Author Topic: Nikon 1 replacement?  (Read 5347 times)

Kim Pilegaard

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Nikon 1 replacement?
« on: March 11, 2019, 10:21:20 »
I have recently bought a Nikon 1 J1 (very cheap on a sale) and a V2 (refurbished). Unfortunately the V2 got stolen a few days after I got it. The reason for my interest in Nikon 1 is the ability to get more pixels on a remote object - in this case an eagle's nest 200 m away. My idea is that by using the sensor with very small pixels I can increase the quality of the picture compared to heavy cropping. I have not tried this in the field yet, but it seems to me that the pixel quality of both the J1 and V2 is quite good, so there is a potential. Compared to the D800, I will gain a factor of 1.4 (J1) or 1.7(V2). The newer Nikon 1 models would give an even higher gain of 1,9 (V3) and 2.0 (J5). The J5, however, cannot be used with the longer tele lenses on the FT-1.

I am trying to get hold of a replacement for my V2 to try it out in the field. However, I wonder whether there are other cameras on the market that could give me the pixel gain and functionality of the N 1 series. One could hope for a Z-series camera with a smaller sensor with a high pixel density.
Kim

Akira

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #1 on: March 11, 2019, 12:23:09 »
Which lenses do you use for the purpose?  If you can live with the manual focus, I would look at some m4/3 cameras with 20MP sensor which should offer the similar pixel density as an 1" 10MP sensor does.  The m4/3 cameras should work with the lenses attached via an adapter with much less restrictions than with Nikon 1 and FT1 combo.
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Kim Pilegaard

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #2 on: March 11, 2019, 12:29:19 »
Thanks for the suggestion.
I am using my longest lens, the AF-S 500/4 G IF-ED VR with converters. In the short time, I had the V2, I tried the 500 mm with the TC-17 E II. The autofocus still worked with the FT1.
Kim

Erik Lund

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #3 on: March 11, 2019, 12:40:00 »
A very valid excuse to upgrade to a D850 and a TC-20E  8) 


If the converter is modified, it's possible to stack a TC-14E onto TC-20E with central AF point working in good light, for a cheap solution.
Erik Lund

Akira

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #4 on: March 11, 2019, 12:48:18 »
Thanks for the suggestion.
I am using my longest lens, the AF-S 500/4 G IF-ED VR with converters. In the short time, I had the V2, I tried the 500 mm with the TC-17 E II. The autofocus still worked with the FT1.

I see.  With that lens, and if the choice is among the Nikon 1 bodies, you may want to look at V3.
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Kim Pilegaard

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #5 on: March 11, 2019, 13:00:53 »
A very valid excuse to upgrade to a D850 and a TC-20E  8) 

If the converter is modified, it's possible to stack a TC-14E onto TC-20E with central AF point working in good light, for a cheap solution.

I already have the TC-20 E III and a D500 (pixel size 4.22 µm) slightly smaller than the D850 (4.34 µm).

Could be an idea, but I would loose even more light. Putting the V2 on the 500mm equals adding a 1.7x converter to a D800, but without the loss of light, or is there a penalty on the light because of the small sensor?
Kim

Kim Pilegaard

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #6 on: March 11, 2019, 13:04:24 »
I see.  With that lens, and if the choice is among the Nikon 1 bodies, you may want to look at V3.

The reason, I am inclined to the V2 is because of the built in viewfinder. I know that the V3 has higher resolution, but it is quite expensive to get one with the viewfinder. I need the viewfinder mainly for the general use of the camera.
Kim

Kim Pilegaard

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #7 on: March 11, 2019, 15:57:13 »
To compare the V2 against the D800 I post two pictures (100% cropped and SOOC) of the same object:

1) DSC_0505.JPG: Nikon 1 V2 VR 500mm f/4G @ 500mm, ISO 160, 1/2s, f/4
2) 800_7648.JPG: Nikon D800 VR 500mm f/4G + TC-17EII @ 850mm, ISO 100, 4s, f/6.7

The most striking difference is the much faster shutter speed of the V2 (due to slightly higher ISO and larger aperture), otherwise apart from the colour, the IQ of the two pictures is quite similar.
Kim

Bent Hjarbo

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #8 on: March 11, 2019, 17:33:52 »
I have used the Nikon 1 system as a light birding system with the 70-300 Nikkor 1 lens.
I thought that the crop factor was 2.7 :o
Only reason the Nikon 1 system sees little use is the slow startup time.

Kim Pilegaard

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #9 on: March 11, 2019, 17:39:56 »
I have used the Nikon 1 system as a light birding system with the 70-300 Nikkor 1 lens.
I thought that the crop factor was 2.7 :o
Only reason the Nikon 1 system sees little use is the slow startup time.

It is correct, that the crop factor is 2.7 towards FX. However the factors, I calculated are based on the pixel size. For small/distant objects that does not fill the frame anyway, the pixel size is the important factor. The smaller the pixels size is, the more pixels are put on the object, when the true focal length is the same.
Kim

Erik Lund

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #10 on: March 11, 2019, 17:55:28 »
The quality of the pixel is definitely also a factor. They are not equal 'size' values'

Most often I have experienced that by far you get the best result with a fixed lens on a high end camera, then Zoom for the high end zooms then TC's on fixed lens, the TC on high end zoom then stacked TC's
All on solid/stiff tripod and head/gimball dependent on shutter speed.
That 2.7 crop factor is not a free ride compared to a high end DSLR Body
Erik Lund

Ann

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #11 on: March 11, 2019, 18:43:18 »
I have used the TC-20e iii quite successfully on my 70-200mm f/2.8 to obtain the reach of a 400mm lens.

The people in charge of an Orang Utan Preserve in Sabah Province, Borneo charge some $100 per half day for the use of any lens exceeding 200mm but I was not harassed for the higher fee for using the 70-200 plus the TC.
(I didn't have the compact little 300mm PF at that time but I probably could have used it without it being noticed if I had had it.)

That TC-20 is surprisingly good if you stop down even by a single stop and it also acts as useful alternative for close-ups.

The main problem with using the TC on the slower telephoto lenses is that the effective aperture is reduced which adversely affects fast AF and degrades creamy backgrounds.


Birna Rørslett

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #12 on: March 11, 2019, 21:09:08 »
An aspect not mentioned so far is the requirement for even more precise focusing should smaller sensors (and pixels) be used. This condition has been with us ever since photography took smaller formats into use.

Øivind Tøien

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #13 on: March 11, 2019, 23:35:20 »
An aspect not mentioned so far is the requirement for even more precise focusing should smaller sensors (and pixels) be used. This condition has been with us ever since photography took smaller formats into use.

Add to that if the lens has any color fringing, it will be greatly enlarged on the smaller sensor and much more notable.

Øivind Tøien

MikeWithTheBike

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Re: Nikon 1 replacement?
« Reply #14 on: March 17, 2019, 05:46:34 »
The newer Nikon 1 models would give an even higher gain of 1,9 (V3) and 2.0 (J5). The J5, however, cannot be used with the longer tele lenses on the FT-1.

Thank you for the timely info!  I'm looking at moving from DX to FX, and I was looking for a way to get a little more reach out of my 300 for a similar reason...  I was considering a TC vs Nikon 1 and had no idea the J5 had this issue!  Narrows down the options for sure...

Mike