What is the NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S really like?
This pro-grade ultra-wide can place your viewer at the heart of any image
The NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S is a fast, ultra-wide lens that will give your landscapes stunning clarity of detail and sharpness from edge to edge. But it has a few more strings to its bow. Read on for some great ways to use this fantastic lens in creative ways.
1. Stay indoors
Ultra-wide lenses such as the NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S are fantastic for interior shots, when you want to immerse your viewer in the space. You can try them at home and get great results but, for the full effect, take a trip to a stately home or castle – somewhere with large internal spaces filled with detail – and you’ll be rewarded with expansive images that really give a sense of scale, with lots of interest for the eye.
2. Create epic portraits
There’s a reason a lot of top wedding photographers have a 20mm prime in their bags as a secret weapon. Yes, the 85mm will do a lot of work during a wedding shoot, but a lens such as the NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S is a creative powerhouse for putting a couple in an epic scene. Try it outdoors with a frame that’s filled with similar tones and a subject dressed to provide a sharply contrasting pop of colour, perhaps off to one side.
3. Get close. Really close
The key to ultra-wide lenses is using them to pull your viewer into the picture. Too often they are used to create a sideways panorama, but don’t forget the third dimension. Get in close to something in the foreground and create an image that doesn’t just sweep from side to side but also from front to back, placing the viewer right there. The minimum focus distance of the NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S is just 20cm, so you can be sure the whole scene will feel really immersive.
4. Accentuate emotion
The perspective distortion you get from an ultra-wide lens is a brilliant creative tool. Portraits where a subject is really close to the camera can accentuate strong emotions such as anger, crying or laughter and can give off a real ‘in your face’ feel. Try someone thrusting their arm towards the camera holding something. The distorted, large-in-the-frame object takes on a huge importance to the subject of the portrait.
5. Treat yourself to a print
With the edge-to-edge sharpness of the NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S, your sweeping, immersive landscape pictures look great. And with ultra-wides being all about showing scale – and with all that incredible detail on show – it’s a case of the bigger the better when it comes to viewing them, so head to the printers. Prints are not just a way of seeing ultra-wide images in all their vast glory, they are also very saleable works of art.
The key stats: NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S
Type: Nikon Z mount
Format: FX
Focal length: 20mm
Maximum aperture: f/1.8
Minimum aperture: f/16
No. of diaphragm blades: 9 (rounded aperture opening)
Minimum focus distance: 0.2m (0.66ft) from focal plane
Weight: 505g approx.
Want to see it in action? Check out our 90-Second NIKKOR video below.
90-Second NIKKOR: NIKKOR Z 20mm f/1.8 S in action
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Celebrating 90 years of NIKKOR
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