One of the ongoing mysteries on the Nikon rumor sites has been answered. And it comes in the form of the new NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena.
When rumors of a new Nikon product with the word “plena” associated with it started to bubble up a few months ago, it was anybody’s guess what product the moniker would find itself attached to. Well, as it turns out, just as the word Noct brings to mind a very specific iconic lens within the Nikon ecosystem, the name Plena is meant to confer the same level of uniqueness to this new offering.
A bright prime, the NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena seeks to take after its nickname, which, in Latin, means a state of space being completely full. The idea being that this lens may well become known for its light-gathering abilities, well-rounded bokeh, and clarity from edge to edge. Nikon has designed the lens specifically with edge-to-edge brightness in mind to provide what they say will be the ultimate in illumination across the frame.
The 11-blade diaphragm and large rear element help form a circular bokeh and something of a three-dimensional look to images. Combining its focal length with a maximum aperture of f/1.8, creating shallow depth of field with this lens should be a joy. Unlike the Noct, the Plena is autofocus. However, there is no VR built into the lens. There are 16 elements in 14 groups. And the lens comes in at a weight of 2.2 lbs or 995 grams.
The lens should be available in mid-October and comes in at $2,499.95, a similar price to other high-end Nikon professional primes, like the Z 50mm f/1.2 S or the excellent Z 85mm f/1.2 S. This should be a premium option for prime shooters in the market for this focal length.
What do you think? Would the Plena find a way into your kit?
I am a little worried about the branding and positioning of Plena lenses. If Nikon's S-Line of lenses are supposed to be their best of the best, top of the line lenses, with minimal vignetting and superior edge-to-edge sharpness, and now there is an S-Line Plena on top of it, what about the other exotic S-Line primes like the 50mm f/1.2S and 85mm f/1.2S? Should we expect Plena versions of these lenses?
When I read the blurb on the Nikon site on Plena: "and adopted to reflect the lens' ability to support the user's creative vision with beautiful, well-rounded bokeh of outstanding sharpness and clarity. Following in the footsteps of the NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct, the NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena has been bestowed with a unique name in the hopes that it will be treasured by users for many years to come."
I think Plena are intended as one-offs to highlight the absolute best Nikon lens designers can achieve in the Z mount. I highly doubt there would be a 50mm plena - especially as the 58mm is already out there but we could definitely do with an updated lens road map (current one has 2 lenses on and the 135 is one of those)...
Be interesting to see how this ends up comparing to Sigma’s 135 1.8 on FTZ. A lot of the selling points like zero vignette and super sharp corners aren’t really important on a portrait lens.
Before announcing any more lenses can Nikon please ship the 180-600 that I paid in full for on June 21. That was the announcement day.
Might be a bit of a wait, I suspect that the 180-600 is going to be one of Nikon’s biggest hits in years and I bet it has a crap ton of preorders.
Interesting lens... still shooting a D850+200f2 for these kind of shots. Maybe worth testing a Z8+this lens. The 200f2 is amazing but a beast to lug around. Price works if its up at the 200f2 level of clarity+bokeh.
Yeah, like no question about it, the 200f2 is amazing but it does demand an often difficult to make use of working distance. 135 is much more practical, though personally I often find it too long too for many locations and find myself reaching for an 85.