon to bring out a 180mm f2.8 for Z mount.

[@kosmidts]

The Nikkor renders more film like and sharpness isn't all that matters in portraits. The Sigma renders flat in my opinion. That is due to over engineering in corner sharpness. And thanks!!

[@gyozakeynsianism]

For my purposes, the creamy DC is for me. Center sharpness is plenty good. I love the idea of having control over background (or foreground) out-of-focus rendering character. And skin tones show up so nicely (it's part of the design). But I do think there are many reasons to want the Sigma, landscapes being one of them.

[@alberte58]

Nikon has a better 135mm lens, the 135mm f/3.5 AI lens from 1977, excellent optical performance from f/3.5 upto f/11, light [400 gram], build in hood, 4 lens elements in 4 groups [so very good micro-contrast [Problem for SIGMA lenses in general]] and very cheap. (There is a Nikon 135mm f/2.8 AI version of this lens from 1982, but this is not as good as the f/3.5 version)

[@drazenzuvela1647]

Interesting. I have 3.5 preAi and 3.5 Ai, basically no difference other then a bit color diff.. Also have preAi 2.8, which has bigger and havier body. Actually I like results bit more. Probably 2.8 has more placebo influence. DOF/blurr difference 3.5/2.8 is visible but not that big. Also I like Nikon photos form this video, more then Sigma. Beauty+character against clinical sharpnes+contrast.

[@alberte58]

@@drazenzuvela1647 The 135mm f/2.8 is over the Aperture range f/2.8-f/11 very good, but the 135mm f/3.5 is better (excellent) over the f/3.5-f/11 Aperture range. The lens construction is almost the same 5/4 (lens elements/groups) for the f/2.8 and 4/4 for the f/3.5 lens, so micro contrast should be excellent for both.

[@ScriptureToday]

Interesting review. Totally agree, Nikon should consider adding the 135mm f/.8 to the lens roadmap. I would be in the market. The Sigma is really nice, but requires the FTZ to work on Z bodies. I think Nikon could make a Z-mount 135mm that would be on par with the other 1.8 lenses in terms of AF speed/accuracy and sharpness.

[@artsilva]

Is it just me, I feel the sigma is much more contrasty in this comparison. The DC Nikkor looks fine enough and I feel it'll work brilliantly on the D780. I bet it is Perfect for B&W photography on F mount bodies.

[@WimBals]

When you’re not shooting test charts, the Nikon beats the Sigma in rendering shapes and bokeh.

[@gyozakeynsianism]

Test charts or landscape photography. Or certain low-light photography situations where you need some corner sharpness and some aberration control.

[@inchon66]

The Sigma is great on the D850 and the Z6.

[@simongentry]

who films you on these jaunts?

[@heartyfisher]

Nikon sure did surprise us !!!

[@awake780]

Pretty cool that you got Shia Labeouf to do the shoot.

[@hellasride2717]

Nothing compares to the Nikkor 135mm f/2 DC in terms of rendering and microcontrast.

[@joshmcdzz6925]

ouch.. there is a 135mm from nikon now called the Plena...

[@davidpearce2981]

The sigma looks a better lens

[@Jimbojam]

I have the new Nikon Plena 135mm and I plan for it to be buried with me one day, because I must take it with me, its that good

[@TheGreatLoco]

Would say that the Sigma 135mm 1.8 Art is like a tighter version of the Nikon 105mm 1.4E with faster AF. After testing the Sigma vs my Nikon 105mm 1.4E, Nikon 180mm 2.8D and Zeiss APO 2/135, I agreed to but it. Initially thought to get the Nikon 200mm f/2 VR. It may be a great lens, but the weight and size is too much. Can’t wait to end paying off the Sigma to take it home.

[@johnhjic2]

It dose show a lens from 1997 then testing it out to a NEW lens. Dose show you just how good the Nikon lenses are. Sorry I will not go Sigma did once bad lenses and even worse support from Sigma. I will stick with OEM lenses.

[@gyozakeynsianism]

I also think the DC 135 is sharper than what they were saying, especially where it counts for portraitists.

[@laurencemoss8049]

The lens I use is , The Zeiss Apo Sonnar 135mm F2 . I also have the Nikon 135mm f2.8 . I prefer the Zeiss over the Nikon. Another lens I have but not shot it yet is the rare Sigmatel 135mm f1.8 in a M42 mount . I've still not found a compatible mount for use on my D850 .As for now it's a paperweight .