p.6 #2 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
AlphaPhotography wrote:
That's the first I'm hearing about Nikon not opening the lens fully beyond f5.6 to acquire focus, but I never really looked into it either. That's interesting that they'd take that approach vs what Sony and Canon are doing. Do you have a source about this describing how the system operates?
That's not the full story.
Thom Hogan: "On the Z8/Z9 focus is performed at the aperture you’ve set unless you select an aperture physically smaller than f/5.6 (higher number), where the camera will leave the aperture set to f/5.6 for focus operations". [TH -- "If a lens has a smaller maximum aperture than f/5.6—for instance, the 800mm f/6.3 PF VR S—the camera will focus at the lens’ maximum aperture only."]
This is done to avoid focus inaccuracies caused by focus breathing at wide apertures. It would be better if Nikon made this parameter user configurable. Especially since Z lenses ( together with rf mount lenses) generally have low focus breathing.
The matter has been discussed at length elsewhere. But if further discussion is required, a new thread is preferable.
From an earlier comment, it is clear that this thread was started under an alias by a well known troll, he has already achieved 5 pages of misinformed nonsense and it is best to let the thread die.
Most wildlife shooters who once frequented these pages now use Back Country Gallery where active forum mediation prevents participation by trolls. Genuine questions get genuinely informative responses.
p.6 #3 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
woof2025 wrote:
I'm a fashion photographer, I shoot lots of frames, lots of subjects moving quite quickly. Currently using a D850 which I quite like but that face detect AF really draws me to the mirrorless options. I ordered a Z8 and after my first testing I'm finding the eye detect to be slightly off, often getting the end of the nose instead of the iris. My FX30 that I use for video always nails focus, all the time, every time. Is this a known issue with the Z8, the reviews haven't mentioned it..
Might help to post up some examples and your focus settings. It'd be silly to just throw something to the curb because you're not using it correctly, and are blaming the tool. Just taking the camera out of the box and putting it into auto area AF mode is probably not going to yield you the best results.
The Z8 and Z9 in the right hands and settings will crush it, in the studio, at events, on location etc.
p.6 #4 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
One aperture behavior Thom and others failed to observe is that starting with the Z9/Z8, the camera will actually remain stop down smaller than f/5.6 when shooting continuous high-speed bursts at those smaller apertures.
For example, prior to the Z8/Z9, if you shoot at f/8, previous bodies would stop down to f/8 for the exposure but return back to f/5.6 in between exposures to AF. The only exception was Continuous H (Extended), where the camera would keep the aperture at f/8. With the Z8/Z9, the camera performs the initial AF at f/5.6 but then keeps the aperture @ f/8 for AF for continuous shooting, even for Continuous L modes.
p.6 #5 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
Alistair1 wrote:
I wonder who he really is. I have my suspicions....
I expressed my suspicions much earlier, but I was attacked by OP, as well as by OP's advocate, who even challenged me to apologize.
I think, he rather owes me an apology, as time proved me right, most of the people here realized what this is all about..
Like Scott said it, we can smell it, after so many years being here.
p.6 #6 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
Why don’t you guys who object to this thread just stop clicking on it?
Some decent information being shared here… The good thing about the Internet is you don’t have to click on the things that you don’t want to see.
p.6 #7 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
ronno wrote:
Why don’t you guys who object to this thread just stop clicking on it?
Some decent information being shared here… The good thing about the Internet is you don’t have to click on the things that you don’t want to see.
To share decent information and correct misinformation.
p.6 #9 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
cvrle59 wrote:
I expressed my suspicions much earlier, but I was attacked by OP, as well as by OP's advokat, who even challenged me to apologize.
I think, he rather owes me an apology, as time proved me right, most of the people here realized what this is all about..
Like Scott said it, we can smell it, after so many years being here.
If it does turn out that the OP was a troll with bad intentions, I have no problems saying that you were correct, I was fooled, and I apologize for not recognising it. Like I said previously I would be very disappointed. So many people posted in good faith including me. I don't understand why someone would do that. What reward is there in doing it. Maybe that is why I am easily fooled in this regard.
Some here say they think they know who it is and he is a troll that has been banned in the past. Just name him then, and this could be settled with some proof. Report him to Fred and if Fred confirms, or even agrees then for me that is confirmation enough.
p.6 #10 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
1bwana1 wrote:
If it does turn out that the OP was a troll with bad intentions, I have no problems saying that you were correct, I was fooled, and I apologize for not recognising it. Like I said previously I would be very disappointed. So many people posted in good faith including me. I don't understand why someone would do that. What reward is there in doing it. Maybe that is why I am easily fooled in this regard.
Some here say they think they know who it is and he is a troll that has been banned in the past. Just name him then, and this could be settled with some proof. Report him to Fred and if Fred confirms, or even agrees then for me that is confirmation enough....Show more →
That's fine, I don't think we need to apologize, nobody really crossed critical line.
There is no solid evidence yet, the OP was a troll, but the OP's interaction with others in this forum struck me little bit, what made me to react such way.
p.6 #13 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
Are you saying video AF is or should be better than stills AF? Or that it require less processing power? My experience has been the opposite, that video AF is often far worse and slower to track and keep focus than stills AF on the same camera. The R5 was particularly bad in this regard. I found the photo AF excellent and the video AF rather terrible, especially when shooting in log. It was one of the reasons I began looking at Nikon and recently picked up a Z8 as I heard its video AF was more comparable with its stills AF. I also have an R5II now which seems better in video AF than the original R5, but I haven't done enough testing to know how much it has improved. Whichever of these two cameras (Z8 and R5II) has better AF will weigh heavily in my decision on which system to invest more into.
It seems autofocus systems/abilities are almost always tested and rated based on stills AF only. I've found that most modern cameras have great photo AF but far less capable video AF. I always assumed it had to do with the processing power involved with video, especially at higher frame rates or resolutions.
bernardl wrote:
This is unfortunately a very real possibility. If that were the case it could either be an individual initiative or an organized one.
The growing success of Nikon has some Sony users extremely worried it seems. And I do understand they concern. The limited rate of progress of the flagship a1II does clearly open the door for an undisputed lead by Nikon with the Z9II when it ships later this year. Nikon’s momentum makes this extremely likely.
Btw people shooting both video and stills will know that apparent success in video in terms of sharpness doesn’t correlate well with perfect focus in stills. Video is a lot less demanding and the streaming nature provides much more data points to the focusing system.
p.6 #15 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
woof2025 wrote:
I'm a fashion photographer, I shoot lots of frames, lots of subjects moving quite quickly. Currently using a D850 which I quite like but that face detect AF really draws me to the mirrorless options. I ordered a Z8 and after my first testing I'm finding the eye detect to be slightly off, often getting the end of the nose instead of the iris. My FX30 that I use for video always nails focus, all the time, every time. Is this a known issue with the Z8, the reviews haven't mentioned it..
Hey, I just noticed you’re in the UK too. How about meeting up sometime soon, I can bring over my Z9 to compare on a shoot? I’m all over the country every week so sure it must be possible to hook up and help out?
p.6 #16 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
Alistair1 wrote:
That's not the full story.
Thom Hogan: "On the Z8/Z9 focus is performed at the aperture you’ve set unless you select an aperture physically smaller than f/5.6 (higher number), where the camera will leave the aperture set to f/5.6 for focus operations". [TH -- "If a lens has a smaller maximum aperture than f/5.6—for instance, the 800mm f/6.3 PF VR S—the camera will focus at the lens’ maximum aperture only."]
This is done to avoid focus inaccuracies caused by focus breathing at wide apertures. It would be better if Nikon made this parameter user configurable. Especially since Z lenses ( together with rf mount lenses) generally have low focus breathing.
The matter has been discussed at length elsewhere. But if further discussion is required, a new thread is preferable.
From an earlier comment, it is clear that this thread was started under an alias by a well known troll, he has already achieved 5 pages of misinformed nonsense and it is best to let the thread die.
Most wildlife shooters who once frequented these pages now use Back Country Gallery where active forum mediation prevents participation by trolls. Genuine questions get genuinely informative responses....Show more →
I have no idea why you think I'm a troll still, I've used the D850 for about 10 years (on global campaigns and covers of major magazine, GQ etc if that counts for anything). I bought the Z8 and in tests it kept missing focus slightly. I returned it and got my new Sony A7RV yesterday and so far it seems to be more accurate. For what I do, in my workflow with my lenses. If it works for you then great, no worries. My experience with the Z8 won't make your camera work less well. From one of the most prominent digi tech's in LA that works with all the camera systems all the time and is a bit of a tech nerd recently posted on threads: "Yall, I’m a digital tech. My job is to check focus and I work with every camera out there. R5 mkII is unmatched. Face tracking on Nikon misses constantly. It’s been a problem on literally every shoot with Z8/Z9 for me".
p.6 #17 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
woof2025 wrote:
I'm a fashion photographer, I shoot lots of frames, lots of subjects moving quite quickly. Currently using a D850 which I quite like but that face detect AF really draws me to the mirrorless options. I ordered a Z8 and after my first testing I'm finding the eye detect to be slightly off, often getting the end of the nose instead of the iris. My FX30 that I use for video always nails focus, all the time, every time. Is this a known issue with the Z8, the reviews haven't mentioned it..
My go-to for years was the D850. I do not touch it now. The Z8 is my go-to. There is one thing I do not like about my Z8. The menu is ridiculously complex and redundant. Fix it Nikon! But I finally found what I needed and I love the Z8 for my wildlife work.
My Z8 achieves absolutely perfect focus on the smallest POINT instantly and *100% of the time*. And it does this in some very dim inside lighting.
Also, I can recompose and the focus point will remain in perfect focus regardless of what my final composition is.
Settings:
My Fn2 button is dedicated to the Single Point AF mentioned above that instantly achieves perfect focus 100% of the time.
For any other focus option, I use AF-ON. I chose AF-ON over Shutter button AF because AF-ON allows me to recompose and the original focus point will remain locked.
When the AF-ON button is depressed, I see the Wide Area AF (L) block with the small Single Point AF “x” in the middle. At this time Wide Area AF (L) is the AF option I chose for action or a wider scene.
p.6 #18 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
""Yall, I’m a digital tech. My job is to check focus and I work with every camera out there. R5 mkII is unmatched. Face tracking on Nikon misses constantly. It’s been a problem on literally every shoot with Z8/Z9 for me"."
I'm wondering, how photographer, who took official portrait for president of US, managed it.
Or, how president even chose someone with such an inferior tool, like Z9.
I have no idea why I waste my time here, and time of others, but that comment makes me nothing than lol, so childish.
p.6 #19 · After testing Z8 and having focus issues I may go to the Sony A7RV
cvrle59 wrote:
""Yall, I’m a digital tech. My job is to check focus and I work with every camera out there. R5 mkII is unmatched. Face tracking on Nikon misses constantly. It’s been a problem on literally every shoot with Z8/Z9 for me"."
I'm wondering, how photographer, who took official portrait for president of US, managed it.
Or, how president even chose someone with such an inferior tool, like Z9.
I have no idea why I waste my time here, and time of others, but that comment makes me nothing than lol, so childish.
Of course you can take in focus great pictures with the Z8 or Z9 and a lot of top pros use it. It's just which camera has the most accurate dependable face detect autofocus. In my testing face detect focused on end of eyelashes about half of the time and for me that's not good enough. I'm sure that there's a work around (maybe spot focus tracking or whatever) but for me face detect is the important thing. You may find the opinions of a top professional lol (as in the digi tech) or you can listen and maybe learn something.
