p.5 #1 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
Because you want any number of features that aren’t purely action/speed related? The Z8 is an entirely more capable camera.
johnvanr wrote:
Really. I'm not a Nikon shooter, but unless one shoots fast action, I don't really see a point of picking a Z8 over a Z7II. Why carry more bulk when you don't need the extra speed?
p.5 #2 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
TravelinBriNY wrote:
I think this is a great camera for anyone wanting to shoot Nikon, and I hope it pushed Sony to put at least 33 MP in the A9 II, but I don't think it really pushes Sony in any meaningful way.
True; the only thing this camera will push is trade-ins of D850's (Nikon's target market for the Z8) and Z9's.
p.5 #3 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
RoamingScott wrote:
It’s truly bizarre how some people react to the possibility of carrying a tiny extra battery in their pocket. The Z9 is the only camera I’ve never carried a second battery for, and that includes all of my Z battery cameras. It’s fine, you’ll live.
It's trully bizarre how some people can be so ignorant. The fact that you're willing to carry 3 extra batteries for a full day of shooting is your choice.
It was a nice upgrade going from FW50 to FZ100 for me as having an extra spare was most often not even needed for the day on A7III. On A1, 2 batteries are a must if I'm out on a day trip and I'd be carrying a 3rd just to have peace of mind. Sure, it's not an issue if I take a bigger bag or I'm alone, but when I use my most compact setup, any extra piece hurts the overal loadout and why regress in the first place.
That's why for me it's a deal breaker if I have to switch batteries after 3h in a cam used throughout the day (as opposed to shooting 10k images in 15 minutes) .
p.5 #4 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
wind30 wrote:
A stacked sensor with a fast eshutter is the most impt thing to me so it is good to see Nikon pushing down the price in this segment. Let’s put it this way, a9 tech is 6 years old. I am pretty sure sony cost of manufacturing a9 is really low today and it’s just because there is no competition, sony keep the prices high…
And that six-year old A9 will pretty much keep pace with a Nikon Z9... as will a $1999 OM-1. It's awfully hard to justify Nikon's prices based on AF performance alone - maybe they are pricing their cameras by weight?
p.5 #5 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
molson wrote:
And that six-year old A9 will pretty much keep pace with a Nikon Z9... as will a $1999 OM-1. It's awfully hard to justify Nikon's prices based on AF performance alone - maybe they are pricing their cameras by weight?
You do realize that an A1 is 60% more expensive, right? Again, please show me the photo that an A1 could capture but a Z9 couldn’t.
p.5 #6 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
I don't think the discussion is if one camera can get a picture that the other one can't. It's more of the ease with which one can do it more than the other.
Working to track airplanes and get in focus like the youtuber Manny Ortiz(?) complained about doing with his Z9 is not something we expect any camera to in this day and age much less the flagship model. Of course, when it's all said and done, he got plenty of shots of planes in focus and we can't say the Z9 can't get shots of airplanes.
May 11, 2023 at 10:07 AM
osv2 Offline • • • • [X]
p.5 #7 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
groob wrote:
You do realize that an A1 is 60% more expensive, right? Again, please show me the photo that an A1 could capture but a Z9 couldn’t.
he said a9, not a1.
there is no substitute for 30fps raw; certainly not with the heavily compressed z9 jpegs, using a weak stepper motor lens.
nikon owners should be asking, why buy a z9 when z8 is the same camera, for $1500 less?
p.5 #10 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
The Z8 is a different size/weight class compared to the A9II. Needless to say I would never take it out of the house as it would not fit in my portable bags. So for me, it's a no go from a practical point of view, regardless of the tech inside.
p.5 #11 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
groob wrote:
You do realize that an A1 is 60% more expensive, right?
More expensive than what? As of today, an A1 is 48% more expensive than a not-yet-available Z8, and only 14% more expensive than a Z9.
Again, please show me the photo that an A1 could capture but a Z9 couldn’t.
I can't, because I didn't keep any of the photos where the Z9 lost focus on the subject and jumped to the background...
If you're a dedicated Nikon shooter, the Z9 (and probably the Z8) are the best you are going to get, so why not be happy with them, instead of all this whinging and hand-wringing trying to convince yourselves the Sony and Canon cameras are suddenly so bad?
p.5 #12 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
psp2000 wrote:
The Z8 is a different size/weight class compared to the A9II. Needless to say I would never take it out of the house as it would not fit in my portable bags. So for me, it's a no go from a practical point of view, regardless of the tech inside.
I had to buy new camera bags when I bought the Z9. Now that it's gone, I can carry a medium-format system along with my regular gear with all that extra space...
p.5 #13 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
While I have several A1’s, had tried a Z9 for a year, and now have the A7RV, I’m mentally comparing the Z8 to the A7RV because their prices are really the same. AF speed/accuracy, improved image stabilization, and resolution are worth having in the A7RV when compared to the A1, but the advantages of a stacked sensor are hard to give up. I’m lucky because I own both but to get that I paid ~ $10500. The Z8 is very compelling for its price vs. feature combination IMHO. I think Sony needs to offer a 33 Mpixel A9III to compete with it and I think it needs to be below $4000. I think from 14mm to 200mm Sony has the edge in lenses but for telephoto Nikon’s newest TC and PF lenses give them the edge.
I’m not a videographer so I won’t talk about that and leave those comparisons to the more experienced video shooter.
p.5 #14 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
RoamingScott wrote:
It’s truly bizarre how some people react to the possibility of carrying a tiny extra battery in their pocket. The Z9 is the only camera I’ve never carried a second battery for, and that includes all of my Z battery cameras. It’s fine, you’ll live.
I think the sensitivity to battery life is a remnant from the early days of mirrorless cameras.` Most people were coming from DSLRs. The difference in battery life between a DSLR and early mirrorless cameras was huge. If you wanted to shoot all day with a mirrorless camera you would need to carry around 4 or batteries minimum.
Of course these days it is much better, but still not as good as DSLRs were. People still pay attention to battery life. When compared to other cameras in its class, the Z8 is the poorest performer in this area. It will never be know as having good battery life. Because of this it will be criticized heavily by some.
So, these reactions from people are not bizzare in the context of camera industry history. In fact they should be both expected, and respected.
May 11, 2023 at 12:03 PM
berimbolo Offline • • • [X]
p.5 #15 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
groob wrote:
You do realize that an A1 is 60% more expensive, right? Again, please show me the photo that an A1 could capture but a Z9 couldn’t.
Ignoring extreme megapixel requirements and other edge cases, every individual photo could probably be taken with any camera from the big 3 that was released in the last 5-10 years. I'm a mediocre photographer and was able to get a tree swallow in flight with an a6400 last year. It was maybe 1 out of 200 shots that was in focus, but it happened.
what really matters is the ease of use, keeper rate and subject matter being shot. A lot of that is personal preference and dependant on what you're shooting. Not everyone cares a lot about getting swallows/terns in flight, for example. Im glad the Z8 and Z9 are impressive cameras. Im particularly glad that the Z8 is relatively inexpensive for what it is. I don't understand the need for people to get into heated arguments about which multibillion dollar company they want to give their money to.
p.5 #16 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
swldstn wrote:
While I have several A1’s, had tried a Z9 for a year, and now have the A7RV, I’m mentally comparing the Z8 to the A7RV because their prices are really the same. AF speed/accuracy, improved image stabilization, and resolution are worth having in the A7RV when compared to the A1, but the advantages of a stacked sensor are hard to give up. I’m lucky because I own both but to get that I paid ~ $10500. The Z8 is very compelling for its price vs. feature combination IMHO. I think Sony needs to offer a 33 Mpixel A9III to compete with it and I think it needs to be below $4000. I think from 14mm to 200mm Sony has the edge in lenses but for telephoto Nikon’s newest TC and PF lenses give them the edge.
I’m not a videographer so I won’t talk about that and leave those comparisons to the more experienced video shooter.
You also need to factor in the frictional cost and time of switching lenses etc...nikon prices many of its top tier lenses higher than Sony does - that's how they recoup the body cost. There's also a mismatch in available lenses for both systems - e.g. no 1.4 lenses for a lot of focal lengths.
For someone already in the Sony system, it really doesn't make sense financially even if the bodies are priced a bit higher for very little marginal gain if at all unless there's an emotional connection to Nikon or you want access to Nikon's super telephoto lenses which I think is the one good reason to switch.
p.5 #17 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
psp2000 wrote:
The Z8 is a different size/weight class compared to the A9II. Needless to say I would never take it out of the house as it would not fit in my portable bags. So for me, it's a no go from a practical point of view, regardless of the tech inside.
The Z8 looks pretty hefty next to the Sony camera. That could be a benefit or drawback for some. At this point though, I imagine that someone that's used to a smaller camera is not really looking to move back to larger, heavier cameras.
p.5 #18 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
psp2000 wrote:
Is Z8 autofocus up to par with A9II?
I'd say in some ways Z8 is better and some ways A9II still is better.
Z8 has more subject detect options including birds. A9II just cats/dogs and humans.
A9II I think still has an ease of use advantage with the Wide and Zone AF modes (non-tracking) being able to acquire subjects easier at distance, over complicated backgrounds and moving onto complicated backgrounds.
I think when the Z8 has acquired and is tracking your intended subject properly its hit rate is as good and probably better than A9II. It is getting to the point of acquiring and tracking that is more difficult compared to A9II.
Z8 still requires clunky handoff AF methods and it is no good at all at distant subjects or subjects over more complicated backgrounds.
That said, if Nikon lenses are what you want, I wouldn't not go Nikon because of Z8 AF. Z8 AF is still very good and can get you any shot you are after, just not as easily as A9II for fast action.
**all my "Z8" opinions are based on my ownership of Z9**
**it has been 2 years since I shot the A9II so my memory may not be the best and I've never had A9II directly beside Z9**
p.5 #19 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
Dultimate wrote:
I don't think the discussion is if one camera can get a picture that the other one can't. It's more of the ease with which one can do it more than the other.
Exactly. Once the Z9/Z8 acquires and is actively tracking your intended subject the hit rate is every bit as good as Sony cameras. Its deficiencies lie in getting to the point of acquisition and tracking for trickier subjects and surroundings.
p.5 #20 · The new Nikon Z8 vs the Sony A7RV and potential A9III
arbitrage wrote:
Exactly. Once the Z9/Z8 acquires and is actively tracking your intended subject the hit rate is every bit as good as Sony cameras. Its deficiencies lie in getting to the point of acquisition and tracking for trickier subjects and surroundings.
I've had my share of issues getting the Z9 to simply focus on a dark bird against a cloudless blue sky. Like you say, once you're locked, you're good, but initial acquisition can be downright painful if you don't have focus recall set to a button. There are times the Nikon acts blindfolded in very simple conditions without any logical reason.
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