Hello everyone not posted here for a good time but am looking to buy a Z6 for use as travel camera but i keep seeing some of the negative comments about autofocus capture,also problems with grips wearing quickly and questions about sensor cleaning due to the delicate ibis mechanism.
will the new firmware update sort the focus problem out or not. we will not know until implemented
Could any early adopters please give me their impressions of these problems,are the blown out of proportion and are they happy with their purchase.Would it me better to try to be patient and let the system mature over a few years ,thanks for your help in advance.
Just to be clear i am not a troll ,I have used nikon cameras for years and very pleased with the Nikon dslr range but attracted to more compact systems,so please dont flame me.
Got my first Z6 on November 20th 2018, very shortly after it became available. Main reasons for getting one were the Silent Shutter and Focus Peaking options
I have shot dance in the past, and plan to do so more in future, and always found the loud clicking shutter and mirror slapping sounds of a DSLR during a performance very intrusive
On the other hand I still have and regularly use old(er) manual focus AI and Ais lenses. Previously had bought a DF for that purpose, ut although that body handled manual focus better then my D800 and D3, still wasn't really as intuitive as in the days of my f2AS with a split screen focusing screen
Have used both options on my D850, but didn't like the implementation of them - only in Live View - on that body
Based on the reports on the Z7's supposedly flawed AF (bad low light/low contrast AF, AF problems with backlighting, flawed AF tracking, handicapped/limited AF settings compared to the latest Nikon DSLR's) my expectations for the Z6 were very low in that regard, but as explained above weren't the main consideration I got it nevertheless
Of course a new camera should always be rigorously put to the test to see not onlyn what it's capable of, but in particular what not. My preferred subject for that purpose is shooting catwalk, since that as a rule that means fast moving subjects/models, and only too often bad or at least challenging lighting conditions
I fortunately found one only a few weeks later
While the venue - the Lichthal of the Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam - is IMO quite beautiful in itself, from a lighting point of view conditions a bit of a mess : apart from two spot lights at the nearest end of the catwalk, very little additional stage light for the furthest and mid sections, and large windows in the rear behind the furthest end of the catwalk ( = backlighting)
The AF to my pleasant surprised the fast moving models very well, even on the lesser illuminated parts of the catwalk And while the backlighting did result in some images to indeed be out of focus, those were a mere handful of the nearly 1000 shots I took
https://pbase.com/paul_k/20181209_mafb_tropenfest
I in particular was pleased with the pictures since I intentionally had used a 2/200 VRI lens, practically wide open at just f3.2
The results were such that I got a 2nd Z6 within only a few days later (on December 13th), although admittedly also because in that period the Z6/FTZ package not only was offered at a lower introduction price, but in the Netherlands also came with a free 64GB QXD card
Yet although I was very satisfied with the pictures, I, to again put the Z6 to the test,shot another catwalk show only a few weeks later, now with the Z6 and a 2.8/70-200 VRII
https://pbase.com/paul_k/20190117_amfi_take_over
Lighting unforturately proved to be even more challenging
Probably for 'creative reasons' somebody very artistic had decided to put a spotlight at the very end of the catwalk, thus not only creating a huge amount of backlighting, but also pointing straight into the lens, and add a smoke machine ( lowering the contrast) as the 'cherry on the cake'
On top of that the 'surrounding' lights were RGB LED's, creating an impossible to correct purple/magenta cast, although there fortunately were some 'normal' 3400K halogen spots on the closest part of the catwalk
Despite all that, the results, at least AF wise, were again well above expectations
https://pbase.com/paul_k/20190117_amfi_take_over , although getting rid of the purple/magenta cast took a lot of work
Since as they say 'three times is a charm' I took the Z6 to yet another catwalk shoot a few weeks later
Being organized by students of a fashion academy without a major budget, lighting was even worse then with the previous shows : no real stage lights, and at best only a couple of strips of small RGB LED lights alongside the catwalk ( = not in frontal lighting on the, as usual, fast moving models, and yes, again the purple/magenta cast))
Still the Z6 was capable of decent results despite the atrocious conditions, eg
https://pbase.com/paul_k/image/168733062
I must admit I, as the evening consisted of three small shows, after having shot the first one with the Z6 and a Sigma 1.4 105mm DG (wide open), switched to a D850 with a stopped down 2.8770-200 VRII + flash for the 2nd and 3rd shows
Although having done the for me necessary testing, just for the fun of it shot a public dance event a few weeks time ago (and yes
lighting wasn't ideal again).
Due to the AF wise very challenging conditions (fast, erratically moving dancers darting from one side of the stage to the other, forcing me to similarly swipe the lens from left to right all the time
Played around with several AF settings (stopped down between f2.2 and f4), varying between Dynamic AF, AF Wide and AF large, to end up with Dynamic AF as IMO the best - choice
Still the Z6 + Sigma 1.4 105mm combination didn't disappoint
https://pbase.com/paul_k/20190310_adam_dans although admittedly around 30% of the shots were out of focus. But much of that was due to user error after I had failed to / was too late to correctly position the AF field on the dancer, missing him/her completely and ending up pointing it on the background instead
My conclusion after all those 'tests' is that the Z6's AF is excellent under good lighting, but also well up to even the most challenging conditions. I'm curious what the upcoming AF firmware upgrade will bring, although I'm already pretty satisfied so far
Admittedly not up to the level of the D850, but definitely superior to eg a DF or D7100, and equal to a d800, all three bodies have had and still have (sold the DF and D7100 after I got the Z6's)
Have had no issue with any peeling rubbers, the sensors didn't need cleaning at a recent (free ) Check and Clean NPS Netherlands had organized, battery life is much better then the CIPA 340 shots estimate (I don't use the back LCD all the time)
Never heard of cleaning issues due to, or complaints about the 'delicate' (?) IBIS (this actually is the very first time I do)
So in my personal experience, based on real world experience shooting under AF, battery and lighting conditions wise challenging conditions, using a Z6 for travel photography shouldn't be an issue
Sorry for any typos, not a native English speaker
