Nikon Z 24-200mm F4-6.3 VR Nikkor Hands-on Review: All-in-one full-frame zoom lens delivers excellent performance
posted Wednesday, June 8, 2022 at 1:29 PM EDT
Click here to read our Nikon Z 24-200mm F4-6.3 VR Nikkor Hands-on Review
On paper, the Nikon Z 24-200mm F4-6.3 VR Nikkor lens is a compelling all-in-one zoom lens for the Nikon Z mirrorless system thanks to its full-frame image circle, 8.3x zoom and relatively compact, lightweight design. What about in the real world? How does the lens perform? As you can read about in detail in our new Nikon Z 24-200mm Hands-on Review, the lens delivers impressive image quality and overall performance. Add in that the lens is currently available for $800, and it's a great option for Nikon Z users with APS-C or full-frame cameras looking for an all-in-one lens, especially for travel and landscape photography.
The lens isn't as fast as Nikon's extremely good Z 24-70mm F2.8 and Z 70-200mm F2.8 professional zoom lenses, of course, but the Z 24-200mm is also considerably less expensive and lighter and smaller. While the lens represents a compromise in terms of light-gathering capabilities and pro-oriented design – there aren't any Fn buttons or an OLED panel on the Z 24-200mm lens – the 24-200mm doesn't sacrifice image quality. The lens is impressively sharp throughout its entire focal length range, even when shooting wide open. There is a bit of corner softness at 24mm F4, but aside from that, the lens is excellent.
The Z 24-200mm lens also delivers strong autofocus performance, with good speed and accuracy. Plus, it's pretty quiet. It's not quite as swift as Nikon's pro lenses, but it's also less than half the price. The lens includes built-in Vibration Reduction (VR), ensuring sharp, steady shots, even when you don't have a lot of light. This is especially important given that the lens is an F6.3 zoom from 85-200mm, meaning that you may need to decrease your shutter speed in low light conditions.
There's much more to say about the Z 24-200mm F4-6.3 VR Nikkor lens. You can read all about my thoughts on the lens here. You can also download full-resolution raw, and JPEG images shot with the lens directly from our Gallery. There's no doubt that Nikon has delivered a very good, versatile zoom lens for its growing Nikon Z userbase. The lens has set a new standard for affordable all-in-one zoom lenses.
