Vintage-style lenses for the Nikon Zf and Nikon Z fc are few and far between, especially if you’re looking for an optic with an aperture ring. So I mean it when I say, I’m mighty interested in Hong Kong-based Artralab’s cheekily-dubbed Nonikkor-MC 35mm f/1.4. Sure, Voigtlander makes some gorgeous retro-style Z-mount lenses – like the D23mm f/1.2 Nokton Z Aspherical – but at roughly $380/£300, Artralabs (@artralab) has cooked up a more affordable option.
Interestingly, there are two internally identical but aesthetically different lens variants, in the form of a 1960s and 1980s edition. The differences – as far as I can tell – regard the focusing ring and filter thread, with the 1960s variant displaying a chunker ring and silver thread (think F-mount’s original non-AI lenses), while the 1980s version has a more modern rubber focusing ring and black filter thread (indicative of Nikon’s AI-S era of optics).
