Nikon launched his first Powerzoom optics to strengthen himself in the video war

Nikon adds a new acronym to its jargon of optics: the PZ mention. The Nikkor Z 28-135 mm f/4 Pz is thus the first Power Zoom of the Japanese manufacturer for its hybrid Z mount. Understanding here the first zoom z incorporating a engine to zoom in/diszoman with a simple button. And the attours of real video optics.

Intended for videographers, the Nikkor Z 28-135 mm f/4 Pz therefore takes up the same optical beach as the Fe pz 28-135mm f4 g oss Launched by Sony in 2014. But the eleven years that separate the two zooms should be detectable both in optical and electrical equipment (motorization, etc.).

The Nikkor Z 28-135 mm F/4 PZ is a beautiful 1.2 kg baby designed around a complex optical formula: no less than 18 elements combined in 13 optical groups constitute a parafocal optics. That is to say an objective where the focusing distance does not change during zoom/dézoom operations as is the case with photo optics. In addition to a fairly bulky optical formula, one of the prices to pay to take advantage of the parafocal zoom is the abandonment of optical stabilization. It will therefore be necessary to rely solely on stabilization of the Z box sensor.

The displacement of lenses is operated by a fast and silent step-by-step engine very suitable for video uses with its 11 zoom speeds. The diaphragm is made up of nine strips and the optics are entirely protected against dust and bad weather.

Nikon promises a physical design with small onions: the center of gravity only moves 2 mm over the entire focal range, which avoids unbalanced Gimballs for example. In addition, the lens barrel is garnished with three rings with a different notch to distinguish them to the touch.

If the zoom range is modest, the optics can be transformed into a 28-270 mm thanks to the High Resolution Zoom, a technology which takes advantage of the latest 45 Mpix sensors in Nikon and which allows you to go up to 270 mm in Going to find the 4K definition in the center of the sensor. A kind of non -destructive digital zoom.

Powerzoom: Really video optics

Initially designed for video cameras, such as the Betacam of TV channels, this type of optics was available on hybrids from the first years of their existence. The Nikkor Z 28-135 mm f/4 Pz is not the first optics of this type designed by Nikon for its hybrids, the palm returns to Nikkor VR 10-100mm f/4.5-5.6 PD-Zoom launched in 2011 for its Nikon 1.

Please note, optics with the Powerzoom mention are not only motorized optics, as are found in many entry -level zooms of certain brands. PZ optics generally have an optical formula and an ergonomics both designed with video stress in mind (parafocal formula, positioning of suitable controls, etc.).

One of the reasons for the rather slow development of Powerzoom optics in the world of cameras comes from their greater size, as well as their slowness in photographic use. It is generally impossible to move from the high-angle position to the telephoto position in a turmoil, the engine being much slower than a big wrist.

But as the appetite for video increases through the explosion of platforms, more and more productions need really video zoom, and not just a photo zoom adapted to va-comme- I have a thousand.

The question posed by this zoom being to know not only if this first optics of this type in Z frame foreshadows the constitution of a range. But above all, is it pioneer of a real video camera which would be, at random, partially from the REDUS RED SOCIETY Last year ?

The Nikkor Z 28-135 mm f/4 Pz will be available in the month of April at € 2799. A price 600 euros higher than the Sony version. Which however displaying 11 years in the catalog.