[The Squirrel Mafia]

These are nice.. esp the Z6 if you were looking at the K-3 II successor (since they are similar all-around type performers). Z6 is like an updated, mirrorless D750 with IBIS which, performance wise is very attractive compared to K-3II as a camera. Of course it won't mount your K mount lenses so there is that big issue (unless someone offers an adapter which likely won't be coming anytime soon if ever [little money in it]).


That said, I watched the tail end of the livecast announcement from Nikon and they showed a 24-70 f/4, 35 f/1.8, and 50 f/1.8 coming this year, 4 or 5 more lenses next (including a sweet 14-30ish f/4 lens), and 4 or 5 more in 2020.. so the system will take a couple years to build out.

I think this is more for current Nikon users and former Nikon users to bridge back to the brand.. since Nikon is after marketshare at the moment.

After a couple years I think it will be a system that can stand on its own. That said the FTZ adapter mounts well over 300 Nikkor lenses so its ready to rock. But why buy F mount lenses if you're going to eventually replace them with Z native lenses? I'd wait if you don't already have F mount gear. Or just wait for that K-3 III which could be pretty excellent... provided it arrives.

Canon should also have a response next year.. and considering they have a 6+ month lag from Nikon's release time.. they also have 6+ months to counter with something even more interesting..


So you have lots of options.

You are like the most patient shopper I know though.. you were waiting for the K-3 III a couple years ago when I was too!

Yes. The Z6 is the one that I would get. I wouldn't want to deal with the massive RAW files from the Z7. I wouldn't bother adapting F lenses. I'm one of those "buy the native lens for the camera" kind of guys. I would use nothing but native Z lenses on it.

I guess some my patience derives from not wanting to spend money on something that I might regret later, although I could technically sell it, but then I'll end up losing too much money in the process & I'll be like, "I should have waited for that other camera instead." My wife also keeps me in reality check, so that we have enough money to cover our expenses. I'd probably blow my paycheck in a couple of days if it wasn't for her. Hahaha! My K-50 bodies work well & most of my dad's Nikon gear is pretty much sitting at my house, so that keeps me grounded a bit. I do get to play with different cameras at times since some of my friends & family use cameras too. Everything from Canon to Samsung.

There are many exciting cameras coming out within the next couple of years. It's like a "renaissance" of cameras. No need to rush into something right now. From using both Pentax & Nikon cameras, I like more of the Pentax features than the Nikon features. The only thing I like about Nikon is their AF technology. The D7200 feels like a hefty chunk of brick in my hand, compared to the K-50 & K-3II, but when it comes time to shoot a toddler running around, I get more keepers with the D7200. When it comes to low light stills, the Pentax bodies beat the Nikon with the IBIS & having all lenses stabilized. The menus & everything else are much better implemented in the Pentax bodies, compared to the Nikon bodies.

So yeah. All my camera purchases have been on hold since the summer of 2016. My only camera purchase last year was a used Sigma 10-20mm f/4.5 lens that I wanted to use in Japan. I bought it 'cause it was almost dirt cheap. I would really love to stay in the Pentax fold, but it all depends on that K-3II replacement. If it can track a bit better & get me more toddler keepers, I'll be staying. I really do hope that Ricoh puts a lot more effort into the AF system. If not, I'll definitely be moving on to a mirrorless body. All I can say is that the future looks bright with many options heading our way.

[clackers]

. There are already 3 lenses in Z mount and another 7 will hit the market in 2019. This means that if you want to go to Nikon mirrorless, by the end of next year you will have already more new lenses than Pentax has for K1.

It's a pretty poor start, Dan.

The K-1 launched with the Holy Trinity of professional f2.8 zooms, and of course full compatibility in K mount going back to 1975, no $200 or whatever adapter.

The Nikon J mirrorless system promised a big lineup but they killed everything off.

[reh321]

The Nikon J mirrorless system promised a big lineup but they killed everything off.

I assume you're talking about what Nikon called the "Nikon 1" system ..... which seems to be similar to the "Pentax Q" system - not exactly mainstream

[clackers]

..... which seems to be similar to the "Pentax Q" system - not exactly mainstream

There's *no way* this Z series is mainstream, Reh.

Three grand full frame is definitely a niche premium product.

[reh321]

There's *no way* this Z series is mainstream, Reh.

Three grand full frame is definitely a niche premium product.

I was referring to the previous 'Nikon 1' line as "not being mainstream, just as 'Q' is not mainstream"

[Mark Ransom]

There's *no way* this Z series is mainstream, Reh.

Three grand full frame is definitely a niche premium product.

But it's laying the groundwork for a mainstream system, with choices that will eventually stretch from top to bottom. Of course you're going to start with the high priced gear first.

[Dan Rentea]

It's a pretty poor start, Dan.

The K-1 launched with the Holy Trinity of professional f2.8 zooms, and of course full compatibility in K mount going back to 1975, no $200 or whatever adapter.

The Nikon J mirrorless system promised a big lineup but they killed everything off.

If their already good trinity DSLR lenses will work well with adapters, then it won't be much of a problem for Nikon photographers to use them until they will get the new trinity sometime in 2019. Pentax didn't had a trinity of lenses at the release of K1. Ricoh relied on vintage lenses to supliment the 3 new professional lenses which is a completely different thing than having already modern and fast lenses to supliment these new 3 Nikon lenses.

We will see in a few weeks how the current lenses will work on Z7 with adapter.

[biz-engineer]

Pentax didn't had a trinity of lenses at the release of K1.

The DFA150450 was already around for a 18 months, the DFA70-200 was designed but delayed before the K1 arrived, DFA24-70, DFA15-30 were released around the same time as the K1 camera, the DFA28-105 was released a bit later, the same year. Well, those new Nikon mirrorless have additional features such as obviously EVF, a lot of AF points and 4K video, but my K1 still has a good 36Mp sensor and can be had for less than half the price of a Z7. For someone not wanting the latest tech, Pentax is cheaper.

[Rondec]

But it's laying the groundwork for a mainstream system, with choices that will eventually stretch from top to bottom. Of course you're going to start with the high priced gear first.

Why would you start with the high priced gear unless you want it to fail? That's what Nikon did with their one series and the comment everyone made about it was that they were nice cameras, but way overpriced for what they were.

Sony did the opposite. They started with cheap mirrorless APS-C cameras and slowly grew from there. Even now, they have a lot of different tiers and I'm guessing they sell a lot more APS-C mirrorless and base A7 cameras than they do A9s.

I'm not saying which way is the right way to go, but if you start with Leica-ish prices you shouldn't be too surprised if you don't sell many units.

[reh321]

Sony did the opposite. They started with cheap mirrorless APS-C cameras and slowly grew from there.

Canon Also started at the inexpensive APS-C end {in a few days we may see what their next step will be}, but I've commented many times that people here largely ignore that. They focus on who is "leading in FF", not who is doing APS-C well.

[Dan Rentea]

The DFA150450 was already around for a 18 months, the DFA70-200 was designed but delayed before the K1 arrived, DFA24-70, DFA15-30 were released around the same time as the K1 camera, the DFA28-105 was released a bit later, the same year. Well, those new Nikon mirrorless have additional features such as obviously EVF, a lot of AF points and 4K video, but my K1 still has a good 36Mp sensor and can be had for less than half the price of a Z7. For someone not wanting the latest tech, Pentax is cheaper.

Never said that Pentax isn't cheaper. I said that for someone who already have the trinity of Nikon lenses doesn't have to invest in the new mirrorless trinity when those lenses will be released if the adaptor will work very good with the DSLR lenses.

[D1N0]

But those lenses are probably better balanced with a D850 or D5. I think many pro's will keep there dslrs and use the Z camera's as a second camera with a nice z prime on it and as a video option.

[Rondec]

Never said that Pentax isn't cheaper. I said that for someone who already have the trinity of Nikon lenses doesn't have to invest in the new mirrorless trinity when those lenses will be released if the adaptor will work very good with the DSLR lenses.

I guess the question is how much smaller the Z6 or 7 are combined with F mount lenses plus adapter compared to a D750 or D850 combined with the same lens. It looks to me like there will be a small reduction in size/weight once you pop the lens on. The Z7 weighs about 150 grams less than a D750 and about 300 grams less than a D850 (not sure how much the adapter weighs). The actual bulk of the package is going to be pretty close once you stick a lens on. Where you really see smaller mirrorless camera packages, it is because the companies have released primes that leverage the shorter registration distance to create smaller wide angle primes. Nikon will probably do this too, but it hasn't happened yet.

If I owned a D850 and wasn't interested in video (and the D850 does 4K video too), I'm not sure that the size savings would warrant picking one of these up -- particularly at the cost.

[surfar]

the D850 does 4K video

Just dont try to AF it,the 2 Zeee bodies will AF from what ive seen so far.

[Dan Rentea]

I guess the question is how much smaller the Z6 or 7 are combined with F mount lenses plus adapter compared to a D750 or D850 combined with the same lens. It looks to me like there will be a small reduction in size/weight once you pop the lens on. The Z7 weighs about 150 grams less than a D750 and about 300 grams less than a D850 (not sure how much the adapter weighs). The actual bulk of the package is going to be pretty close once you stick a lens on. Where you really see smaller mirrorless camera packages, it is because the companies have released primes that leverage the shorter registration distance to create smaller wide angle primes. Nikon will probably do this too, but it hasn't happened yet.

If I owned a D850 and wasn't interested in video (and the D850 does 4K video too), I'm not sure that the size savings would warrant picking one of these up -- particularly at the cost.

I don't think that weight is among the first 3 things when comes to taking a decission to go to mirrorless. There are more apealing features which are important, such as: af spreaded all over the sensor and/or eye af, silent shutter, EVF. Handling also. I do like mirrorless cameras, except their handling and EVFs (A9 was the only one who didn't gave me headaches). I'm not yet in the market for a mirrorless, but I may be if they come up with a EVF that won't gave me headaches. That's why I can't wait to rent a Nikon Z7 when it will be available and see how good is the EVF.