'Z' vs 'D'

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Rascasse

Rascasse

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I've been shooting with Nikons and Nikkor lenses for what seems like forever. I still have my F5. I've gone through the 'D', 'D2X' and now a 'D5'.

Nikon seems to be pushing the mirrorless 'Z' line.

I would like to know from you guys, are these a big deal that will make me pitch the D5 and my glass and start over? Or am I good where I'm at?

Thanks guys........
 
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Mirrorless cameras bring some amazing features like seeing your final exposure in the viewfinder, advanced AF tracking, silent shooting, some great new lenses and much more. There’s no doubt that mirrorless technology is the future and that Nikon and others will phase out DSLRs.

That said, the D5 and other late model DSLRs continue to capture fantastic images every day and don’t cease to be great cameras even with the newer gear on the market. I really miss the low light performance of my D5 but made the jump and don’t plan to go back to DSLRs. Whether jumping to mirrorless makes sense for you depends a bit on what you shoot, whether your current gear is letting you down in situations like tracking action or if you miss on exposure a lot and of course how much budget you have for camera gear.

I’m sure you’ll get a lot of advice from friends or on the internet to jump to high end mirrorless cameras. There are many advanced features that come with that jump. But the D5 is a fantastic pro level camera so only you can decide whether the advanced tech is worth the cash outlay at this time. If you’ve got a lot of photography years ahead of you, you’ll almost certainly end up shooting mirrorless eventually as that’s where the industry is headed but if and when to make the jump depends on a lot on whether your current gear is limiting your photography and how much you’re willing to spend.
 
No question your D5 will continue to work as well as it ever did as long as support from either Nikon or 3rd parties continues to be available, but there are many conditions where mirrorless cameras will be either more productive or will make photographs possible where a DSLR presents roadblocks. It's not for me to say whether these roadblocks are important to you.
 
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Rascasse said:
I've been shooting with Nikons and Nikkor lenses for what seems like forever. I still have my F5. I've gone through the 'D', 'D2X' and now a 'D5'.

Nikon seems to be pushing the mirrorless 'Z' line.

I would like to know from you guys, are these a big deal that will make me pitch the D5 and my glass and start over? Or am I good where I'm at?

Thanks guys........
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D is for "dead" but your glass is now better than it ever was.

Like you, moved through the Fs and Ds and now a multiple Z owner. I made the mistake of getting rid of my F glass, but slowly buying it back.
 
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DRwyoming said:
That said, the D5 and other late model DSLRs continue to capture fantastic images every day and don’t cease to be great cameras even with the newer gear on the market. I really miss the low light performance of my D5 but made the jump and don’t plan to go back to DSLRs. Whether jumping to mirrorless makes sense for you depends a bit on what you shoot, whether your current gear is letting you down in situations like tracking action or if you miss on exposure a lot and of course how much budget you have for camera gear.

I’m sure you’ll get a lot of advice from friends or on the internet to jump to high end mirrorless cameras. There are many advanced features that come with that jump. But the D5 is a fantastic pro level camera so only you can decide whether the advanced tech is worth the cash outlay at this time. If you’ve got a lot of photography years ahead of you, you’ll almost certainly end up shooting mirrorless eventually as that’s where the industry is headed but if and when to make the jump depends on a lot on whether your current gear is limiting your photography and how much you’re willing to spend.
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Totally agree. I use my D6 very regularly, alongside the Z9. For me, it performs incredibly well - better than the Z9 in many ways….not in others. But as you say, new tech doesn’t need to render previous models redundant
Mirrorless may well be the future now - but since most manufacturers have ceased development and production of DSLRs, the choice has been removed!
 
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For me is was the optical stabilization inside the camera and the availability of the 800mm PF lens. Shooting hand held with no need for a tripod was a game changer for me that I first saw with the 500mm PF lens.
 
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Rascasse said:
I think for now my D5 and all my Nikkor glass keeps me happy. Am I correct in that my current lenses won't work with the Z cameras?
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D lenses work on Z cameras with a $250 adapter. Some much older lenses will lose capabilities, and I believe Nikon has a chart on their website that details these. Many people are using DSLR era lenses on their Z cameras with great success and satisfaction. I'm still using my stable of three D500s and am quite happy, but I do recognize that mirrorless cameras of today bring certain advantages with them. :)
 
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If you shoot a variety of wildlife the mirrorless cameras have a huge advantage. They are quiet. Mirror flap from SLR/DSLR cameras frightens animals at moderate to close distances. Frame rate in continuous mode is higher with the Z platform, increasing your chances of nailing that perfect image you wanted. Also important is the “in body image stabilization“ (IBIS). This is a notable improvement over the F mount lenses which had that feature in the lens. And the Z system does it better.

You can use your F mount glass via the FTZ (F to Z acronym) adapter…… with some limitations. Older lenses such as ”D” series glass will not auto focus. Later lenses like the “P” ,etc, work great….
 
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Nikon isn't 'pushing Z, it has replaced D :) I shoot with the D6 and the Z9 (and have long glass for both). If you're happy with the D5 and you've got the glass you need to meet your shooting needs, I'd merrily ignore the new technology and especially the marketer's 'you gotta have new' push and spend your time taking photos. Yes there are considerable differences in the mirrorless world but every time I jump back to my D6 I soon forget my 'I can't live with out it' features of the Z9 :) Cheers!
 
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I have kept my D5 and D850 alongside my Z9. I am very reluctant to get rid of the D5, but the truth is that I have not used it since I got the Z9.
The D850 is in use as my wife is starting in photography, and is using the D850. If they Z cameras will do something you need that the D5 won't, then go for a Z.
If you would like to have a Z, then go for it.. Just have fun!
 
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My last D was the D850 which I used side by side with the Z7. Even then, I continued to use the D850 as my main camera. So mirrorless in itself may not be the reason to upgrade. But with the Z9 and Z8, there have been significant changes in technology from the Z7 and D850, that I could never go back to a D. With the Z9, there was a significant improvement in my photography in terms of quality and the types of the images that I could capture that were definitely more challenging or even impossible with the D850.
 
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Consider this…. The D850 is THE only camera (I’m aware of) that can reverse & digitize negatives. Canon, Sony…et al. cannot convert your Panatomic-X, Plus-X, Tri-X, Ektacolor, Kodacolor, Fujiwhatever….and other film negatives. Certainly not going through a camera shop @ $2 a pop to digitally convert my negatives. With a 60mm macro lens and an ES-2 attachment I can do it at home… It’s one of those hidden features of the D850 that is really cool.😎
IMG_2732.jpeg
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Older guys like me have accumulated hundreds (maybe more) negatives and slides from years past that we might want to bring into our computers. The D850 makes this possible. Maybe a future firmware update for a 45mp “Z” will bring this feature. 🤔🤷🏼‍♀️
 
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Rascasse said:
I've been shooting with Nikons and Nikkor lenses for what seems like forever. I still have my F5. I've gone through the 'D', 'D2X' and now a 'D5'.

Nikon seems to be pushing the mirrorless 'Z' line.

I would like to know from you guys, are these a big deal that will make me pitch the D5 and my glass and start over? Or am I good where I'm at?

Thanks guys........
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Simple answer. The older gear still makes as good images as it ever did. That said…tech marches on and the Z gear has better sensors, an EVF that shows you the effect of your settings, higher frame rate, and a faster processor…the latter provides much more sophisticated AF algorithms and subject detection which will give a higher ratio of good shots for a given level of skill…but one needs to learn the new system as Z gear simply operates differently from F or D gear. Whether those advantages make a difference for you…is up to you. But like the SLR replaced the rangefinder, the DSlR replaced the SLR…the Z has replaced the DSLR simply due to advances in tech. Depending on your needs…those improvements may give you more keepers..but then they may not in some genres.
 
Larry S. said:
Consider this…. The D850 is THE only camera (I’m aware of) that can reverse & digitize negatives. Canon, Sony…et al. cannot convert your Panatomic-X, Plus-X, Tri-X, Ektacolor, Kodacolor, Fujiwhatever….and other film negatives. Certainly not going through a camera shop @ $2 a pop to digitally convert my negatives. With a 60mm macro lens and an ES-2 attachment I can do it at home… It’s one of those hidden features of the D850 that is really cool.😎
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B&H's product description indicates the ES-2 is compatible with the Nikon NIKKOR Z MC 50mm f/2.8 so this is not exclusive to the D850.
 
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Any digital camera, Nikon, Canon, Sony, et al., w/ a 60ish-mm macro can digitize slides (transparencies)…. with Nikon’s ES-2. That’s basically a “close-up” of the slide. The D850 has the singular ability to reverse negatives…… Here’s a sample from 1978/9… Nikon F/tn w/43-86mm, Kodak Tri-X negative….reversed. The bluegrass band “Seldom Scene” on stage…. Resolution reduced for forum restraint.
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Larry S. said:
Any digital camera, Nikon, Canon, Sony, et al., w/ a 60ish-mm macro can digitize slides (transparencies)…. with Nikon’s ES-2. That’s basically a “close-up” of the slide. The D850 has the singular ability to reverse negatives…… Here’s a sample from 1978/9… Nikon F/tn w/43-86mm, Kodak Tri-X negative….reversed. The bluegrass band “Seldom Scene” on stage…. View attachment 101542
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Use photo editing software to reverse the negative. Command-I with Photoshop. Easy.

towercreek.jpg
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Tower Creek detail, Yellowstone National Park June 2002
Leicaflex SL2, Leitz 60mm Macro-Elmarit-R

towercreek_reverse.jpg
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​
 
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IainD said:
icteI have kept my D5 and D850 alongside my Z9. I am very reluctant to get rid of the D5, but the truth is that I have not used it since I got the Z9.
The D850 is in use as my wife is starting in photography, and is using the D850. If they Z cameras will do something you need that the D5 won't, then go for a Z.
If you would like to have a Z, then go for it.. Just have fun!
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Just like you I have kept my D5 and D850 with a new Z8. When using the D5 for night football with the 300mm 2.8 it has cleaner files. Love the Z8 for faster and better AF and eye detection, frame rate, EVF that shows what my exposure looks like. Looking to add a Nikon Z9ll in the future I miss the vertical grip shooting.
 
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Doug Herr said:
Use photo editing software to reverse the negative. Command-I with Photoshop. Easy.

View attachment 101543
Tower Creek detail, Yellowstone National Park June 2002
Leicaflex SL2, Leitz 60mm Macro-Elmarit-R

View attachment 101544
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Not what I was saying Doug…the discussion was about “cameras” not editing software…. Not every photographer has your skill set or fluent w/photoshop or other editing programs.. The D850 ”reverses” negatives in camera, on your card that you can load in your computer… You are correct that editing programs can reverse negatives. But, the D850 does it ….and no other camera can….
 
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Steve summarized the principal features of Mirrorless cameras in this video

Bear in mind the above summary was published in the pre Z9 era, before Nikon launched its 3rd generation mirrorless technology.... High quality electronic viewfinder with No discernable blackout, high speed image processing and improved custom settings, which improved on the customization scope of the D6.
 
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Mirrorless cameras are basically high performance compact computers with the associated costs and benefits of this technology. Their field use may demand logical changes in power management strategies (pack a spare battery or more, with perhaps portable charger etc). However, the benefits make possible powerful features, including silent shooting, very high frame rates, PreCapture, AutoCapture, Subject and Eye detection etc

The other significant and fundamental change is the architecture of the Z-mount provides engineers with more freedom in optical design. The results in the new Z Nikkors include lighter, more compact Ultrawide zooms with better edge-to-sharpness; the faster, sharper primes, improved Teleconverters etc....

And in their unique attributes and options, the significantly lighter telephotos are the flagships of the Z system. In part, in delivering these optics since the end of 2021, Nikon's engineers have taken advantage of new lens coatings (ARNEO etc) and probably improved glass formulae, and of course Phase-fresnel elements; but nevertheless, Z-mount architecture has proven essential. This made it feasible to design the light and compact 400 f4.5S without using PF technology.
 
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Larry S. said:
Not what I was saying Doug…the discussion was about “cameras” not editing software…. Not every photographer has your skill set or fluent w/photoshop or other editing programs.. The D850 ”reverses” negatives in camera, on your card that you can load in your computer… You are correct that editing programs can reverse negatives. But, the D850 does it ….and no other camera can….
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Yes the camera's software can reverse the image, instead of the computer's software. This doesn't seem like a major selling point. Aren't you going to load the image into your computer anyway, after using the camera to scan it? Different tool, same result and still not paying $2 per image to have it scanned.
 
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Rascasse said:
I would like to know from you guys, are these a big deal that will make me pitch the D5 and my glass and start over? Or am I good where I'm at?
Click to expand...

These days I shoot mostly mirrorless but I still have my old D810 and a few Nikon F mount lenses (macro lenses especially) and use them on a regular basis.

My stance on mirrorless these days is as such:

85% of the time there is no difference between shooting a high end DSLR or a mirrorless.
10% of the time I find certain DSLR limitations frustrating (e.g: lack of flippy screen and the AF in live-view is one of the biggest one).
4% of the time I get shots with the mirrorless that I wouldn't have been able to get with the DSLR (mostly due to fast subject detection and 25fps).
1% of the time I'll miss shots with the mirrorless because of some silly idiosyncrasy of the system.

As a note: I do not print big and shoot mostly for web usage as such I don't need the ultimate sharpness from the lenses... of what I've seen mirrorless lenses are a step above DSLR lenses, but I wasn't overly impressed by them.
 
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