Z8 Companion?

[Don_Logan]

Hello,

Is it just me, or does walking around with a camera like this in the city even with a 35/1.8 elicit "looks" ? This could be because I am just getting into this, but I get "stage fright" holding this thing up to take a photo on a sidewalk for fear it may upset someone. Is this just something you guys get over and with time its not a big deal?

OR

is this why I keep seeing things like the Ricoh GRIII and Q3 enter the chat? The Q3 has me interested but $$$$...$

 

[Nimi]

Hello,

Is it just me, or does walking around with a camera like this in the city even with a 35/1.8 elicit "looks" ? This could be because I am just getting into this, but I get "stage fright" holding this thing up to take a photo on a sidewalk for fear it may upset someone. Is this just something you guys get over and with time its not a big deal?

OR

is this why I keep seeing things like the Ricoh GRIII and Q3 enter the chat? The Q3 has me interested but $$$$...$

Your cell phone would produce much better photos than the GRiii.

 

[JAJohnson]

Hello,

Is it just me, or does walking around with a camera like this in the city even with a 35/1.8 elicit "looks" ? This could be because I am just getting into this, but I get "stage fright" holding this thing up to take a photo on a sidewalk for fear it may upset someone. Is this just something you guys get over and with time its not a big deal?

OR

is this why I keep seeing things like the Ricoh GRIII and Q3 enter the chat? The Q3 has me interested but $$$$...$

Some street photographers prefer to keep their kit small and unobtrusive, in order to be more inconspicuous. Others, much less so. As I recall, Hugh Brownstone has some content on his YouTube channel about his approach to street photography.

When I’m out and about with my camera (in non-wildlife shooting settings) I’ve learned not to flaunt my kit but to get the shots I want and move on. When I ask someone if I may get a photo of them, nearly always the answer is yes.

 

[JAJohnson]

Some street photographers prefer to keep their kit small and unobtrusive, in order to be more inconspicuous. Others, much less so. As I recall, Hugh Brownstone has some content on his YouTube channel about his approach to street photography.

This is the content from Hugh Brownstone regarding street photography that I mentioned earlier.

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv-JVvCoZ7LfxaTm2emId7LNN5zAhAn8j&feature=shared

 

[abc123brian]

The Z8 does seem to intimidate people a little more. Maybe it comes across more as a “professional“ camera in appearance since it’s slightly larger but I do notice it draws more attention than my other cameras. Since most people use phones these days seeing an actual camera stands out. You do get used to it somewhat but I am always considering what I can do to blend in better. This was part of my reason for buying the Zf. The typical person assumes I’m using an old film camera and I get much less looks from people when out with the Zf versus the Z8. It’s become one of my favorite cameras. I had an X100T for a couple years before the X100 craze started and had lots of people ask me about it as they thought it looked cool and was a film camera. it was interesting how many conversations it started. I haven’t used the Ricoh but I really enjoyed using my Fujifilm X100T.

 

[Don_Logan]

All makes sense. Little surprised to hear the Cell phone compared to the Ricoh, though. I thought they were supposed to be a the little "cheap" darling of this crowd (folks who really know their stuff and are looking for a small alternative to their pro gear)

What is everyone's thoughts on the the Q3 for this? The fuji would be an option too.

 

[John Navitsky]

any sort of camera that isn't a phone will elicit looks :-D

 

[Don_Logan]

any sort of camera that isn't a phone will elicit looks :-D

ya, figured. Why I was thinking you guys might just used to it(?).....or potentially revert to something else smaller.

 

[John Navitsky]

i may be the wrong person to ask

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[Nimi]

All makes sense. Little surprised to hear the Cell phone compared to the Ricoh, though. I thought they were supposed to be a the little "cheap" darling of this crowd (folks who really know their stuff and are looking for a small alternative to their pro gear)

What is everyone's thoughts on the the Q3 for this? The fuji would be an option too.

That's the TikTok crowd. Overrated by a mile. Had two, sold them for more than I paid new. If you want something inconspicuous with a better lens, consider one of the ZVs from Sony.

 

[wotan1]

I have several comments on this subject.

I have the z7ii. That camera is super small and light compared to the z8 or z9. If I put a compact lens on that camera it is equal to a Leica rangefinder or Q3 in terms of size but more flexible. Plus much cheaper and still shoots FX format with a high megapixel sensor.

The problem is, if you are shooting a person in a public place you are likely to run into people who will object.

The best way to photograph street scenes is actually to use long lenses. That allows you to be far away and you are less likely to be noticed. You can definitely get more candid shots that way.

The Q3 is an interesting camera. It operates on the philosophy that if you throw a good enough lens at a massively equipped sensor, you can take quality pictures without ever having to zoom or change lenses. It is an interesting concept and my GAS says I should get one.

But is it lighter? No. Is it less obtrusive? Not really. Is it less expensive? Not compared to anything else except perhaps an interchangeable lens Leica or Hasselblad.

I have always been both fascinated and also horrified by Leica cameras. The design, quality and image quality has been attractive.

But then I look at the prices and choke. I have never wanted to pay that much money for what amounts in most of their cameras to be a rangefinder camera.

I would much rather have a Z7ii with a compact 35 or 40mmm lens than a Leica.

 

[nmerc_photos]

I always use my phone (Samsung S23 Ultra) or my Fuji X100V (or VI).

I'm more of a wildlife/landscape photographer with my main Nikon kit, so anytime I'm around others I want to have the smallest most inconspicuous setup possible - and the Fuji and phone accomplish that.

The Fuji is a super fun camera because of the film sims, and I recommend the X100 series to everyone I know. I've yet to meet anyone who was disappointed with their purchase.

 

[Woody Meristem]

Recently I began doing some street photography and I agree that a long lens will permit more candid photos of people -- there's not much that would annoy someone more than walking up with a large camera boasting a WA lens and shoving it in their face. If I want a photo of a person it's either with a telephoto or a tiny Fuji J10 that's only 8mp but takes pretty decent photos and is about the size of the palm of my hand. Size is one advantage of older MFT cameras, small and unobtrusive.

 

[Don_Logan]

The Fuji X100VI (which appears to have JUST been released) or the Q3 seem to be pretty solid choices without removable lens.

Interesting takes on everything. I was also intrigued by the M11, but I think that might be a bit more "annoying" and slow (hopefully that makes sense)

 

[jhallettbc]

The Z8 does seem to intimidate people a little more. Maybe it comes across more as a “professional“ camera in appearance since it’s slightly larger but I do notice it draws more attention than my other cameras. Since most people use phones these days seeing an actual camera stands out. You do get used to it somewhat but I am always considering what I can do to blend in better. This was part of my reason for buying the Zf. The typical person assumes I’m using an old film camera and I get much less looks from people when out with the Zf versus the Z8. It’s become one of my favorite cameras. I had an X100T for a couple years before the X100 craze started and had lots of people ask me about it as they thought it looked cool and was a film camera. it was interesting how many conversations it started. I haven’t used the Ricoh but I really enjoyed using my Fujifilm X100T.

I also feel I won't be so conspicuous with my Zf taking street shots.

 

[wotan1]

The cell phone use is an interesting topic to interject here. There are a lot of people addicted to cell phones, they are glued to their screens all the time including while driving or walking in traffic. Given that experience holding up a cell phone and taking a picture is not obvious these days, probably half of the people out there will not notice because they themselves are glued to a screen.

The other thing to be concerned about is security in street photography. A camera, especially one that looks valuable, can be a target for robbery. The Leica brand in particular is well-known, anything with Leica written on it can be a target. By contrast most people know someone else's cell phone is useless to steal because unless you have the pass codes to reset it you won't be able to use or sell it.

Want to get serious get into hidden cameras. I have never done that but there has to be all sorts of tools out there for that use.

 

[jhallettbc]

The cell phone use is an interesting topic to interject here. There are a lot of people addicted to cell phones, they are glued to their screens all the time including while driving or walking in traffic. Given that experience holding up a cell phone and taking a picture is not obvious these days, probably half of the people out there will not notice because they themselves are glued to a screen.

The other thing to be concerned about is security in street photography. A camera, especially one that looks valuable, can be a target for robbery. The Leica brand in particular is well-known, anything with Leica written on it can be a target. By contrast most people know someone else's cell phone is useless to steal because unless you have the pass codes to reset it you won't be able to use or sell it.

Want to get serious get into hidden cameras. I have never done that but there has to be all sorts of tools out there for that use.

I agree that using a cell phone is the least conspicuous way to do street photography. No matter where you go, cell phones are everywhere. I have used mine sometimes for that.

 

[EricBowles]

Hello,

Is it just me, or does walking around with a camera like this in the city even with a 35/1.8 elicit "looks" ? This could be because I am just getting into this, but I get "stage fright" holding this thing up to take a photo on a sidewalk for fear it may upset someone. Is this just something you guys get over and with time its not a big deal?

OR

is this why I keep seeing things like the Ricoh GRIII and Q3 enter the chat? The Q3 has me interested but $$$$...$

While cameras can attract attention - especially in the wrong places - there are plenty of people shooting street photography with any kind of camera you can imagine. Your fear of upsetting someone is probably more about your experience than reality. There are plenty of street photographers who photograph aggressively - and plenty that are polite, smile, and when asked to not take a picture they simply comply. Having a silent camera makes a big difference and allows shooting with minimal notice.

A smaller camera and lens can be a good idea if you want to be less conspicuous. There are plenty of options. I have a Z50 and a Z6 and can use those with lenses like the 26mm f/2.8 pancake, the 40mm f/2, or the 16-50 DX. I don't know of any good longer Z lenses that are really small. Maybe the 70-180 fits the bill but it's not a tiny lens. You need a slower aperture to allow for a smaller lens. I like the 70-300 or maybe 300mm PF when a small lens is needed - but those need the FTZ and there is no Z option.

 

[Viathelens]

I shot street photography in Cuba with a dSLR, maybe D500 or D850, can't recall which, but one older woman saw me and started chasing me with a stick! I thought for sure I was going to jail. I took off through the crowd at a quick pace and she almost caught up with me, barely clipping my back with the stick...I broke into a trot and she lost me in the crowd. Maybe I should have used a smaller camera...Ha! Ha! I generally don't worry too much about other people when I shoot, street photography or other types, I sort of get in the zone and just shoot and sometime I've looked up when in a group and the group is gone!

 

[Carmel Nikon]

A smaller camera and lens can be a good idea if you want to be less conspicuous. There are plenty of options. I have a Z50 and a Z6 and can use those with lenses like the 26mm f/2.8 pancake, the 40mm f/2, or the 16-50 DX.

Agree. Oddly enough, the Z30 works pretty well for street photography. One doesn't look through a viewfinder, so is more apt to notice a risky situation developing (robbery), and it doesn't look like one is taking a photo (just 'chimping' through prior pics!). A Z30 in silent mode with a 16-50 lens is pretty innocuous for street photos, at least in my experience.

 

[dasm]

I am a brown guy living in a mid-size western Canadian city. It is not New York or LA. It's not even Toronto or Vancouver. Doing street photography is challenging here. I have used multiple models of Fuji (XT1 - XT4) and I like Fuji and you can use it discretely. But there were times I had to forego shots. At the beginning of February, I purchased a Ricoh GR III and it was game changing for me. Some of the photos that I took with GR III, I couldn't have done it with Fuji or Nikon. But I did return the camera because I was more used to 35mm focal length when I was using Fuji and GR III's 28mm wasn't right for me. I am now waiting for the GR IIIx which has a 40mm equivalent lens. I agree that Ricoh has pretty old fashioned menu system but I got used to it. Ricoh's autofocus is also not the greatest. But I love its snap focusing (zone focusing). In fact, I had it on for the most when I was street shooting. Not as many as Fuji, but Ricoh also has a good selection of simulation recipes. I also like the fact that it produces RAW file in DNG format and I can edit it in PhotoShop Elements. The best quality of Ricoh is its size. It is amazing how they were able to fit in an APSC sensor inside that body. To keep the size small, their battery power is also not the greatest but I could shoot about a couple of hours without any problem. I don't claim myself a street photographer but I do like to document streets and Ricoh definitely opened up more possibilities for me. Here're a few shots taken with GR III.

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[O]

Hello,

Is it just me, or does walking around with a camera like this in the city even with a 35/1.8 elicit "looks" ? This could be because I am just getting into this, but I get "stage fright" holding this thing up to take a photo on a sidewalk for fear it may upset someone. Is this just something you guys get over and with time its not a big deal?

OR

is this why I keep seeing things like the Ricoh GRIII and Q3 enter the chat? The Q3 has me interested but $$$$...$

SIMPLE ZF

 

[Pundamilia]

I just came back from a 25-day trip to Japan with a Nikon Z8 and the 24-200 f/4 lens, as well as an iPhone 15. The first half of the trip was an organized tour with twenty-two people. I was one of two people with a "real camera", the other person had a Sony point-and shoot. I found that there were many situations where I used my phone, rather than the Nikon, either because I didn't have the Nikon with me, or because it was just faster rand more convenient to use the phone. That being said, I did take a lot more pictures with the Nikon in situations where I could take my time composing or for some reason, I wanted the superior quality that I got from the Nikon. By the end of the trip, I was convinced that as much as I love my Z8, in future, I will not be using it on trips. It is heavy to carry (that didn't bother me at all twenty years ago!) and not nearly as convenient to use as a smaller device would be. I haven't yet done detailed quality comparisons of the images from the two devices, but I am tending to leave the Nikon at home on trips. From now on, it will likely be reserved for local wildlife and landscape photography. For trips, I will use my 12-year old Canon S100 and if it fails to rise to the occasion, I will purchase an equivalent, updated point-and-shoot for travel. YMMV.

 

[O]

I just came back from a 25-day trip to Japan with a Nikon Z8 and the 24-200 f/4 lens, as well as an iPhone 15. The first half of the trip was an organized tour with twenty-two people. I was one of two people with a "real camera", the other person had a Sony point-and shoot. I found that there were many situations where I used my phone, rather than the Nikon, either because I didn't have the Nikon with me, or because it was just faster rand more convenient to use the phone. That being said, I did take a lot more pictures with the Nikon in situations where I could take my time composing or for some reason, I wanted the superior quality that I got from the Nikon. By the end of the trip, I was convinced that as much as I love my Z8, in future, I will not be using it on trips. It is heavy to carry (that didn't bother me at all twenty years ago!) and not nearly as convenient to use as a smaller device would be. I haven't yet done detailed quality comparisons of the images from the two devices, but I am tending to leave the Nikon at home on trips. From now on, it will likely be reserved for local wildlife and landscape photography. For trips, I will use my 12-year old Canon S100 and if it fails to rise to the occasion, I will purchase an equivalent, updated point-and-shoot for travel. YMMV.

A experience i have very often and hear so much of, the phone fits in your pocket, its instant access, can export images even edited so easily in Snap Seed on the phone, i have PS and LR on my phone a friend loaded but never really use it, just Snap Seed mostly.

Apple has in my opinion the best natural accurate colours and white balance, i think HE image feature in the Z8 Z9 etc is designed or made by Apple ?.

Samsung is awesome and has amazing zoom, its a brilliant phone camera, i just prefer the look of Apple colour.
Some people i know use the Apple 15 Pro Max in quality drone applications, how i don't know.

You can shoot RAW or JPEG in these phones instant panorama which i use a lot, if was holidaying over seas, i would never take conventional gear, just a good phone.
I find Phones are excellent especially for macro or very close up work.

If i am going on a dedicated photography trip that's different.

From some of the pro photographers i have heard they like the stills from phones but they love the video capability.

I like most people just love taking photos on our quality smart phones.

I din a trip not long ago, camera gear in the VAN, i took 4000 images of many weeks, all on my Canon G10 yes the old G 10 in RAW, and the rest on my phone, the DSLR gear never saw the light of day.


Only an opinion

 

[abc123brian]

I just came back from a 25-day trip to Japan with a Nikon Z8 and the 24-200 f/4 lens, as well as an iPhone 15. The first half of the trip was an organized tour with twenty-two people. I was one of two people with a "real camera", the other person had a Sony point-and shoot. I found that there were many situations where I used my phone, rather than the Nikon, either because I didn't have the Nikon with me, or because it was just faster rand more convenient to use the phone. That being said, I did take a lot more pictures with the Nikon in situations where I could take my time composing or for some reason, I wanted the superior quality that I got from the Nikon. By the end of the trip, I was convinced that as much as I love my Z8, in future, I will not be using it on trips. It is heavy to carry (that didn't bother me at all twenty years ago!) and not nearly as convenient to use as a smaller device would be. I haven't yet done detailed quality comparisons of the images from the two devices, but I am tending to leave the Nikon at home on trips. From now on, it will likely be reserved for local wildlife and landscape photography. For trips, I will use my 12-year old Canon S100 and if it fails to rise to the occasion, I will purchase an equivalent, updated point-and-shoot for travel. YMMV.

I’ve never done a long tour like this, but every time I’ve done a short mulit hour or day trip like this I’ve found they are never in good light because that’s not a convenient time to run a tour and they rarely offer ample time for photos. If you‘re bringing your larger camera along and just trying to use it as a point and shoot in bad light, it’s not really worthwhile. If I’m going on a trip solo or with friends or family I’m more likely to get quality photos or at least photos of higher quality than ones rushed through on a tour group. If you’re only doing to be able to grab a quick snapshot it makes sense not to bother with quality gear. The over processing phones do to photos makes them quick and easy to get a photo that look nice on their small screens which is where most people view them. i personally still prefer a dedicated camera most of the time, even an old point and shoot like yours and if the image quality isn't as great in the end.