p.20 #1 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
Folks,
I was the one lucky guy to use Z9 today and track the bald eagles at Conowingo dam for 15 minutes. Here is my quick impression of the Z9
- Very nice ergonomics, The vertical grip is very comfortable and typical Nikon feel, the main grip is also very comfortable, may be little thinner but front function buttons were easy to reach and operate. 9 much better than my A1)
- EVF was nice and clear, it was cloudy grayish day but evf was easy to view.
- the back monitor is also has good resolution and like the vertical info switch function.
- it was mounted with 500 PF and did not feel heavy at all (this may be perception because I normally use A1+ 600 F/4 GM handhold all the time so ...)
- now the important function, The AF, it is very good, tracked the bird perfectly, the focus square was following the birds very accurately without any hesitation and very smooth. It felt as good as Sony A1 in tracking mode.
- The image quality was very good, typical Nikon quality.
Again, keep I mind that it was only for 15 minutes so this is the first impression. In short, it impressed me enough that I have preorder the Z9 and would love to use it along with my A1. Mostly for 500PF and may be 800 PF whenever it may become available.
If you are coming from any existing Nikon DSLR or mirrorless, you will absolutely love Z9!
p.20 #2 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
Is that the first ever ke3vg wrote:
Folks,
I was the one lucky guy to use Z9 today and track the bald eagles at Conowingo dam for 15 minutes. Here is my quick impression of the Z9
- Very nice ergonomics, The vertical grip is very comfortable and typical Nikon feel, the main grip is also very comfortable, may be little thinner but front function buttons were easy to reach and operate. 9 much better than my A1)
- EVF was nice and clear, it was cloudy grayish day but evf was easy to view.
- the back monitor is also has good resolution and like the vertical info switch function.
- it was mounted with 500 PF and did not feel heavy at all (this may be perception because I normally use A1+ 600 F/4 GM handhold all the time so ...)
- now the important function, The AF, it is very good, tracked the bird perfectly, the focus square was following the birds very accurately without any hesitation and very smooth. It felt as good as Sony A1 in tracking mode.
- The image quality was very good, typical Nikon quality.
Again, keep I mind that it was only for 15 minutes so this is the first impression. In short, it impressed me enough that I have preorder the Z9 and would love to use it along with my A1. Mostly for 500PF and may be 800 PF whenever it may become available.
If you are coming from any existing Nikon DSLR or mirrorless, you will absolutely love Z9!
p.20 #3 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
RoamingScott wrote:
Still not buying a Z9 but picking up a 24-120 and 100-400 on Monday to give them a thorough test on the Z7ii. If I end up not liking them, check the B&S board in a few weeks
It pays to call around!
RoamingScott wrote:
Withdrew it since I was able to source some glass.
Will update my thread over here with some samples for anyone interested.
Very interested in your thoughts. Those two may be a good alternative to 24-70 and 70-200 to base a lens set around.
p.20 #5 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
saph wrote:
Is that the first ever
Is this the first report of a Z9 at Conowingo?
As per my understanding yes, there was Nikon marketing personnel testing/using the Z9 at Conowingo this afternoon and we were there so she was kind enough to let us use it to see performance. I invited her to come during season with several z9 and 600 prime so folks can try it out.
p.20 #6 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
I already run this config on Sony and wouldn’t recommend anything else at this point, at least for my uses which are daytrip hiking and wildlife on the go. 24-800mm of range with 2 lenses and a TC is killer.
Will def provide some feedback soon.
Alistair1 wrote:
Very interested in your thoughts. Those two may be a good alternative to 24-70 and 70-200 to base a lens set around.
p.20 #7 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
bs kite wrote:
Does anyone know if the Z9 has an option to set the length of the burst?
I'm thinking I'm going to love the silence over the fake shutter noise.
Thanks.
I’m fairly certain that it doesn’t.
You can limit the burst just like the D500 had built in 200 shot “accidental trigger protection limit”. I don’t think you can limit it short enough to do what you want. How short would you want the limit??
p.20 #8 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
ke3vg wrote:
Folks,
I was the one lucky guy to use Z9 today and track the bald eagles at Conowingo dam for 15 minutes. Here is my quick impression of the Z9
- Very nice ergonomics, The vertical grip is very comfortable and typical Nikon feel, the main grip is also very comfortable, may be little thinner but front function buttons were easy to reach and operate. 9 much better than my A1)
- EVF was nice and clear, it was cloudy grayish day but evf was easy to view.
- the back monitor is also has good resolution and like the vertical info switch function.
- it was mounted with 500 PF and did not feel heavy at all (this may be perception because I normally use A1+ 600 F/4 GM handhold all the time so ...)
- now the important function, The AF, it is very good, tracked the bird perfectly, the focus square was following the birds very accurately without any hesitation and very smooth. It felt as good as Sony A1 in tracking mode.
- The image quality was very good, typical Nikon quality.
Again, keep I mind that it was only for 15 minutes so this is the first impression. In short, it impressed me enough that I have preorder the Z9 and would love to use it along with my A1. Mostly for 500PF and may be 800 PF whenever it may become available.
If you are coming from any existing Nikon DSLR or mirrorless, you will absolutely love Z9!
Awesome report, thank you! I continue hearing such great things about the ergonomics and in-hand feel from virtually everyone who has tried the Z9. Nikon flagships have always been special to pick up and use. The AF sounds excellent, look forward to testing on birds when I get mine.
p.20 #9 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
arbitrage wrote:
I’m fairly certain that it doesn’t.
You can limit the burst just like the D500 had built in 200 shot “accidental trigger protection limit”. I don’t think you can limit it short enough to do what you want. How short would you want the limit??
You know, when I rethink it, I’ll probably have to let the length of the appearance of the bird decide for me.
I think we agreed that 15 fps should be fine for me. I always try to keep the post-processing load down as much as is practical.
p.20 #10 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
ke3vg wrote:
Folks,
I was the one lucky guy to use Z9 today and track the bald eagles at Conowingo dam for 15 minutes. Here is my quick impression of the Z9
Mukesh
Lucky guy indeed!
I was at the dam on Thursday and no such luck. Next to no eagle action and no Z9 with a friendly Nikon rep.
Probably the same lady who was at the District Camera Z9 event in Arlington a few weeks ago.
p.20 #11 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
arbitrage wrote:
I’m fairly certain that it doesn’t.
You can limit the burst just like the D500 had built in 200 shot “accidental trigger protection limit”. I don’t think you can limit it short enough to do what you want. How short would you want the limit??
At least on the DSLR Nikons (such as the D6) you can set the maximum number of shots in a burst it to any number from 1 to 200. I would be surprised if the Z9 didn't have this option.
p.20 #12 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
ilkka_nissila wrote:
At least on the DSLR Nikons (such as the D6) you can set the maximum number of shots in a burst it to any number from 1 to 200. I would be surprised if the Z9 didn't have this option.
Yes, the Z9 has the menu option d2 for Maximum shots per burst
p.20 #14 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
pwschladen wrote:
Lucky guy indeed!
I was at the dam on Thursday and no such luck. Next to no eagle action and no Z9 with a friendly Nikon rep.
Probably the same lady who was at the District Camera Z9 event in Arlington a few weeks ago.
Patrick
I just moved to Anne Arundel county and am looking for good wildlife sites. I will have to check out the dam. Any other ideas for a new resident?
p.20 #15 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
Thanks for sharing the experience. How did you feel about focus speed of the combo? I thought 500PF was way slower than Sony lenses especially 600mm.
ke3vg wrote:
Folks,
I was the one lucky guy to use Z9 today and track the bald eagles at Conowingo dam for 15 minutes. Here is my quick impression of the Z9
- Very nice ergonomics, The vertical grip is very comfortable and typical Nikon feel, the main grip is also very comfortable, may be little thinner but front function buttons were easy to reach and operate. 9 much better than my A1)
- EVF was nice and clear, it was cloudy grayish day but evf was easy to view.
- the back monitor is also has good resolution and like the vertical info switch function.
- it was mounted with 500 PF and did not feel heavy at all (this may be perception because I normally use A1+ 600 F/4 GM handhold all the time so ...)
- now the important function, The AF, it is very good, tracked the bird perfectly, the focus square was following the birds very accurately without any hesitation and very smooth. It felt as good as Sony A1 in tracking mode.
- The image quality was very good, typical Nikon quality.
Again, keep I mind that it was only for 15 minutes so this is the first impression. In short, it impressed me enough that I have preorder the Z9 and would love to use it along with my A1. Mostly for 500PF and may be 800 PF whenever it may become available.
If you are coming from any existing Nikon DSLR or mirrorless, you will absolutely love Z9!
p.20 #16 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
Jemini wrote:
Thanks for sharing the experience. How did you feel about focus speed of the combo? I thought 500PF was way slower than Sony lenses especially 600mm.
It was short time to test , not able to compare with Sony 600 GM but 500PF was tracking the bird perfectly, the focus acquisition was quick and once acquired the focus was sticking with it. Focus did wander around a bit when the other birds or busy background came in frame but that could be the setting of Z9 and I have experienced the same thing with A1 sometime so not going to make judgement here.
I need lot more time to determine the focus speed testing, the 600 f/4 and 400 f/4 and newer 70-200 GM has 4 liner motors and are extremely quick in my experience but I have been using 500 PF for long time and its a great quick focusing lens also.
Sorry not able to give you conclusive answer here but you need months of testing before making that type of determination.
p.20 #17 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
ke3vg wrote:
It was short time to test , not able to compare with Sony 600 GM but 500PF was tracking the bird perfectly, the focus acquisition was quick and once acquired the focus was sticking with it. Focus did wander around a bit when the other birds or busy background came in frame but that could be the setting of Z9 and I have experienced the same thing with A1 sometime so not going to make judgement here.
I need lot more time to determine the focus speed testing, the 600 f/4 and 400 f/4 and newer 70-200 GM has 4 liner motors and are extremely quick in my experience but I have been using 500 PF for long time and its a great quick focusing lens also.
Sorry not able to give you conclusive answer here but you need months of testing before making that type of determination.
This is good info. If you haven't noticed any issue (visible) that's all I want to know. I know linear motors are faster than SWM motors. great to know it's close to A1 in initial impression. Will wait to see more reviews.. Thank you
p.20 #19 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
this is me wrote:
Just got a call from my LCS that my Z9 is on route to the store and I should have it by Friday Dec 24, 2021
Just like Nikon stated the release date.
Congrats!
I was advised today that I should leave my calendar open on 12/23. :-)
p.20 #20 · Z9: Countdown to air shipment and release.......
this is me wrote:
Just got a call from my LCS that my Z9 is on route to the store and I should have it by Friday Dec 24, 2021
Just like Nikon stated the release date.
omg, that is great!!! I hope I will be as lucky!!! Congrats!!!
