Ilkka Nissila

For (stills) photography, I actually calibrate my editing display so that its range is 0.4 to 90 nit. This matches approximately the contrast range of light reflecting from photographic prints. The display is capable of greater brightness and deeper blacks but I don't normally use that. If I use that display to view streamed video content, the limitation in dynamic range doesn't bother me (I'm not sure if the streaming actually follows the calibrated settings or go outside of it). The display has a "hood" which blocks stray light from the window and other parts of the room, so that avoids most of the reflections that might bother the viewing experience otherwise. I also have a TV which has an OLED screen and a very high contrast ratio (Sony xr-48a90k) and it gives a very high quality viewing experience. It takes into account ambient light brightness and adjusts the brightness and contrast to give an optimal experience in those conditions, so it works better than a projector when viewing during the day. The resolution is also very high, and the streaming applications adjust the TV settings to be optimal for the content they present. I think it's an amazing experience. I don't know what the actual contrast range of the display is (Sony says only that it's near infinite, marketing speak). Apple makes phone and computer screens with what they call Super Retina XDR where they claim the contrast range is 1000000:1 or something like that, but I don't know how accurate the claims are. That would be like 19 stops of dynamic range, if it is true. However, I suspect that kind of content dynamic range cannot be accurately seen in practice because of reflections from the display and also the viewing space. But, what these displays seem to give is a good viewing experience in varying ambient conditions. For stills photography, Adobe has some support for HDR images (I don't mean the usual way the HDR term is used in photography, where multiple exposures are tone-mapped to a result which displays well on SDR displays but actual support of HDR displays without tone mapping). However, the problem with this is that browser support is limited, and if you view a HDR image on an SDR display, you might get a distorted image that doesn't look correct. The Retina XDR display is amazing when viewing high scene contrast ratio photographs converted from RAW images for HDR viewing, it almost feels like a photo of a sunlit scene looks like you were viewing it in the location yourself. However, somehow software support needs to be developed so that both HDR and SDR versions of images can be distributed online and viewed according to the display that you have, since it's unlikely that all displays would be "real" HDR in the near future (increased power consumption etc.) I personally think the technology is amazing, but it's largely unnecessary and somewhat impractical (due to limiting the viewers that can see the images correctly). It seems HDR on the video side is more established and most TVs have some HDR capabilities, and the applications have some ability to adjust to the screen and ambient conditions for optimal experience (at least on my TV). So I would disagree that the displays don't exist, they do. But high dynamic range in cameras has uses also when producing content for SDR displays. On the stills side, people often make masks and dodge and burn the images to be able to get a more human-viewer-like experience within the limitations of SDR media such as SDR displays and prints. In video often there is the situation that you can't set up your own lights and the windows bring in bright daylight and you still have to be able to take video of people doing their activities indoors, hopefully without blowing out the windows. You can deal with this in post-processing somehow (I often reduce highlight contrast and lift the main subject up), or use in-camera tone-mapping techniques (such as Nikon D-Lighting). All of these approaches require a good dynamic range in the capture device to result in a low-noise image in the final result. In dimmer, artificial, lighting conditions when the daylight is gone, ideally one would not blow out the lights when the subject is correctly exposed, for a pleasing final result, again, log video here can help. If the purpose is just to make a video where the subject can be seen clearly and the functional purpose of the photography or video is satisfied, then most cameras made within the 15 years can easily suffice. However, often there are aesthetic objectives that go beyond just the functional information-transfer main goal, and these can be satisfied better with the newer tools.

What happens next is limitless exploitation of the planet's resources for the personal gain of the dictators of the various regimes. War and selfish overuse of resources are clearly not good for the planet. The people in charge couldn't care less about the world or its environment. Some European leaders have tried to show a different path but now are told to arm with 5% of their GDP (which is IMO ridiculous and can only lead to further harm). With current technology, a set of dictatorial powers fighting it out for resources will lead to damage on a previously unseen level.

I think it's not clear whether the MAGA politicians are rational or not. Clearly, many of them know little about the government of states, which explains why there is so much fumbling about and obvious mistakes and unintended consequences. However, it's clear that Trump is a con artist. He is using the power of the presidency for personal gain. Just now there are videos showing how Trump is bragging about how he and his friends made a lot of money by taking advantage of the stock market fluctuations caused by Trump's tariffs (being turned on and off). This is entirely rational behavior from a con artist and a narcissist. He's got the all-clear from the Supreme Court that he can't be held responsible for his official actions as president in court. Congress could still hold him responsible (impeachment), and the people maybe can (if there are free elections in the future) but it could very well happen that he gets away with it, and he's old enough that even if he does go into prison, he wouldn't be there for a long time. Tariff wars tend to be followed by actual wars where people die. That's why the EU was founded, by removing tariffs between European states, it was thought that wars between the states can be avoided, which has been the case so far. However, for Trump, the tariffs are just a means towards personal enrichment (and his friends' enrichment), plus getting a lot of personal attention in the media that he craves.

It's like the polar opposite of how people view things in my country. If someone is rich, in my country, many people will invariably feel that that person didn't get rich via honest work but instead probably did something either unlawful (stole something, didn't pay taxes, smuggled something etc.) or at least morally questionable (oppressed workers for personal gain). And so it's something to be ashamed of rather than proud.

Can you explain? As a European I am completely lacking understanding of how American voters make decisions. I did live in the US for two years, but things weren't then how they are now. And it was in Massachusetts, so that may not count. I would think that those who are poor and lower middle class would not want to be swindled and wealth transferred to the ultra-rich, nor can I see any benefit in voting in favor of policies of the current US government (including stock manipulation but also in general, high tariffs).

Trump did tell people on his social media platform before the reduction of the tariffs for most countries that now is a good time to buy. People who had invested in the stock market but also had debt were in some cases forced to sell their stock (since their loan was going to be greater than the value of their stock) and lost money at the worst moment, but those people with spare money could sell stock before trump announced the tariffs and buy at the moment just before the tariffs were reduced. I bet many of Trump's billionaire friends did just that. It's a way of swindling the majority of what they had into the hands of the few who already had a lot.

Trump's deficit calculations are only about goods and completely ignore services. For example, US has a trade surplus in services with the EU that is twice as big in value than the deficit in goods trade with the EU. Yet tariffs were placed on goods coming from the EU. I think the EU could simply respond by placing a 30% tariff on Google, Meta, X, etc. and it would be fair. I would guess that the EU has a better chance of creating its own IT services than the US has of industry returning. Somehow Trump likes physical industry and doesn't care about all the pollution that comes with it. It has been argued that there is a defence motivation behind this, as although currently US has a lot of military equipment, they lack the capacity to build more of it quickly to fight a world war. Another factor is that a lot of Trump voters live in the (formerly) industrial areas of the US. I can see SNL comment "I restored a beautiful smog, so much thicker than in China, and much more beautiful, America has returned to a new Smoggy Era. And the rivers have beautiful white foam, unlike anything seen before. The fish are dead, and we can have beautiful and proper beef burgers at McDonald's."

While I agree that buying fewer things that you don't really need (only may want) is good for the environment, it's not the main result that will come out of this if the trade wars and tariffs continue. The main effect is that people who have low incomes will not be able to afford what they need to continue living, and the rich are comparately less affected (which is why a government led by billionaires is doing it). It's a move from progressive income taxes to a flat tax that mainly affects the poor and middle class. The billionaires know when to buy and when to sell because they have inside information of Trump's moves. So the billionaires sold stock before the tariffs came into effect and the common people sell in panic after the tariffs have crashed the stock market. After the crash the billionaires on the inside buy stock on the cheap after which the tariffs will be cancelled and the rich will have made a lot of money and the common people have lost their retirement savings. That's what this is all about. The richest people can never have enough. Industry will never return to the US because the American people are not willing to do that kind of work for as little money as the people who live in the 3rd world are willing to do it for. Not even close. Tariffs would need to be something 500-1000% for the manufacturing to actually return to the US. And that would make a lot of the American people poor in terms of what purchasing power they have. Instead, US sells services such as software and financial services to other regions, balancing the trade. This is of course not going to help them fight a world war because for that they would indeed need a manufacturing industry, which led to this dilemma.

I assume you're talking about the Zf, not the Df which is a DSLR that has no video. If the tariffs are actually implemented, sellers on the used market in the US are likely to increase prices also, to reflect changes in the new prices and increased demand for used products originally sold to the US before the tariffs were implemented. The 4K N-RAW from the 24 MP sensor doesn't make much sense as there is no way to do it without quality loss. Unless by first debayering and resampling the data and finally rebayering to get RGBG data, but that's a lot of processing for unclear benefits (and clearly, not really raw data). On this camera, I would just use the normal non-RAW codecs (h.265) for 4K video.

The Z8 does lock the sensor into place mechanically when in-camera VR is not in use, or when the camera is turned off. Most Nikons do. The Zf is an exception and the sensor flops around when the camera is off.

It believe it's the nominal price the factory sells the product for. Typically the retail price is 2-3x that. So why does the price at retail differ so much? This is because the importer typically does marketing, answers questions from customers, pays for the existence of the repair facilities (and typically covers the cost of warranty repair) etc. Then obviously there are shipping costs and retailer markup. These are not included in the CIPA numbers but they are included in the retail price.

They practiced each episode for two weeks and then filmed it twice a day for one week, so 10+ takes for each episode. They then selected the best version of each episode.

I see, I hadn't realized that. I think Nikon should be able to easily fix this in firmware, as you suggest.

I don't have the camera with me to test but according to the Z8 reference guide, in aperture priority (in video mode), the user can not manually adjust the ISO. It's always in Auto ISO mode in S, P, and A. Manual ISO is only available in manual mode. (In stills mode, Auto ISO is not coupled to a shooting mode.) When the camera is in Auto ISO mode, there is a minimum shutter speed that you can set in the ISO sensitivity settings menu. I don't know if they changed this to shutter angle when the camera is in shutter angle mode, if not, then probably it is an oversight that they didn't think of. I can check these things when I have the camera with me.

When you're in video mode, aperture priority on the Z8 doesn't necessarily give anything useful over manual mode. When selecting A mode, you select aperture manually (the same as manual mode) and the camera will choose shutter speed and ISO for you (you cannot select aperture priority and adjust ISO manually in that mode). If you go to manual mode, and select the shutter angle manually along with the aperture, by turning on Auto ISO, you get automatic exposure via the camera adjusting ISO. Why would you want the camera to adjust shutter angle during the take when Auto ISO is available? I understand that Auto ISO may not be ideal for log video as then the noise in the image will vary, but surely that's less distracting than shutter speed or angle varying during the take?

This is an important point, and has been widely discussed in other forums. The Z8 works well in terms of temperature management as long as you choose one of the coolest running CFexpress cards. Card temperatures have been tested a few years ago in https://www.thessdreview.com/our-reviews/cfexpress/delkin-black-cf-express-type-b-512gb-memory-card-review/4/ though not specifically in this camera. I have the 325 GB Prograde Digital Cobalt card and it's excellent (it was originally preferred by Nikon when the Z9 came out, as their developers found it to perform the best in the Z9), but Delkin Blacks (which are a newer card series) are very popular among the intense-shooting crowd and can be cheaper than the Prograde Digital Cobalt. If you need larger capacity than is available in Delkin Black, then Delkin Power can be considered. Note that the series have been updated by Delkin and the newest cards may be different, but I haven't heard anything negative about the new series. The Z9 has a larger body and better temperature management than the Z8 but the Z8 also does fine as long as one chooses the right CFexpress card for the extended video recording.

Since RED is working with Nikon on the autofocus, it is likely it'll be similar to Nikon camera AF if not now, in a model in the near future. The processor architecture might need to be changed to achieve parity with cameras like the Z9 so maybe a separate AF processor (Nikon's) and image processing pipeline (which would be RED's). Porting all the code across systems could take some time. As for whether AF will be good enough to use as the go-to focusing mode, eventually, I think it'll be, but perhaps not today, at least not for all uses. Retaining the focus while zooming is achieved using software and the AF motor, which is probably sufficient for most AF users who may occasionally need to use manual focus and fix the distance while zooming (which the lens will then achieve using the AF motor). Those who want a parfocal implementation via a mechanical compensation system (instead of electronic) will choose a manual focus parfocal lens. Focus ring direction can be set from the camera custom functions menu in Nikons, also how fast the ring affects focus, in most Z mount lenses and most Z cameras. I doubt, however, that the zoom direction can be changed, at least not now. The T/W switch on the lens barrel has fixed labels and those match the direction of turn of the zoom ring in Nikon's other zooms, so probably it is the same here. As for which is the correct direction of turn, for Nikon users Nikon has the correct direction which we are used to. Some other brands also have the same direction as Nikon, while others have different, so it's not like Nikon uses different orientations from all the other camera and lens manufacturers.

Arri's Alexa 35 Base Model isn't a really price reduction of the Alexa 35 as it is missing many features which you can add via additional purchases. If you build up the features to match the full Alexa 35 the price ends up being about the same.

Currently the camera market is stable and overall slowly growing. The amateur/enthusiast/professional market has been stable in size over a long time. What happened is regular consumers (to whom photography is not their spiritual or financial lifeline) stopped buying decated cameras. This caused some trouble to the traditional camera makers but they weathered this disruption. Nikon and Canon haven't stopped making DSLRs and they will produce what the people buy. I happen to prefer the optical viewfinder but because of the need to be able to photograph silently in some situations, I also needed a mirrorless camera system. But I have great regret about the absence of the OVF which I prefer when timing shots one by one (which for me results in superior keeper rate over what I can get with high frame rate continuous and much less time spent on editing). However, for shorter focal length wide-aperture lenses, mirorrless produces usually better in-focus rates so the overall result is that I am divided. For the manufacturers selling entirely new lens lineups must be profitable. For the Earth's environment, it may be a disaster.

This is why a standardized test protocol for dynamic range is needed that is not dependent on or sensitive to processing that trades off detail to reduce noise. Patch average-based DR testing would achieve that in part, but it would still need to somehow turn off temporal noise reduction to get a true idea of what the camera's hardware is capable of. The solution could be to capture 1 second of video of a patch sequence and then average the pixels spatially within each patch and over the 1 second sequence of video, and use the DR evaluated from that. This would normalize the results so that spatial and temporal noise reduction are cancelled out. The patches should be of fixed size relative to the whole frame dimensions.

Hmm. I tested N-Log with View Assist on the Zf and when metered using my Sekonic indicent meter, exposure in the viewfinder and LCD seemed correct at the metered setting.

I hadn't even noticed that there is a sticker, after using the camera for over a year. 😉 Having the battery door also access the cards means there has to be only one hatch instead of two. In a small camera, this makes some sense. Having more hatches splits the camera's surface and in this case it would probably affect how nice it is to hold with the right hand. The MicroSD card is a bit annoying; I would have preferred dual SD or SD/CFexpress type B but I solve the problem by simply having a 1 TB MicroSD card in the second slot permanently and never taking it out. I normally insert/remove the SD card and use a card reader with it, or stick it to the computer's internal SD card reader. The MicroSD card is the in-camera backup slot (for stills) and if I ever need to access those files on it, I do have a card reader for that as well, but I might use the USB-C cable to transfer those files as I don't want to handle the super-tiny MicroSD cards any more than necessary. The battery door seems similar to other Nikons with the EN-EL15c battery. I have never run into problems with it. In the Smallrig grip that came with the camera in my country (and also the Nikon GR-1 grip that is available in Japan) there is a gap in the base plate of the grip that allows batteries and cards to be accessed. The i button is an integral part of the menu system of the camera and allows accessing some important settings. I don't think Nikon should remove it from the camera as that would mean menu dives would have to be done for even some of the most common settings (since there are fewer physical controls belonging to the "modern" interface, to make space for the "traditional" dials). Another custom menu that is available is My Menu and that's a list of user-selectable menu items that is collected in a list that the user can order and access from a function button. I set the front Fn button to access My Menu. These menus are similar across Nikons of the past ten years or so, and leaving out the option to access one of them would be problematic and make camera operation slow. I don't need the joystick and the multi-controller works fine for my purposes. I use it in preference to the joystick even on cameras that have both because only the multi-controller is available on all Nikons and the joystick center button press can easily accidentally lead to slipping the jostick to the side. It's much easier to access the center button on the multi-controller reliably. I haven't noticed any quality of materials issue with the controls. I don't know what a PU grip is. There are multiple add-on grips and "skins" available for the Zf. I use the Smallrig grip when I need to use the Zf with a bit larger lens so it's a bit more comfortable to handle with a lens like 135/1.8. I don't think the camera is a good fit for really large lenses though, as it is too small and doesn't support an optional vertical grip. But in a pinch it can be used also with large lenses, just not ergonomically ideal but does the job as a backup camera. Auto ISO basically works the same as it does on all Nikon cameras that support Auto ISO. You specify the ISO you want to use and the camera overrides it when it has to do so to achieve the metered (+- EC) exposure. Since I have the front Fn button open My Menu and the Auto ISO setting is on the top of that list, I can toggle Auto ISO by pressing Fn + OK. It's no more difficult than pressing and holding ISO on other cameras and turning the sub-command dial to turn Auto ISO ON/OFF. I would argue that Fn + OK is even easier as it doesn't require any finger acrobatics. For video use, set the shutter speed dial to 1/3 STEP and use the main command dial to select shutter speed in 1/3 stop increments. Adding 1/50 and 1/120 on the shutter dial would throw off the classical settings and the idea that you can count stops by counting the clicks easily. They could of course shift the values by 1/3 stop - I believe this was available on the Df but not on the Zf or Zfc. But 1/125 s isn't 1/120 s, so specific video shutter speeds probably would make sense to offer for the main command dial when in video mode. Rumor is that Nikon will be adding shutter angle as option on the Z9 in a firmware update. I prefer the Z8's two-axis tilting screen over the one in the Zf which flips out. I find the flipping-out screen quite a nuisance as the camera strap can easily get entangled with it when opening it to the side. Another issue is that the flipped-out screen is (way) off axis whereas the two-axis tilting screen is close to being on the optical axis even when tilted. However, I think the two-axis screen would make the camera thicker and more expensive, and selfie shooters wouldn't be happy. Aperture rings are available on third-party lenses such as Viltrox, Voigtländer etc. Z6III has a faster sensor read time but more read noise than the Zf. There is in my opinion space for the higher quality Zf sensor for those who don't need the faster sensor read time and prefer the higher quality image. DISP is a different function from what is on the multi-controller up/down. DISP goes through different shooting information configurations (that one can configure if one wants to change them) during viewfinder or live view use while shooting, whereas up/down on the multi-controller moves the focus point when shooting and it shifts between different playback data displays in playback mode. Both need their own controls to scroll through. As for +/- zooming, it's been the same since at least 12 years on Nikons and I don't think they're changing it. 😉 It used to be that zooming in/out was a press-and-hold a button + turn main command dial, but I suspect most people find the separate +/- buttons easier on the fingers. What I don't like is that Nikon keeps shifting the buttons around from model to model, making it harder to instinctively use the camera without looking when using different models over time or even on the same day. I swapped the DISP and playback buttons in custom settings so that the playback button is closer to where it is on the Z8 (it's still not the same button but one above it). I don't normally press DISP all that often so it can be in more difficult-to-access location. Anyway my main complaints about the Zf (which I love to use) are that it doesn't have either of the standard Nikon connectors for firing radio flash (SB-5000) remotely and the same connectors also work for cable release which is also not available. Only via bluetooth can be the camera remote triggered and there is a slight delay associated with that, which is annoying. However, I bought the camera anyway for the reasons that (1) I love the dials-based interface and "feel", (2) it has a better high ISO image quality than the Z8 and so it's a good complement to the Z8 for low-light shooting; the mechanical shutter of the Zf also saved the day two weeks ago when I got banding on the electronic shutter of the Z8 in theatrical lights, (3) it has a slim profile so it takes very little space in the bag when I need it as a backup camera. If I changed something it would be adding a 10-pin connector so it would work with the same accessories and remote flash control as the Z8 and other recent Nikon cameras. But we have always something missing from the Nikon "fusion" models, and the Zf is the best of the line yet (Df/Zfc/Zf). Not having access to SB-5000 as radio remote is a significant problem for me as it means if I use the Zf as backup on a portrait shoot then I wouldn't be able to use those remotes if the main camera fails. So in the end I will need a third Z camera just for that purpose. It's sometimes hard to understand why Nikon takes away features that are useful. Perhaps they think SB-5000 radio remote control hasn't been that popular instead people choose cheaper options which sometimes work. The SB-5000 + WR-R10 has been very reliable for me, the best in that respect of any radio controlled flash. It just always works, and is less unwieldy on camera than Profoto. The Leica SL/SL2 are not similar cameras as they don't have mechanical dials with marked settings that one can use even with the camera off. Also the Leicas don't take Z lenses so for a Nikon lens user it's a no-go. As for the modern lenses, for me what is important is that the lineup produces a consistent look across focal lengths and the Z mount S-line does that for me. Yes, it's very modern and contrasty and that takes some getting used to be as long as there are no surprises I can work with it.

I also like the Zf build a lot. But I've used Nikon a long time and I guess one grows to the way they do things.

All the video recording modes on the Z50II are 4:2:0.

I think if you have subject with a lot of colorful texture (such as samba dancers' costumes) then the difference between h265 4:2:0 and RAW should be obvious. I don't shoot N-RAW (I don't have enough storage and don't need 8K) but I do use 4K 10-bit 422 Prores HQ. I love it, the colorful costumes look gorgeous. N-RAW doesn't come with built-in spatiotemporal noise reduction which is likely applied to h265 footage. This may be why it might appear the latter to have more dynamic range (it's not real but because of the way DR is typically measured, one may get that impression) but you can always apply similar processing to raw footage to get similar or better results. The beard details in the h265 appears more smeared than the raw. The difference should be more clear with subjects that have colorful highly detailed textures.