BTM_Pix

The MC-N10 remote grip allows operation of the zoom (and a host of other functions) to be controlled off camera too. Its not cheap but it adds a lot for video shooters, particularly for gimbal use.

Meike have now entered the E to Z mount adapter game. At under €150 it is cheaper than the Megadap one. Full details here https://meikeglobal.com/collections/new-release/products/meike-mount-adapter-etz-for-sony-e-mount-lenses-to-nikon-cameras

I think a possible contender might have dropped into your lap yesterday with the release of the Z8. As well as the headline 8K it also does the 4K120 that you need and all internal RAW to boot. Native Z mount macro lenses are a bit thin on the ground but the Z mount itself is the shallowest depth full frame mount so can have any macro lens that you currently have adapted to it. As you are already invested in E-mount then the Megadap adapter will let you use those lenses with full AF control. Price wise its well under your budget too.

Anyway, my idea of getting a Z8 and a grip to make a small Z9 when I wanted it but build it up when I needed more power has probably fallen by the wayside as, with the grip attached, the Z8 is actually much bigger. Adding the cost of the grip, the extra batteries and a couple of reports of there being a heat build up in the Z8 on long takes then I think a used Z9 will be the way to go for me if I proceed.

The Z9/Z8 are different cameras for a different purpose to the Z6II. If you need a camera for that purpose (predominantly professional sports/photojournalism and/or 8K video or 4K handoff of ProRes) then the advances in development are obvious and are directed to support the performance of those roles. As such, the developments are about functionality rather than being frivolous trinkets. The stacked CMOS sensor providing a zero blackout EVF when shooting bursts because readout speeds are fast enough to negate a mechanical shutter being a prime example. If you don't need any of the functionality that these advancements support for what you are doing then it doesn't mean the development has gone in the wrong direction, it just means its not a direction you need because you have no specific need for the target use of these specific cameras. For everyone that does, though, the development effort has absolutely gone in the right place.

Price is $3999 / €4599 / £3999

Full spec here : https://www.nikonusa.com/en/nikon-products/product/mirrorless-cameras/z-8.html#tab-ProductDetail-ProductTabs-TechSpecs

Live launch presentation :

To be fair, it does have some quirks even within the formats. For me it would be OK as I would likely use ProRes for 4K and 8K RAW and don’t mind Resolve but it is certainly worth anyone contemplating the Z9 studying this chart As an ex-D3 user it will have a lot of familiarity but yeah not ideal to be changing mid season. The possibility of what seemed at the time like the imminent announcement of the S1Hmk2 is what had me cooling on the Z9. And it might yet do that still if it gets announced in the next few weeks. Not for you at the moment for the reasons you’ve laid out but if anyone does want one used in the EU then I think @Andrew Reid knows of one that is available…

Same 2mm difference in flange distance but unfortunately it’s in the wrong direction so E to L isn’t possible. L to Z (or E) is possible though if someone had the will to do it. Ironic if the Z8 causes everyone to buy the Z9 after all!! 2mm !! It felt like my D5 in the hand as it’s roughly the same weight. That sort of weight doesn’t bother me as it’s balanced and has the right heft. Felt so familiar that I could have walked away with it, put the big glass on it and shot a game without knowing it was any different than my D4 or D5. Unfortunately, the pesky owner knows where I live so I had to hand it back.

One thing that might tip me into buying a used Z9 (aside from Z8 possibly not being available from stock when I go on my trip) is whether they have cut BLE timecode from the Z8 as I have a bit of commitment to that through Zoom audio recorders and now the Atomos Connect add on for the Ninja V. Hopefully it will also support the remote grip as well Fuck it, I’m getting a used Z9 aren’t I?

I’ve been waiting it out for a Z9 to buy as my forever camera ever since it was launched. Two things were holding me back, namely there being an actual supply of them and then me being able to go to Japan to buy a used one. I’ve been in no rush and as I’m going to Tokyo at the beginning of June and there are plenty of used ones available at MapCamera now, the time has actually come to get one. Which has coincided on me going cool on the idea. Bear in mind that I haven’t been inside a real camera shop since COVID so I’ve never actually seen a Z9 in real life but yesterday I met someone in Berlin who has one and let me have a go with it. And well… If the Z8 does indeed turn out to be a form factor reduced Z9 with a 25-30% price reduction too then I’m probably in. The Z9 form factor doesn’t bother me in the slightest coming from my heritage of D3/D4/D5 use but maybe it would be nicer to have the option of a Z8 with a battery grip to pick and choose sizes depending on what I’m doing with it. Ironically, it was the lenses that were leading me to and then away from the Z9. I have a large collection of high end F mount lenses from my pro days gathering dust so the Z9 with the FTZ was the logical way to bring them into the modern era. But I then didn’t fancy buying into the native Z lenses for when I want to have something smaller and lighter as I found them a bit expensive and not much 3rd party stuff to write home about made it worse. So in the end I decided it was time to cut the losses with the F mount and go in with L or even E mount cameras. However… The man who let me use his Z9 (you might know him, not an Uber League Swingball player or anything but knows about cameras) had something interesting on it. You have to look closely but it’s that waffa theeen Megadap E mount to Z AF adapter and it changes a lot for me. The adapter more or less gives native lens performance of E mount lenses on the Z cameras. I have a couple of E mount lenses so that is good but more importantly it opens up affordable and interesting 3rd party lenses like the Sigma’s contemporary series or primes and zooms and Tamron’s 35-150 f2/f2.8 which are now effectively available in Z mount using this adapter. This means that the Z8 can not only be viewed as baby Z9 but also as a baby Alpha 1, particularly for anyone with a decent collection of E mount lenses already.

It has been dismissed without prejudice which means both sides have agreed to stop all ongoing claims and counterclaim proceedings. Without prejudice means that the dismissal does not preclude the whole process from starting again in the future. One possible reading of that is that they have agreed to stop action against each other in lieu of a license payment from Nikon to RED but that RED reserve the right to start the action again should Nikon not meet these commitments. That is only one possible (but obvious) reading of it but there are many more as the claims weren’t only one way. So there is no final settlement in a formal sense (ie Nikon paying them x dollars for an infringement with the Z9) but they have settled on what looks to be a negotiated cease fire on the current actions. If the “win” for Nikon is to be able to have internal compressed RAW then it could be based on some sharing with RED of one of their own technologies as it is strongly suspected happened with Canon rather than a simple license payment. Or it could be a bit of both. If it IS purely based on a license payment then it could potentially be a “win” for other camera manufacturers as they could then apply to REF for the same. I suspect it is a case of something more mutually beneficial as I doubt Nikon we’re going this heavily into bat on behalf of the whole camera industry. The only people who really know are the ones that negotiated the ceasefire though and it will take a long time and a lot more guessing to unravel whether this goes beyond anything more than the Z9 being legally allowed to be sold with internal compressed RAW. Ironically, though, the internal RAW of the Z9 hasn’t proved to be a world beater from tests that Andrew amongst other people have reported. So, ultimately, this whole thing might well have been two bald men fighting over a comb.

Both sides have now filed a joint motion to dismiss the case so it’s all over. Whether this means Nikon are paying a license fee or it’s a “win”’ against the patent itself that will benefit all manufacturers is uncertain but it looks like that new Z8 might be even more compelling now. Perhaps the timing of the settlement and its launch may be more than coincidental. Full story here https://ymcinema.com/2023/04/27/red-vs-nikon-case-dismissed/

Mentioned this in another EOS-M thread but for anyone who missed it, Meike do an EF-M converter which has the drop in filter system. The standard kit with the Variable ND and Clear filter is €145 and I think really gives this kit an extra boost as a compact powerhouse. Albeit at almost the full cost of the camera 🙂

To be fair, the FX6 and FX9 do too. As per the markings on the FX9 they are using that label to indicate the camera having the Alpha mount. Its a similar story with the non-PL mount version of the Venice too.

Did you try adding “Cinematic vs iPhone vs ARRI vs Full Frame smash that like button buy my LUT that I created with ChatGPT should you still buy this vintage one year old camera in 2023” to your search term ? A lot of stuff gets lost because people are trying to create titles that incorporate the phrases du jour that they hope will get them up the search rankings. “Avoid these five scams when using the GH6 for stealth van life with otters” etc From what I’ve seen, the “GH6 vs xyz” is the richest seam to mine as at least you get comparative stuff against known entities like the P4K etc.

Your post will probably inspire a lot of people to seek out a used 5D3 and do the same. I particularly enjoyed the incorporation of what looks to be the ancient lost art of sticking it on a tripod.

Samyang have launched a competitor for the Tamron 35-150mm f/2-2.8 allrounder for E-Mount which but is $500 cheaper. Full details here : https://www.samyanglens.com/en/product/product-view.php?seq=621 A comparison video between the two lenses is here which gives the edge to the Samyang :

My iPhone 12 Mini mostly because I haven’t been shooting anything of actual purpose. I will be getting back on the horse in June and it will be with the Sigma FP.

Or shutter-shitting an S5ii Welcome back btw

You can watch the full presentation here : The three lenses are : 23mm f1.4 (APS-C) E/L (Fuji X to Follow) - $549 50mm f2 (FF) E/L - $639 17m f4 (FF) E/L - $599 A couple of interesting more additions to their compact full frame collection and their excellent f1.4 APS-C trio now becomes a quartet..... Unless of course you are an MFT user as there is no version of the new 23mm f1.4 which is a bit disappointing really.

Yeah, they have a lot of ZV-E10 user base who will upgrade and of course there are always new vloggers wanting to get in on the action but it does feel like it could have been probably $500 cheaper. That said, there are a lot of productivity aids to it that will make that additional $500 a good investment based on how targeted it is to the function. The fact that being based on the A7Siii then it can see in the dark will be a big draw and again something which the extra $500 could seem a reasonable price to pay. I suspect the lack of mechanical shutter will be less of a hindrance to the target market, HDMI more so but probably less of an issue than it is to many non-vloggers. The EVF situation though is made worse from what I can see on the reviews by the screen not seeming to be particularly bright. Though the AI reframing mode probably offsets that for the target market. Yep, seems to be in the 50/60p modes but OK in the regular frame rates. Depends on the situation whether anyone will be doing continuous takes of that length but what I haven't seen anything about is the recovery times ? The ZV-E10 has gained a lot of traction for vloggers whilst having similar overheating issues from what I can see so I'm guessing the ones who's shooting methods weren't impacted by that or found some mitigation (just shading the camera outside and changing the power options had a very big impact from videos I've seen) won't be as put off. Giving everyone all that camera - even at a slightly inflated price - and then making it more or less unusable outdoors would be next level gimpery from Sony !

A7sIIi sensor 4K60p in 4:2:2 10-bit all-intra 4K120p in a future firmware update 5 axis steadyshot S-Log 3/S-Cinetone MI Hot Shoe Mount $2,200 Watching that presentation, this camera has some very smart and practical AI features for the target market. They'll sell a boatload of them.

Link to the Sony official product launch stream here : Obviously, the floodgates will also be opened at 15:00 BST for the deluge of shock face thumbnail "independent reviews" too.