p.22 #1 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
I snuck out early this morning before work to visit some of the only open water in my area. My first time outdoors with my Z9! The few birds still toughing it out at 0°F are hanging out in this spot. Lots of Canada Geese, a fair number of Mallards, and a few Mergansers. Nothing quite as exotic as the rockstars Lance is encountering, but beggars can't be choosers right now up in the frozen North!
There was very little light at 7:30am on this overcast morning. I was shooting with some combination of 100-400 or 500PF both with and without TC's. Not conditions I would have expected to have a good time with AF or get sharp photos. I was impressed with the Z9; it easily tracked whole birds almost the entire time, and it got heads/eyes frequently. Swimming birds on this torture-test gray water were no issue, and what few BIF I found went well. Glancing through frames, almost every photo nailed focus, and any blur was a result of me cheating on shutter speeds due to the low light.
I did manage to set the darn thing to timer mode accidentally when trying for 20fps as I noticed a Merganser approach, and missed what would have been a great sequence of landing shots... I'm not digging the tiny lockout button for the drive setting so far, at least not when wearing gloves.
I took >200 frames in a short amount of time and haven't had time to look at most, but I did notice this frame of some geese that were having a disagreement. I present a Goose being goosed:
Z9+500PF at f/5.6 and ISO1800, and a 14MPixel crop. (Apologies that Flickr appears to be doing a number on image sharpness with its resizing... I need to figure out how to post images that don't get mushed by the hosting service.)
p.22 #2 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
I have yet to even use that side button for AF mode switching since I have gotten quite used to doing that using the record button since the Z6II. I also have some AF modes just mapped to Fn buttons and BBF, so hopefully this means a lot yes using that button for AF mode changing. CKrueger wrote:
I snuck out early this morning before work to visit some of the only open water in my area. My first time outdoors with my Z9! The few birds still toughing it out at 0°F are hanging out in this spot. Lots of Canada Geese, a fair number of Mallards, and a few Mergansers. Nothing quite as exotic as the rockstars Lance is encountering, but beggars can't be choosers right now up in the frozen North!
There was very little light at 7:30am on this overcast morning. I was shooting with some combination of 100-400 or 500PF both with and without TC's. Not conditions I would have expected to have a good time with AF or get sharp photos. I was impressed with the Z9; it easily tracked whole birds almost the entire time, and it got heads/eyes frequently. Swimming birds on this torture-test gray water were no issue, and what few BIF I found went well. Glancing through frames, almost every photo nailed focus, and any blur was a result of me cheating on shutter speeds due to the low light.
I did manage to set the darn thing to timer mode accidentally when trying for 20fps as I noticed a Merganser approach, and missed what would have been a great sequence of landing shots... I'm not digging the tiny lockout button for the drive setting so far, at least not when wearing gloves.
I took >200 frames in a short amount of time and haven't had time to look at most, but I did notice this frame of some geese that were having a disagreement. I present a Goose being goosed:
Z9+500PF at f/5.6 and ISO1800, and a 14MPixel crop. (Apologies that Flickr appears to be doing a number on image sharpness with its resizing... I need to figure out how to post images that don't get mushed by the hosting service.)...Show more →
p.22 #3 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
The drive mode is the one that caught me out this morning... I intended to go from CL to CH, but ended up with Timer. I wish the Z9 had a "clicker" toggle button like Fuji puts on their cameras. I'd just leave the thing unlocked most of the time.
I've always had the AF area on Fn2 on my Z6, and I like that a lot. I'm trying to get used to the side button for AF mode, but I really don't like it so far. I change modes frequently, and the side button requires me to take my hand off the telephoto barrel. I wish we could reconfigure the side button for something less frequently-used!
I've also found that putting Single Point AF-ON on the Fn2 button is REALLY handy. I'm going to be irritated to lose that feature next time I pick up my Z6!
p.22 #4 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
I just finished putting 3D for the thumbstick click in, have AF-C Small tracing in FN1 and I think all area on FN2. I'm going to see what combination works for me...at some point, but I'm at least glad the customization is there...should really put one of those on the lens button but I'll get there when I want to. It's not Sony customizable, but there are a few things I think I can think of. I think you'll get used to all of this in due time. CKrueger wrote:
The drive mode is the one that caught me out this morning... I intended to go from CL to CH, but ended up with Timer. I wish the Z9 had a "clicker" toggle button like Fuji puts on their cameras. I'd just leave the thing unlocked most of the time.
I've always had the AF area on Fn2 on my Z6, and I like that a lot. I'm trying to get used to the side button for AF mode, but I really don't like it so far. I change modes frequently, and the side button requires me to take my hand off the telephoto barrel. I wish we could reconfigure the side button for something less frequently-used!
I've also found that putting Single Point AF-ON on the Fn2 button is REALLY handy. I'm going to be irritated to lose that feature next time I pick up my Z6! ...Show more →
p.22 #6 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
I've never tried photographing planes, nor slow-speed panning, so probably not the best choice to attempt my first real shots with a new camera but I was dying to try it out on something real, and didnt feel like waiting until the weekend for my normal wildlife outings.
So you may not want to judge the camera off this photo
(It was also after sunset with a f5.6 lens, and no tripod)
p.22 #8 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
CKrueger wrote:
That's a darn smooth pan for your first attempt at it! I'd show you my first attempt with race cars, but you could just visualize a bowl of spaghetti.
Nice job!
Thank you! And I guess technically, it was the best frame from the ~30 shot burst I took lol.
But I'm definitely looking forward to trying some more out.
p.22 #10 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
Ok...so...this thing can shoot pro level ice skating. I have like 1300 images over the span of like 4 minutes of shooting a short ice skating demo from a dance troupe. I can't even deal with these till I get home and get them off my card.
p.22 #11 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
JadedWriter wrote:
Ok...so...this thing can shoot pro level ice skating. I have like 1300 images over the span of like 4 minutes of shooting a short ice skating demo from a dance troupe. I can't even deal with these till I get home and get them off my card.
You will learn to be more judicious with your shooting as you use the camera. With the high frame rates possible with these new mirrorless cameras you can easily shoot way too many frames to manage.
p.22 #12 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
Definitely. I'm used to my Z6II, just chugging with action, so I over shot because it honestly couldn't keep up and would just stutter. This thing just blazed through everything. 1bwana1 wrote:
You will learn to be more judicious with your shooting as you use the camera. With the high frame rates possible with these new mirrorless cameras you can easily shoot way too many frames to manage.
p.22 #14 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
Yeah even at 15fps, this is way quicker than my D4. I don't think the camera ever stuttered and even the XQD card I was using kept up well enough buffer wise. There was like nothing forcing me to stop taking shots, the camera just rolled with it and next thing I knew it I was at over 1000 images. robert614 wrote:
Holy Triple Salchow Batman! 😂
Those high frame rate bursts add up quick!
Don’t even think about putting it into 120fps mode until you get used to the camera! 😉
p.22 #15 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
JadedWriter wrote:
Yeah even at 15fps, this is way quicker than my D4. I don't think the camera ever stuttered and even the XQD card I was using kept up well enough buffer wise. There was like nothing forcing me to stop taking shots, the camera just rolled with it and next thing I knew it I was at over 1000 images.
I don’t know if the Z9 has this ability. But my A1 has the option to display each burst as a single thumbnail on the card.
So if you chimp a certain burst. And don’t find any keepers. You can delete the whole burst with a simple double tap of the trash can button.
And if you do find a file you like. Just hit the “protect” button (not sure of the equivalent Nikon nomenclature) to prevent that file from being deleted. Then double click the trash can like before. The whole burst will be deleted minus the file you protected.
Let’s you cull down large numbers of files quickly so you aren’t uploading as many shots to your computer.
p.22 #16 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
I don't think it has that. I also fire the camera like a semi automatic machine gun so a whole movement could have like 5 different bursts in it so either way I'm going through a lot of images. robert614 wrote:
I don’t know if the Z9 has this ability. But my A1 has the option to display each burst as a single thumbnail on the card.
So if you chimp a certain burst. And don’t find any keepers. You can delete the whole burst with a simple double tap of the trash can button.
And if you do find a file you like. Just hit the “protect” button (not sure of the equivalent Nikon nomenclature) to prevent that file from being deleted. Then double click the trash can like before. The whole burst will be deleted minus the file you protected.
Let’s you cull down large numbers of files quickly so you aren’t uploading as many shots to your computer. ...Show more →
p.22 #17 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
robert614 wrote:
I don’t know if the Z9 has this ability. But my A1 has the option to display each burst as a single thumbnail on the card.
So if you chimp a certain burst. And don’t find any keepers. You can delete the whole burst with a simple double tap of the trash can button.
And if you do find a file you like. Just hit the “protect” button (not sure of the equivalent Nikon nomenclature) to prevent that file from being deleted. Then double click the trash can like before. The whole burst will be deleted minus the file you protected.
Let’s you cull down large numbers of files quickly so you aren’t uploading as many shots to your computer. ...Show more →
I agree. Managing files using the grouping by burst/protect method is a real workflow saving tool in fast cameras like this. It should be able to be added by firmware I would think.
p.22 #18 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
JadedWriter wrote:
I also fire the camera like a semi automatic machine gun so a whole movement could have like 5 different bursts in it so either way I'm going through a lot of images.
Ahh…got it.
I think you’ll be fine once you get used to the camera. Like 1bwana1 mentioned, you’ll soon become a little more judicious on how long you hold down the shutter during bursts.
p.22 #19 · Z9 and Z8 ! : A thread for Z9/Z8 images and *discussion*
I shot finches in my backyard for 10mins after running home to get the package off my doorstep before the porch pirates arrived
Camera feels good in the hand. Weight doesn't bother me as I always shoot with grips anyways.
BEAF was snappy and consistent for the finches landing on my perches. Of course that is a very easy situation as background is a ways away. 3D stuck with the finch as it jumped from perch to the feeder or at least reacquired very quickly. Like all MILCs already ran into a couple instances where the AF wouldn't drive in to the near perch from the background trees...what else is new Too dreary to shoot any flight with an f/5.6 lens.
My only negatives in my 10mins were things I already knew about and mostly just button/dial ergonomics and customization. Like lack of a third wheel and not enough customizable back buttons easily reachable with my thumb while camera is up and shooting. I really wish Nikon would allow us to customize that useless DISP button...what a waste...let me assign DISP to some other useless button like Fn4 and use DISP for another AF-Area Mode.
Too dreary to shoot any flight with an f/5.6 lens.