Nikon Z50 II Launched

[MartyD]

View attachment 101807
It doesn't change with an option for more than 5FPS in any of the Continuous modes.

With the Z50ii, when you set to Continuous H (extended) you get approximately 11 FPS. Setting d1 allows you to set the Continuous L setting from 1 to 5 FPS but that setting only applies to Continuous L. You cannot change the FPS for Continuous H or Continuous H (extended).

The shutter type for the Z50ii in setting d6 are all using the mechanical shutter. The auto setting switches from Electronic front-curtain shutter to mechanical shutter at certain shutter speeds. I know that you cannot use EFCS above 1/2000 but I don't know where exactly it switches. I have seen some posts that claim that Nikon switches from EFCS to Mechanical shutter at around 1/200 of a second. EFCS helps to reduce image blue caused by shutter shock but can introduce rolling shutter for faster moving subjects. The Z50ii allows you to use the fully electronic by switching to Silent Mode in the Setup Menu, if you switch to silent mode, menu option d6 is totally greyed out. When in Silent Mode using the fully electronic shutter you may get rolling shutter from fast moving subjects.

I have not shot my Z50ii enough to know if I can shoot fully electronic shutter (silent mode) for action. My Z6iii does pretty well in fully electronic mode but I don't believe the sensor readout speed for the Z50ii is as fast as the Z6iii.

Frame advance rate​

The maximum frame advance rates for [Continuous H] and [Continuous H (extended)] vary with camera settings.

		Shutter type	Shutter type	[Silent mode]: [ON]
Release mode	Image quality	Mechanical shutter	Electronic front-curtain shutter
[Continuous H]	NEF (RAW)/NEF (RAW) +	Approx. 5.4 fps	Approx. 7.9 fps	Approx. 6.7 fps
[Continuous H]	JPEG/HEIF	Approx. 5.6 fps	Approx. 8.3 fps	Approx. 9.7 fps
[Continuous H (extended)]	NEF (RAW)/NEF (RAW) +	Approx. 11 fps	Approx. 10 fps	Approx. 8.9 fps
[Continuous H (extended)]	JPEG	Approx. 11 fps	Approx. 10 fps	Approx. 15 fps

Edit - fixed the chart

 

[fcotterill]

Admittedly only a day's outing but he appears to confirm what many of us anticipated:

Nikon Z50II + Nikon Z 180-600mm | BEST BUDGET Bird & Wildlife Combo?

 

[VinnyH]

Shot a few bursts this morning and got maybe 6FPS as I did what seemed like 1 second. I was in manual, 1/2000, f6.3. (Could not get a faster shutter speed)
Not a technical setup with tripod and stopwatch but a general “1 Mississippi” type count. Gotta get ready for the dam trip .
I’ll test it in the real world and report back,
Vinny

 

[lordofthelens1865]

I have a question. Does the Z50ii have 11 fps with mechancial shutter and AF-C? This should theoretically be possible, since the D500 (same sensor) could do 10FPS with both of them.

 

[JAJohnson]

I have a question. Does the Z50ii have 11 fps with mechancial shutter and AF-C? This should theoretically be possible, since the D500 (same sensor) could do 10FPS with both of them.

Yes, with AF-S and AF-C.

 

[JAJohnson]

Shot a few bursts this morning and got maybe 6FPS as I did what seemed like 1 second. I was in manual, 1/2000, f6.3. (Could not get a faster shutter speed)
Not a technical setup with tripod and stopwatch but a general “1 Mississippi” type count. Gotta get ready for the dam trip .
I’ll test it in the real world and report back,
Vinny

You can look at the difference between time stamp on the first and last images in the burst to see how long you pressed the shutter.

 

[Kenny88]

The Z50ii in my opinion replaces and exceeds the D500 in some aspects, but not all - ie. full weather sealing, 2 cards to name the obvious. I tried it in BIF and it works. It's not a mini Z8, but honestly, it's good enough for anyone that doesn't just do dedicated BIF / action photography.

 

[lordofthelens1865]

Yes, with AF-S and AF-C.

So there should be no viewfinder lag i.e. the slideshow, correct?

 

[Kenny88]

So there should be no viewfinder lag i.e. the slideshow, correct?

There is lag and expected for this price point, but definitely better than the Z50

 

[lordofthelens1865]

There is lag and expected for this price point, but definitely better than the Z50

Even with the mechanical shutter engaged?

 

[Tom Reynolds]

Admittedly only a day's outing but he appears to confirm what many of us anticipated:

Nikon Z50II + Nikon Z 180-600mm | BEST BUDGET Bird & Wildlife Combo?

The Nikon rig, $900 camera and $1900 lens compares directly to my OM Systems' rig of a $1900 OM-1 and the $100 100-400 lens. Just based on his comments about the lens/camera comments, the well-balanced and compact 3.9# OM rig seems superior to the 5.5+# unbalanced Nikon combo.

The 600pf would be my choice if considering an Z50-2.

Tom

 

[VinnyH]

Update: I did just get 10FPS even though no setting said so. I sat my Z52 on the couch, pointed to the window showing some trees, set my phone to time 10 seconds, pressed shutter and phone simultaneously, got 100 raw shots.
I guess we work on trust, unlike my Z8 that shows fps settings.
Thanks for all the help,
Vinny

 

[JAJohnson]

There is lag and expected for this price point, but definitely better than the Z50

Even with the mechanical shutter engaged?

There is some shutter blackout, but I expect far less than with the Z50. See the comments from Thom Hogan below:

"If you're expecting the Z8/Z9 no finder blackout and no rolling shutter goodness here, you're dreaming." "...but it's not blackout free without drawbacks at 11 fps, 15 fps, or 30 fps..."

Things to Do With Your New Z50II | Thom Hogan

First things to consider with your new Z50II

www.zsystemuser.com

 

[marvf]

I was able to read my Z50II NEF files with no problems using LRC (desktop).

 

[JAJohnson]

I was able to read my Z50II NEF files with no problems using LRC (desktop).

Lossless compression or High efficiency*?

 

[marvf]

Lossless

 

[marvf]

I don't know enough about high efficiency to try it yet. In particular about what advantages it provides. I'm going to spend some time with the manual on the coming week. Between the turkey and the Pumpkin pie.

 

[JAJohnson]

I don't know enough about high efficiency to try it yet. In particular about what advantages it provides. I'm going to spend some time with the manual on the coming week. Between the turkey and the Pumpkin pie.

On my Z cameras, HE* offers much smaller RAW files with no noticeable loss in quality to my eye. Others may disagree. Lr and LrC may need an update to be able to read them for the Z50II. Better to use Lossless compression RAW for now.

 

[Kenny88]

Even with the mechanical shutter engaged?

There will be some lag - the EVF won't be able to refresh that fast.

 

[lordofthelens1865]

There will be some lag - the EVF won't be able to refresh that fast.

Understood. But how come DSLRs were not susceptible to this?

 

[beano]

Understood. But how come DSLRs were not susceptible to this?

DSLR has an optical view finder, and yes, the mirror causes ‘blackout’ when shooting high fps.

 

[fcotterill]

The Nikon rig, $900 camera and $1900 lens compares directly to my OM Systems' rig of a $1900 OM-1 and the $100 100-400 lens. Just based on his comments about the lens/camera comments, the well-balanced and compact 3.9# OM rig seems superior to the 5.5+# unbalanced Nikon combo.

The 600pf would be my choice if considering an Z50-2.

Tom

Yes, 600 PF should balance better on the lighter camera, so will an adapted 500 PF.

And the 400 f4.5S weighs only 1.2kg and pairs well with the ZTC14. On DX this prime is a 600mm and 840mm FoV respectively.

The ~1.4kg 100-400 S Nikkor should also pair well with the Z50 II.

An adapted 300 f4E PF is probably the lightest telephoto option, including with the TC14 III as a 420 f5.6.

And don't forget the light $1200 28-400, as the DX crop benefits image quality, and presumably the same applies to the similar Tamron superzoom, the 1180g 50-400 f4.5/6.3.

All the above choices have significant impacts on the bank balance

 

[Lee R]

I don't know enough about high efficiency to try it yet. In particular about what advantages it provides. I'm going to spend some time with the manual on the coming week. Between the turkey and the Pumpkin pie.

I cannot tell the difference in real world use between lossless, HE* and HE so I just use HE on mine for maximum buffer. HE* and HE especially with a fast UHS-II card will let you shoot at max FPS much longer, likely to the 200 limit (software) then just release fast and resume and keep going. In HE you probably can do this as long as you feel like it. I use silent shutter as long as it's something I don't need mechanical for stopping rolling shutter to not wear it out fast.

On my Z cameras, HE* offers much smaller RAW files with no noticeable loss in quality to my eye. Others may disagree. Lr and LrC may need an update to be able to read them for the Z50II. Better to use Lossless compression RAW for now.

I can't see the difference either. I've watched comparison videos and it's so small if anything that I just go with HE*/HE as they work for me. I know some people like to use max quality no matter what but I honestly can't tell the difference. HE makes both my Z camera's buffer basically forever when I set them to overflow and RAW HE (no dual shooting JPEG/HEIC). Shooting to both cards slows things down and I've never experienced a card failure in a camera in 30 years of digital. The only ones have been after formatting on windows PC's and that was after the shots were offloaded.

Understood. But how come DSLRs were not susceptible to this?

OVF are glass, no lag and speed of light. The mirror will block your sight and some are worse than others but it's different as its not all blocked most of the way through and its easier to track a subject on an OVF. Mirrorless the signal is stopped (blackout) for a second so you get that strobe light effect of people moving in the dark. Some cameras are far far worse than others with this depending on the framerate. The Z5 4.5 FPS is nearly unusable for me tracking anything because of it. The Zf with higher frame rates is ok though. The Z8/Z9 have a totally separate feed to the EVF so you don't get any blackout.

 

[Tom Reynolds]

Yes, 600 PF should balance better on the lighter camera, so will an adapted 500 PF.

And the 400 f4.5S weighs only 1.2kg and pairs well with the ZTC14. On DX this prime is a 600mm and 840mm FoV respectively.

The ~1.4kg 100-400 S Nikkor should also pair well with the Z50 II.

An adapted 300 f4E PF is probably the lightest telephoto option, including with the TC14 III as a 420 f5.6.

And don't forget the light $1200 28-400, as the DX crop benefits image quality, and presumably the same applies to the similar Tamron superzoom, the 1180g 50-400 f4.5/6.3.

All the above choices have significant impacts on the bank balance

I loved my 500pf and they can be had for less than $2k and, with adaptor, would come in less than 5# and be in the price ballpark.

 

[VinnyH]

Quick simple report: I used the Z52, as I know call it, for 15 minutes or so with my 180-600 at Conowingo Dam yesterday. I started 2 hours earlier with my Z8 and the Z52 felt like a toy when I switched. I can't give a technical test answer but for the few eagles and vultures I saw it tracked 2 out of 3 well and it may be due to being a new camera and my skills. Here are 3 examples...
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