p.49 #1 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
molson wrote:
That's been the case for many, many years... nothing new about it.
What's new is the usage model. I don't know where to buy those special triggers, how to set those up, how much they cost, etc. I doubt any significant number of people on this forum has done such things. Yes, I also have a trail camera, but that's a totally different class of image quality.
Having it in the camera that one regularly use, enables pretty much anyone who wants to try it. It can open up a lot more opportunities or different perspectives. For example, one shoots a hummingbird at 500 to 600mm. But how does a picture shot with 50mm or even 35mm look like? I'm sure there are many other new usage cases that haven't been thought of.
p.49 #2 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
Nikon had this technology in some of their early AF film cameras at least 30 years ago, and there were hacks that let you do the same thing with some of their other cameras.
p.49 #3 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
duncang wrote:
Oh right - I wonder who the audience for "Auto Capture" is then
Nikon just keeps on giving... must be tough being a Nikon Pro Photographer - all these new features than nobody wants !!
Well OK maybe they just don't have the "mentality" to use these features.
Sorry - responded to the wrong post - couldn't be bothered to fix it.
Please don't make me say something I'm going to regret. Your response is more like what I was used to seeing on Dpreview's crowd. First of all the Auto Capture is brilliant as Nikon is well aware they have a significant audience of wildlife shooters. This empowers them to set the camera up to capture wildlife without their intrusion as we all know wildlife is most often spooked by human presence. The auto stuff I'm referring to is in regards to the autofocus systems in place on other cameras. Once again Nikon has chosen to put the photographer more in charge of the process, not just grab anything that's moving.
p.49 #4 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
saaketham wrote:
Don't try this in Saint Louis or Chicago
You could add Miami, Atlanta, Dallas, Cleveland, NY, Kansas City, Denver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, LA, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and a lot more. Thieves are pervasive and everywhere. Heck in San Francisco they will follow you and at gunpoint rob you of your camera gear. Nothing is sacred anymore.
p.49 #5 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
With its frequent and consequential firmware updates Nikon is showing a deep commitment to their user base. Whether a particular new feature is desired by a particular individual is not important.
Great job Nikon you are setting a high standard in this regard. I hope this upgrade is enjoyed by my Z9 shooting friends.
p.49 #6 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
molson wrote:
Nikon had this technology in some of their early AF film cameras at least 30 years ago, and there were hacks that let you do the same thing with some of their other cameras.
The camera would just be set at a fixed distance and it would trigger the shutter when something was in focus. However, it didn't recognize the subject, its direction of movement, the size of the subject, capture video or a series of shots. It would just take one picture. I think many people who use camera traps use some kind of auxiliary devices based on light, sound etc. to trigger the camera.
Key improvements here are that the camera can now with some likelihood identify the subject (ie. an animal), require the subject to be in a given distance range, size and approximate position in the frame, optionally require movement in the frame (can even select what direction, size and speed of movement), use even pre-capture together with auto capture, and capture a sequence of frames from 1 second prior to the moment where the process is triggered by the subject or movement. Thus you can potentially capture the whole sequence of an animal crossing the line of sight of the camera from before the subject appears within the frame. What I imagine to reduce the frequency of bad shots is to set up the camera in an angle relative to the expect path of the subject (you can sometimes see animal trails) and then select the direction of movement in the camera to trigger only when the subject is moving towards the camera to get the face towards the camera rather than the behind. That's if you want cute pics rather than just document animal movement.
As subject identification and the programming of the feature improves over time, I imagine this will be a hot tool to use for wildlife photographers especially those working with mammals who can identify the human scent and make it more difficult to get some shots when the photographer is actually present.
However, if a lot of people start using this feature a lot in their expensive cameras, insurance companies might start to flinch and figure out ways of not covering theft if care is not done to avoid it. I would certainly not personally leave a camera like the Z8 or Z9 outdoors without supervision.
p.49 #7 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
ilkka_nissila wrote:
The camera would just be set at a fixed distance and it would trigger the shutter when something was in focus. However, it didn't recognize the subject, its direction of movement, the size of the subject, capture video or a series of shots. It would just take one picture. I think many people who use camera traps use some kind of auxiliary devices based on light, sound etc. to trigger the camera.
Key improvements here are that the camera can now with some likelihood identify the subject (ie. an animal), require the subject to be in a given distance range, size and approximate position in the frame, optionally require movement in the frame (can even select what direction, size and speed of movement), use even pre-capture together with auto capture, and capture a sequence of frames from 1 second prior to the moment where the process is triggered by the subject or movement. Thus you can potentially capture the whole sequence of an animal crossing the line of sight of the camera from before the subject appears within the frame. What I imagine to reduce the frequency of bad shots is to set up the camera in an angle relative to the expect path of the subject (you can sometimes see animal trails) and then select the direction of movement in the camera to trigger only when the subject is moving towards the camera to get the face towards the camera rather than the behind. That's if you want cute pics rather than just document animal movement.
As subject identification and the programming of the feature improves over time, I imagine this will be a hot tool to use for wildlife photographers especially those working with mammals who can identify the human scent and make it more difficult to get some shots when the photographer is actually present.
However, if a lot of people start using this feature a lot in their expensive cameras, insurance companies might start to flinch and figure out ways of not covering theft if care is not done to avoid it. I would certainly not personally leave a camera like the Z8 or Z9 outdoors without supervision....Show more →
I guess it's reasonable to expect a few improvements to the feature over the span of 35 years since it was introduced...
p.49 #8 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
JustShootMe wrote:
That’s the scary part , set and pray
Maybe tech is ever evolving. Are we going from spray and pray, to set and pray? The devil made me say that! Regardless, I know I am anxious for the new kid to arrive, and am looking forward to finding out first hand.
p.49 #10 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
The idea of using shorter, brighter lenses instead of longer, darker ones is interesting...it doesn't take long for birds to get used to a new immobile object near their food sources.
I still think the examples as presented are such a boring method of photography...leave bait out, leave camera running, go inside for a cup of tea, marvel at "your" success later in the day.
Jun 15, 2023 at 10:13 AM
berimbolo Offline • • • [X]
p.49 #11 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
RoamingScott wrote:
The idea of using shorter, brighter lenses instead of longer, darker ones is interesting...it doesn't take long for birds to get used to a new immobile object near their food sources.
I still think the examples as presented are such a boring method of photography...leave bait out, leave camera running, go inside for a cup of tea, marvel at "your" success later in the day.
I think its cool if it can help get really wide angle, close-up shots of birds/wildlife. I think the idea of putting your 600mm F4 on it and getting shots you can get by hand without too much work is kind of lame. I think one of the winners of BPOTY used a remote release method for wide-angle bird photos.
p.49 #12 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
Not to mention, most of the best nature documentaries rely heavily on remote triggers...you simply won't get shots like that in person. It can take weeks of leaving a camera out to get THE shot you're looking for.
As a bigger body of work highlighting natural behaviors, I think it's valid and interesting.
If you're doing this in your backyard on a baited perch...
p.49 #13 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
RoamingScott wrote:
The idea of using shorter, brighter lenses instead of longer, darker ones is interesting...it doesn't take long for birds to get used to a new immobile object near their food sources.
I still think the examples as presented are such a boring method of photography...leave bait out, leave camera running, go inside for a cup of tea, marvel at "your" success later in the day.
p.49 #16 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
Auto capture was designed first and foremost with professional sport event in mind. I hear it was designed with inputs from AFP. Nikon now has by far the most powerful solution to manage a pool of cameras:
- local ability to auto capture in a super smart way
- remotely controlled robots
- software to control remotely a set of cameras
A single operator can cover a basketball game with 10 Z9s rigged all over the court. That’s simply a total game changer resulting from a very ambitious vision. It’s so far ahead of what Canon and Sony are proposing that I expect other major press agencies to follow AFP soon.
This kind of paradigm change is an order of magnitude more significant for agencies that any of the camera performance improvements that may come in the next 10 years. It follows the blue ocean framework which is about transforming the game. A metamorphosis when Nikon is going from a camera manufacturer to the provider of an experience to capture an event in stills and video. A business case for the MBAs of the world.
I am sure it will also be of tremendous value for wildlife obviously.
p.49 #17 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
bernardl wrote:
Auto capture was designed first and foremost with professional sport event in mind. I hear it was designed with inputs from AFP. Nikon now has by far the most powerful solution to manage a pool of cameras:
- local ability to auto capture in a super smart way
- remotely controlled robots
- software to control remotely a set of cameras
A single operator can cover a basketball game with 10 Z9s rigged all over the court. That’s simply a total game changer resulting from a very ambitious vision. It’s so far ahead of what Canon and Sony are proposing that I expect other major press agencies to follow AFP soon.
This kind of paradigm change is an order of magnitude more significant for agencies that any of the camera performance improvements that may come in the next 10 years. It follows the blue ocean framework which is about transforming the game. A metamorphosis when Nikon is going from a camera manufacturer to the provider of an experience to capture an event in stills and video. A business case for the MBAs of the world.
I am sure it will also be of tremendous value for wildlife obviously....Show more →
So this photographer puts out 10 Z9's rigged all over the court. Scenario: 10 pro photographers rig 10 z9's all over the court. That equals 100 cameras with all the wires. Makes no sense to me, but I do not shoot basketball games.
As far as wildlife goes I have been in love with nature my entire life and photographing it since 1974. I've said many times on this forum that the most enjoyable part of every nature photography outing was the experience of being there and observing the nature.
I want no more automation in my wildlife photography.
This is exactly what things are going toward and what I do not want....... sit at home on the computer and monitor the cameras. More computer time. Not for me.
p.49 #18 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
bs kite wrote:
So this photographer puts out 10 Z9's rigged all over the court. Scenario: 10 pro photographers rig 10 z9's all over the court. That equals 100 cameras with all the wires. Makes no sense to me, but I do not shoot basketball games.
As far as wildlife goes I have been in love with nature my entire life and photographing it since 1974. I've said many times on this forum that the most enjoyable part of every nature photography outing was the experience of being there and observing the nature.
I want no more automation in my wildlife photography.
This is exactly what things are going toward and what I do not want....... sit at home on the computer and monitor the cameras. More computer time. Not for me.
This is not new Robert. Sony did this in a big way in the recent Summer Olympics. In fact they even did it underwater in the pools for the swimming events. Sony also publishes these capabilities as a developer SDK so that venues, and solution providers can fully integrate them in their systems just the way they want including file transfer and communications. For stills and video.
I agree with you, for me it would ruin the experience, but for content delivery organizations it is a valuable tool.
p.49 #19 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
bs kite wrote:
So this photographer puts out 10 Z9's rigged all over the court. Scenario: 10 pro photographers rig 10 z9's all over the court. That equals 100 cameras with all the wires. Makes no sense to me, but I do not shoot basketball games.
As far as wildlife goes I have been in love with nature my entire life and photographing it since 1974. I've said many times on this forum that the most enjoyable part of every nature photography outing was the experience of being there and observing the nature.
I want no more automation in my wildlife photography.
This is exactly what things are going toward and what I do not want....... sit at home on the computer and monitor the cameras. More computer time. Not for me. ...Show more →
Well, maybe you can have the best of both worlds. You can still go out, set it up, enjoy the nature, and still come home with the perfect picture. Without needing to worry about capturing the perfect moment, maybe it can be even more enjoyable by just observing it. It all depends on how you approach things.
p.49 #20 · Nikon unveils the highly anticipated Z8 camera!
Auto Capture is probably a spill over from the software for the company's robotic systems, investing in deep learning - notably its subsidiary MRMC, which Nikon acquired 7 years ago during its restructuring, but had been working closely with since the 2012 Olympic Games at least
bs kite wrote:
So this photographer puts out 10 Z9's rigged all over the court. Scenario: 10 pro photographers rig 10 z9's all over the court. That equals 100 cameras with all the wires. Makes no sense to me, but I do not shoot basketball games.
As far as wildlife goes I have been in love with nature my entire life and photographing it since 1974. I've said many times on this forum that the most enjoyable part of every nature photography outing was the experience of being there and observing the nature.
I want no more automation in my wildlife photography.
This is exactly what things are going toward and what I do not want....... sit at home on the computer and monitor the cameras. More computer time. Not for me.
Regardless, I know I am anxious for the new kid to arrive, and am looking forward to finding out first hand. 
. 
Makes no sense to me, but I do not shoot basketball games.