Nikon is moving confidently towards the video and film industry market. Nikon has developed a cinema lens with a motorized smooth zoom, autofocus and a large range of focal lengths: Nikkor 28-135mm F/4 PZ. However, it seems that, unlike its Sony counterpart, it will not have optical stabilization.
So, Nikon is moving forward – the development of the first full-frame view-oriented Nikkor lens has been announced. In other words, this is a full-fledged cinema lens for reportage shooting, which provides quite large opportunities for focal length to take the desired angle.
“PZ” in the name of this lens stands for Power zoom. Thus, Nikkor 28-135mm F/4 PZ will have a built-in internal motor for smooth zoom (unlike, for example, the Canon RF 24-105mm F/2.8L IS USM Z lens, for which the drive itself must be purchased separately).
The smooth zoom control rocker is located on the left side of the optics body. Nikon itself indicates the compatibility of the future new product with full-frame/mirrorless Nikon Z-mount/FX-format cameras. It will have both autofocus and manual focus.
“The Nikkor Z 28-135mm F/4 PZ is a standard power zoom lens that covers a focal length range from 28mm to 135mm. It is designed to provide ease of use and superior optical performance for video shooting, supporting efficient documentary filming and on-location shooting for a single videographer or small crew ,” Nikon writes in the text of the announcement of the new optics’ development.
Judging by the standard development timeframes for professional optics, the idea for the Nikkor 28-135mm F/4 PZ predates Nikon’s deal with RED. At the same time, this lens is very similar in appearance and characteristics to a lens released by Sony ten years ago: the Sony 28-135mm F/4 OSS.
Pricing and an expected release date have not been announced. Nikon is expected to share more information about the upcoming Nikkor 28-135mm F/4 PZ lens as the announcement date approaches.
Nikon’s first big move into video was the Nikon Z9. This model unexpectedly gained incredible popularity – its sales allowed Nikon to escape from the financial crisis in 2021. Sales of the Nikon Z9, which remains the flagship of the mirrorless Nikon Z line, exceeded the combined sales of all Nikon flagships released over the past 15 years.
The Nikon Z9 camera was announced on October 28, 2021. Its functionality at that time was unique: 45.7 megapixels, almost complete absence of rolling shutter due to the fast EXPEED 7 processor, advanced autofocus with 493 points (covering 90% of the frame), and video recording in 8K resolution up to 60 fps.
Subsequently, the company actively “improved” the Nikon Z9 camera with large-scale firmware updates. For example, version 2.0 added the ability to record video in RAW format (12 bits) in 8.3K resolution up to 60 frames per second. At that time, no mirrorless camera had such functionality.
