Nikon announces the NIKKOR Z 35mm f/1.2 S

By Tim Levy | 5 February 2025

Nikon has announced the release of the NIKKOR Z 35mm f/1.2 S, a fast wide-angle prime lens designed for full-frame/FX-format mirrorless cameras using the Nikon Z mount. It is the fastest 35mm lens in Nikkor's history.

Part of the top tiered 'S-Line' series (Canon is 'L', Fujifilm is 'Red Badge', Sony is 'GM'), the lens is designed for high optical performance, featuring soft background blur, highly pleasing bokeh and detailed texture rendering.

It shares the same design concept as the NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S and NIKKOR Z 85mm f/1.2 S, offering very shallow depth of field, great low light abilities and extreme sharpness, as well as sharing the same sized filter ring of 82mm.

Although probably weighing in at over 1kg, the lens looks like it delivers beautiful image rendition and bokeh.
Image: Nikon.

The lens construction includes three ED glass elements and one aspherical ED glass element to reduce aberrations. Meso Amorphous Coat, Nano Crystal Coat, and ARNEO Coat help minimise ghosting and flare. The lens is suited for various applications, including portraiture, street photography, documentary and video recording.

Interestingly, there is no mention of the lens's weight. The lens is larger than all previous 35mm Nikkor lenses, and this is due to the symmetrical design. With the NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S weighing in at a whopping 1090g, this 35mm lens may outweigh even this!

Key features include:

  • A multi-focusing system with stepping motors (STMs) for fast and accurate autofocus in both stills and video.
  • Video-friendly design with stable exposure and focus-breathing suppression to reduce shifts in the angle of view.
  • Two customisable function buttons (Fn) for quick access to camera settings.
    It's a beast!

In the US, the price is $2,799, which converts to over $4,500 AUD. However, it is currently listed at $4,898 in Australia (GST is obviously added). This is surprising, given that the NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S has a current street price of $3,150–$3,999.

Many manufacturers set higher prices for the initial sales run, knowing that early adopters are willing to pay a premium. These prices often drop significantly over time—sometimes by as much as $1,000. So if you’re not in a rush, it may be worth waiting, as the price could decrease over the next six months.

You can read more details on the Nikon website.