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Archive 2022 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9

  
 
Joseph_A
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


Hi,
I have been shooting weddings for 14 years prior to COVID and have since decided to semi-retire (basically will only do weddings for friends and family that know my work).

Since my last wedding 2 years ago I have pretty much sold most of my DSLR stuff and moved to mirrorless, first the Z7II (sold it) and now the Z9.

My question is, should I stick with the Nikon 24-70VR version and FTZII adapter or purchase a Z 24-120 f4 (I have no interest in buying the Z24-70 f2.8 at this time)? My main concern is the focus ability in church (not always well lit) and reception hall? I intend to try out the Z9 in those conditions before using it for any wedding but if I can avoid spending more $$$ on the Z lens it would be great.

Does anyone have any experience with the Z9 and either of these 2 lenses and can expand what to expect it would be appreciated.

Thanks
Joe



Mar 17, 2022 at 05:23 PM
LeeSimms
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


I shoot Canon but I've yet to hear any Nikon mirrorless shooter reporting anything amiss when using converted lenses. That's the win-win part of the migration — old lenses work as well (if not better) than on a dSLR.

My brain has decades of partying built up and I find it hard to quickly juggle converted and native lenses in the same bag, but that's probably just me.



Mar 17, 2022 at 09:19 PM
allmarried
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


I have been shooting wedddings with a Z6II for a couple years. As part of the migration process from my Nikon D850, I tried using the 24-70 2.8 VR with the FTZ adapter but was not particularly pleased with speed or sharpness on the Z6II. I upgraded to the 24-70 2.8s Z mount lens and was totally blown away with sharpness and focus (speed and accuracy). I upgraded to Z9 a couple months ago and am equally please with it on the Z9. I recently purchased the 24-120s Z lens and it is equally sharp and focus is amazing. It is now a real struggle between the two for weddings, as I love the reach of the 24-120s but miss that one extra stop at times of the 24-70 2.8s. The 24-120s also has excellent close focusing and can easily replace a macro for wedding work. Time will tell, but I think I may use the 24-120s more often. One thing for sure, you can’t go wrong with either of the Z mount lenses over their F mount counter part.


Mar 18, 2022 at 02:01 PM
JRobertson
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


Full disclosure, I shoot Canon as well so I don't directly use Nikon bodies or gear. However, I do shoot with a few stellar wedding photogs that do and I can tell you that they have all moved to Z glass from adapted. Knowing them, I can surmise that it's because the difference in quality demanded it.


Mar 18, 2022 at 03:13 PM
LeeSimms
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


So a lens that looks sharp on a 45mp D850 looks soft on a 24mp z6II ?

Color me surprised.



Mar 18, 2022 at 03:23 PM
Joseph_A
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


allmarried wrote:
I have been shooting wedddings with a Z6II for a couple years. As part of the migration process from my Nikon D850, I tried using the 24-70 2.8 VR with the FTZ adapter but was not particularly pleased with speed or sharpness on the Z6II. I upgraded to the 24-70 2.8s Z mount lens and was totally blown away with sharpness and focus (speed and accuracy). I upgraded to Z9 a couple months ago and am equally please with it on the Z9. I recently purchased the 24-120s Z lens and it is equally sharp and focus is amazing. It
...Show more

Thanks for the feedback, very much appreciated. Except for the extra stop, do you notice an AF performance between the two lenses? Especially in church and reception.



Mar 19, 2022 at 01:23 PM
allmarried
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


Honestly they are very comparable in performance. It does focus slightly better with the 24-70 in low light due to the wider lens opening, but it hasn’t been a show stopper as of yet.


Mar 20, 2022 at 05:51 AM
MazeRunner
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


Nikon shooter here.

Instead of getting a Z9, I'd recommend the Z6II off the boards here and spending that $3500+ difference on the 24-70/2.8S and maybe try to squeeze in a 50/1.2S if possible from here. And sell the 24-70/2.8G/E.

Once I got my 24-70/2.8S, I sold both my 2.8G + 2.8E VR as the 2.8S had much better edges and corners.

While the Z9 is better than the Z6II, if you have a D850, it's as good as the Z9 if not a tiny bit better in extremely dark situations (think evening reception where the only lights are from the candles on tables and uplighting by walls... if video/DJ/you have some constant LEDs up, then Z9 works).

With that said, the Z9 offers a multitude of customization with three FN buttons on the front, and some new customizable focus areas with the newest update.

And yes, pretty much all Z glass here with few exceptions, and that's the 24/1.4G, 58/1.4G, 105/1.4E, and 200/2G VRII that I still use with my D850. I have the 14-24/2.8S, 24-70/2.8S, 70-200/2.8S, 105/2.8S Macro, 50/1.2S, 24/1.8S, and they're all better than their F-mount equivalents without question. Even my 24-70/4S was sharper than my G/E F-mount versions.



May 06, 2022 at 07:47 PM
elkhornsun
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


The FTZ adapter is basically an extension tube so the lens can focus on the sensor with a Z camera. I would never use a f/4 or slower lens for weddings as there is half as much light getting to the AF sensors.

I shot with two cameras until one of them died just as the processional was to begin. After that I added a third camera and had it in the trunk of my car. I missed a lot of shots while I was busy changing lenses or had the wrong zoom lens mounted for the situation.



May 16, 2022 at 06:18 PM
elkhornsun
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


Get the 24-70mm f/2.8 that provides twice as much light to the camera's autofocus sensors. That lens along with a 70-200mm f/2.8 are all that is needed. Even for macro type detail shots all you need is a +3 or +4 77mm closeup lens threaded onto the 24-70mm lens.

With only one Z9 your old 70-200mm can be used with your DSLR and the FTZ extension tube adapter or use a Z7 II.



May 31, 2022 at 03:08 PM
allmarried
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


Yes, in low light the extra stop helps a great deal with focusing.


Jul 19, 2022 at 07:09 AM
elkhornsun
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


JRobertson wrote:
Full disclosure, I shoot Canon as well so I don't directly use Nikon bodies or gear. However, I do shoot with a few stellar wedding photogs that do and I can tell you that they have all moved to Z glass from adapted. Knowing them, I can surmise that it's because the difference in quality demanded it.


It is a matter of ease of use. Having a mix of f-mount and Z lenses complicates matters. Even having two different cameras is a problem and shots are missed while resetting mentally from one to the other.

The 24-120mm f-mount was so soft that it was not usable for anything. The S version is much much sharper and usable throughout its range. It is considerably smaller and lighter than the old AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8 lens for DSLR cameras.




Jul 27, 2022 at 04:10 PM
LeeSimms
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · 24-70 VR or Z 24-120 with Z9


So far I've editing weddings shot with the Z 14-30 ƒ4, 24-70 ƒ2.8, 70-200 ƒ2.8, 85 ƒ1.8 and 20 ƒ1.8 — everything looks great. The 24-70 images look stand-out good.

> I shoot Canon as well so I don't directly use Nikon bodies or gear.

I'm so thankful Canon's support for legacy EF glass is SO good on mirrorless. I'm 2-years into the R6's and am just now migrating to newer native glass. In my bag this weekend ...

RF 70-200L ƒ2.8
RF 85L ƒ1.2
RF 85 Macro ƒ2.0
---
EF 16-35L III ƒ2.8
EF 24-70L II ƒ2.8
EF 35L II ƒ1.4
EF 135L ƒ2.0 (keeping it for now)

cleaned, boxed, and ready for eBay ...

EF 70-200L ƒ4 IS II
EF 85L 1.4
EF 100L Macro
Sigma 50Art & USB puck

Because the old lenses work so well with mirrorless, the resale's pretty high. Good times.

Canon has refurbs of the RF 15-35L and 24-70L at a discount but (compared to the EF counterparts) they are pretty expensive with no noticeable leap in performance. Am tempted to borrow a 28-70 from CPS. Such a buzz on that one.



Jul 27, 2022 at 10:00 PM





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