RexGig0 wrote:
The 4” LCD on the ZR was a major reason I bought a ZR, so, a Z5 II C would be a step down, in that regard.
Your posts here were the reason I was quite excited about the Z5 IIc, given the talk that Nikon was supposedly going to release something akin to a ZR for still photography. I spent 20 years shooting with 6x6 waist-level finders and preferred viewing a focusing screen with both eyes over looking into a viewfinder with just one. It’s more relaxed and, in my opinion, makes composing a shot significantly easier.
Unfortunately, I find the displays on current mirrorless cameras too small and too dim.
However, the large, bright display of the ZR had it been on a Z5 II would have been reason enough for me to buy one and use it with Voigtländer lenses, thanks to the focusing aids.
But what Nikon has actually delivered here is, in my eyes, a bad joke.
PS:It’s a shame that this product was launched by Nikon rather than Sony or Leica, I would have loved to read RoamingScott’s biting and scathing comments on it.😄
I personally think this is not a great release, no evf, one less card slot and still 620g with iffy screen.
Maybe they will sell, but I'm starting to question Nikon's moves now...
Question is - is there ANY chance that Nikon will make hot-shoe EVF for it in the future? It would fix main issue for MANY users, for this... thing... and Zr.
Is it possible? I'm guessing yes, but would they do it?
Nifty Fifty wrote:
So many young photographers are accustomed to the large, bright, high-resolution OLED displays of their smartphone cameras and won't believe their eyes when they look at the sorry excuse for a screen on the Z5 IIc. But then they’ll discover the fisheye-AF feature, let out a shout of joy, and whip out their wallets.
For better or worse, a lot of people nowadays seem to use a camera to film themselves, either on a gimbal, tripod, selfie stick, or hand-holding the camera with arm extended. Also when setting up a microphone on the camera it's easy to end up with a setup where the EVF can't be used. If the camera is used to remotely get shots, an EVF can't be used. If you use a crane, an EVF can't be used. If you use an underwater housing, an EVF can't be used. For many tripod-based shots of static subjects, be it landscape or macro, I often find myself preferring the back LCD so I don't have to get into an awkward angle and bend my neck. When hand-holding the camera above the person's eye level, again, an EVF can't be used. I might want to mount a remote camera on a church balcony to capture photos from a different angle when photographing a wedding ceremony, and the cheaper it is (but with good image quality and full-frame sensor so I can get wide angle in low light) the more comfortable I am leaving it unguarded. I imagine a lot of people find themselves in situations where the EVF is not practical to use, and having a small, not too expensive camera for such situations is useful, and having other cameras with EVFs can be used when an EVF is needed.
Let's see what the market leaders have on offer in the EVF-less interchangeable lens camera segment:
Sony ZV-E10 II (APS-C)
Sony ZV-E10 (APS-C) I don't know if this is currently manufactured
Sony ZV-E1 (full-frame)
Sony FX30 (APS-C)
Sony FX3 (full-frame)
Sony FX6 (full-frame)
Canon EOS R50 V (APS-C)
Canon EOS R6 V (full-frame)
Canon EOS C50 (full-frame)
Canon EOS C70 (APS-C)
Canon EOS C80 (APS-C)
Although many of these are higher end than the ZR or Z5IIc it seems quite a lot of cameras today come without EVF, and many don't have manufacturers' support for add-on EVFs although some do (Sony FX5).
Not my cup of tea, but I hope it will sell very well for Nikon. It is a very solid offering for the younger or more budget conscious creators. Then again, the Z5 II, for only $250-300 more, seems like a better choice (EVF, better LCD, dual cards).
I like the price point, the fact that Sony charges $2,500 for the a7C II and $800 for the 40/2.5 is not making them look good... And for that price you don't even get a proper mechanical shutter.
There’s something to be said for the price point. That’s the most compelling part about this camera for me.
I have a Z5II so I have a good idea of the results this camera will be capable of and honestly, I think it’s good value for money. Put a 40/2 on it and take it to the park with the family and you’ll get some gorgeous shots.
Would I get it? Likely not, because I like an EVF. But Nikon must think there’s a market, perhaps based on an analysis of ZR sales. And I guess there are other cameras like this out there to study: the Fuji X-M series, for example.
What a letdown if there ever was one.
What everybody(I mean me) wanted was:
-A Nikon Z7iiC, they could even recycle their Expeed 6 and their old sensor, people would rant but still want it, if it’s for photography, it’s more than ok. A few new features to open the road to a futur Zfii.
-An external viewfinder for their C line and the Zr and other cameras to come.
A digital hot shoe could have saved that camera to my eyes.
If they lack some funds for some r&d or if they wanted really bad to release a cheap full frame camera for the tik-tok crowd from ten years ago that’s fine but that photo centric next gen marketing hurts my soul.
Even the target demographic is not that gullible, the younger crowd interested in photography all buy some film cameras and instax.
phinix wrote:
I personally think this is not a great release, no evf, one less card slot and still 620g with iffy screen.
Maybe they will sell, but I'm starting to question Nikon's moves now...
Question is - is there ANY chance that Nikon will make hot-shoe EVF for it in the future? It would fix main issue for MANY users, for this... thing... and Zr.
Is it possible? I'm guessing yes, but would they do it?
See Matt Irwin’s you tube presentation. It appears that the Z5 II C does not have the same flash shoe electronic contacts as the ZR. The Z5 II C appears to have the same hot shoe electronic contacts as the standard Z5/Z6 series of cameras. This does not mean that an add-on EVF is in the ZR’s future, but, it appears to be less likely for the Z5 II C.
I am not sweating about an EVF for the ZR, personally. I bought the ZR for what it is.
I am not angry, or bitter, about the Z5 II C. My 2026 move was for the ZR. I hope that Nikon guessed correctly, about their targeted market, for the Z5 II C, and sells plenty.
Edited to add: Let’s do keep in mind that these reviewers and influencers have pre-production samples, not the final product configurations, in-hand.
I cannot describe how much I dislike those flippy screens. makes the camera twice as wide to do any sort of off face shooting. and on this camera there is no on face shooting.
Take away the EVF and lower the display resolution? Really odd UI choice. I've already read one preview comment about how it is a bit problematic in bright sun . . .
And how do you manage to take away an EVF and a card slot and end up at the same weight? Does fish detection add that much weight?
p.8 #10 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
Couldn’t agree more but I think we’re in a Minority. Hate the vari angle screens…
@glassartist, where do you get lower resolution? Both appear to have 2.1M dot 3.2” LCDs.
Superscroll wrote:
well I woke up excited about seeing what we got.
if they had just put a tilt screen on it......
I cannot describe how much I dislike those flippy screens. makes the camera twice as wide to do any sort of off face shooting. and on this camera there is no on face shooting.
p.8 #11 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
This will of course change over time, but it's a bit funny that as of today the Z5IIC is more expensive than the Z5II over here:
€1499 vs €1549
Also curious that it doesn't even have the 2.1M dot rear screen that the Z5II has, but even lower res. I think the lack of EVF would have been debatable even with the 4" Zr sceen, but the only available display being a 1M dot rear LCD feels very 2015 Sony NEX to me..
p.8 #12 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
fjablo wrote:
This will of course change over time, but it's a bit funny that as of today the Z5IIC is more expensive than the Z5II over here:
€1499 vs €1549
Also curious that it doesn't even have the 2.1M dot rear screen that the Z5II has, but even lower res. I think the lack of EVF would have been debatable even with the 4" Zr sceen, but the only available display being a 1M dot rear LCD feels very 2015 Sony NEX to me..
It has the same LCD resolution as the Sony A7 c II which costs about 50% more than the Z5IIc. So the LCD is perhaps very Sony 2023, but the camera is cheaper to reflect the lack of EVF.
Anyway, the Nikon store price for the Z5II is currently 50€ higher than the Z5IIC as the Z5II is under 300€ rebate (normal prices 1999€ and 1649€), and I would expect street prices to reflect this difference once the product is actually available for purchase. So when there is no rebate campaign going on, the Z5IIc should be about 300-350€ cheaper, depending of course on what the market thinks of it. Before the product is actually available for purchase, stores often exaggerate the prices because they don't know what the official price will be, and they play it safe, but once the stock arrives, things usually change.
p.8 #14 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
I do see that now, someone else had reported 2.1 M dots but agree Nikon is reporting half that. Although Nikon is also saying, the weight is about 13% less than a Z5II 620 g versus 538 g.
Regardless, Nikon themselves claim that the C is for casual, this is the entry-level full frame now. That means it’s not gonna satisfy most of the users of this forum.
p.8 #15 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
AdaptedLenses wrote:
I do see that now, someone else had reported 2.1 M dots but agree Nikon is reporting half that. Although Nikon is also saying, the weight is about 13% less than a Z5II 620 g versus 538 g.
Regardless, Nikon themselves claim that the C is for casual, this is the entry-level full frame now. That means it’s not gonna satisfy most of the users of this forum.
p.8 #16 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
Bummer about the missing EVF. Hope Nikon sells a ton of them and helps to increase their profits. The IBIS is an attraction over the Z30 but perhaps some appealing smallish FX lenses will come along and increase the attraction even more.
p.8 #17 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
I didn't see the bit about the lower res LCD last night. That + 1 card slot is non-compelling enough to not recommend this to anyone over a refurb Z5II in my opinion. The LCD nerf is kind of mindboggling when the price isn't THAT much cheaper than the Z5II.
Already saw some chatter about the LCD being hard to use in direct sun, the thought of using this in Texas in the summer is not appealing vs something like the ZR LCD.
p.8 #20 · Looks like a Z5iiC is dropping next week
phinix wrote:
I personally think this is not a great release, no evf, one less card slot and still 620g with iffy screen.
Maybe they will sell, but I'm starting to question Nikon's moves now...
Question is - is there ANY chance that Nikon will make hot-shoe EVF for it in the future? It would fix main issue for MANY users, for this... thing... and Zr.
Is it possible? I'm guessing yes, but would they do it?
Imagine a Z5IIc with same monitor resolution as Z5II, 2-card slot and an optional hot-shoe EVF ...
Imagine, too, if the optional EVF cost €400–500. At that price, they could sell an EVF of more than decent quality.
Add a 30+ Mpix BSI sensor.
With these features, the camera would be an attractive product for a much wider audience.
Instead, this Z5IIc seems like a Polyphemus-camera —with one eye missing
