Nikon Z50 II Launched

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Lee R said:
Honestly it doesn't make a lot of sense. I'm sure we'll see a ZFC ii, which does make a lot of sense and will sell really well, and probably the Z30ii refresh which also makes sense.

But a higher performance DX camera? The Z6iii is that camera.

A high megapixel stacked sensor DX would be amazing for wildlife but what would the return on that investment be? I can't imagine the wildlife crowd is that large and how many would turn it down for the already existing full frame 45+ mp cameras. Wildlife shooters are one of the most demanding for image quality and spend big money to get every last drop of it they can. I just don't see how a DX camera, unless they spend big money on a stacked sensor 40+ megapixel version fits into that equation. Then how many 2500+ dollar DX cameras do you actually end up selling?

When the D500 was launched it made sense for the time. I don't think it does these days.

The Z50ii on its own merit is really a good camera for $900 dollars. A lot of people want it to me something much more for much less than the full frame options, like a budget Z8 I guess, but that doesn't make a ton of sense for Nikon to make if it cuts into Z6iii or other camera sales.

Under 1000 dollars though, what actually looks more attractive than the Z50ii right now? Paired up with something like a Tamron 150-500 and you have a honestly quite nice wildlife combo for @ 2000 dollars. Pair it with a used FTZ and older 150-600 Tamron or Sigma and you have a nice wildlife combo for probably $1500 or less.
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This is my dilemma. The Z6iii in size looks so close to the newer body Z50ii. So why would I personally gravitate toward the Z50II? The DX lens selection? The weight? I guess for a quick trip somewhere but will I get there, stumble upon an amazing wildlife scene and wish I had my Z6III with my Tamron 150-500? You bet I would... the weight difference would not seem to justify the purchase.
 
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Juliette said:
This is my dilemma. The Z6iii in size looks so close to the newer body Z50ii. So why would I personally gravitate toward the Z50II? The DX lens selection? The weight?
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Many photographers will buy the cheaper Z50 II and have more for lenses.
The FTZ is a great enabler for 300 PF, 500 PF besides 600 PF and or 180-600
Juliette said:
I guess for a quick trip somewhere but will I get there, stumble upon an amazing wildlife scene and wish I had my Z6III with my Tamron 150-500? You bet I would... the weight difference would not seem to justify the purchase.
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Watching the RicciTalks video, and also by Oliver Hammel (translated) says to me that we are going to be pleasantly surprised by the independent reviews. The combination of features will work well.
 
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Juliette said:
This is my dilemma. The Z6iii in size looks so close to the newer body Z50ii. So why would I personally gravitate toward the Z50II? The DX lens selection? The weight? I guess for a quick trip somewhere but will I get there, stumble upon an amazing wildlife scene and wish I had my Z6III with my Tamron 150-500? You bet I would... the weight difference would not seem to justify the purchase.
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generally speaking i'd go with the z6iii unless budget doesn't allow or you have some very _specific_ size/weight requirement.
 
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Juliette said:
This is my dilemma. The Z6iii in size looks so close to the newer body Z50ii. So why would I personally gravitate toward the Z50II? The DX lens selection? The weight? I guess for a quick trip somewhere but will I get there, stumble upon an amazing wildlife scene and wish I had my Z6III with my Tamron 150-500? You bet I would... the weight difference would not seem to justify the purchase.
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The Z50ii is just the bang for buck option. You could take the $1600 difference and buy a Tamron 150-500 and a few inexpensive primes for the price of the Z6iii and the end result images would be pretty similar.
 
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Curious as to why many first reports on this new camera fail to recognize the obvious. They overlook the deep potentials embodied in new features that Nikon is now selling in the Z50 II, which were previously only available in Pro ILCs, at a stiff price. Ricci Chera emphasized the significance of this switch, albeit tacitly.

The Z9 AF system and EXPEED7 might surprise some industry reporters, but I find the biggest surprise - above and beyond all - is Nikon's decision to radically expand the Custom menus of the Z50 II. Handoff AF setups are now easy. (Yes the Zf, then Z6 III were first in line for this capability, but these are mid tier FX cameras.)

Previously Nikon's been extremely conservative in this department. Remember, their failure to add AFmode+AFOn options into the Z6 and Z7 persistently crippled these capable cameras for action photography. Something(s) upset the applecart, either new minds and/or actions on market research data. Another possible influence has been the huge sales of the Z9 and Z8 with exhaustive discussions about Custom settings, particularly optimizing the AF modes.

wildlife-photography.uk

Nikon Z50 vs Nikon Z50 II for Wildlife Photography

Are you a wildlife photographer considering the Nikon Z50II? Here’s my honest take on whether it’s worth upgrading from the Z50. I break down the new features, pros and cons, and why your current camera might still be enough for amazing wildlife shots. Save money on gear and spend it on wildlife...
wildlife-photography.uk
 
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Fyi - this appraisal by Hudson Henry. Yet another first taker who overlooked the Pro upgrade of the Custom menus, but a useful explanation of the Picture Control button, and I forgot presets of tagged RAW files can be read in LR Classic

 
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JAJohnson said:
As a retailer, the fine folks at Gray’s aren’t privy to information not available to other retailers. I suspect Becky may have spoken inaccurately.

Unfortunately, I’ve had frustrating experience with getting accurate answers to thorny questions from customer service at both Nikon UK and Nikon USA.

No matter, though. All will be clear in the coming weeks.
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Confirmed by Nikon UK representative that the Z50 II sensor is indeed the same as in the Z50
At ~12:30

www.youtube.com

NIKON Z50 II Live Q&A and General Nikon Discussion with Bruni Murari from Nikon UK - Koffee with Kon

Nikon Z50 II has been announced last week and Kon is here with Bruno Murari from Nikon UK to answer your questions with regards to this camera and other Niko...
www.youtube.com www.youtube.com
 
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DougC said:
I love nothing better than a goid conspiracy, so with that in mind……… why have we not seen any dedicated nature photographers (e.g. Steve, Jan Wegener) do an In depth review on this camera?
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Most definitely a respectable dedicated and honest review from Steve would settle some points this thread has highlighted. Steve you here? We want you to review the Z50II and settle any unrest.
 
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DougC said:
I love nothing better than a goid conspiracy, so with that in mind……… why have we not seen any dedicated nature photographers (e.g. Steve, Jan Wegener) do an In depth review on this camera?
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I don't think serious professional nature photographers test entry-level lenses and bodies because their viewership expects an honest assessment for the task at hand (eg BIF) and these professionals are nice and kind and honest and don't want to dump on products they know they would never use.
 
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Nimi said:
I don't think serious professional nature photographers test entry-level lenses and bodies because their viewership expects an honest assessment for the task at hand (eg BIF) and these professionals are nice and kind and honest and don't want to dump on products they know they would never use.
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There's nothing wrong with an honest assessment of where the gear stands though compared to the top end. That's not dumping on the gear it's just contrasting exactly what you get for the extra money you spend. The Z50ii is entry level but not entry in the sense of older Canon Rebel or D3500 cameras. It's quite highly capable for $900 and if someone puts field craft to good use I can easily see pulling in results on a used 150-600 Tamron or Sigma that would exceed someone with higher end gear who isn't putting in that same effort to get close or be patient. That's the kind of thing the younger version of all of us was much more capable of doing since everything hurts much less at 20-30.

I would also think that this Z50ii will sell in much larger numbers than the Z8/9 and if you're in the business of selling guide books to setup a camera for wildlife that's a lot of lost opportunity in sales for those who are on a budget and will never be able to afford the top end gear but still want to extract the maximum end result out of what they can afford.
 
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Some of the controls available in Z50 II Custom settings list are not available on flagship cameras!? Not least the Z9

Screenshot_2024-11-20-17-42-06-118.jpeg
You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.
 
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Nimi said:
I don't think serious professional nature photographers test entry-level lenses and bodies because their viewership expects an honest assessment for the task at hand (eg BIF) and these professionals are nice and kind and honest and don't want to dump on products they know they would never use.
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That' true.
But the camera is still interesting for people who accompany the professional photographers and document the trips. I mean the non-professional videographers.
The camera still would fit on a small gimbal ..

For example, I keep an eye on that camera, because I have Z30 and Zhiyun Weebill S. I had a lot of fun and joy with Z30, I love that small camera becasue I can have it with me all the time (even take it at work because I am working on the 32nd floor and sometimes take pictures of Vienna from above).
And now Z50 II shoot Log and 4K/60 with a 1.5 additional to APS-C crop ... very interesting. and has an EVF ;-) I can start to explore LOG for me and also start to use my APS-C 50-250mm (it was difficult to use it on Z30 without EVF) so it can expand my creativity and curiosity to do soemthing new (like LOG)
But like you I also don't expect professionals to review that little piece of joy ;-)
 
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Kenny88 said:
Most definitely a respectable dedicated and honest review from Steve would settle some points this thread has highlighted. Steve you here? We want you to review the Z50II and settle any
Click to expand...
Lee R said:
There's nothing wrong with an honest assessment of where the gear stands though compared to the top end. That's not dumping on the gear it's just contrasting exactly what you get for the extra money you spend. The Z50ii is entry level but not entry in the sense of older Canon Rebel or D3500 cameras. It's quite highly capable for $900 and if someone puts field craft to good use I can easily see pulling in results on a used 150-600 Tamron or Sigma that would exceed someone with higher end gear who isn't putting in that same effort to get close or be patient. That's the kind of thing the younger version of all of us was much more capable of doing since everything hurts much less at 20-30.

I would also think that this Z50ii will sell in much larger numbers than the Z8/9 and if you're in the business of selling guide books to setup a camera for wildlife that's a lot of lost opportunity in sales for those who are on a budget and will never be able to afford the top end gear but still want to extract the maximum end result out of what they can afford.
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I don't disagree with any of it, and actually picked one up myself. I just don't think guys like Steve or Jen would review it because they're more into technical shooting and technique, not gear reviews like some YouTubers.

The 50ii is a very powerful entry-level camera, as good as anything from Sony, Canon and Fuji in the $1000 range and APS-C.
 
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ElenaH said:
That' true.
But the camera is still interesting for people who accompany the professional photographers and document the trips. I mean the non-professional videographers.
The camera still would fit on a small gimbal ..

For example, I keep an eye on that camera, because I have Z30 and Zhiyun Weebill S. I had a lot of fun and joy with Z30, I love that small camera becasue I can have it with me all the time (even take it at work because I am working on the 32nd floor and sometimes take pictures of Vienna from above).
And now Z50 II shoot Log and 4K/60 with a 1.5 additional to APS-C crop ... very interesting. and has an EVF ;-) I can start to explore LOG for me and also start to use my APS-C 50-250mm (it was difficult to use it on Z30 without EVF) so it can expand my creativity and curiosity to do soemthing new (like LOG)
But like you I also don't expect professionals to review that little piece of joy ;-)
Click to expand...
Agree got one for same reasons. Better than my phone. Also testing a Lumix S9.
 
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The primary weakness of the Z50 II is the lack of cross-type AF sensors and no CFExpress card support. The lowlight threshold of the sensor needs to be tested properly however... admittedly judging this camera only on specifications at this stage.

Besides these 2 features, this remarkably affordable DX Mirrorless camera is significantly advanced compared against the legendary D500, and indeed any of the Gen 1 and II Z cameras.

Break free of the typological classification, ie pigeonholing a camera based solely on pricing rank. Nikon's smashed this "rule" - branding the Z50 II as 'Entry' is misguided in the extreme, even though many learners etc are sure to buy it.

The design team has paired the tried&tested (affordable) DX sensor with the EXPEED7, and they threw in all the empowering Z9 software to deliver a Prosumer Mirrorless Camera under the $1000 price bar.
 
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