They may not cost much. But here are two lenses that outweigh their weight.
What makes a good lens? Of course, there are entire organizations dedicated to intensive laboratory testing to find the smallest difference in sharpness between pieces of glass. One can take out the chronograph and measure the difference in autofocus speed between different versions of lenses with the same aperture to see if the newer version can spin the barrel a few milliseconds faster or not. You might also be interested in things like flare, how it handles backlighting, and micro contrast. These are all very good reasons to choose one lens over another. And those tests are all valuable in making a buying decision, especially if you are a professional and do this for a living.
But which of these is the most important? Or, is there another metric that’s even more important than all the ones we so often overlook? I have the good fortune of having many lenses to choose from when I’m out shooting. In the Nikon family, I have everything from 16mm to 800mm, so I have very few complaints about options. Yes, not all of my focal lengths have been updated to the newer Z version. That will take more time and, ahem, money. But the point is, whatever I want to shoot, I usually have a choice between which lens I want to use.
However, even with all these lenses to choose from, the simple objective truth of the matter is that only three of them regularly come out of a camera bag. In my case it was Z 24-70mm f/2.8 Wand Z 28mm f/2.8and Z 40mm f/2 pancake/non-pancake lens. Are those Nikon’s best Z lenses yet? Well, you have to rely on one of the other technical lab test sources to answer that question. Given that the 28mm and 40mm are the cheapest lenses they offer, I don’t think it’s a mistake that Nikon doesn’t consider them the “best” lenses in their lineup. But value is not always the same as price. And, as I learned, “good” is a matter of opinion.
Here’s what I want to say. First, let’s make the obvious. There are more advanced lenses that one can use than the 28mm and 40mm “muffin” lenses. And, no, this is not my primary lens for professional work. So I’m not arguing that these lenses are technically superior.
By the way, before I continue, I’ve heard them described as “muffin” lenses once, and since they’re not technically pancake lenses, I’ll be using them. glasses “muffins” because they both love to eat muffins and like to use the word in a sentence. But, back to what I said.
I’ve had the pleasure of using a variety of F-mount and Z-mount lenses throughout my career. As Nikon continues to develop its line of mirrorless cameras, one thing they’ve been given in the first place is their glasses. The new Z lenses are amazing. All of them, at least all the ones that I’ve tried so far. There are some great horses, like the Z 24-70 f/2.8 S, which I mentioned earlier and are responsible for 95% of my professional advertising. But even the more budget-friendly options are more likely to produce goods that reach consumers. And, for me, this is where the 28mm and 40mm come into play.
As I said before, most of my professional work is done on the 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. I have other high-end lenses, but a simple poll of my metadata would believe the 24-70mm is my essential default. Since I’m a professional photographer and the majority of my images are created for work, that means 24-70mm gets the most use. But, when I’m not shooting for clients, I still enjoy shooting. For me, that usually includes walking around the neighborhood or doing various day trips around Southern California to enjoy the sun, take a few pictures, and exercise my photographic eye. . These are not images intended for my portfolio. I have more than enough of those. And, if I shoot for that purpose, I’ll more than likely rely on my trusty 24-70mm again. Rather, the images I take during these photo excursions are only for me. They probably won’t be posted anywhere but an Instagram story or as a behind-the-scenes snapshot. Most of these pictures are taken for fun with the audience being me, or maybe my friends and family if they lack the reaction time to find the words to get out of it. In short, these are images taken for the love of photography and nothing else.
Now, I will admit, I am 100% the type of person who would bring a full set of professional photos with me during what is supposed to be a leisurely family vacation. I may have been called a “CNN guy” by my tour group as I toured the wonders of Rome by stalking historic landmarks with a massive camera and lens playing a huge role by a National Geographic photographer. I was not a National Geographic photographer at the time. I’m just an accountant who likes to take pictures. But for me, it’s an opportunity to become a “real” photographer and I’m not going to let it slide.
Decades later, I am a “real” photographer (whatever that means). And, I have a lot of opportunities to act as a professional photographer because my current job is also a professional photographer. So these days, when I’m out shooting for fun, there’s no reason for me to be flexible with my full set of photos or pack more than I need just to make sure I’m using it. Full range of tools in my arsenal. Most likely these days I simply want to be traveling light. I want to take pictures because I love photography, but I want the process to be as easy and enjoyable as possible. And, let’s face it, carrying a small camera and a pancake/muffin lens is a lot more fun than filming around the city with a 70-200mm lens.
Out of the two, the 40mm lens is the most used. I’ve written about this before, but 40mm is quickly becoming my favorite focal length. It used to be 50mm, but 40mm offers just a little extra space which can be useful in unpredictable situations. However, it’s not so wide that you have to always get close to your subject to fill the frame. I mainly use the 28mm lens when in particularly tight locations when even the 40mm lens is too long to fit the subject. At f/2 for the 40mm and f/2.8 for the 28mm, both lenses are too fast for most shooting situations I’ve encountered. That’s especially true as I tend to want to be at home long before sunset, so I rarely need to get past f/2.8 or f/4 for my aperture. There are times when I wish I had something longer than 40mm on my walkabouts. If I suspect that might be the case, I might as well travel with a longer option. But, more often than not, when I carry a longer pick, I never take it out of my pocket. So I usually prefer to leave the long lens at home. I might miss a shot or two, but I also can’t ignore the joy of having to carry the extra weight.
In fact, with the 28mm and 40mm combos, I could leave the whole bag at home. If you attach either of these lenses to a small camera, such as a Nikon Z 6II or Zfc, it will create a very compact package. And while I wouldn’t completely say that either muffin lens is pocketable for those of you who wear tight jeans, if you’re a comfortable hoodie like me, you’ll find it very easy. to slide his second one. lenses into your pocket or the oversized pocket of your winter coat.
You may have noticed that very little of my praise for the 28mm and 40mm is focused solely on specs or optical quality. Don’t take that to mean that these two lenses cannot produce excellent images. Never once have I been annoyed by the sharpness of the images when I got home and watched them on my computer. Without a doubt, if you look at the pixels, you will probably find one or two imperfections. We are talking about cheap lenses here. But pixel peeking is what photographers do, not what audiences do. So spending too much time worrying about it might not be the best use of your time. The lens has a lot more to offer than sharpness in the corners. And, for me, the form factor and focal length of these lenses mean that they allow me to capture the type of photos I want to take while carrying minimal weight. For the type of photo I’m using, this is far more important than any lab test.
Convenience is not the kind of thing that can be measured by lab results, but it is the kind of thing that will ultimately determine how often a product is used. And with the 28mm/40mm combination easily becoming my second most used lens setup (and my main setup for enjoyable personal work), it’s hard to argue, even at For their smaller price tag, these two lenses aren’t two of the most valuable lenses in my kit. At a minimum, they are my two favorites.
