Now that we have the Z6iii released did we learn anything about where Nikon is headed from here with camera releases

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wotan1

wotan1

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The release of the Z6iii has happened and we now have indications of what new tech Nikon has developed.

Obviously that is not going to be Nikon’s last camera upgrade.

I am wondering if we have any better idea of where Nikon might choose to go from here.

Obviously the z9 has been out for a while and that alone predicts a possible Z9ii.

Also is Nikon likely to come out with a higher megapixel Z7iii?

To me the release of the Z6iii is only part of the puzzle of where we might go from here. I am trying to make wise choices. I know Nikon will get my money one way or the other, I just want to spend it wisely.
 
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I'd expect a z7iii as a higher res more landscape/etc camera than high speed action to still come out. But the only people who know anything for sure can't talk about it.
 
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Cameron T said:
I'd expect a z7iii as a higher res more landscape/etc camera than high speed action to still come out. But the only people who know anything for sure can't talk about it.
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So if that is true then I should decide whether I really want a super high megapixel camera when I already have the Z9. If not then I am better off going ahead with the Z6iii as my new lightweight option.

The next question is, what is the new Z9 likely to have? What can only be improved with new hardware as opposed to a firmware update.
 
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It seems going forward that Nikon's Mirrorless cameras will require a stacked sensor or a Partially-Stacked sensor... well at least at the Enthusiast and Pro tiers.

In light of the Z9 > Z8 repackaging the 45mp stacked sensor, the big question is how will Nikon repackage this new Z6 III P-S Sensor? This is on the assumption Nikon is not finished with repackaging "more Z9-goodness down the lineup".
 
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wotan1 said:
So if that is true then I should decide whether I really want a super high megapixel camera when I already have the Z9. If not then I am better off going ahead with the Z6iii as my new lightweight option.

The next question is, what is the new Z9 likely to have? What can only be improved with new hardware as opposed to a firmware update.
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Z9II? Next advancements... global shutter with high MP? RAW pre-capture with high frame rate. Improved AF system - maybe develop their own dual/quad pixel?
 
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With the introduction of the Z8, I have questioned where the Z7 series fits in the marketplace? Z6 series makes sense, mid-tier, mid-price, camera with "good enough" megapixel sensor, top tier features in a smaller body etc. I think the Z6 will continue to be the tool of choice for a lot of wedding professionals, portrait shooters, fashion shooters, and event shooters. None of those genre are terribly taxing on AF or sensor megapixel count, they all require good to great low light performance, "good enough" face / eye detect AF, excellent colors and RAW & JPG files that are easy to edit, easy to transfer to clients and won't break the bank with external drive and cloud storage. Thus, the Z6 series makes perfect sense.

I'm just not sure what the Z7 series offers that the Z8 series does not. The Z7 may end up being positioned against the Sony A7R series as a super high megapixel camera (60+ MPX) targeted toward landscape, architecture, some wildlife maybe product (I don't do product shots so I cannot say what is needed, just a guess here). If this is the case then I can see a market for the Z7 series but I'm not sure how much overlap there would be here and with the Z8 target market. Time will tell how Nikon targets different market segments and how different they believe the needs are for each segment. It would not surprise me to see the Z7 become a branch pruned off the Nikon family tree (at least for the near future).
By the way, I primarily shoot Canon with one Nikon and one Sony in the house too. I don't have a dog in the "Nikon hunt" but surely wish to see all the camera companies find their niche and thrive. Competion is good as are choices. I shot Nikon cameras for over 40 years and very much want to see them continuing to produce excellent quality products and continue being a major player in the imaging space.

Jeff
 
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Cameron T said:
I'd expect a z7iii as a higher res more landscape/etc camera than high speed action to still come out. But the only people who know anything for sure can't talk about it.
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I agree…a higher MP Z7III as a dedicated landscape body might come…but the Z8 is effectively its replacement and there is just no room in the price table for a better/faster Z7III as it would impact Z8 sales.
 
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$2000 Zf
$2500 Z6III
$4000 Z8 (or $3500 on sale currently)

A $3000 Z7III would kill the Z6III, unless the Z7III was notably worse at frame rates or video or something like that.

A $3500 Z7III would find very few customers with a superior Z8 available, unless it has a significantly better spec (higher resolution?)

Where could Nikon price a Z7III? It seems the price increase for the Z6III has wedged a new Z7 out of the market.
 
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Chris K said:
$2000 Zf
$2500 Z6III
$4000 Z8 (or $3500 on sale currently)

A $3000 Z7III would kill the Z6III, unless the Z7III was notably worse at frame rates or video or something like that.

A $3500 Z7III would find very few customers with a superior Z8 available, unless it has a significantly better spec (higher resolution?)

Where could Nikon price a Z7III? It seems the price increase for the Z6III has wedged a new Z7 out of the market.
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yah, maybe 60MP “partially stacked” for 3500 usd

just a swag
 
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There is plenty of room in the price range. Z8 is $4k retail. It won't be at $3,500 all the time. Even it it is, $500 increment is enough. Use the Z8 sensor (no additional sensor R&D costs to recoup), smaller, cheaper body and fewer features than the Z8 and sell it for $3k or $3,250. Nikon will sell a ton of them at a profit.
 
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RecalcitrantRon said:
There is plenty of room in the price range. Z8 is $4k retail. It won't be at $3,500 all the time. Even it it is, $500 increment is enough. Use the Z8 sensor (no additional sensor R&D costs to recoup), smaller, cheaper body and fewer features than the Z8 and sell it for $3k or $3,250. Nikon will sell a ton of them at a profit.
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but i'd say the z6iii is close enough to the z8 that the primary differentiator is the higher mp and stacked.

if you push the existing stacked sensor into the small body, it'd just be a mini z8 and you couldn't differentiate enough without borrowing the cripple-hammer which is never a good look and even then, you couldn't really cripple it more than the z6iii, and that's not really very crippled (other than banks, maybe).

it would work if you waited until the z8ii came out with the expeed8, then ran the z7iii with the expeed7, but i don't think we can expect a z8ii anytime soon

but i think you're right. EVENTUALLY we'll see them trickle this sensor down. but i don't think that makes sense until they have something new and better for the top bodies.
 
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John Navitsky said:
but i'd say the z6iii is close enough to the z8 that the primary differentiator is the higher mp and stacked.

if you push the existing stacked sensor into the small body, it'd just be a mini z8 and you couldn't differentiate enough without borrowing the cripple-hammer which is never a good look and even then, you couldn't really cripple it more than the z6iii, and that's not really very crippled (other than banks, maybe).

it would work if you waited until the z8ii came out with the expeed8, then ran the z7iii with the expeed7, but i don't think we can expect a z8ii anytime soon

but i think you're right. EVENTUALLY we'll see them trickle this sensor down. but i don't think that makes sense until they have something new and better for the top bodies.
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If I were a betting sort f guy, I would say Z7III in 6 months, Z9 II with new sensor, Expeed 8 and other goodies 6 months after that and Z8II 6-12 moths after that. But what do I know anyway?
 
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jeffnles1 said:
Z6 series makes sense, mid-tier, mid-price, camera with "good enough" megapixel sensor, top tier features in a smaller body etc. I think the Z6 will continue to be the tool of choice for a lot of wedding professionals, portrait shooters, fashion shooters, and event shooters. None of those genre are terribly taxing on AF or sensor megapixel count, they all require good to great low light performance, "good enough" face / eye detect AF, excellent colors and RAW & JPG files that are easy to edit, easy to transfer to clients and won't break the bank with external drive and cloud storage. Thus, the Z6 series makes perfect sense.

Jeff
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You have nailed me! I had a D850 that I loved and was waiting for the Z8 as the Z equivalent. But I got fed up with waiting and after doing my due diligence based on what I wanted from a camera I bought a Z6ii. When the Z8 arrived, I did wonder if it was too much camera for me. I'm not a wildlife shooter, I flit around genres as the fancy takes me.

For me the Z6ii is not where I want to be with several things not to my liking, but the Z6iii looks like it could be in my sweet spot. I got my D850 in 2018 and in that year I also got a Fuji XT-1 to see what mirrorless was all about. I loved this camera on release as it reminded me of my Pentax SV. Soon the Fuji was getting used more than the Nikon and my Fuji kit was expanding. Now the Fuji kit has an XT-4, an XH-2s and a brace of lenses and a Fringer adaptor that allows my F mount lenses to AF on my Fujis.

For a long time as a jack of all trades photographer, I was looking for a jack of all trades camera and kit. Made sense at the time, but now as I get older and weight is a factor, I have horses for courses cameras and kit.

Z6ii is a general purpose/low light/ high ISO/Manual focus vintage lens camera.
Z5 awaits IR conversion. Traded one of my XT-4s for it as the XT-4 is way too good a camera to slap an IR conversion on.
Fuji XT-4 is the light/travel/love the user experience and looks camera. Might consider upgrading to an XT-5 and it is then my hi res camera, but in no rush.
Fuji XH-2s is my action/sports/what little wildlife I do camera. It is not near the Nikon/Sony/Canon flagship AF, but for me, good enough.

It is now 70 years since I got my first camera - a Kodak Brownie Cresta and I've still got it!
 
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IMHO to me the Z7 was the start for hires (45+ MP) MILC's, marking the top end of the lineup at the time, but with the Z8 I can't see the point having another Z7 generation.
Traditionally Nikon had the single digit DSLRs to mark the top level. With the Z's came they decided to go with increasing numbers. So, if there is a really new technology coming up, I would expect either a higher Z number or - looking at the RED acquisition - an entire new product family rather than adding even more MILC models.

It is also a question of complexity of every aspect around manufacturing processes. It increases exponentially with the number of variants you have to run through your plant. So the more variants you already have the higher the barrier gets to rectify an additional one.

Let's see what they do next. I am sure it will be enough to keep the guys of nikonrumours busy :)
 
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nikon continues to segment the market. Hi/pro end is FF, 45.7 MP. 24MP (Z 6, Zf) is prosumer.

Perhaps they will make a pro (Z8 equivalent with 24 MP sensor) and not call it Z6. But numbers are running out.

Z8/9 are pro level cameras
Z6/Z7 (maybe) will be prosumer - future of Z 7 remains to be seen
Z5/Zf are entry/amateur (looking better term) cameras.

Dx right now fits in the entry level cameras. Perhaps Nikon will make a prosumer Dx camera.
 
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What makes you think the Z6 is any less pro than a Z7, going with MP numbers? The difference between a Z6 and a Z8 is much less than between a D3300 and a D3/4 back the day.

The Z5 was somewhat positioned with less features, with z50 / Z fc bring somewhat the entry level bodies, and those are much closer to the DX prosumer DSLR bodies than entry level ones.

Back the day, the true pro bodies from both, Canon and Nikon, had low MP. Canon seems to continue with that, of rumors can be trusted.
 
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Chris K said:
$2000 Zf
$2500 Z6III
$4000 Z8 (or $3500 on sale currently)

A $3000 Z7III would kill the Z6III, unless the Z7III was notably worse at frame rates or video or something like that.

A $3500 Z7III would find very few customers with a superior Z8 available, unless it has a significantly better spec (higher resolution?)

Where could Nikon price a Z7III? It seems the price increase for the Z6III has wedged a new Z7 out of the market.
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Thom Hogan has hinted at another Z7 product but I think the Z8 is the Z7III.

Time will tell.
 
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wotan1 said:
The release of the Z6iii has happened and we now have indications of what new tech Nikon has developed.

Obviously that is not going to be Nikon’s last camera upgrade.

I am wondering if we have any better idea of where Nikon might choose to go from here.

Obviously the z9 has been out for a while and that alone predicts a possible Z9ii.

Also is Nikon likely to come out with a higher megapixel Z7iii?

To me the release of the Z6iii is only part of the puzzle of where we might go from here. I am trying to make wise choices. I know Nikon will get my money one way or the other, I just want to spend it wisely.
Click to expand...
On the Z7iii, my view is maybe. Essentially its main niche will be landscape photography. My z8 does fantastic landscapes, the 45Mp sensor and dynamic range is more than enough for me, so I have nil interest in the Z7 - and if I did the current Z7ii is just fine. I also have nil interest in the Z6iii, my z8 is more camera in every respect. These are only my views but heavily coloured by the diverse capabilities of the Z8 for pretty much any genre. As of today, it’s the D850 of the mirrorless world.

Looking back at the old DSLR lineup, the one great - and very popular - camera that Nikon hasn’t yet duplicated in the mirrorless world, IMO, is the D500. To me, a blazing fast APS-C camera would be hugely popular. I would almost certainly buy one as a second body for my bird and wildlife photography. If Nikon were to produce a mirrorless APS~C in the 26-30MP range, stacked (or partially stacked) sensor and 30-50 fps raw burst speed, I’m in. And I think many others would be as well. Basically a wolf in sheep’s clothing camera.

Currently, I use the OM1 M43 system as my fast compact kit - second body with the 150-400mm 4.5 TC lens for birds and wildlife and three other lenses for travel and walk around stuff. Great features, blazing frame rates, huge reach and light/portable; but IQ just can’t match the Z8 (nor should it be expected). A”Z500”, togetther with my existing Z and F lens inventory would probably be enough to leave my OM1 behind.
 
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Brian L said:
On the Z7iii, my view is maybe. Essentially its main niche will be landscape photography. My z8 does fantastic landscapes, the 45Mp sensor and dynamic range is more than enough for me, so I have nil interest in the Z7 - and if I did the current Z7ii is just fine. I also have nil interest in the Z6iii, my z8 is more camera in every respect. These are only my views but heavily coloured by the diverse capabilities of the Z8 for pretty much any genre.

Looking back at the old DSLR lineup, the one great - and very popular - camera that Nikon hasn’t yet duplicated in the mirrorless world, IMO, is the D500. To me, a blazing fast APS-C camera would be hugely popular. I would almost certainly buy one as a second body for my bird and wildlife photography. If Nikon were to produce a mirrorless APS~C in the 26-30MP range, stacked (or partially stacked) sensor and 30-50 fps raw burst speed, I’m in. And I think many others would be as well. Basically a wolf in sheep’s clothing camera.

Currently, I use the OM1 M43 system as my fast compact kit - second body with the 150-400mm 4.5 TC lens for birds and wildlife and three other lenses for travel and walk around stuff. Great features, blazing frame rates, huge reach and light/portable; but IQ just can’t match the Z8 (nor should it be expected). A”Z500”, togetther with my existing Z and F lens inventory would probably be enough to leave my OM1 behind.
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It wouldn't take 30 fps for me to bite on a mirrorless D500. I'd do it for 20 fps if the MP's and price were right.
 
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