It's interesting how Nikon approached this. Much thinner than the newly announced C50 but most of all, a FAR bigger screen. Very interesting. I like it thus far. It almost looks like there are no buttons on the back, based on how big that screen is.
Interesting.. no grip. I wonder if its using ENEL15Cs........... and if its this thin, perhaps it really does have a MicroSD. Could be something amazing, or a flop (which isn't like Nikon lately)
Did anyone see the video before it was taken down? Is it the Z6iii sensor with Expeed 7? Looks interesting except no open gate is a disappointment. Price is low.
NikonRumors is claiming 15+ Stops of Dynamic Range. That's a big claim since the Z6 III couldn't manage this but Panasonic certainly did. So, the IMX820 is certainly capable of higher dynamic range. Let's see if Nikon pulled it off. But, based on the specs...
Things I like
- Video Specs
- Price/Value
- Size (compared to FX3 & C50)
Disappointments
- No redundant recording (again)
- No grip
- No cooling fans
- Micro HDMI
- MicroSD Slot
I guess I can say that the Zr will stand out in terms of value vs the competition, not in specs. That's Nikon's thing of late, but some of these things I listed as disappointments could be a deal breaker altogether for videographers. At least on the Z6 III, we had a full size HDMI and sure redundantly record to an Atomos Ninja V, but its nice to just have that internally for once.
This is not a serious cinema cam, it’s baby’s first RED. As usual Nikon seems to be more interested in competing on price first to grab a slice of the market. It will be extremely compelling for content creators who just need to grab 30 to 60 second slices of anamorphic video as B roll.
RoamingScott wrote:
This is not a serious cinema cam, it’s baby’s first RED. As usual Nikon seems to be more interested in competing on price first to grab a slice of the market. It will be extremely compelling for content creators who just need to grab 30 to 60 second slices of video as B roll.
Yep, totally agree. I mean, it still packs a punch if its $2,100.. but not at the level of the competition. Still, Nikon made the effort to make a cinema camera, why skimp on features if that's what they're pushing so aggressively into aside from the reason you listed, which makes total sense.
Ok so absolutely no chance of redundant recording. Idk.... definitely not in the same pro ballpark as the C50 or FX3 in certain areas. But at $2199 vs $3899 for the C50, Nikon definitely packed the Zr with features, once again aiming for value.
PixiPhotography wrote:
I like how Gerald put it, its a great vlog camera but dynamic range isn't that great according to his test. Average was 10.5-12.5 stops of DR.
While the battery and card door seems difficult to access, requiring unmounting of the camera from support, large cards can be used (e.g. 1-2 TB) and since it's not 8K it should be possible to get a CFExpress card large enough to hold what you need without switching cards becoming a serious practical issue. The Micro SD card seems like something that can be used as a secondary shot for in-camera backups when taking photos, like I do on the Zf. I simply have it record JPG (or if needed, RAW) always as a backup when shooting NEF on the main card, and in the unlikely event of a primary card failure, the files can be pulled from the second card via USB-C, wirelessly, or by taking out the card which indeed is difficult (but mostly unnecessary, if the Micro SD card is never used as primary). I see the card location an unfortunate side effect of the very compact design of the camera. The smaller HDMI interface likely is due to the size and space concerns as well, but since the camera has such a large display, and can record to CFExpress type B, do you really need an external monitor, and what advantages would that bring?
As for XLR microphone inputs, I read that Nikon is working on an accessory for that, also there will be support for V-mount batteries for this camera in the future.
I don't see why it wouldn't be good for photos; there is no mechanical shutter, but the sensor has a pretty fast read time (for both photos and videos) so I think for most uses it would work fine, but it would not be optimal for fast action photos due to the potential for slightly more rolling-shutter distortion than, e.g., Z8. According to Nikon's web page, the ZR even supports radio and optical advanced wireless lighting (Nikon's remote flash system). The user interface may be suboptimal for photos for sure, and there is no EVF, but then most photos are taken with smartphones which do not have EVFs, either. It's less expensive than the Z6III, likely because it has no EVF or mechanical shutter, but there is a large back display.
Although some have complained that it has no fan, but Undone said he wasn't able to get it to overheat at all (in ambient conditions up to 32 C). In those conditions, 6K24 Red RAW was recorded for 1 h 40 min before the battery run out (and it wasn't even full to begin with). 2 h 2 min on a full battery indoors. So there you go. Seems quite usable in many situations.
The value delivered at 2,100 US$ is really very impressive.
These are going to fly off the shelves. Many people can't afford a 4,000 US$ Canon or Sony FX3.
Many insta content creators (not only vloggers) will just love what they get with this camera. And won't care the least bit about mini HDMI (that can easily be by-passed btw) or the lack of in camera back up.
- 32 bits audio float means that you can completely stop to think about audio during capture
- In camera Red Raw with the ability to load LUTs in camera will make it way easier to preview results
- IBIS means you can do without a gimbal in many cases (or to use a smaller and lighter one)
- the large bright viewfinder means you can do without an external screen
It's a camera made in heaven for the many people who want to create high quality contents for their Youtube or Insta but cannot afford an. expensive camera, even less a crew or a heavy logistic. In particular, but not only, people shooting both stills and video. The Zr is both the back up of the Z8 and the video body.
This will also be a great option for some B camera angles where there isn't enough room for a full size pro video body or where there is too much risk involved. The ability to shoot in camera RED Raw will make production of a Multicam set up much easier.
Another thing is that this paves the way for the video specs of the Z9II and of a higher end video camera using the Z9II sensor that could fit nicely between the Zr and the Kokomo X.
Btw, the latest version of Capture One now supports the Zr, Davinci now support Prores raw and Zeiss just announced a line of Z mount Cinema lenses.
Like I said…baby’s first RED. This is a pretty unserious camera that appeals to the least savvy and most creators in this space could just get away with the Z6iii, a camera with far better ergos. The Zr is full of silly annoyances mostly due to Nikon keeping it so small. It’s a little sad to slap “cinema” on a clear vlogging camera.
For people looking to take video very seriously, the FX3 is still the logical starting point.
PixiPhotography wrote:
I like how Gerald put it, its a great vlog camera but dynamic range isn't that great according to his test. Average was 10.5-12.5 stops of DR.
RoamingScott wrote:
This is a pretty unserious camera that appeals to the least savvy and most creators in this space could just get away with the Z6iii, a camera with far better ergos. The Zr is full of silly annoyances mostly due to Nikon keeping it so small. It’s a little sad to slap “cinema” on a clear vlogging camera.
First sign that we will see a whole thread about him buying a Zr twelve months from now…
That Gerald Undone review sums it up well. Great specs for the price, but the body design is very confused between vlogging and cinema, and will make for a seriously annoying workflow.
A one-man army shooter can deal with the inconvenience for the cheap RED RAW, but bring this to a larger production and you'll be laughed out of the room.
Prioritizing compactness over full-size HDMI and card placement is just about the silliest decision I've seen in a while (Canon made this mistake with the R5C a while ago). IBIS and internal mics are also useless for a cinema body and point to more of a vlogger mindset.
On the bright side, the lack of fans seems to be much less of a problem one would expect. Good job on the thermal dissipation.
Evection wrote:
That Gerald Undone review sums it up well. Great specs for the price, but the body design is very confused between vlogging and cinema, and will make for a seriously annoying workflow.
A one-man army shooter can deal with the inconvenience for the cheap RED RAW, but bring this to a larger production and you'll be laughed out of the room.
Prioritizing compactness over full-size HDMI and card placement is just about the silliest decision I've seen in a while (Canon made this mistake with the R5C a while ago). IBIS and internal mics are also useless for a cinema body and point to more of a vlogger mindset.
On the bright side, the lack of fans seems to be much less of a problem one would expect. Good job on the thermal dissipation....Show more →
It's important to separate the wheat from the chaff. You are buying access to 6K RED codecs, full stop.
The rest of the camera is a mishmash of good and bad ideas, and ultimately not a housing to be taken seriously. But if you want the codecs above all else, maybe you can live with the pain points. But there are many pain points. I'm excited to see where Nikon takes the line when they produce a pro-level body.
A single 1/4 20 thread, the placement of it being so far back, memory card inside the battery slot, no backup video recording, no full size hdmi, the screen being completely bungled by the cables...these are bad jokes to people that take this stuff seriously. Then no open gate or de-squeeze in the firmware?
The good news is that so far, I've not seen the same noise complaints from the Z6iii.
RoamingScott wrote:
It's important to separate the wheat from the chaff. You are buying access to 6K RED codecs, full stop.
The rest of the camera is a mishmash of good and bad ideas, and ultimately not a housing to be taken seriously. But if you want the codecs above all else, maybe you can live with the pain points. But there are many pain points. I'm excited to see where Nikon takes the line when they produce a pro-level body.
A single 1/4 20 thread, the placement of it being so far back, memory card inside the battery slot, no backup video recording, no full size hdmi, the screen being completely bungled by the cables...these are bad jokes to people that take this stuff seriously. Then no open gate or de-squeeze in the firmware?
The good news is that so far, I've not seen the same noise complaints from the Z6iii....Show more →
Yeah, the lack of open gate and desqueeze I can understand as product differentiation with the future higher-end bodies (and lets be honest, nobody buying this has the budget for good anamorphics), but the ergonomic failures have no right to be here. They seem like unintentionally bad design that's trying to also be vlogger-friendly. More of an identity crisis than anything.
Still, great to see pro codecs trickling down into entry-level bodies. It's what we all expected/hoped for when Nikon acquired Red. Just wish they had thought out the design better.
but dynamic range isn't that great according to his test. Average was 10.5-12.5 stops of DR.