Nikon Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S lens review with samples 

Truly a great time to be alive, when lenses like this come out, are relatively affordable, and have virtually perfect optical performance. Nikon might've taken their sweet time with the Z series, but it's paying off now.

Living up to the stunning quality of the new Z S series of lenses

This lens is breathtaking. I'm a Fuji User but Nikons new lenses are superb. Maybe it is time for a second system.

I absolutely love your consistent and direct lens reviews! I know that within minutes I’m going to know everything I could reasonably need to know for making a wise decision. And ,I so appreciate your unapologetic faith!

$999 Seems like a bargain for this kind of performance IMO.

It's great that you are reviewing Nikon lenses! I'm a Sony shooter but I so much enjoy and appreciate all your reviews knowing that they are professionally done without bias and hence are reliable...

The Lens I have been waiting for >> Thanks Chris

I love mine. I owned the 105mm f/2.5 for 4 decades, but broke it a couple of years back. This replacement is simply incredible.

Chris, I just came here to "like" and go. I can't afford these lenses any more. But I still love your reviews.

Amazing performance. Now I want a Nikon just for this lens.

Excellent review and excellent lens. What I understand from your Nikon Z S lenses review that they are all stunning

Upgraded from the F mount to this on my Z6ii. I can say it is totally next level stuff!

#1 on my list of Must Have Lenses

I'm watching this video and I don't even own a Nikon camera 🤪 your brilliant reviews are addicted. Keep up the good work. Great lens BTW.

After 5 months waiting time I received my Z MC 105. I'm really impressed it's indeed the best macro I ever owned. I owned a lot over the years. This one is incredible!

The stabilization was impressive, really impressive.

I was a strictly 3rd party lens only person 3, 5 years ago, because all those sigma arts, Tamron g2 lenses surpassed nikon's own lenses in image quality. Now I'm seeing nikon cooking up first class lenses like these for the Z mount one over another, they can take my money, especially after i fully transition to the Z mount. In the meantime I'm happy with my D850 and Z6 combination. I'm very convinced that I'll be sticking with Nikon because of all these quality lenses at a reasonable price, and i won't miss third parties. To me, image quality is everything in studio work. This macro is definitely on my wishlist, while the 50 1.2S is my holy grail, one day I'll buy one.

Being that sharp and having stabilization it might be very interesting to try in a Z50, because for macro work the APS-C increased depth of field can often be an advantage over full frame

I have this lens and it's a stellar performer. I sold my old f-mount 105mm once i heard this was coming and pre-ordered asap. It's far and away better than the f-mount 105mm macro.

Wow, this lens looks pretty awesome!

Z lenses are truly Remarkable! Just Wow!! 😍 🤯

Thanks for the great review - as usual. This channel offers one of the best (if not the best) lens reviews available. I am using a copy of the Nikkor Z MC f/2.8 VR S since almost one month now, and I can only agree: the sharpest macro (and no CA -> good for stacking!) lens that I have ever used. Unfortunately only 1:1, but other than that: really great lens!

I pre-ordered this when it came out and it is so far the best S lens I have in my kit now.

Such a marvelous lens! Considering Nikon's well-implemented focus bracketing feature, this would be the perfect setup for serious macro work.

Thank you for this Chris. Been looking forward to this review.

Looks stunning, thanks Chris!

4:47 This sharpness is insane, I just wachted back your Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS review and it is nowhere near that sharp. Still good, but considering it's nearly the same price, the Nikon is superior. I'm evaluating a new camera system for work, documentation and stuff, and this helped me make a decision.

Nice job on the video! Woah... that image quality is something.

Thank you for another brilliant review. I just purchased this lens based on your opinion as well as others here on RU-vid.

I absolutely love this lens, I upgraded from the Sigma EX and the difference is night and day!

I own this lens. It’s astounding

I just ordered this lens... Can't wait to use it.

Stunningly sharp. I wonder why Nikon omitted the use of teleconverters this go-round?

An excellent review as always, Chris! As a landscape and product photographer, since this lens only existed on their roadmap when I got into the Nikon Z System, I use the Laowa 105 f/2.8 Ultra-Macro lens on the Z7. While the Laowa has proven to be ultra-sharp indeed, my big issue with it has been the extremely short focus throw, making it very tedious to acquire pinpoint focus! I'm thinking that this NIkkor MC Micro S has a much better/longer focus throw for easier, more accurate manual focusing? Also, I know you stated that the Nikkor S is the sharpest Macro lens you've ever tested, but exactly how much sharper is it than the Laowa 105? I'd be most interested in a side-by-side image comparison. Thank you!

i used this lense together with a z6II for a beauty-portrait-shooting, making nearly 1000 pictures on two days with 10 different models. near 1000 shots, no one of this had a focus fail. no one! still most of the pictures are still crap, but i can't find only one picture with a focus fail. mostly i used eye-af, sometimes for extreme closeups, i use singlepoint or pin focus.

Objection your honour. Focus breathing is not just completely normal for a macro lens but for all composite (*) lenses that have their elements arranged in fixed positions. It is the norm since the beginning of photography and purely the "Laws of Physics" and the "Axioms of Geometry". When we move such a lens out of the infinity focus position, to focus on something closer by, then we shift the lens away from film or sensor. Said laws and axioms now dictate that focal length increases and with that angle of view gets smaller. This also impacts the f/aperture number that was defined at infinity. As the aperture number is expressed as a relation between focal length (the "f") and the entry pupil's diameter, you can now see that mathematically there is no way to escape from what is f/4 at infinity to become much smaller at, say, 1 meter distance where the de facto focal length is longer. The aperture stayed the same - aperture means "opening" and it is the "entry pupil" or diameter of the hole in the diaphragm - but the f number got higher, so in order to represent the f/aperture number correctly, the denominator increases, thus to balance the higher f with the reality of the relative entry pupil. If you ever shot large format then this was daily routine. Why did we forget? Two reasons. Metering light reflected from the subject through the lens, the effect is negated by that metering, and, with most lenses the effect is in the margin of error. So, with "macro" lenses (that Nikon call "micro" if they can go to 1:1), the extension at 1:1 is so far and the effect on focal length and image angle and aperture number too, that it helps a lot to know about it. And in large format we got a Sinar Six Meter that measured through the lens, actually. But that is history. This focus breathing is where "Cine" lenses got designed to provide a solution. Imagine a cine-prime lens that has no focus breathing. In a way, that must be a zoom-lens where the zoom effect is precisely coupled to the focusing in a way that gives a wider angle to compensate for closer focus than infinity. The consequence of such a mechanism is that the f/aperture number does not change. And we could argue that zero impact to exposure from focus breathing might be more important than a constant angle of view. Real zoomlenses that can give different focal lengths, hence angles, at infinity may not compensate "focus breathing in the way a prime cine lens would do. That would add a level of complexity. There is a separate category of lenses that may have, or may have less, focus breathing and that is lenses with so-called "floating elements". Here, one or more of the glass elements is shifted separately from the rest of the elements in order to provide focusing. Here, nothing moves on the outside and this is also known as "internal focusing". As we hear influencers all over the interwebs complaining about focus breathing, it's a fad, it's generally unqualified, it's uninformed and in my perception a naive whine, being parroted too much. (*) a composite lens has more than one glass element and the geometry between these elements causes their image circle, apparent focal length and angle of view, where the net angle of view depends on the sensor/film format.

The rubber ring at the end of the lens is to twist the lens while mounting it. With all the wide rings, there's not a whole lot of lens to hang onto for mounting, except the rubber ring on the very front.

4:13 Unbelievable sharpness!

Even before you started reviewing Nikon gear, I watched your reviews. Now that you ARE reviewing the mighty Nikon brand, I feel i'm getting closer and closer to being divorced. Oh well, we gotta go with our TRUE love I guess.

This is the SHARPEST LENS I've seen on this channel so far...!

This lens certainly seems to be a reason why to consider the Nikon system, especially as the Sony equivalent is already older and never was their best lens. My only concern is the focus by wire for macro.

I rented this to try this weekend. I have been wanting to try it as a portriat lens and have as a macro

The front ring is not there for looks, man. It’s there so that you can comfortably hold the lens with your left hand when you’re not focusing manually.

Not just the SHARPNESS, the stabilisation also is UTTERLY IMPECCABLE...!

Excellent review, thank you

Razor sharp 💯

Nikon really are churning out some banging lenses at the moment

I’ve had it for awhile now. It’s amazing.

Amazing video, Chris. I have a question; would you recommend this lense for concert photography? I am looking for a zoom lense and I am a enthusiast of great aperture lenses. But I'm not sure about this one because the Macro factor. I hope you can answer me. Regards from Mexico. Ps: You're my favorite lenses reviewer.

What an amazing lens. This is on my short list.

After this review I think I'm just a compact 70-200 2.8 (or similar) away from sticking with Nikon as I transition from DSLR to mirrorless. Let's go Tamron...

Omg. And I'm already impressed by my Sigma 105mm on my Z6. The Sigma is just a little bit too heavy for handheld macro with the FTZ so this lens would be perfect. But the price ... (I know it's worth the money but I'm an amateur)

I think the Irix 150mm is probably the last premium macro that needs to be tested on this channel. Dustin Abbott showed that it's sharper than the Canon EF 100m L. I'm really curious on how it can stack up against the Laowas and this Nikkor Z.

That rubber ring at the end "for no reason" threw me ahahah - I thought it was going to be an iris changer like on the RF macro.

Thank you for this review! At the end you said exactly what I was thinking lol 🙏🏾

Thanks for that great video. It looks like that the Z105mm is a great lens. I like to buy this lens, but n ot only for doing makro work. I saw a lot of reviews, but in no one of these, one of my main question has been answered: Can this lens moving portrtaits?? e.g. I like to do portraits in a street parade, is the AF fast enough and presise enough for such a work? Best regard Bernd

A wow lens for sure . I would like to look at more portraits … thanks !

This lens makes FX feel like medium format.

Thanks Chris great review.

Thank you for the review. Now that you have had a chance to use both this Nikkor Z macro and the Cano RF 100mm f/2.8L which would you choose?

Im waiting for something like a 105mm f1.8 or similar, from any manufacturer. But this one with the stabilization... looks too tempting for those who make a lot of video (like myself).

about time Nikon came out with class leading stuff

Looks an amazing lens !

thanks

Nice review..

I have always wonderd how usefull bright aperture macro lenses are. Typically, you shoot at f8 or beyond and still have to stack multiple images to get enough depth of field.

Such a lens would almost tempt one to give Nikon a chance...

Amazing lens

Insane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mr. Frost - Can you please review the new Canon 100mm Macro RF lens so I can decide which one I will purchase. Thank you.

Could you try the Laowa argus lenses? Do you think they will make a 85mm one? That would be so cool.

My image stabilization is greyed out on my z7 when i use this lens. What can i do?

If you have to choose between this Nikon Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S and the Sigma 105mm DG DN Art Macro lens, which would be your choice?

I Have the Hasselblad 120mm f4 macro. This lens is on par with that.

I find it really annoying to keep adjusting the reproduction ratio (as it resets when the camera switches off) manually using the OLED screen.

thank you for including photos of our catholic background in your reviews! God bless.

Keen! But this lens is $1699 in Australia 😫 - I'll have to put it off I think!

Had it for about two months now, and while I think it's great for the money, there are some obvious downsides. The focusing is seriously slow, and I'm not talking about AF for macro work, but just for normal stuff. The motor also is extremely loud, I've had a bunch of Fuji, Viltrox, Sigma and Nikon lenses, and this one is hands down the slowest and loudest of them all. Another minor downside is just the feel of the lens, wish they had made the ring with the button and display metal, having plastic where you touch the lens just makes it feel kind of cheap.

How does it hold up next to the 90mm tamron f2.8?

canon you test the canon rf 100mm macro? thx alot!

01:40 as Zeiss startet Build in a LED Display in the Batis line up everybody’s laughing about that … 😢

How about APS-C?

How did I miss this video.

7:09 can this lens be used for portraits as well?

⚡️

This lens seems amazing, however if you want this for portrait, is use a third party 105mm or 85mmS. And for macro, I would use extension tubes or a third party pro macro lens (much cheaper) I'm considering the Laowa 100mm goes to 2:1!!

Wish it did 1.4 magnification like the Canon one.

Finally 😎

I will buy it used.

🙏🏾

I bought this lens. it does not support mechanical shutter.

Only one question: Why ? Canon, why ? Why you don't make such balanced lenses, like Nikon ? Why you offer me a choice between cheap stm without sealing and $2500 f/1.2 monsters ? Even macro lens you decide to make with some crazy features and elevate price to $1400. Why, canon ? Why ?

00:37 한국은행~

한국은행

Is it just me, or the bokeh is really not that good. My mind was blown with the new tamron 150-500's bokeh, but this is just meh..

Worst video