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Sincerely if anyone would have told me I would get so much quality for about 2500 USD in my country 5 years ago I would have kissed his feet. You talk as if it is some kind of BS camera it is based on. The Z63 did have some issues, with like half a stop less DR than the already very good Sony 24 megapixel sensor in the Z6. It also has some pulsating in the shadows which seemed to have been eliminated. But in the end for me, this could be the best ever reportage/documentary/weddings event/ content creation camera. Not just because it has superb image quality, but it hss 32 bit audio. This is the feature people forget to mention. With this camera, I could fit two of them and some lens in a traditional photo bag and some small travel tripod and do a documentary. Perhaps I would add those small flat lights, a wirreles mic system and you are good to go. Now I can always get a cineback, rig it with an external monitor, wireless video transmitter, Vmount battery and shoot an advert. Their are just endless possibilities with that camera.

Someone posted this video. This is something I wanted to do when I get the camera, because until now Nikon compressed format have been damn solid. He compared the detail in the Nikon Flat profile and the Nlog in h265. And the Flat profile is much more detailed. Either people should test with sharpness a bit higher in camera, or someone at Nikon has made an error in the settings of the Nlog. As the Flat profile is so much more detailed than the Nlog one. At least it seems it could easily be corrected with a firmware update.

I am considering going back to an OG S1H, just think the new cameras have lost that true flagship feeling, and the price isn't low enough to justify the trade-offs. Still no S1H Mark II but other than it being faster, and probably worse in low light with a more oversharpened image, I can't see what it will bring to the table and will probably be four or five and a half grand! The S1R Mark II / S1 Mark II, whilst better than an S5 or S9, are not a good alternative to a Sony a1 or Nikon Z8. And Fuji GFX 100 still has the best look of everything. It makes full frame look like a toy!

X-T50 is the new X-T30 whereas this is a side-step. I reckon the X-T50 is worth the extra to be honest. Or get the original X-T30 which used is around 600 euro.

I’m a big believer in both planning and walking when I choose to walk rather than being pushed. Or fading into irrelevance 😉

Yep, no IBIS. Saw some shots of the new kit lens with OIS + digital stab in camera, looked ike a bit better than past electronic stabilization from Fuji. Neat camera, good move from Fuji. But now the total mess that Fuji is in firmware camp - or you could call it Fuji cripple hammer. This new camera is just a X-M5 with en EVF inside the X-T30 body. But its Film Simulation dial accepts film recipes, as in the X-E5 - but the X-M5, with the same internals, don't. Nor the X-T50. With a simple firmware update, Fuji could bring recipes to the X-M5 and X-T50. And for the X-S20, in the free dial that comes with film simulations as standart (since is not a dedicated dial, is even easier). And with a bit of code (just creating 3 empty "slots" in the Film Simulation menu) thay could bring it to all the 5th generation cameras. But, even with Lumix trouncing then on this regard, and with all the other brands making even easier to make personal color profiles, I doubt it. And with the AF still worse than all others, it is more than clear that the firmware side of Fujifilm is a mess.

Seems like a good strategy. You're established in a market that seems like it should hold for that long. Mmmmm, perhaps, but only in very special cases. Personally, I've yet to make that sort of model work. A bit of a unicorn, that, I think. Or, maybe not. I suppose one could chase the zeitgeist and try to surf what waves are cresting and work the biz side of things. Right now that's probably going to be the 'content-creator' market, which seems like more of a grind than a considered creative film making endeavor. Doing a content channel can still be a productive pursuit, however. Nothing inherently wrong with it. The other thing that goes along with AI is the whole internet 2.0 and the enshittification of it. Andrew here could probably tell a few stories about how that shook out.

It looks like the R3D offers about a 1/2 stop more DR than N-RAW and better color in the latitude tests, as you point out, so it's a tiny step over the Z6III. Interestingly, the Z9/Z8 have the same, or slightly better, DR using N-RAW as the ZR has using R3D. So the 4-year-old Z8/Z9 cameras still produce a comparable, lovely image. Very curious what they'll do with the Z9II/Z8II, as they can easily add R3D, but they need to have their cinema line and photo lines..

Maybe, - I couldn't say as there are a lot who say the opposite and say the market is over-saturated and everyone else is undercutting them. I really don't know and pay almost zero attention to what anyone else is doing and never really have! Perhaps another reason why I keep ticking/plodding along? And on that note, back to editing the 4th to last of the season and then 'just' 3 more to go for this year...

It is, but when exposed 2 stop ETTR. The NR is not fixed, and changes with S/N ratio, apparently.

Wedding seems like of one the safe plays right now. People who want to get married still want actual photo/video.

Ticking along but still here after 25 years comprising approx the first 10 as a photographer and the last 15 as a hybrid shooter in the wedding industry. 5 more years to go and then I will be packing it in out of choice. In the meantime, just have to make sure I keep my head above water and not overly concerned in that regard as neither AI nor the wannabes can do what I do. Yet, as far as AI goes anyway... Seen a lot of changes but no real challenges as such and for whatever reason, I just seem to have been in a place where I can just tick along and by 'tick along', I don't mean cruise, because I am always working at it and on it. Rather I just don't feel the need to follow every trend and possibly because of that, why I have remained pretty constant whilst I have seen so many come and go.

Panasonic is reading the sensor slower in both the normal and DR boost modes, explaining how they can get more DR out of it than Nikon in their implementation. It may or may not be the same sensor. In any case Nikon's compromise is different from Panasonic's and these are both legitimate choices. The ZR was under development before Nikon acquired RED and what RED know-how they added in this camera is likely in the firmware (and post-processing support in the R3D NE format pipeline). In cined's testing the latitude test shows better retention of color across exposure adjustments in post-processing when using the R3D NE than N-RAW and so it would seem that the RED acquisition already paid off for Nikon to become more competitive in the video arena, and this is not just marketing if it benefits users. What Nikon should do now is try to make the h.265 a bit more competitive so that more people who cannot handle the raw data rates can still benefit from the camera. It would be very costly for everyone to shoot everything in R3D NE to get benefits from the camera. I personally am looking forward to seeing some Prores 422 HQ material shot with the camera and see how that fares in comparison with the Z8.

It’s definitely been a tough stretch. Budgets are tighter and clients seem slower to move, even on things that would’ve been quick approvals not long ago. I’m seeing the same pattern where more content is being made but with less real investment behind it. The best move might be putting more time into personal projects that could eventually be licensed or streamed. Even if it only brings in small checks at first, it adds up over time and keeps your creativity active. I still think there’s room for people who know how to make something feel real. The tools are everywhere now, but the connection and emotion still come from experience.

Canon does nothing, or at least none of the above, and own 50% of the market. Just because of this global perception that the red brand is the Toyota of camera industry. Perception is key when it comes to business.

That would almost have certainly have got me a sale in 2025, but as things stand, I still prefer the Q3 43 and if it did not cost so damn much, I’d have one. I’d get a Sony A7CR with the same sensor and a 16-28mm for the less than 10% of the time I need anything wider than approx 35mm and be done for my stills needs. But as much as I love the rangefinderesque format, I have not yet been able to build a system that suits my needs around it since…well since Fuji’s X Pro2 actually. Q3 43 still sits at the pinnacle for me at the end of 2025, but at about double what I am prepared to pay 😏

Yup, but to be fair, Lumix has had a lot of ‘love’ recently from the shill brigade but a lot of them will now (and have already started) flipping over to the ZR. Soon though, Sony will be releasing the A7V and they will then flop back in that direction and will have gone full circle. Beyond that, perhaps DJI will have popped out their rumored MILC and that will become The Next Big Thing? It’s all inevitable.

On one hand, we have a video company (Panasonic) with a very robust video imaging pipeline, managing to squeeze an amazing amount of DR and latitude performance out of sensor that first appeared (lackluster; performance wise) in the Z6III. However, the camera was still heavily criticized for "terrible" rolling shutter performance and seemingly NOT being a SONY camera. Never-mind sony has released several cameras with terrible rolling shutter but people still shat their pants for them. The curse of being Panasonic LUMIX and not Sony Alpha. Nikon's take-2 on the same partially stacked sensor housed in a new body--apparently designed less than 1.5 years after they bought RED (Press X for doubt) for a measly 85 million (RED probably had massive debts that Nikon absorbed). It seems to me they did their best to squeeze enough RED tech for marketing purposes into a camera that was clearly just designed to be a Z6III with a new body, minus EVF, and with a huge giant screen. More like a Version 0.5 of "Z Cinema" than a V1.0, IMHO.

Fujifilm will probably release a GFX 100RF with a 28mm f/2.8 in 3-4 years, with IBIS, and an updated sensor and no one will give a shit about wanting a FF fuji camera. They'll instead be asking Leica why there isn't a MF sensor in their Q, hmmm?

Yeah exactly, for cheap smaller auctions it’s minimal. The secondary downside to the bullshit Tariff scam is that the options for shipping have decreased as well so the lowest priced options are now unavailable and there are just two options. I used to be able to pay $18 - $20 for a 7 day delivery but now that option is unavailable so ECMS is around $25 for the same sized package. One pro tip i can recommend is that they will store your package for 30 days free of charge while you sort it out and then you are able to combine smaller items for savings on postage. You have to be careful with weight and size however because i once combined 5 items and it ended up bumping me into the next tier and it ended up being $100 or more. Still though, cost per item was only $20 so in the end it was not bad. After your item arrives you can select the shipping rate in a drop down menu. As of last month there is now a 15% Tariff charge that’s added and that’s new. Also be sure to search for coupons in that drop down menu because right now there’s a 50% off international shipping so i just saved $30 on that and recovered some fees. I might do a youtube video soon doing a deep dive into it, I’ve been using it for 8 or 9 years now and learned a lot of tricks.

Wow, I think that one speaks for itself. I actually just made my first ever purchase from Buyee. The lens was not well photographed or chronicled, but it was listed for a price that I couldn't pass it up. I think one of the things that has stopped me in the past is that I didn't know what the shipping fees would be, and now the tariffs are an x-factor as well (I read 17% a few days ago, but who knows). But for $30, it seemed like an experiment worth trying.

Fuji have announced the X-T30 IIi https://www.fujifilm-x.com/global/products/cameras/x-t30-iii/ It looks... fine. The price is nice - $1,000. As I said in the title, it looks like it'll be great for someone who would have bought the X-M5, but preferred a camera with an EVF. Photos are 26 megapixel. Video is 6.2k at up to 30fps, 4k at up to 60fps, and 1080p at up to 240fps. The only mention of image stabilization on the product page is electronic so I think there won't be any IBIS which will be a deal breaker for some/many.

I know we’ve ventured off topic from Anamorphic adapters but I’m currently shopping for some cheap lenses with character and will use these with my Blazar Nero 1.5x so it’s somewhat relevant LOL… I stumbled upon both of these listings earlier, one from ebay US and one from Japanese Yahoo auctions. This is what I meant before when I said that there are bargains to be had for the savvy shopper.

2023 was so poor for me that I almost left the industry. 2024 was enough to get by on. 2025 seems like I'll gross 10-20% more than last year, even though my costs are up significantly across the board. It's still by no means a "well-paid" job. And I don't know how sustainable this is, because I haven't felt like my market would support a price increase for the past three years. I haven't given dared to give myself a raise. This is one of the problems about making a living in video production and editing into the second half of one's career. @fuzzynormal touched on this above; I can't expect to increase my rate based on experience alone when I am competing with people who are literally half my age. Now that I'm in my 40s, the stability and security of a staff position hold more appeal. And yet the job market is so volatile that I might have better job security being self-employed -- for now. My problem is that there is nothing else that I am equally drawn to. Almost every role that draws a decent salary involves sitting in a never-ending stream of unproductive meetings, and I can see a lot of those going away as a result of AI in the next couple of years. I can't reach a place where a career shift makes sense.

It's funny, but I look at "what if" scenarios for lenses about once a fortnight and I've repeatedly considered getting an EF-MFT speed booster and I never found a reason for it. The EF lens options never met the parameters of whatever it was that I was contemplating doing, so I never bought one. On the other hand, my M42-MFT speed booster remains in use continually. Every time I 'tidy up' my lenses and put the ones I don't use into a box this always seems to stay out for one reason or another. I always seem to be learning something about images or shooting or something, and will look at my lens collection from a completely new perspective, and the MFT system and M42 system (for adapting FF lenses) always seems to be the winner.