Nikon Z6III is coming.. as mini Z8

[Eric Calabros]

1 hour ago, hojomo said:

going to be able to be read much faster, offer 4K/120 FF

That needs 8ms read out speed, which is in stacked territory. I'm not saying its impossible, but very unlikely.

[D Verco]

Does anyone know what the deal with lens corrections is if you're using an E to Z adapter?

[D Verco]

and things like image stabilization on lens?

[MrSMW]

Come on Nikon, get yer finger out!

My Tamron 70-180mm f2.8 G2 finally turned up and it's about the size & weight I expected, ie, slightly smaller & lighter than my Lumix 70-200mm f4...which is good.

It 'kinda' works on my Zf body, but I don't think it makes any sense to get a second Zf body to be the platform to bolt this lens to.

Still waiting on the Z6iii, but the most likely contender now is actually the Z6ii with a battery grip at 1600 euros used vs the circa 4000 that Z8's are going for and 5000+ that are required for Z9 ownership.

With my video needs covered with my S1H and S5ii, I just need a unit that is A. not too big or heavy, but ergonomically good for the Tamron zoom les and B. the photo results more or less match those of the Zf.

A used Z6ii is a bit of a no-brainer really and the Z6iii is really going to have to offer something special to be a 'better' option for me, especially factoring in ergos (whether it will need a full battery grip or something from Smallrig) and of course price. If it's over 2.5k euros, I think I'll just go with a used Z6ii.

[Beritar]

I'm more and more interested by the Nikon Z system.

I'm a hardcore Panasonic GH and S user but I'm disappointed by the S5II and the S5II(X), they improved the AF and the IBIS a lot, but the image quality in video is not there anymore for me.
The only advantage they have compared to other system is the IBIS now.
Of course the 24-70mm, 70-200mm and 50mm S Pro are great lenses, but where are the 24,35,85,135 S Pro ? And I don't even speak about f1.2 lenses. 

[MrSMW]

1 hour ago, Beritar said:

but I'm disappointed by the S5II and the S5II(X), they improved the AF and the IBIS a lot, but the image quality in video is not there anymore for me.

I don’t know. I mean, I really do not know.

I am pretty happy with the video side of these. And the stills.

I like the ergos, mostly.

I don’t like the clunky shutter mechanism. It’s not an issue for video and some stills users are OK with it. I am not.

My other issue is the lenses.

Great glass, pretty much all of it, but the Lumix zooms are big and heavy and the 1.8’s plasticky and boring.

I mostly prefer the Sigma lenses, the primes and the smaller zooms but the issue for me (and I did not work out the issue until I was quite heavily invested) was the lack of the lenses I was looking for; fast ‘my use case/need’ zooms such as:

Canon 28-70mm f2

Canon 24-105mm f2.8

Tamron 35-150mm f2/2.8

Tamron 70-180mm f2.8

I can’t justify the cost of switching to Canon as the cost is crazy money.

I could make a case for Sony, but I would rather not.

Nikon for me is the best all-round option for me right now as the relatively affordable Tamron lenses can be easily adapted with essentially native performing AF plus have great image quality for stills.

Arguably they all do if you know what you are doing, ie, capture well, shoot raw and edit/grade at a decent level.

Great IBIS in the most recent models such as the Z9, Z8 and now Zf.

Great AF and speed.

I’d love a Z9 for the use case I intend, but at over 5k, I’ve asked myself whether that is worth it to me and my business and my financial brain says not.

I kind of like the Z8, but prefer the Z9 and the fact it’s 1k less does not swing it for me.

I can’t make a decision on a Z6iii because it does not yet exist and may not in time for me.

So the Z6ii, inc. battery grip, readily available on the used market in ‘like new’ condition at 1600 euros?

As I said before, a bit of a no-brainer and the most likely option for me.

Happy with the S1H on static duty with the S5ii roaming run & gun on the video side of things with the Zf doing candid stills and most likely, a Z6ii on the shoulder for everything else.

4 bodies is something I hoped to move away from, never mind 4 non-identical bodies…but here I am.

There will be one or two detractors who will say, “but you will change it out by the end of the year” and maybe I will, but as long as I turned over €XX,000, that’s cool.

Bottom line is I think Nikon are pretty strong right now, especially when you factor in the adapted e Mount options.

Possibly slightly less so on a pure video POV, but for hybrid and stills, right up there.

But then, none of this stuff is really weak and our skill sets are probably always going to be our weakest element.

[D Verco]

the z6/z6ii are pretty out of date tbh

[MrSMW]

12 minutes ago, D Verco said:

the z6/z6ii are pretty out of date tbh

For what and to whom?

The Z6ii is not out of date for me. I would not get one myself for video work but for photo, meets ALL my needs. 

Ideally, I would not mind having 45mp, but 1250 (used Z6ii) vs 4000 (used Z8) euros, err, no. And the Z6ii has slightly better DR, lower noise and better battery life plus is a more compact unit (without additional grip).

So maybe you have some reasoning in that you have not explained, but perfectly 'in date' for many users?!

[PannySVHS]

For photography I imagine this camera to be a great choice. I like the body size and design from looking at reviews. What's the difference between MK I and II? @MrSMW

[MrSMW]

1 hour ago, PannySVHS said:

For photography I imagine this camera to be a great choice. I like the body size and design from looking at reviews. What's the difference between MK I and II? @MrSMW

Dual processor, better battery life, 2 card slots (one being CF Express) being the main and probably only real differences.

I looked at the Z6 around the time it came out when I was still using Fuji XT3 but decided the XT4 would be better for me...but then Covid came along and the World changed...and I ended up going for the brand new for then, Lumix S5.

This was before 3 of the 4 lenses listed above existed and had they done so back then, I would almost certainly have made a different choice. I would now if I had 20k to spend but there's reality to deal with!

I'm not criticising Lumix. In many ways it's arguably one of the best all-rounders out there at it's price point (S5ii) but the entire system has not been quite right for me for hybrid or stills work. Video yes, - ticks all the boxes, but not quite for my needs which is hybrid.

The Z6ii is no current 'in it's market champ'...if it ever was, but it's a damned fine stills camera.

Also, because I mentioned 45mp before, why not the Z7ii? It's around +900 euros and do I want 45mp?

Kind of yes, kind of no.

I had S1R's for stills for a year and they were OK to use and the results stellar, but probably overkill for my needs which is event work.

I keep saying to myself that for anything else, more MP would be great, but the reality is I don't do anything else and 24mp really is just a good sweet spot for my line of work.

[Ilkka Nissila]

4 hours ago, PannySVHS said:

For photography I imagine this camera to be a great choice. I like the body size and design from looking at reviews. What's the difference between MK I and II? @MrSMW

The Mk II has subject-detection available also in wide-area L AF box, instead of only in the full-frame auto-area AF as in the Mk I. For me limiting the search area for the subject is key to obtaining controlled and reliable results in photographing people. In the newer Zf, the AF box size and shape can be adjusted with many different options and subject-detection is also available there. For me these are the most typical modes I use the cameras in, and the most useful as it gives just the right compromise between user control and automation for me.

 

I would expect the Z6 III to feature also the same custom area AF as the Zf has (which is ahead of the Z8 and Z9 in the number of box sizes available).

[PannySVHS]

How much will the Z6III cost? No N-Raw? I find N-Raw from the Z8 and Z9 very impressive.

[IronFilm]

7 hours ago, PannySVHS said:

How much will the Z6III cost?

Hasn't even been announced yet. But probably the same price as the Z6 and Z6 II was before it? Or maybe up to a couple of hundred dollars higher. (damn inflation...)

[MrSMW]

8 hours ago, PannySVHS said:

How much will the Z6III cost? No N-Raw? I find N-Raw from the Z8 and Z9 very impressive.

I would guestimate, not less than 2000 and not more than 2500 dollars.

Everywhere else in the world, more. As per.

The strong rumour is it’s going up in size & build to between the Z6ii and Z8 so both of those factors will command a premium.

Obviously it has to go up in spec or folks will moan, if not have complete meltdowns.

It won’t have all the Z8 spec because it can’t and the biggest question (for me anyway) is whether it will have the old 24mp sensor, the 33mp from the Sony A7iv, or something else.

Personally I think they would sell more if it’s the 33, but… That could also help command more of a premium and push it towards $2500.

I’m not paying above 2.5k for one regardless of what it is or has as the current model has all I need for my intended purpose.

If it’s within the range above and in time, I’m going to give it a hard look at the very least in case there is something that either might cause me to rearrange my plans slightly or warrants spending what would then be an extra €1000+, but I doubt that will be the case.

Never say never, but I could be tempted and it’s not a stupid amount to spend compared with say a Z8 (which I am not massively keen on) or a Z9 which is a bit overkill, but I really like.

[Eric Calabros]

The Weibo leaker added more specs to the set, again:

7-stop IBIS, but better than Zf, has optimized video stabilization.

FX frame electronic shutter continuous shooting of up to 40fps and DX frame electronic shutter continuous shooting of 120fps.

6K/60p & 4K/120p 12Bit N-RAW and record.

4K ProRes 422 HQ 10-bit MOV video, up to 4K/60p.

fine shutter angle options, project frame rate and shooting frame rate are separated. 

________________

[MrSMW]

2 hours ago, Eric Calabros said:

6K/60p & 4K/120p 12Bit N-RAW and record.

Internal or external I wonder…

If that is internal and the rest adds up, it could be game on for me and replace my Lumix set up, ie, instead of having a twin cam L Mount set up for video and a twin cam Z Mount set up for stills, I could run a 3 cam Z Mount set up.

3 beats 4 on almost every level, mainly in cross compatibility and less of ‘everything’ to cart about.

4 has certain qualities and that is mainly in the dedicated set up side of things, but 3 has more appeal.

Still sitting on my fence here waiting. Plenty of ‘like new’ stock of Z6ii’s with battery grips at 1600 euros and there will be even more when the Z6iii arrives.

But internal 6k 60p could swing it for me as it would open up being able to extract stills from video footage that I can also use for slo mo elements.

Yes there’s 8k 60p with the Z8 and Z9 but a bit overkill for my needs.

Canon R3 has it as does maybe the R6ii?  But LUMIX still stuck with 6k 25/30p and of course there are ways to get slow mo in post from that, but I’d rather not thanks and shooting 30p can be problematic in the EU.

If it’s external though, I’m just going to go with Plan X and get a used Z6ii plus battery grip and go with the 2x2 set up.

Still got 2 months on the clock for this to play out for me…

[IronFilm]

7 hours ago, Eric Calabros said:

6K/60p & 4K/120p 12Bit N-RAW and record.

4K ProRes 422 HQ 10-bit MOV video, up to 4K/60p.

Niiiice!

If they have TC support too (even if via Atomos, ugh!) this would be sweet. 

5 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Yes there’s 8k 60p with the Z8 and Z9 but a bit overkill for my needs.

Plus the insane pricing

[MrSMW]

2 hours ago, IronFilm said:

Plus the insane pricing

For used Z9’s it is at 5k+ here in the EU but used ‘like new’ Z8’s are becoming available at under 4k euros.

But even that is a bit much and if I was going to spend 3.75-5k, I’d rather have the Z9.

In fact the only reason I have considered the Z8 is price compared with the Z9, but that ‘saving’ does not outweigh my preferences regarding what the Z9 has over the Z8.

In both cases, a bit overkill for my needs.

The Z6ii meets ALL my needs for stills but falls short on my needs for video which is why, as things stand at least, I am sticking with L Mount for my video requirements.

But the Z6iii might change that equation.

If I could have anything though, it would be Tamron lenses available in or adaptable to L Mount and all my issues would be solved in instantly, but dreaming in that regard…

[PannySVHS]

TC, full HDMI, internal NRaw and Prores, full sensor 4K60p, good battery life and no problems with overheating, with solid Ibis and AF, plus nice ergos and built, Z6/7/Z8 size, around 3000 Euro, that would make it a dream camera! Too good to be true or not? 🙂 

[MrSMW]

1 hour ago, PannySVHS said:

Too good to be true or not?

The thing is there is thing called ‘progress’ so it has to be more than it’s predecessor and Nikon have not quite been at the cutting edge of video until the Z8/9 and so yes, pretty realistic.

It would not be a deal-breaker for me if the 6k 50/60p internal is cropped and personally not bothered about TC or any form of HDMI out…but these are my needs (or lack of).

Size, I’m onboard with between Z6ii and Z8.

Price 3k euros is OK to me and I can’t see it being more based on Z6ii launch price and Z8 prices.

If it’s more or less what it’s supposed to be, then for more people, more of the time, a better option than the Z8 and wasn’t the Z8 the mirrorless camera of the year for 2023?

I don’t think they can hash this up really?