Sharpness at 400mm

For this test, the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens was attached to a Nikon Z6 II body, which was in turn mounted to a sturdy tripod. Exposure delay mode was activated. Tonal and colour variance across the crops are due to change in natural light during the session.

The full frame at 400mm

Centre sharpness is outstanding from wide-open at f/4.5 all the way through to f/16, with f/22 being slightly affected by diffraction and f/32 even more so.

The edges aren't quite as sharp as the centre, with the best results obtained from f/5.6 through to f/16.

Aperture	Centre Crop	Edge Crop
f/4.5
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22
f/32