Need an advice between D850 and Z7 for wildlife (birds etc..)

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Mimi76

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Hello to all,

I have a Nikon D7500 camera for 4 years. I'm thinking of buying another faster camera for birds and animals. What do you recommend a very good one please between D850 and Z7 or another one but not the Z9 because it is too expensive. Thank you for your advice.
 
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If you need something now, the Z7ii is a very good camera and would allow use of many of your existing Nikon lenses. I expect to see Nikon release a mid-level action camera based on the Z9 later this year, and if so it may be a better fit for you. If that is the case, you might consider a used Z6/Z6ii or Z7 on an interim basis while you learn the system and work on any lens transition.

I've also seen some good deals on D850 cameras as others move to mirrorless. That might work for you and reduce the amount you need to spend on lenses, but if you have to buy lenses, you might as well jump to mirrorless sooner. The Z6 is an excellent camera and will handle all but the fastest wildlife and action.
 
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EricBowles said:
If you need something now, the Z7ii is a very good camera and would allow use of many of your existing Nikon lenses. I expect to see Nikon release a mid-level action camera based on the Z9 later this year, and if so it may be a better fit for you. If that is the case, you might consider a used Z6/Z6ii or Z7 on an interim basis while you learn the system and work on any lens transition.

I've also seen some good deals on D850 cameras as others move to mirrorless. That might work for you and reduce the amount you need to spend on lenses, but if you have to buy lenses, you might as well jump to mirrorless sooner. The Z6 is an excellent camera and will handle all but the fastest wildlife and action.
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Ok thank you so much for your advice. I have N200-500 and N70-200mm. Are they(z6ii and Z7) compatible with N200-500 and N70-200mm.?
 
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Mimi76 said:
Ok thank you so much for your advice. I have N200-500 and N70-200mm. Are they(z6ii and Z7) compatible with N200-500 and N70-200mm.?
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Both work nicely - as good or better - on the Z cameras. No issues at all. Either FTZ or FTZ II will work. Both also work with the Nikon 1.4 TC.
 
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Mimi76 said:
Hello to all,

I have a Nikon D7500 camera for 4 years. I'm thinking of buying another faster camera for birds and animals. What do you recommend a very good one please between D850 and Z7 or another one but not the Z9 because it is too expensive. Thank you for your advice.
Click to expand...
Both of those are good choices as is a D500 if you want to stay with a crop sensor camera which can be very helpful for smaller birds though the D850 or Z7 in DX crop mode (or cropped in post) is similar in many ways to the images you might capture with a D500 and still has full frame with its advantages for situations where you can readily fill that larger sensor area.
 
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DRwyoming said:
Both of those are good choices as is a D500 if you want to stay with a crop sensor camera which can be very helpful for smaller birds though the D850 or Z7 in DX crop mode (or cropped in post) is similar in many ways to the images you might capture with a D500 and still has full frame with its advantages for situations where you can readily fill that larger sensor area.
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Thank you so much for your advice 🙂
 
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I was about to make the same D500 suggestion as DR. the 500 gives you a faster FPS rate (10 fps) and a deep buffer. It may “scratch the itch” for you as you decide what, if anything, to do about a move to mirrorless. D500 is still a very capable camera and if you get a good used one, you won’t lose too much when you go to sell it later. If you buy a Z7ii and then decide to sell it a year or so down the road for a Z9 or whatever Nikon may release in the near future you’re going to take a significant hit. A used Z7ii may be worth looking into but they seem to be pretty rare at lest on the used equipment websites. Locally, if you have a local store, may be an option but their volume would be small when compared to the bigger internet shops.
Best wishes as you work through the decision. As you may have guessed I shoot a D500 and I have several friends who shoot a D850. Both are still worthy cameras and best in class for DSLRs.

Jeff
 
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I have the Z9 but I have decided not to sell the D500. No need to rush into mirrorless. The lenses work fine via an adapter. The Z6ii is not an action camera. It is however a brilliant general non-action (Sports wildlife birds) camera. If Nikon releases a mid point replacement for the D500 in the next 12 months, (VERY LIKELY) how will you feel?
 
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Mimi76 said:
Hello to all,

I have a Nikon D7500 camera for 4 years. I'm thinking of buying another faster camera for birds and animals. What do you recommend a very good one please between D850 and Z7 or another one but not the Z9 because it is too expensive. Thank you for your advice.
Click to expand...
If you are invested in F-mount glass, then a D850 would be an excellent choice, however, if you only have a couple of lenses, then the Z7ii is probably the better investment for the future for all but the fastest wildlife and use the FTZ adapter in the meantime. However, it will undoubtedly be possible to create a very capable F-mount lens arsenal for wildlife with a significantly lower budget than their Z-mount equivalents for the foreseeable future, so the D850 remains a shrewd choice for the budget conscious.
 
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One thing I would offer in addition to my above post is to really examine what you want from the camera system. Are there specific requirements for your desired photography? Super fast autofocus for small birds in flight may be totally unimportant to you if you mainly shoot macro and/or large mammals. If you do mostly landscape a different set of criteria will be important.

If you're not too heavily invested in Nikon glass then widen the search and compare/contrast to include other systems and see which system comes closest to checking all of your boxes. Most likely, none will check them all but I'm sure someone makes a camera system that will check most. In fact, it may come down to a choice between two or three systems.

Like others have said, the next couple years will be interesting as the technology improves.

Jeff
 
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Mimi76 said:
Hello to all,

I have a Nikon D7500 camera for 4 years. I'm thinking of buying another faster camera for birds and animals. What do you recommend a very good one please between D850 and Z7 or another one but not the Z9 because it is too expensive. Thank you for your advice.
Click to expand...
When I got my Z7ii I spent a fair amount of time trying to become proficient using it for birds in flight photography. Eventually I gave up on that idea and would continue to use my D850 for BIF photography. There were numerous reasons for this (AF area availability/performance, subject detect reliability and performance, viewfinder blackouts, picture lag, etc.) The Z7ii was still my go to camera for everything else, aside from sports and action photography, but I would grab my D850 if I was going to be photographing birds. The Z9 has since become my go to camera for everything!

I would strongly recommend that you try to test out a Z7/Z7ii camera for birds and animal photography before you make a purchase decision, so that you can see what the user experience is like for yourself.
 
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jeffnles1 said:
I was about to make the same D500 suggestion as DR. the 500 gives you a faster FPS rate (10 fps) and a deep buffer. It may “scratch the itch” for you as you decide what, if anything, to do about a move to mirrorless. D500 is still a very capable camera and if you get a good used one, you won’t lose too much when you go to sell it later. If you buy a Z7ii and then decide to sell it a year or so down the road for a Z9 or whatever Nikon may release in the near future you’re going to take a significant hit. A used Z7ii may be worth looking into but they seem to be pretty rare at lest on the used equipment websites. Locally, if you have a local store, may be an option but their volume would be small when compared to the bigger internet shops.
Best wishes as you work through the decision. As you may have guessed I shoot a D500 and I have several friends who shoot a D850. Both are still worthy cameras and best in class for DSLRs.

Jeff
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Hello, ok thank you so much. 🙂
 
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SoCalRick said:
When I got my Z7ii I spent a fair amount of time trying to become proficient using it for birds in flight photography. Eventually I gave up on that idea and would continue to use my D850 for BIF photography. There were numerous reasons for this (AF area availability/performance, subject detect reliability and performance, viewfinder blackouts, picture lag, etc.) The Z7ii was still my go to camera for everything else, aside from sports and action photography, but I would grab my D850 if I was going to be photographing birds. The Z9 has since become my go to camera for everything!

I would strongly recommend that you try to test out a Z7/Z7ii camera for birds and animal photography before you make a purchase decision, so that you can see what the user experience is like for yourself.
Click to expand...
Ok thank you so much for your advice. It’s hard to choose one😃.
 
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Dr_J said:
If you are invested in F-mount glass, then a D850 would be an excellent choice, however, if you only have a couple of lenses, then the Z7ii is probably the better investment for the future for all but the fastest wildlife and use the FTZ adapter in the meantime. However, it will undoubtedly be possible to create a very capable F-mount lens arsenal for wildlife with a significantly lower budget than their Z-mount equivalents for the foreseeable future, so the D850 remains a shrewd choice for the budget conscious.
Click to expand...
Hello, ok thank you so much for your advice 🙂
 
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jeffnles1 said:
One thing I would offer in addition to my above post is to really examine what you want from the camera system. Are there specific requirements for your desired photography? Super fast autofocus for small birds in flight may be totally unimportant to you if you mainly shoot macro and/or large mammals. If you do mostly landscape a different set of criteria will be important.

If you're not too heavily invested in Nikon glass then widen the search and compare/contrast to include other systems and see which system comes closest to checking all of your boxes. Most likely, none will check them all but I'm sure someone makes a camera system that will check most. In fact, it may come down to a choice between two or three systems.

Like others have said, the next couple years will be interesting as the technology improves.

Jeff
Click to expand...
Hello, ok thank you so much. 🙂
 
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I am not familiar with the D7500 but I know it is part of the D5 generation of cameras. The D850 is part of that generation also. My recommendation is to go to bythom.com and read up on the differences including the Z options for comparison. It appears from what others have said that you don't really see an advantage in the Z models based on the criteria you have mentioned until you get to the Z9. So, if you're happy with your lenses, stay with DSLR until you are ready to go all out on mirrorless, Save your money for the next transition.
 
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The real question is whether to invest in old f-mount lenses or the new Z lenses. Nikon's last major lens introduction for the f-mount was the 500mm PF lens they brougt out in the fall of 2018. For the nearly 3 years the new lenses from Nikon have all been ones for the Z cameras.

I would not limit yourself to only the Nikon Z cameras and lenses. There are excellent ones from Canon and Sony and if starting from scratch there is no reason not to give them serious consideration. If all my Nikon gear went up in flames today I would probably replace it with Sony cameras and lenses for numerous reasons.
 
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I have a D850 and a Z7ii. For wildlife I lean towards the D850. My choice is probably equal parts familiarity, lens choices (that I own and can carry in the field), and ergonomics. Mostly, I use the Z7ii for landscapes and walk about. To me, the Z7ii is an awkward size/shape/grip for bigger glass. The 24-120mm lens is about the perfect size. Anything bigger seems unbalanced to me.

Both cameras deliver awesome images if I do my part.
 
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Mimi76 said:
Hello to all,

I have a Nikon D7500 camera for 4 years. I'm thinking of buying another faster camera for birds and animals. What do you recommend a very good one please between D850 and Z7 or another one but not the Z9 because it is too expensive. Thank you for your advice.
Click to expand...
The D850 is great for birds - the Z7ii is good but not great for BIF.
When I got my Z9 I sold my Z7ii but kept my D850.
The Z7 series are great cameras except not quite as good for birds and widlife...🦘
 
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Shutterbug fan 1 said:
I am not familiar with the D7500 but I know it is part of the D5 generation of cameras. The D850 is part of that generation also. My recommendation is to go to bythom.com and read up on the differences including the Z options for comparison. It appears from what others have said that you don't really see an advantage in the Z models based on the criteria you have mentioned until you get to the Z9. So, if you're happy with your lenses, stay with DSLR until you are ready to go all out on mirrorless, Save your money for the next transition.
Click to expand...
Ok, Thank you so much 🙂
 
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