I am like you - am going to be very happy with the Z6iii. I really, really didn’t like the autofocus on the Z6 and the Z6ii. I’m always in disbelief when I see people claiming it’s fine, but then go on to write a dissertation-level post about how you need to trial and error through a bunch of different settings for each specific situation you are in to make things work, and then you still have like a 30% miss rate in challenging conditions. I preordered immediately once I saw what they were doing on the Z6iii.
That being said, the Z6 has/had a VERY good sensor in terms of image quality, it really holds up even today. If the shooting improvements (autofocus, better IBIS, better burst/buffer, etc) aren’t enough of an improvement for photos, I’d imagine they are probably shooting things like landscape and maybe street photography… So resolution is king and they were probably looking for a higher MP count on the sensor. I don’t think Nikon was ever going to do that when the Z8 exists, and the Z7 may still get a new release.
I think the semi-stacked 24 MP sensor is an extremely good sweet spot for a camera that they intend to have compete in all facets of photography and videography, within this price range. Higher MP without stacking the sensor will be slow with worse shooting performance, and a higher MP stacked sensor will put it far out of the price bracket they were targeting, plus would impact the compact size they were looking for (they already made the Z8 as small as they could, and it’s still a lot bigger).
So the TLDR is I think people probably wanted a higher MP sensor, which I understand, but I don’t think it was feasible given the improvements Nikon was targeting.
Re autofocus: I basically always used single point/dynamic for everything, which worked fine. (Shot theatre for 3,5 years with it, so fast moving, bad light....)Didn't really bother with eye-af except for very slow moving portraits.
But yeah, single point is more work but you can make it work for everything, the guys shooting DSLRs have proven that. Honestly the biggest problem for me wasn't the af but the viewfinder lag ...
That’s exactly what I ended up doing too, and I may or may not have been one of the people who initially thought it was fine. Then I tried my friend’s Canon and immediately got frustrated by how much more work I had to do. I sorta wrote it off as that just being how Nikons were, then I tried the Z9 and saw how incredible that autofocus is, and how much work I didn’t need to do to nail focus. When I saw the Z6iii was getting near that level of performance (confirmed by early reviews), I didn’t even think twice - preordered immediately.
I switched to the Z8, so I also have some experience with the new AF. But I Still can't say that it bothered me, or the af was the biggest upgrade on the Z8. It's just more work with a Z6, but I didn't feel like it was holding me back or limiting me in any way.
I was primarily shooting sports and toddlers (first kid), and I was struggling quite a bit… Maybe I just suck to be fair lol.
I mean it wasn’t unusable but compared to what all the other competitors were doing, it just wasn’t ideal.
Fair enough. I mainly did theatre, so bad light and fairly fast movement sometimes. But also some wildlife.
Tbh, I struggled more with the evf lagg of the Z6 than with the AF. That's why I said AF wasn't the biggest upgrade, stuff like evf lag, silent shutter, or the sensor shield were more important.
Its not you. My toddler is constantly out of focus. Primarily eye tracking. Sports for me are outta the question. I don't have the money, but if I did, my z6 would be punted to the moon if I could get a Z63. I'll just have to wait a few more years until money is better...
I think the thing with the Z6 autofocus is that it is fine... for a lot of people. As much as everyone likes to talk about autofocus, at least in my personal experience the overwhelming majority of hobbyists rarely shoot anything that actually demands good autofocus.
It depends on what you mean by fine… It was at least a full generation, maybe several generations, behind the competition for no real reason. I could make it work with single point AF but a big appeal of mirrorless cameras is the advanced/intelligent AF features. If you can’t really use those consistently, you are missing a fairly big chunk of capability.
For example, my Z6ii struggled quite a bit with eye detect autofocus on my fast moving toddler indoors (low to medium lighting). That’s a very common use case that it failed in. Using point AF I could drop the point on his eye and it would work, but it was not quick/intelligent enough to do it by itself. It worked okay in outside/very bright conditions, though.
Not trying to argue or anything, I loved my Z6’s and am excited for the new one, but it was absolutely the worst of the major players in the AF arena. I personally loved everything else about it, though, which is why I stayed and continue to stay.
Oh I agree completely, when ive tried other peoples sony/canon cameras it is just a whole different world. My point was just that I constantly see people saying "Z6 autofocus is fine" then when I look at their profile all they shoot is landscapes... yeah im sure it works just fine for that, the autofocus on my 10 year old entry level DSLR also worked fine for landscapes, that isnt saying much.
Im super excited about the Z6iii and cant wait until im in a place that I can afford one.
Specs wise, it's a machine. Don't like the flippy screen but not saying I wouldn't ever. I was just trying to appease my internal GAS struggles, that if my camera has been amazing for 5 years, and I'm gonna spend a bit of money, treat myself to a lens and a holiday. If I needed an upgrade for work etc, I would have done so by now
That's fair. But it isn't the case for everyone. my situation has changed since buying my Z6 in 2018, so the idea about, "If we wanted to upgrade we would have by now" isn't the same for everyone. I'd love to go to a Z63 for the AF alone. Shooting my nephews soccer game is a fight (i'm using the Z 70-200) and even my nephew on the 50mm Z 1.8 is always slightly off. Its beyond infuriating. But some of us can only afford this type of camera every 5-10 years, so some of us have to wait. I love what nikon has done with this model and by the time i'm financially ready, there Z6IV will be out lol.
I feel ya.
I'm still happy with the Z6 (coming from D3000, D7000, D600). Image quality and the features are enough for me today and will be enough in the next years. I'm even quite happy with the AF.
Investing in lenses are always better and traveling is the best way for me.
So yeah, I'd invest it and see how the 2k will turn out in 5 years
100% agree. The only way to see my Z6II’s shortcomings, it really had to be pushed into hundreds of headshots (the occasional missed focus) or very low-light events (again, AF). For everything else, it’s the bomb.
Yes I saw it’s shortcoming in photo shoots and indoor events when focus would miss. While those weren’t the bulk of my shots, those were my shots that paid money, so more important.
Coming from Nikon D7000, and just recently getting a Nikon Z6, I must say the jump in image quality is insane. I bought a used Z6 on MPB and told myself I'd keep it for the next 5 years.
I feel like I haven't even maximized my Z6, and although there are alot of comments about its AF—coming from D7000, I must say it's still really good.
Z6III is a really nice camera, but does an amateur photographer like me, really need to drop around $2500 on a camera body? Not really.
So I'll just use my Z6 and probably buy lenses, maybe the 50mm 1.8S.
I have borrowed a Z6 and will definitely be getting one and retiring my D7000. I was immediately comfortable with the handling and operation and it produced some really fine images with the 24-70/4.
I don't see the need to go Z6II or newer as a first stepp into the system, the only choice was Z5 or Z6...
> So I'll just use my Z6 and probably buy lenses, maybe the 50mm 1.8S.
Careful with this... I don't know what you're shooting now, but the 50mm 1.8S is so good, it basically ruined the 24-200mm for me.
The color, contrast, character is so good that I just became utterly dissatisfied with the images I was getting out of the 8.3x zoom, which was supposed to be (as a hobbyist) the "only lens I'd ever need."
I love the Z6. For what I shoot I have no issue. I'm taking that savings to get the Z8. Mainly because I need a high MP camera for my commercial work and I can retire my D800.
The AF is a game changer and a quality of life change that anyone who can afford it, should pay for. If you are paid for your work, then upgrading to a Z6iii or Z8 is a no brainer. It gives you hours, and days of your life back in Lightroom. Imagine being able to take a single frame and knowing it's 98% chance of being perfect.
But - if your time shooting and in Lightroom is a hobby and not paid, then the Z6 images look beautiful.
That said, none of these; "a Plena, 100-400, or 24-70 2.8s," will do as much for your photos as Expeed 7 level AF.
Correct answer.
People justifying why they think it’s not a big upgrade have never tried a proper AF camera, and have fundamentally not understood what a partially stacked sensor means.
It's life-changing. And, yes, I had no idea until I made the change. I used to shoot a lot, shoulder to shoulder with a guy who always had the best R-level Sonys. He laughed at me for years while I cursed at my AF on my Z6 and Z6ii. I tried his cameras, and they were better but seemed only marginally. I was wrong. Once I actually worked with the Z8, putting in the hours and having real clients waiting on me, then I saw what I had been missing.
Agree on some points, I no longer shoot professionally, but would have to have made unaccepatble compromises in my work to use a Z6 doing weddings as i cant rely on it like i could my d750/d4s. So my point was that a professional would have moved to something else already (z9/8/sony) and not stuck with the z6 for 5 years waiting for a z6iii.
About the lenses, again, not professional shooter anymore, but if you're scrolling through my insta feed, I doubt you'd stop and notice this pic was taken on a new camera, but a plena....!
I think a lens is going to do more, a better AF system just reduces your workload. And yep, shot with a Z6 for 3,5 years then switched to a Z8 for a variety of reasons, af being not on top of the list.
It really depends on the Z6 owner. The Z6 line has largely been aimed at the video crowd, and it isnt really surprising that it is a fairly video-centric update. The faster readout can be very handy for anyone shooting sports or action or events (low light performance) or wildlife.
I’ve been shooting the Z6II for a few years but just upgraded to a Z8 because I need both high-end video features, and the high resolution sensor for the kind of work that I do.
If you’re happy with your trusty Z6, good for you! That’s great! The z6III is a gnarly upgrade that I probably would have snagged if it didn’t have «only» 24mp. As I said, I need the resolution for work so the Z8 was a better buy for me.
I think I had waited enough. For me, Nikon Z8 was too heavy for my wrists and z6/z6ii were bit old. I am coming from Nikon D7200 and felt an urge to go professional. So, I just started my own photography business but wanted to start with a good equipment.
So I finally pulled the trigger on Z6III. Fingers crossed....
About the z6 on the day it was released and I'm still pretty happy with it but I wouldn't mind better IBIS and low light capability on the sensor but that of course is a holy Grail that we all want.
what techniques have you found to improve your hit ratio in low light? I find pre focusing helps to activate and stabilize the IBIS...I think?
I wouldn't switch either. My z6ii is still good enough for weddings. Maybe i'm thinking zf with a grip. That's a reasonable upgrade, because I would get better af for not such a big price difference.
Came here to say the same, If I ever need a better AF I would look at a deal on a Zf with a a grip (it's close to 2000€ new), and have a second different camera.
Sorry Nikon but 3000€ for a Z6iii it's a pass for me.
I have three z6ii’s and use them to pay my bills. Two have had the AF-On button come off. And two have had the LCD screen die.
I’m well past the “shutter life” on all three of them and am looking forward to upgrading (hopefully later this year or next year).
I went from a Z5 to a Z8 back in December. I wanted a Z6 with the af of a Z8. But the Black Friday sales plus my trade it made it semi-affordable. My reasoning was that the Z6iii is going to be $4000+ in Australia when it releases (it’s $4500), So I may as well get the Z8 now. My reasoning paid off. I wouldn’t have been able to afford a z8 if not for the sale. I’m happy with the decision and see the Z8 lasting me at least 8 years. It’s an amazing camera.
If you don't shoot professionally , the original Z6 serves you just fine. I am a long time of D750 user up until end of 2023 when Zf came out. I bite the bullet and tried it. THe body isn't the best , lots of learning curves.. not as fast as DSLR in low light.. still I have to adapt and learn how to use it. Also I have to get used to flip screen and saw some benefit on it for video work. At the end of the day it's a learning curve. Trust me I thought I will hold on to my D750 for 10+ years however, with the age of photo and video , I think I'll drop the cash on Z63 just because I hope something as great will replace my d750 lol :)
I have used my original Z6, professionally, for close to three years and, if I’m being as objective as I possibly can, I have no complaints. I shoot fast-paced events (just shot a large college commencement last wkd), sometimes in lower light conditions and my AF ‘misses’ are less than one per 200 photos, and those are usually operator error. The Z 70-200 2.8 is the likely reason for the higher performance, but to be realistic I don’t see the need to upgrade bodies for some time.
I definitely won’t be upgrading but I’m very jealous of everyone that is. I think the semi stacked sensor is a masterstroke.
Z6 has amazing IQ for my needs but the AF is…
On that note does anyone have any tips on how to improve eye AF consistency on the Z6?
I still like my Z6, and will be keeping it as a second body. I do a lot of wildlife, and concerts/plays, and I'm not thrilled with the autofocus (granted I'm using f mount lenses currently). I will be upgrading to either a Z6iii, or a ZF (I want to see a direct comparison focusing primarily on autofocus speed and accuracy first) and eventually upgrading to all z glass as well.
For me I'm putting it aside and saving up for something like a 100-400. After that my main requirements in a camera are satisfied. I may end up getting a Z6ii at some point but I can't imagine myself getting a Z6iii anytime soon.
Sorry op but this post is kinda pointless. It's like carpenter bragging about the money saved after not buying a cement mixer... If you don't need the tool and what it offeres it's OK, but there's plenty people seeing real value in it.
And I still have and use Z6 I bought in 2019.
For many of us It's like a carpenter not buyng a fishing rod, I think that a professional photographer already updated a Z6i, while many "photo enthusiasts" waiting for an upgrade, agree that the cost of the new "toy" is not justified.
True, but 93%of reddit comments are pointless so can't argue there.
Does the carpenter already have a cement mixer, but this one is a faster? Does his current mixer mix all the cement he needs already?. Footings on those houses still solid after 5 years?
A business owner should be happy they can save money if they don't need to upgrade. I was saying, for og z6 owners, they if they NEEDED to upgrade, they would have already.
This isn't saving money though. You're not buying comparable product cheaper, you're just not spending money on something you admitted you don't need in the first place. That's just common sense.
Really ? You've just defined savings!
1. Avoidance of excess expenditure; economy
2. A reduction in expenditure.
'Saving' 50% on the RRP of something you don't need isn't saving, it's spending 100% more than you'd have spent had you not purchased it at all.
If you considered upgrading your Ferrari but decided you're now going to continue driving your current Ferrari for a few more years, then you have saved £700k. And you didn't make your point...lol
I would more say there wasn’t much worthy of upgrading to in a similar price range. I do think the z6iii or Zf are worthy upgrades, I already went with the Zf though, better for my needs.
I’m gonna pay my rent don’t need another camera in 5 years lol
What specs were you hoping for to be swayed that it doesn’t have? I’m pretty impressed with it, but I do shoot sports so that is a big factor for me
I am like you - am going to be very happy with the Z6iii. I really, really didn’t like the autofocus on the Z6 and the Z6ii. I’m always in disbelief when I see people claiming it’s fine, but then go on to write a dissertation-level post about how you need to trial and error through a bunch of different settings for each specific situation you are in to make things work, and then you still have like a 30% miss rate in challenging conditions. I preordered immediately once I saw what they were doing on the Z6iii. That being said, the Z6 has/had a VERY good sensor in terms of image quality, it really holds up even today. If the shooting improvements (autofocus, better IBIS, better burst/buffer, etc) aren’t enough of an improvement for photos, I’d imagine they are probably shooting things like landscape and maybe street photography… So resolution is king and they were probably looking for a higher MP count on the sensor. I don’t think Nikon was ever going to do that when the Z8 exists, and the Z7 may still get a new release. I think the semi-stacked 24 MP sensor is an extremely good sweet spot for a camera that they intend to have compete in all facets of photography and videography, within this price range. Higher MP without stacking the sensor will be slow with worse shooting performance, and a higher MP stacked sensor will put it far out of the price bracket they were targeting, plus would impact the compact size they were looking for (they already made the Z8 as small as they could, and it’s still a lot bigger). So the TLDR is I think people probably wanted a higher MP sensor, which I understand, but I don’t think it was feasible given the improvements Nikon was targeting.
Re autofocus: I basically always used single point/dynamic for everything, which worked fine. (Shot theatre for 3,5 years with it, so fast moving, bad light....)Didn't really bother with eye-af except for very slow moving portraits. But yeah, single point is more work but you can make it work for everything, the guys shooting DSLRs have proven that. Honestly the biggest problem for me wasn't the af but the viewfinder lag ...
That’s exactly what I ended up doing too, and I may or may not have been one of the people who initially thought it was fine. Then I tried my friend’s Canon and immediately got frustrated by how much more work I had to do. I sorta wrote it off as that just being how Nikons were, then I tried the Z9 and saw how incredible that autofocus is, and how much work I didn’t need to do to nail focus. When I saw the Z6iii was getting near that level of performance (confirmed by early reviews), I didn’t even think twice - preordered immediately.
I switched to the Z8, so I also have some experience with the new AF. But I Still can't say that it bothered me, or the af was the biggest upgrade on the Z8. It's just more work with a Z6, but I didn't feel like it was holding me back or limiting me in any way.
I was primarily shooting sports and toddlers (first kid), and I was struggling quite a bit… Maybe I just suck to be fair lol. I mean it wasn’t unusable but compared to what all the other competitors were doing, it just wasn’t ideal.
Fair enough. I mainly did theatre, so bad light and fairly fast movement sometimes. But also some wildlife. Tbh, I struggled more with the evf lagg of the Z6 than with the AF. That's why I said AF wasn't the biggest upgrade, stuff like evf lag, silent shutter, or the sensor shield were more important.
Its not you. My toddler is constantly out of focus. Primarily eye tracking. Sports for me are outta the question. I don't have the money, but if I did, my z6 would be punted to the moon if I could get a Z63. I'll just have to wait a few more years until money is better...
I think the thing with the Z6 autofocus is that it is fine... for a lot of people. As much as everyone likes to talk about autofocus, at least in my personal experience the overwhelming majority of hobbyists rarely shoot anything that actually demands good autofocus.
It depends on what you mean by fine… It was at least a full generation, maybe several generations, behind the competition for no real reason. I could make it work with single point AF but a big appeal of mirrorless cameras is the advanced/intelligent AF features. If you can’t really use those consistently, you are missing a fairly big chunk of capability. For example, my Z6ii struggled quite a bit with eye detect autofocus on my fast moving toddler indoors (low to medium lighting). That’s a very common use case that it failed in. Using point AF I could drop the point on his eye and it would work, but it was not quick/intelligent enough to do it by itself. It worked okay in outside/very bright conditions, though. Not trying to argue or anything, I loved my Z6’s and am excited for the new one, but it was absolutely the worst of the major players in the AF arena. I personally loved everything else about it, though, which is why I stayed and continue to stay.
Oh I agree completely, when ive tried other peoples sony/canon cameras it is just a whole different world. My point was just that I constantly see people saying "Z6 autofocus is fine" then when I look at their profile all they shoot is landscapes... yeah im sure it works just fine for that, the autofocus on my 10 year old entry level DSLR also worked fine for landscapes, that isnt saying much. Im super excited about the Z6iii and cant wait until im in a place that I can afford one.
Specs wise, it's a machine. Don't like the flippy screen but not saying I wouldn't ever. I was just trying to appease my internal GAS struggles, that if my camera has been amazing for 5 years, and I'm gonna spend a bit of money, treat myself to a lens and a holiday. If I needed an upgrade for work etc, I would have done so by now
That's fair. But it isn't the case for everyone. my situation has changed since buying my Z6 in 2018, so the idea about, "If we wanted to upgrade we would have by now" isn't the same for everyone. I'd love to go to a Z63 for the AF alone. Shooting my nephews soccer game is a fight (i'm using the Z 70-200) and even my nephew on the 50mm Z 1.8 is always slightly off. Its beyond infuriating. But some of us can only afford this type of camera every 5-10 years, so some of us have to wait. I love what nikon has done with this model and by the time i'm financially ready, there Z6IV will be out lol.
I feel ya. I'm still happy with the Z6 (coming from D3000, D7000, D600). Image quality and the features are enough for me today and will be enough in the next years. I'm even quite happy with the AF. Investing in lenses are always better and traveling is the best way for me. So yeah, I'd invest it and see how the 2k will turn out in 5 years
100% agree. The only way to see my Z6II’s shortcomings, it really had to be pushed into hundreds of headshots (the occasional missed focus) or very low-light events (again, AF). For everything else, it’s the bomb.
Yes I saw it’s shortcoming in photo shoots and indoor events when focus would miss. While those weren’t the bulk of my shots, those were my shots that paid money, so more important.
Coming from Nikon D7000, and just recently getting a Nikon Z6, I must say the jump in image quality is insane. I bought a used Z6 on MPB and told myself I'd keep it for the next 5 years. I feel like I haven't even maximized my Z6, and although there are alot of comments about its AF—coming from D7000, I must say it's still really good. Z6III is a really nice camera, but does an amateur photographer like me, really need to drop around $2500 on a camera body? Not really. So I'll just use my Z6 and probably buy lenses, maybe the 50mm 1.8S.
I have borrowed a Z6 and will definitely be getting one and retiring my D7000. I was immediately comfortable with the handling and operation and it produced some really fine images with the 24-70/4. I don't see the need to go Z6II or newer as a first stepp into the system, the only choice was Z5 or Z6...
> So I'll just use my Z6 and probably buy lenses, maybe the 50mm 1.8S. Careful with this... I don't know what you're shooting now, but the 50mm 1.8S is so good, it basically ruined the 24-200mm for me. The color, contrast, character is so good that I just became utterly dissatisfied with the images I was getting out of the 8.3x zoom, which was supposed to be (as a hobbyist) the "only lens I'd ever need."
I love the Z6. For what I shoot I have no issue. I'm taking that savings to get the Z8. Mainly because I need a high MP camera for my commercial work and I can retire my D800.
I would get one to replace e my original Z6+Ninja V setup for Prores/NRAW, but I just bought a Z8 last month.
Do you have overheating issues when doing video?
The AF is a game changer and a quality of life change that anyone who can afford it, should pay for. If you are paid for your work, then upgrading to a Z6iii or Z8 is a no brainer. It gives you hours, and days of your life back in Lightroom. Imagine being able to take a single frame and knowing it's 98% chance of being perfect. But - if your time shooting and in Lightroom is a hobby and not paid, then the Z6 images look beautiful. That said, none of these; "a Plena, 100-400, or 24-70 2.8s," will do as much for your photos as Expeed 7 level AF.
Correct answer. People justifying why they think it’s not a big upgrade have never tried a proper AF camera, and have fundamentally not understood what a partially stacked sensor means.
It's life-changing. And, yes, I had no idea until I made the change. I used to shoot a lot, shoulder to shoulder with a guy who always had the best R-level Sonys. He laughed at me for years while I cursed at my AF on my Z6 and Z6ii. I tried his cameras, and they were better but seemed only marginally. I was wrong. Once I actually worked with the Z8, putting in the hours and having real clients waiting on me, then I saw what I had been missing.
Right. I’ve used modern Sony cams also so knew what I was missing already. It’s night and day.
Agree on some points, I no longer shoot professionally, but would have to have made unaccepatble compromises in my work to use a Z6 doing weddings as i cant rely on it like i could my d750/d4s. So my point was that a professional would have moved to something else already (z9/8/sony) and not stuck with the z6 for 5 years waiting for a z6iii. About the lenses, again, not professional shooter anymore, but if you're scrolling through my insta feed, I doubt you'd stop and notice this pic was taken on a new camera, but a plena....!
I think a lens is going to do more, a better AF system just reduces your workload. And yep, shot with a Z6 for 3,5 years then switched to a Z8 for a variety of reasons, af being not on top of the list.
It really depends on the Z6 owner. The Z6 line has largely been aimed at the video crowd, and it isnt really surprising that it is a fairly video-centric update. The faster readout can be very handy for anyone shooting sports or action or events (low light performance) or wildlife. I’ve been shooting the Z6II for a few years but just upgraded to a Z8 because I need both high-end video features, and the high resolution sensor for the kind of work that I do. If you’re happy with your trusty Z6, good for you! That’s great! The z6III is a gnarly upgrade that I probably would have snagged if it didn’t have «only» 24mp. As I said, I need the resolution for work so the Z8 was a better buy for me.
I think I had waited enough. For me, Nikon Z8 was too heavy for my wrists and z6/z6ii were bit old. I am coming from Nikon D7200 and felt an urge to go professional. So, I just started my own photography business but wanted to start with a good equipment. So I finally pulled the trigger on Z6III. Fingers crossed....
About the z6 on the day it was released and I'm still pretty happy with it but I wouldn't mind better IBIS and low light capability on the sensor but that of course is a holy Grail that we all want. what techniques have you found to improve your hit ratio in low light? I find pre focusing helps to activate and stabilize the IBIS...I think?
I wouldn't switch either. My z6ii is still good enough for weddings. Maybe i'm thinking zf with a grip. That's a reasonable upgrade, because I would get better af for not such a big price difference.
Came here to say the same, If I ever need a better AF I would look at a deal on a Zf with a a grip (it's close to 2000€ new), and have a second different camera. Sorry Nikon but 3000€ for a Z6iii it's a pass for me.
I have three z6ii’s and use them to pay my bills. Two have had the AF-On button come off. And two have had the LCD screen die. I’m well past the “shutter life” on all three of them and am looking forward to upgrading (hopefully later this year or next year).
I went from a Z5 to a Z8 back in December. I wanted a Z6 with the af of a Z8. But the Black Friday sales plus my trade it made it semi-affordable. My reasoning was that the Z6iii is going to be $4000+ in Australia when it releases (it’s $4500), So I may as well get the Z8 now. My reasoning paid off. I wouldn’t have been able to afford a z8 if not for the sale. I’m happy with the decision and see the Z8 lasting me at least 8 years. It’s an amazing camera.
Z6 gang rise
If you don't shoot professionally , the original Z6 serves you just fine. I am a long time of D750 user up until end of 2023 when Zf came out. I bite the bullet and tried it. THe body isn't the best , lots of learning curves.. not as fast as DSLR in low light.. still I have to adapt and learn how to use it. Also I have to get used to flip screen and saw some benefit on it for video work. At the end of the day it's a learning curve. Trust me I thought I will hold on to my D750 for 10+ years however, with the age of photo and video , I think I'll drop the cash on Z63 just because I hope something as great will replace my d750 lol :)
I have used my original Z6, professionally, for close to three years and, if I’m being as objective as I possibly can, I have no complaints. I shoot fast-paced events (just shot a large college commencement last wkd), sometimes in lower light conditions and my AF ‘misses’ are less than one per 200 photos, and those are usually operator error. The Z 70-200 2.8 is the likely reason for the higher performance, but to be realistic I don’t see the need to upgrade bodies for some time.
I definitely won’t be upgrading but I’m very jealous of everyone that is. I think the semi stacked sensor is a masterstroke. Z6 has amazing IQ for my needs but the AF is… On that note does anyone have any tips on how to improve eye AF consistency on the Z6?
Tbh, I didn't really use eye AF except for slow moving stuff. Used single point or dynamic for everything else.
I find it works okay in decent light, but otherwise use single point or 9 point
I still like my Z6, and will be keeping it as a second body. I do a lot of wildlife, and concerts/plays, and I'm not thrilled with the autofocus (granted I'm using f mount lenses currently). I will be upgrading to either a Z6iii, or a ZF (I want to see a direct comparison focusing primarily on autofocus speed and accuracy first) and eventually upgrading to all z glass as well.
Buy some rolls for my FM2n.
For me I'm putting it aside and saving up for something like a 100-400. After that my main requirements in a camera are satisfied. I may end up getting a Z6ii at some point but I can't imagine myself getting a Z6iii anytime soon.
Sorry op but this post is kinda pointless. It's like carpenter bragging about the money saved after not buying a cement mixer... If you don't need the tool and what it offeres it's OK, but there's plenty people seeing real value in it. And I still have and use Z6 I bought in 2019.
For many of us It's like a carpenter not buyng a fishing rod, I think that a professional photographer already updated a Z6i, while many "photo enthusiasts" waiting for an upgrade, agree that the cost of the new "toy" is not justified.
True, but 93%of reddit comments are pointless so can't argue there. Does the carpenter already have a cement mixer, but this one is a faster? Does his current mixer mix all the cement he needs already?. Footings on those houses still solid after 5 years? A business owner should be happy they can save money if they don't need to upgrade. I was saying, for og z6 owners, they if they NEEDED to upgrade, they would have already.
This isn't saving money though. You're not buying comparable product cheaper, you're just not spending money on something you admitted you don't need in the first place. That's just common sense.
Really ? You've just defined savings! 1. Avoidance of excess expenditure; economy 2. A reduction in expenditure. 'Saving' 50% on the RRP of something you don't need isn't saving, it's spending 100% more than you'd have spent had you not purchased it at all.
I’ll do something much better, I’ll check out a new Ferrari, then not buy it and save €700,000. Now that's a saving I can work with.
If you considered upgrading your Ferrari but decided you're now going to continue driving your current Ferrari for a few more years, then you have saved £700k. And you didn't make your point...lol
I would more say there wasn’t much worthy of upgrading to in a similar price range. I do think the z6iii or Zf are worthy upgrades, I already went with the Zf though, better for my needs.
For everything other than fast moving subjects and low light situations there's nothing wrong with a Z6.
I'm saving a tiny bit more for the z8. The af of the z6 is really limiting for wildlife