The new Nikon mirrorless system

[Ilkka Nissilä]

Apparently a D5 like Z camera is also in the works which will high likely have the vertical grip with buttons, big battery and a second card slot.

That will likely be an expensive, modest resolution, lower base ISO dynamic range, high fps camera, and we don't know when it might appear (2013?). It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea. People will want vertical grips with controls and double card slots with less expensive and high resolution models as well.

A battery grip was not made available for the D7500 and lack of contacts suggests it is an afterthought in the Z6/Z7. I can understand that battery grips might not sell well without additional features (they used to provide a boost and in the D850 again this is the case) and they tend to get cloned and 3rd party ones sell at much lower cost so Nikon might not be very motivated to make them. But in this case it seems due to the battery life it may be an essential component of the camera, thus the user interface controls should be present also on the grip. Nikon should have provided those controls also on the WT-7 transmitter if they actually wanted people to buy it (there isn't even a tripod socket!) but a well-designed grip or transmitter can sell well. In the case of the Z6/Z7 since there is built in wi-fi to PC then the transmitter is perhaps not a priority but nevertheless for DSLR users it should have mimicked the shape and functionality of a vertical grip.

[chambeshi]

That will likely be an expensive, modest resolution, lower base ISO dynamic range, high fps camera, and we don't know when it might appear (2013?). It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea. People will want vertical grips with controls and double card slots with less expensive and high resolution models as well.

Tokyo Olympics (July 2020) is probably the proverbial rubicon for Nikon to bridge in committing to a high-spec Pro MILC. And it could be one impressive camera with the Games so close to home. In the past, Nikon has also put out legendary optics for Olympics close to home (eg the 300 f2.8 in 1972 - Sapporo). Recent prominent announcements include the D5 (Jan 2016), D4 (Jan 2012) with the legendary D3 in 2007 so not in sync with Beijing in August 2008.

A battery grip was not made available for the D7500 and lack of contacts suggests it is an afterthought in the Z6/Z7. I can understand that battery grips might not sell well without additional features (they used to provide a boost and in the D850 again this is the case) and they tend to get cloned and 3rd party ones sell at much lower cost so Nikon might not be very motivated to make them. But in this case it seems due to the battery life it may be an essential component of the camera, thus the user interface controls should be present also on the grip. Nikon should have provided those controls also on the WT-7 transmitter if they actually wanted people to buy it (there isn't even a tripod socket!) but a well-designed grip or transmitter can sell well. In the case of the Z6/Z7 since there is built in wi-fi to PC then the transmitter is perhaps not a priority but nevertheless for DSLR users it should have mimicked the shape and functionality of a vertical grip.

Nikon could add much more functionality with customizable controls etc into their DSLR grips to aid shooting portrait. For MILC, besides packing more charge in the grip (aka battery pack), the grip with batteries will help the lighter Z6 or Z7 balance shooting heavier lenses.

[Erik Lund]

I have what is probably an ignorant question (aren't they all). If I want to use many of my old lenses like the Nikkor "O" CRT lens, where I never have had enough room for a wider view, how will I do this with the Z7? I suppose the adapter that Nikon offers will try to recreate what I already have? Will I need to have a shorter adapter to get more in view for the CRT lens or how will that work? Inquiring minds want to know.

What could be made is an adjustable adapter, and FTZ where you can adjust the lenght.


Could be used for adding variable extension to for instance wide angle F-mount lenses. sort of an extension ring but the possibility of having negative and positive extension.
You could select freely to add for instance 1 mm if extension on the Zeiss Otus lenses, to give the possibility for a slightly closer crop  Would give minimal image degradation.
I have no clue if such an adapter / extender will ever come from the third party pirates,,, But definitely a possible DIY hack

[Ilkka Nissilä]

the mirrorless cameras are a lot smaller and lighter so treating them as a DSLR accessory wise might not be applicable anymore as they might be kind off contra dictionary to downsizing the camera system.

Z 24-70/4 weight 500g DSLR 24-85/3.5-4.5 460g
Z 35/1.8 weight 370g DSLR 35/1.8 (FX) 305g
Z 50/1.8 weight 415g DSLR 50/1.8 185g
Next lens on the roadmap is a 58/0.95 which is likely > 1kg in weight.

There is as of now no evidence of lighter weight lenses for Z, on the contrary!

There are opposing trends in ILC lenses basically. One is to make for smaller and lighter weight, Micro Four Thirds and Fujifilm's offerings are along those lines, as are Sony's camera bodies and to a lesser extent lenses.

But there is another trend which is to maximize image quality in the presence of high-resolution sensors, and this leads to either extremely expensive lenses (Leica) or heavier and larger lenses (such as Sigma Art and Zeiss Otus) than in the past.

Nikon is clearly aiming to make higher quality lenses than previously and this means there won't be weight loss realized on the lens side, except perhaps in some wide angles which are not yet presented.

The camera body is lighter but since it seems to need a bunch of batteries this lightness is also perhaps not as much realized as some hope. Perhaps over time they can optimize power consumption and the firmware but it seems at first there will be a lot of people purchasing battery grips.

Furthermore the professionals who do photojournalism, event photography etc. are used to the f/2.8 zooms and I am betting that's what they will be using also in the future. Zooms are great for covering a variety of situations and going from an overview to close-up quickly, and many photographers need that capability. They also need it indoors which means f/2.8 is it. And the f/2.8 zooms will probably be similar in size and weight compared to DSLR offerings. The superwide angle is possibly going to be a bit smaller.

In other words I don't believe photographers will give up their f/2.8 zooms. And the bodies need good ergonomics for handling these lenses (and larger ones on the long lens side, i.e. 300/2.8 ).

[richardHaw]

true. as what the speaker said, they were primarily not aiming for size and weight but for image quality

oh, i wish i can afford a cheap Nikkor-N 5cm f/1.1

[Jack Dahlgren]

In one of the interviews linked to this thread the Nikon ambassadors said they got 1770 shots per battery and that video battery performance was similar to D850. Based on those numbers I think that a battery grip is not essential, but could be a nice to have.

[Jacques Pochoy]

In one of the interviews linked to this thread the Nikon ambassadors said they got 1770 shots per battery and that video battery performance was similar to D850. Based on those numbers I think that a battery grip is not essential, but could be a nice to have.

Yes, I saw that and it looks like good news for most of us...

[charlie]

Obviously I check that I have the image on the one camera I'm using all the time when it's important shootings! I'm not tandem shooting
What do you do if the lens fails, the battery, the aperture follower etc. - There are so many things that can go wrong besides the cards,,, then your in trouble if your backup is two cards in one non functioning camera!

I don't know that having a backup for equipment is equal in comparison to having your work backed up. Mechanical failure is why you have back up cameras and equipment, if something fails you grab the other gear and keep shooting. But when/if a card fails and you loose your work of a scene that already took place and can not be recreated. For most people I suspect this isn't much of a concern but for some lines of work it seems clear how this is something to consider, no?

 

[Jan Anne]

Rumours whisper the new Noct will be in the 6K range, don't think a lot of us will have the pleasure of owning one

[Ilkka Nissilä]

In one of the interviews linked to this thread the Nikon ambassadors said they got 1770 shots per battery and that video battery performance was similar to D850. Based on those numbers I think that a battery grip is not essential, but could be a nice to have.

But it's not clear in what kind of usage this was, for example, if the photographer is shooting frames in quick succession, then more images can be taken than if there is a lot of viewfinder and autofocus use and then only occasional images taken; the number of shots will be smaller in the latter case.

It would be good to know how long the camera can show the EVF image and continuously focus on one battery.

[Ilkka Nissilä]

I don't know that having a backup for equipment is equal in comparison to having your work backed up. Mechanical failure is why you have back up cameras and equipment, if something fails you grab the other gear and keep shooting. But when/if a card fails and you loose your work of a scene that already took place and can not be recreated. For most people I suspect this isn't much of a concern but for some lines of work it seems clear how this is something to consider, no?

It is a concern for some people obviously, and I do use dual card writing if I shoot an event for a customer or someone other than myself. But when I didn't have two such cameras I wrote on one card and it was not an issue. I didn't stress about it.

But one should also assess other risks and what is the likelihood of a non-recoverable loss of images due to card failure vs. other causes that may lead to the customer not getting the images they need.

[Airy]

Rumours whisper the new Noct will be in the 6K range, don't think a lot of us will have the pleasure of owning one

Well, a 50/1.2 is planned... for 2020 or so...

[Jan Anne]

Well, a 50/1.2 is planned... for 2020 or so...

Saw it on the roadmap indeed and hope it will be the first of many f/1.2 lenses as they should offer the best balance between speed, usability and price.

Especially eager to see a 35/1.2 with AF,  would be a nice go to lens for me to compliment the 50/1.2 Ai-S and 85/1.2 FD for a nice mix between modern and classic rendering at f/1.2. The Z35/1.8 looks very appealing but somehow a 35mm slower than f/1.4 was never able please the fast lens addict in me.

[Birna Rørslett]

Rumours whisper the new Noct will be in the 6K range, don't think a lot of us will have the pleasure of owning one

You do know a person who will get it ... In fact, already ordered. Some times one simply has to act by instinct and intuition.

[Jørgen Ramskov]

Rumours whisper the new Noct will be in the 6K range, don't think a lot of us will have the pleasure of owning one

Perhaps that price rumour is in NOK currency 😛