Will the Nikon Z9 Deliver?

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Not out grown the Dxxx but noticed the number of images that are nearly tack sharp but not quite. I have heard that an A1 and to a lesser extent a R5/R6 would have a higher keep rate. Equipment costs are less than I spend on travel, especially when I look over several years. Do I need more keeper now or can I wait a stick w Nikon and get them in a year or so. That is the question ...

Its really interesting to hear all the different views and of situations people are in or about to face, yes its been a huge subject but its a big issue for many.
There is a lot at stake and trusting the brand you have invested in and been loyal to you hasn't stepped up, its well like a share on the stock exchange, your in in for the long haul or you get sell and invest elsewhere, the basis of your decision is why is that share not performing that shapes your decision, Nikon has issues, had issues, will it come good, a forensic dudiligency as to to its leaders management skills and drivers is what reveals issues that shape your decision and let me tell you there has been a lot of discussion about that.
I took the same path with the Sony a1 for action and Nikon D850 for everything else. That was the intention but not the outcome. I like the a1 so much I have now bought 3 Sony lenses and have begun selling the Nikon lenses and soon my last Nikon body so I can replace with Sony gear. I didn't expect it but the Sony is just so much more enjoyable and capable of a camera that I would much rather use it then the D850, Z6 and D500 I have owned.

My first non action Sony lens I bought was the 90mm macro and when compared to how the a1 performed vs the D850 with a Nikon 105 micro it was a quick nail in the coffin for the Nikon. Then I picked up the new Sony 14mm 1.8 and tried it side by side with my D850 and Nikon 14-24 f2.8 G and damn the new Sony 14mm blew it away. Again not what I expected but the results are the results.

So my intentions of two systems has quickly changed as the Sony has proven to be better. The more I talk to folks who have gone to Sony that have left Canon and Nikon we have all had the same journey. Mark Smith and his video is a perfect example of exactly what I have been going through.

Brilliant that says it all, even Steve says the A1 is the best camera he has used, so the runs are on the board, its simply a case of people making the decision to make the decision to go to Sony. Your experience cant get better than that.

Oz down under
 
For me, I cannot say I am loyal to any camera brand. Nikon is the one I am currently using. Looking at my order history, it was April 2019 when I bought my Z6 which is when I decided to start my move to Nikon. They have a lot of things I like with the Z series. I really hope the Z9 delivers as promised and that trickles down to a Z7iii or Z8. The eye AF and high FPS with electronic shutter are the weaker points in the system (assuming they get their long lenses released). When I evaluated the move to Nikon just over two years ago, Canon had the EOS R and RP. Nikon seemed to be in the stronger position at that time. How times have changed 🤷‍♂️. I did look at Sony a few times, but didn’t like what I was seeing at the time regarding lens lineup and wasn‘t a fan of their ergonomics. It seems they improved some in that regard. Sony’s AF was also pretty bad prior to the A9. If I were to move again, it would be back to Canon. I’m impressed with their R5 and really interested to see what they do once they start using stacked sensor technology.

There is always going to be something different and on top of the game, change is certain weather we embrace it each time is the question.

Sony seems to be running away with the game at the moment, in 2021 it will be Nikon then Canon then Sony again, meanwhile your friend on their D700 and a 200-500 knock you of your perch with an image strong in composition story, and wow factor that shames all the latest tech models and owners.
Its called photography, I see it in open club competition all the time.

And the national wild life Gold award goes to Glenda and her amazing shot taken on her D700 .......... Yeee.... And the Silver award goes to Fred for his winning shot taken on his canon 40 D and 100-400.

Oz down under
 
That's me Rich. At 76 I don't know how many more years of schlepping gear for wildlife photography are left. Since I am in the home stretch a year or more wait for Nikon to try to get competitive with SONY with regard to AF performance is the question for me. Nikon has done zero in the past four years to inspire any confidence they can deliver, talk is cheap. I am still setting July 23, the start of the Olympics to make a decision with hopes Nikon shows something other than a retro crop camera.
My decision to get the A1 came from figuring no matter how good the Z9 might be, even if it becomes available this fall, that doesn't mean I could get it inside of a year. I'm older than you are and just didn't want to wait for an unknown for a long period of time. I dumped most of my Nikon gear, except kept D500 and 300PF with converters for backup, bought the A1, 100-400 GM and the 200-600mm G lenses along with a 1.4x converter. I have not regretted this decision one iota.
 
My decision to get the A1 came from figuring no matter how good the Z9 might be, even if it becomes available this fall, that doesn't mean I could get it inside of a year. I'm older than you are and just didn't want to wait for an unknown for a long period of time. I dumped most of my Nikon gear, except kept D500 and 300PF with converters for backup, bought the A1, 100-400 GM and the 200-600mm G lenses along with a 1.4x converter. I have not regretted this decision one iota.


Amazing. there is sense in what you say.
Money may come and go time only goes one way.

Oz down under
 
Interesting conversation.

I feel tickled to have recently picked up a dated but professional F mount super telephoto prime, for what I considered a good price, and absolutely love it.

The more you professionals and gear junkies churn up there, the better things get down here.

Trickle down....... trickle down..... giggidy.

A mate just bought a D5 for $2500 AUD about $1875 USD wih 120k actuations, xqd cards 2 batteries, he is trying to buy a spare shutter assembly to put on the shelf.
He picked up a 400 2.8 for $2800 AUD lots of scratches marks very rough cosmetically a little corrosion here and there but optically stunning and clean he had it checked out by Nikon, they said it was fast sharp accurate above all quiet.
There are Z6 bodies around $1500 AUD.....24-70 2.8 G $900 AUD 105 2.8 Macro $650 AUD.

So I hear you....that's why I unloaded everything but the D850 s 200-500 wholly trio, I find renting exotics for the foreseeable future till things settle if an when needed, and looking at medium format 100mp for landscapes and everything a like....

Oz down under
 
My decision to get the A1 came from figuring no matter how good the Z9 might be, even if it becomes available this fall, that doesn't mean I could get it inside of a year. I'm older than you are and just didn't want to wait for an unknown for a long period of time. I dumped most of my Nikon gear, except kept D500 and 300PF with converters for backup, bought the A1, 100-400 GM and the 200-600mm G lenses along with a 1.4x converter. I have not regretted this decision one iota.
Thank you for encouragement - I had to set a date to get off the fence so I picked July 23, the start of the Olympics. If Nikon cannot make a showing there I will move on and enjoy a new photography adventure with SONY. I actually started my digital photography with them when they bought Minolta and introduced thier first SONY digital - really a Minolta camea. I switched from the Olympus OM system where I owned the OM1, 2, and 4 with lenses galore. Change was more spontaneous for me then,
 
The hardest thing in decision making is........... is often not making the decision, its making the decision to make the decision.....
Go hard or go home my girlfriend says.........cool,
I think its great to do what you like or love and hey who are you going to leave the money to anyway, or do you really need that new Mustang......
Enjoy everything you can while you can.
Myself I am not fussed who is on top of the heap its not what drives me, but I don't mind watching from the side line, if and when something really lands at my feet the speaks to me hey I am all in.......as an X audiophile one thing for certain I have learnt is that digital has a massive depreciation cost, hence I love quality old vinyl and in todays world, many true musicians still choose vinyl as being the best.

HMMMM

Oz down under
 
Many of the key ICUs for almost all electronic products are in very short supply. This global shortage will persist until aging factories are ugraded/replaced and/or production increases volumes in Taiwan and S Korea....



 
Is there a price that's firm.

Oz down under
No, there isn't. It's just a matter of a small pre-payment (very small) that gets you to the front of the line. You can cancel if you want. I think this is preferable to the thing with the bigger dealers where you try to get into the front of the queue at the moment official preorders open. I will report back in XX number of months as to whether this was a smart strategy :). Meanwhile, I don't really have $6500 to throw around, but this gives me some "incentive" to budget for it over the next six months or more.
 
No, there isn't. It's just a matter of a small pre-payment (very small) that gets you to the front of the line. You can cancel if you want. I think this is preferable to the thing with the bigger dealers where you try to get into the front of the queue at the moment official preorders open. I will report back in XX number of months as to whether this was a smart strategy :). Meanwhile, I don't really have $6500 to throw around, but this gives me some "incentive" to budget for it over the next six months or more.

Good one and good idea..........its a lot of money these days

Oz down under
 
Some news on AF related patent...

Is this real or Nikon FUD (Fear Uncertainty and Doubt). And if real what does it mean - Global vs rolling shutter doesn't mean it can track any better than the current Z cameras. After wanting to go mirrorless for years and getting disappointed by the original Z and then more disappointed by the the ZII, I have become skeptical. My hope is the start of the Olympics coincides with a solid Nikon insight to the Z9, not just some mytery equipment at the events.
 
And if real what does it mean - Global vs rolling shutter doesn't mean it can track any better than the current Z cameras.
When combined with a stacked sensor design that can read out data much faster the global sensor while focusing could make a very big difference in AF performance. Basically right now you have every 12th line of the sensor acting as a focus sensor with no crosspoint style sensors like we have in DSLRs. If you can read the entire sensor in a single flash instead of scanning down the sensor then basically every pixel in the sensor (or a much larger selection of them) can be used to drive the AF system giving you more AF sensing points and the opportunity to implement cross point AF sensors in MILCs.

Among other things current sensor technology using selected rows of pixels as AF sensors make better measurements of vertical lines in the scene and can struggle with horizontal lines. Using additional pixels to support cross point style sensors should improve focusing on scenes with predominantly horizontal lines quite a bit.

Those improvements could definitely improve AF performance especially if you can read out that data at faster rates which is the big driver behind stacked sensor technology.
 
When combined with a stacked sensor design that can read out data much faster the global sensor while focusing could make a very big difference in AF performance. Basically right now you have every 12th line of the sensor acting as a focus sensor with no crosspoint style sensors like we have in DSLRs. If you can read the entire sensor in a single flash instead of scanning down the sensor then basically every pixel in the sensor (or a much larger selection of them) can be used to drive the AF system giving you more AF sensing points and the opportunity to implement cross point AF sensors in MILCs.

Among other things current sensor technology using selected rows of pixels as AF sensors make better measurements of vertical lines in the scene and can struggle with horizontal lines. Using additional pixels to support cross point style sensors should improve focusing on scenes with predominantly horizontal lines quite a bit.

Those improvements could definitely improve AF performance especially if you can read out that data at faster rates which is the big driver behind stacked sensor technology.
So now we are looking at 12x the amount of data that can be analyzed in both directions - they’d better have the mother of all processors in there... or possibly it will be 20mp, again, which will mean trade-off vs the A1 when AF dynamics won’t be so critical. I hope they put some serious processing power and at least 30mp in that z9, that’d be a class act.

has anybody seen any credible report that the z9 is in the hands of select Pros yet? The canon R3 has been spotted in the wild so we know it’s being evaluated, but I have seen zip on the z9.
 
Interesting stuff. Could explain why the Z9 is so late coming out relative to the others. On the other hand demonstrated performance using the older system is so good in the A1 that it's hard to imagine it being a real game changer.
Some times engineers get carried away with optimizing a system that works well enough as is.
 
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