Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX vs. Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena

Pick the 105mm f/1.4 if you want a wider field of view, pick the 135mm f/1.8 if you want closer focus. Compare both side by side.

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Portrait At-a-Glance Comparison (Upper Body Framing)

Optical & Portrait Metric Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena What It Means in Practice
Upper-Body Working Distance 4.21 m 5.40 m The Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena requires 1.2 m more room behind you for the same subject size.
Background Field of View (Compression) 18° 16° Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena shows a 11% narrower slice of the room behind the subject (16° vs. 18°), isolating them against a cleaner background.
Entrance Pupil Diameter 75.0 mm (f/1.4) 75.0 mm (f/1.8) Nearly identical distant background blur size at equal framing.
Corner Bokeh Roundness (90% Field) 62% (-1.1 EV) 100% (0.0 EV) Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena keeps significantly rounder bokeh balls into the corners wide open (100% vs. 62% roundness).
Effective Focal Length (Breathing) 111.5 mm (+6.1%) 130.2 mm (-3.6%) Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX frames like 111.5 mm (+6.1%) at 4.2 m; Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena frames like 130.2 mm (-3.6%) at 5.4 m.
Depth of Field (Sharp Zone) 20 cm (4.11 m – 4.31 m) 25 cm (5.28 m – 5.53 m) The Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX has a 22% thinner focus zone (20 cm vs. 25 cm)—requiring more precise eye focus.
Minimum Focus Distance 1 m 0.82 m Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena focuses 18 cm closer (1 m vs. 0.82 m) for tighter close-ups.

Questions

Which blurs the background more, Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX or Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena?

At the same subject framing, distant background blur scales with the entrance pupil diameter (focal length ÷ f-number). Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX at f/1.4 has a 75.0 mm entrance pupil, while Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena at f/1.8 has a 75.0 mm entrance pupil.

How does working distance differ between Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX and Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena?

For an upper-body portrait, Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX stands 4.21 m from the subject (sharp zone 20 cm, from 4.11 m to 4.31 m), whereas Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena stands 5.40 m away (sharp zone 25 cm, from 5.28 m to 5.53 m).

How do the optical designs of Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX and Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena compare?

Nikon 105mm f/1.4 FX uses 14 elements in 9 groups (WO2019116563A1, effective focal length 111.5 mm at portrait distance). Nikon NIKKOR Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena uses 16 elements in 14 groups (WO2024147268A1, effective focal length 130.2 mm).

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Also see: depth of field, bokeh, crop factor, lens compression.