Nasim, privet — still considering buying either used Z6 or Z6II – do you think it’s worth going straight to Z6II?
Chris C
October 27, 2021 8:39 pm
Any robust comparisons of autofocus? Competitors at same price point are Sony A7iii, Sony A7C, not Canon R6 (50% more to buy, but lots of comparisons elsewhere)
Thomas Wilczek
October 27, 2021 5:13 pm
Nasim, just bought a Z6II and while very happy with the camera I did run into a potential deal breaker for me: no H(extended) drive shooting with Flicker Reduction. I bought this to help shoot boxing and basketball this winter and was looking for a mirrorless companion for my D850 with a slightly higher frame rate (contact shots in boxing are hard to time I don’t care who you are), but got very frustrated the other evening trying to shoot a night game at my local high school with all the banding. I did get some better results fiddling with the shutter speed to time the Hz of the lights, but it didn’t work terribly well either. So I guess the question is, to your knowledge has this been addressed in the Z9 and do you think a fix will make its way down to the Z6II and Z7II via firmware update? Thanks.
Gyalbo Bhutia
September 6, 2021 11:11 am
Thank you for this in-depth review! Cleared my hesitation and I am going to buy Z6II now. Upgrading from Dx ecosystem to Z lenses by selling all of my Dx lenses and D5600.
Thank you for this in-depth review! Can you explain why Z cameras cannot use a similar dynamic area mode as in DSLR? In DSLR you choose a point a surrounding AF points set (e.g. 8) to help tracking the subject in focus. Why can’t we tell the Z camera to use more and specific points, without scanning the whole image within a selected box (wide area)? I think this would allow a more reactive behaviour and less battery drain.
P.s. hope also to see a “Z6II inside” into an upgraded D780, which share the same sensor with Z6/Z6II but is limited to a single Expeed. If Nikon could also add to a new D780 IBIS, D850’s 155 focus pts and the more Z6II like reactive AF-C mode when framing via the rear LCD I think all the owner of AF/AF-D lenses (count me among them!) wouldn’t need any upgraded FTZ.
Kevin Sutton
June 6, 2021 12:59 am
I would love to buy into the Nikon Z ecosystem but would like smaller lenses, as I’m used to m4/3. If Nikon made a 70-200 f4, I would be in with the 14-30, 24-70 and 70-200 f4 set. The 70-200 f2.8 looks nice but it is too big, literally and fiscally, for me…
EnPassant
May 30, 2021 7:59 pm
What a great review! Must be one of, if not the best written in the English language! I did however spot a tiny error in the specification comparison. The original Z6 is 68mm thick, 2mm less than Z6 II. If one want to be even more accurate Nikon specifies the measurements for Z6 being 134 x 100,5 x 67,5mm for Z6 and 134 x 100,5 x 69,5mm for Z6 II.
Well, the whole BSI thing can be a bit over-rated. Yes BSI sensors are preferred, but comparing the Z5 and the Z6/Z6 II, there isn’t much of a difference until you start getting into ISO ranges above 6400, which most people don’t. And even when you do go above ISO 6400 both sensors tend to suffer quite a bit, the BSI sensor just slightly less. For the money, and when on sale for $1000, the Z5 is virtually a steal. It inherits a similar (or the same) sensor as the D750, which many people loved because of its high ISO performance. To get that BSI sensor in the Z6/Z6 II, you’re going to be spending money on something that you may not notice in real world practice.
Depending on the task, if someone is shooting just landscapes or portraits, the Z5 is more than enough. The people who probably would benefit from the Z6 series the most are those who are shooting wildlife or fast moving subjects (I wouldn’t use the Z series for if we aren’t limited to just NIkon). Plus you have the vertical grip and a faster AF system with higher burst rates (although the Z5 was greatly improved in terms of AF with the firmware update a few months ago). But again, that all comes at a price, and right now, as of this writing, it’s about a $600 premium.
Gary Petrowsky
May 29, 2021 10:28 pm
For action sports what mirrorless is better than the Z6ii. You mentioned something better than the z6ii for sports?
In a similar price range, Sony’s A7 III seems to be better than the Z6 (II) at subject tracking and continuous AF. Not as good as the A9, but still very good. Canon’s R6 also appears to be slightly more dependable although it is a bit more expensive. I really wanted to switch to the Z system as I like the handling and overall ergonomics of Nikon’s mirrorless better than Sony’s, and I have a number of good recent F-mount AF-S lenses I can easily adapt, but the truth is, for sports, my good old D750 is more reliable.
Pascal
May 29, 2021 3:55 am
Lovely article as always, thanks guys!
I recently bought a Z6II to complement my beloved D850. I’m still not ready to give up my D850; it still is an awesome camera. I do enjoy the Z mount and the quality it brings to the table.
In regards to the dual tilt axis screen feature, count me in. This is a feature that is missing in Nikon camera’s. I don’t really care for a flip screen though but a dual axis tilt would be awesome!
Another feature I’m missing and wish Nikon would introduce is a preview feature: I often shoot 16×9 or 3×1 panorama ratios. It would be great if Nikon would let us select a certain preview ratio (say 4×3, 1×1, 16×9, 3×1,…) so that framing a composition in one of these ratios is easy. The camera would still capture the complete 3×2 ratio and the actual crop would be done in post. Today I have to guestimate the composition if I want a 3×1 pano or 4×3 shot. Hope Nikon is reading this… :-)
Nasim, privet — still considering buying either used Z6 or Z6II – do you think it’s worth going straight to Z6II?
Any robust comparisons of autofocus?
Competitors at same price point are Sony A7iii, Sony A7C, not Canon R6 (50% more to buy, but lots of comparisons elsewhere)
Nasim, just bought a Z6II and while very happy with the camera I did run into a potential deal breaker for me: no H(extended) drive shooting with Flicker Reduction. I bought this to help shoot boxing and basketball this winter and was looking for a mirrorless companion for my D850 with a slightly higher frame rate (contact shots in boxing are hard to time I don’t care who you are), but got very frustrated the other evening trying to shoot a night game at my local high school with all the banding. I did get some better results fiddling with the shutter speed to time the Hz of the lights, but it didn’t work terribly well either. So I guess the question is, to your knowledge has this been addressed in the Z9 and do you think a fix will make its way down to the Z6II and Z7II via firmware update? Thanks.
Thank you for this in-depth review! Cleared my hesitation and I am going to buy Z6II now. Upgrading from Dx ecosystem to Z lenses by selling all of my Dx lenses and D5600.
good
Thank you for this in-depth review!
Can you explain why Z cameras cannot use a similar dynamic area mode as in DSLR? In DSLR you choose a point a surrounding AF points set (e.g. 8) to help tracking the subject in focus.
Why can’t we tell the Z camera to use more and specific points, without scanning the whole image within a selected box (wide area)? I think this would allow a more reactive behaviour and less battery drain.
P.s. hope also to see a “Z6II inside” into an upgraded D780, which share the same sensor with Z6/Z6II but is limited to a single Expeed.
If Nikon could also add to a new D780 IBIS, D850’s 155 focus pts and the more Z6II like reactive AF-C mode when framing via the rear LCD I think all the owner of AF/AF-D lenses (count me among them!) wouldn’t need any upgraded FTZ.
I would love to buy into the Nikon Z ecosystem but would like smaller lenses, as I’m used to m4/3. If Nikon made a 70-200 f4, I would be in with the 14-30, 24-70 and 70-200 f4 set. The 70-200 f2.8 looks nice but it is too big, literally and fiscally, for me…
What a great review! Must be one of, if not the best written in the English language!
I did however spot a tiny error in the specification comparison. The original Z6 is 68mm thick, 2mm less than Z6 II.
If one want to be even more accurate Nikon specifies the measurements for Z6 being 134 x 100,5 x 67,5mm for Z6 and 134 x 100,5 x 69,5mm for Z6 II.
Good spot, thanks! Fixed.
For existing Nikon users AND ALL NEWBIES who want a lightweight, good value camera for travel or event photography, the Z5 is My top recommendation.
Same quality for (much) Less money.
Well, The Z6(II) has a much better BSI sensor. For this reason alone I would get a Z§(II) if funds allow it.
Well, the whole BSI thing can be a bit over-rated. Yes BSI sensors are preferred, but comparing the Z5 and the Z6/Z6 II, there isn’t much of a difference until you start getting into ISO ranges above 6400, which most people don’t. And even when you do go above ISO 6400 both sensors tend to suffer quite a bit, the BSI sensor just slightly less. For the money, and when on sale for $1000, the Z5 is virtually a steal. It inherits a similar (or the same) sensor as the D750, which many people loved because of its high ISO performance. To get that BSI sensor in the Z6/Z6 II, you’re going to be spending money on something that you may not notice in real world practice.
Depending on the task, if someone is shooting just landscapes or portraits, the Z5 is more than enough. The people who probably would benefit from the Z6 series the most are those who are shooting wildlife or fast moving subjects (I wouldn’t use the Z series for if we aren’t limited to just NIkon). Plus you have the vertical grip and a faster AF system with higher burst rates (although the Z5 was greatly improved in terms of AF with the firmware update a few months ago). But again, that all comes at a price, and right now, as of this writing, it’s about a $600 premium.
For action sports what mirrorless is better than the Z6ii. You mentioned something better than the z6ii for sports?
In a similar price range, Sony’s A7 III seems to be better than the Z6 (II) at subject tracking and continuous AF. Not as good as the A9, but still very good. Canon’s R6 also appears to be slightly more dependable although it is a bit more expensive.
I really wanted to switch to the Z system as I like the handling and overall ergonomics of Nikon’s mirrorless better than Sony’s, and I have a number of good recent F-mount AF-S lenses I can easily adapt, but the truth is, for sports, my good old D750 is more reliable.
Lovely article as always, thanks guys!
I recently bought a Z6II to complement my beloved D850. I’m still not ready to give up my D850; it still is an awesome camera. I do enjoy the Z mount and the quality it brings to the table.
In regards to the dual tilt axis screen feature, count me in. This is a feature that is missing in Nikon camera’s. I don’t really care for a flip screen though but a dual axis tilt would be awesome!
Another feature I’m missing and wish Nikon would introduce is a preview feature: I often shoot 16×9 or 3×1 panorama ratios. It would be great if Nikon would let us select a certain preview ratio (say 4×3, 1×1, 16×9, 3×1,…) so that framing a composition in one of these ratios is easy. The camera would still capture the complete 3×2 ratio and the actual crop would be done in post. Today I have to guestimate the composition if I want a 3×1 pano or 4×3 shot.
Hope Nikon is reading this… :-)