Nikon z6iii equal or better Auto focus than Canon EOS R6 Mark ii

Nightranger · Jul 10, 2024

I was already pushing the button and getting the Canon R6 Mii, until someone pointed out to me waiting for the Nikon Z6iii.

I have a Nikon D90 and the D7100 along with a small collection of DX and one 70-300 FX lenses.

Family events In- doors shooting including outdoors hiking, camping, sightseeing, and sports.

Naturally, low light setting too.

It looks like I am going to wait as I think prices will drop by Dec or Jan.

So, my question is, it seems the Nikon Z6iii is about equal to the Canon R6 Mii for the autofocus. That is a big feature I am looking for. (The more keepers).

Canon has been on the market longer and is more dependable.

Are there any reviews or tests to compare how good the Nikon autofocus is compared to other cameras?

skyrunr · Jul 10, 2024

I think you should consider more than autofocus when making your decision. The z-mount can be adapted to mount just about any other lens. The RF mount and lens collection is rather limited. Even Canon F4L glass is bulkier, heavier, and more expensive than Nikon S glass.

The R6II and A7CII/A7IV make for some good competition. They are very different to hold and use. The Canon is more customizable than Nikon, and has more options to change settings, QuickMenu, Custom Menu, Mfn, and the * button when assigned to instant eye tracking from ANY AF mode.

I'm enjoying my Z6III. The hit rate is a bit closer to the Z8 than the Z6II, and that is good enough for me.

Martin Muehlemann · Jul 11, 2024

Nightranger said:
I was already pushing the button and getting the Canon R6 Mii, until someone pointed out to me waiting for the Nikon Z6iii.

I have a Nikon D90 and the D7100 along with a small collection of DX and one 70-300 FX lenses.

Family events In- doors shooting including outdoors hiking, camping, sightseeing, and sports.

Naturally, low light setting too.

For your type of shooting, Z6iii is excellent. For me the Z6iii is an excellent R6 replacement.

For small birds and fast action, I still think that the AF-C on the Canon was more dead on than the Z6iii.

My advise, take the Z6iii you won't regret it.

Laqup · Jul 11, 2024

They will be similar, but the Canon will have a slightly better performance overall.

Why do I come to this conclusion? The Z6 III seems to be slightly worse than the Z8 in some scenarios (reported by various reviewers, check e.g. Jan Wegener when using the camera for birding) and even the Z8 is only able to keep up here with the R6 II/R5 after the dedicated firmware update, therefore the Z6 III can't be better.

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf and this is a camera that I am using in conjunction with my R5 and R8 (same as R6 II) on a daily basis and in this comparison the canons deliver a slightly better keeper rate (and more critically sharp images), especially when a lot of action is involved (people). It's not world shattering though, maybe 5-10% in not that demanding shots and a bit more for action (15-20%).

Overall both cameras will not disappoint. I use the Zf basically for every type of setting, the canons give me more confidence when shooting playing kids though.

skyrunr · Jul 11, 2024

Laqup said:
On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf and this is a camera that I am using in conjunction with my R5 and R8 (same as R6 II) on a daily basis and in this comparison the canons deliver a slightly better keeper rate (and more critically sharp images)

I find the Z6III to be better than the ZF. I do think Canon has more critically sharp AF, but I tend to use slower glass anyway. The Z6III may only have a slightly better hit rate than the ZF, but I can shoot a lot more frames and get the shot. The Z6IIi has newer subject tracking algorithm/s. Even if they make it to the ZF, the Z6III is designed for action. Not to mention user modes, a better button layout, joystick, and using the flash with EFCS (1/60th.) The ZF was very nice, but a miss for me.

Thom Hogan · Jul 11, 2024

Laqup said:
On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf

This is like saying they are all full frame ;~).

No, at the moment there's a very clear progression in terms of autofocus ability:

Z6 II >>> Zf >>> Z6 III >>> Z8/Z9

You don't see that clearly if all you're doing is photographing people or animals milling around. You will see that clearly if you're photographing sports or BIF. Beyond just the pure focusing ability, there's also the ability to clearly see what the camera is doing: the Z6 III viewfinder is far better at that than the Zf, particularly as you start boosting frame rates or work in low light.

Personally, I think Nikon's done a pretty good job of differentiating models, particularly in things such as autofocus.

Laqup · Jul 11, 2024

Thom Hogan said:
Laqup said:

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf

Click to expand...

This is like saying they are all full frame ;~).

No, at the moment there's a very clear progression in terms of autofocus ability:

Z6 II >>> Zf >>> Z6 III >>> Z8/Z9

You don't see that clearly if all you're doing is photographing people or animals milling around. You will see that clearly if you're photographing sports or BIF. Beyond just the pure focusing ability, there's also the ability to clearly see what the camera is doing: the Z6 III viewfinder is far better at that than the Zf, particularly as you start boosting frame rates or work in low light.

Personally, I think Nikon's done a pretty good job of differentiating models, particularly in things such as autofocus.

skyrunr · Jul 11, 2024

Laqup said:
What's your take on that?

My experience is: 80/85/90/95, but Canon not being 100% either; perhaps less dependent on changing settings, or being able to change more quickly to eye detection.

However, when these hit rates are a key pose or moment, those misses matter. Often that first image is the one you need. For me, going from a D500 to mirrorless was painful in that regard. THAT has changed with stacked sensors and faster readout speeds/Expeed7.

I'm not using pre-capture yet, but I think that is a game changer too. It is probably hard on battery life.

--
SkyRunR
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
TIPS: Be kind, RT#M, use gear not signature, limit/shorten replies with quotes!
'The first casualty, when war comes, is truth' - Hiram Johnson (1866-1945)

Konrad1 · Jul 11, 2024

Thom Hogan said:
Laqup said:

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf

Click to expand...

This is like saying they are all full frame ;~).

No, at the moment there's a very clear progression in terms of autofocus ability:

Z6 II >>> Zf >>> Z6 III >>> Z8/Z9

You don't see that clearly if all you're doing is photographing people or animals milling around. You will see that clearly if you're photographing sports or BIF. Beyond just the pure focusing ability, there's also the ability to clearly see what the camera is doing: the Z6 III viewfinder is far better at that than the Zf, particularly as you start boosting frame rates or work in low light.

Personally, I think Nikon's done a pretty good job of differentiating models, particularly in things such as autofocus.

BIF= Birds in flight

sirhawkeye64 · Jul 11, 2024

Nightranger said:
I was already pushing the button and getting the Canon R6 Mii, until someone pointed out to me waiting for the Nikon Z6iii.

I have a Nikon D90 and the D7100 along with a small collection of DX and one 70-300 FX lenses.

Family events In- doors shooting including outdoors hiking, camping, sightseeing, and sports.

Naturally, low light setting too.

It looks like I am going to wait as I think prices will drop by Dec or Jan.

So, my question is, it seems the Nikon Z6iii is about equal to the Canon R6 Mii for the autofocus. That is a big feature I am looking for. (The more keepers).

Canon has been on the market longer and is more dependable.

Are there any reviews or tests to compare how good the Nikon autofocus is compared to other cameras?

I haven't looked but I would personally test both yourself and see for yourself. You may find the AF is good but the ergonomics are not to your liking ,for example, and that (for many) would be a deal breaker, so there are other aspects I would consider when deciding between the two. Obviously lens selection should also be one of them too. Canon's is a bit more limited in the FF department.

Wezre · Jul 11, 2024

Laqup said:
Thom Hogan said:

Laqup said:

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf

Click to expand...

This is like saying they are all full frame ;~).

No, at the moment there's a very clear progression in terms of autofocus ability:

Z6 II >>> Zf >>> Z6 III >>> Z8/Z9

You don't see that clearly if all you're doing is photographing people or animals milling around. You will see that clearly if you're photographing sports or BIF. Beyond just the pure focusing ability, there's also the ability to clearly see what the camera is doing: the Z6 III viewfinder is far better at that than the Zf, particularly as you start boosting frame rates or work in low light.

Personally, I think Nikon's done a pretty good job of differentiating models, particularly in things such as autofocus.

Click to expand...

Your post does not tell us a lot. If you assign actual numbers to the progression you show, it will get clear that some of that progress is much more relevant than others.

As an example and at the highest abstraction level (every aspect of AF and subject detection somehow combined into one number), and this is only estimating, no scientific investigation:

Z6 II: 65%

ZF: 85%

Z6 III: 90%

Z8: 100%

What's your take on that?

You're assigning single percentages to incredibly complex systems/processes with many variables. For example, the YouTuber you referenced in your prior post said (in one video I found) that the Z6iii is slightly worse than the Z8 at AF/tracking. But he was using Auto-area AF with animal detection, which many would argue is not the best mode to use (for either camera), especially when the birds are as small as they were in his viewfinder. Wide-area (L, S, or Custom) is probably the better choice in that case. If you really want to compare peak performance, you can't use full auto modes and expect the camera to get you there.

As an example, was out this past weekend photographing a bird that was flapping around amongst thick water lotus plants. The Z8 was doing a great job of tracking the bird even as it hopped around between/behind the plants. But I was also using a smaller AF Area Mode to initiate focus. I wouldn't expect Auto-area AF to perform as well, and it also would've been more difficult to track the bird if I were using a camera that has viewfinder blackout/frame insertion/jitter (such as the R6ii). Neither the R6ii nor the Z6iii will give you the completely smooth/uninterrupted EVF experience that the Z8 has.

HRS · Jul 11, 2024

Nightranger said:
So, my question is, it seems the Nikon Z6iii is about equal to the Canon R6 Mii for the autofocus. That is a big feature I am looking for. (The more keepers).

Canon has been on the market longer and is more dependable.

Are there any reviews or tests to compare how good the Nikon autofocus is compared to other cameras?

Perhaps some YouTuber will put the two bodies side-by-side for an AF test.

Jared Polin has done perhaps the most extensive tests of individual bodies (including a favorable one on the Z6iii's AF recently). I'd also look at Polin's video on the R6ii for AF performance.

For what it's worth, in my experience with an R8, for general shooting situations, there's less fiddling required with the subject detection modes. For example, I can just set detection to "Auto" and the body does just fine by itself in realizing that it's "People" in the viewfinder.

--
A sure sign of Cognitive Dissonance: NDS.

shuncheung · Jul 11, 2024

Nightranger said:
I was already pushing the button and getting the Canon R6 Mii, until someone pointed out to me waiting for the Nikon Z6iii.

I have a Nikon D90 and the D7100 along with a small collection of DX and one 70-300 FX lenses.

Family events In- doors shooting including outdoors hiking, camping, sightseeing, and sports.

Naturally, low light setting too.

It looks like I am going to wait as I think prices will drop by Dec or Jan.

The Canon R6ii was introduced in late 2022. It'll soon be two years old and perhaps another update will come around in 2025. Its price has dropped from $2500 to $2000.

To me, one difference is that the Z6iii has one CFexpress and one SD card slot, while the Canon has two SD slots, just like your D7100. SD cards are cheaper but CFexpress is more reliable, but that will cost you another $100 to $200 for cards, or perhaps more if you buy a lot of cards or larger capacity. I personally by far prefer CFexpress.

For the usual lenses, you can find in both mounts. Nikon is currently second to none in terms of long telephotos. Canon has more affordable long teles such as 600mm/f11, 800mm/f11, and 200-800mm/f9. If you are after inexpensive, very slow long teles, Canon is clearly the best.

The Z6iii has better video capability. Not sure that is part of your evaluation.

Nikon has just shipped the Z6iii a couple of weeks ago. I wouldn't expect any discounts until at least in November. It may go down 10% to $2250 or somewhere around there, but it will be a while before it can match the $2000 Canon R6ii.

IMO, don't need to split hair about different AF capabilities. The availability of lenses and video features are more important. I think it will end up costing a bit more to own the Z6iii since it is newer with less discount and its memory cards cost more.

kurczeblade · Jul 11, 2024

skyrunr said:
Laqup said:

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf and this is a camera that I am using in conjunction with my R5 and R8 (same as R6 II) on a daily basis and in this comparison the canons deliver a slightly better keeper rate (and more critically sharp images)

Click to expand...

I find the Z6III to be better than the ZF. I do think Canon has more critically sharp AF, but I tend to use slower glass anyway. The Z6III may only have a slightly better hit rate than the ZF, but I can shoot a lot more frames and get the shot. The Z6IIi has newer subject tracking algorithm/s. Even if they make it to the ZF, the Z6III is designed for action. Not to mention user modes, a better button layout, joystick, and using the flash with EFCS (1/60th.) The ZF was very nice, but a miss for me.

Hi, I had a Z6III on loan last Saturday. He worked in parallel with my ZF. In the wedding of Z6III + ZF on reporter's suspenders, when it comes to AF accuracy, it is identical in ZF and Z6III. I didn't notice any differences in accuracy and focusing speed.

skyrunr · Jul 11, 2024

For wedding photography I would expect less of a noticeable difference. I don't shoot in the extremes where the -EV improvement or stabilization improvements would be noticeable. My experience is comparing faster moving subjects.

Shooting weddings with flash silently is a plus too.

Any opinion/observations on the EVF improvements?

Carol T · Jul 11, 2024

I am perhaps missing something here, but why are you comparing cameras in two completely different systems? Are you looking to get into one system or the other? Or are you already in some mirrorless system? (You mention Nikon dSLR stuff)

If the former, I would really recommend taking a step back and comparing systems based on what you want to use them for rather than based on just the camera body. Sure, the controls and features may be the defining criterion, but when I got into FF mirrorless I also factored in the lens selection. I am not saying that is what you should do, but I for instance traded off class-leading/matching AF and some other features for the lenses Nikon offered.

Just something to think about, if I am not totally off base here…

jessem101 · Jul 11, 2024

Laqup said:
They will be similar, but the Canon will have a slightly better performance overall.

Why do I come to this conclusion? The Z6 III seems to be slightly worse than the Z8 in some scenarios (reported by various reviewers, check e.g. Jan Wegener when using the camera for birding) and even the Z8 is only able to keep up here with the R6 II/R5 after the dedicated firmware update, therefore the Z6 III can't be better.

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf and this is a camera that I am using in conjunction with my R5 and R8 (same as R6 II) on a daily basis and in this comparison the canons deliver a slightly better keeper rate (and more critically sharp images), especially when a lot of action is involved (people). It's not world shattering though, maybe 5-10% in not that demanding shots and a bit more for action (15-20%).

Overall both cameras will not disappoint. I use the Zf basically for every type of setting, the canons give me more confidence when shooting playing kids though.

What reviewers has stated the Z6iii AF performance differs between the Z8 and Z9? i call BS LOL

I have owned the Z9 for a while now, been shooting with the Z6iii for a little over a week in many different scenarios. Not once have i felt if the Z6iii AF differs from the Z9. they have the same AF system.

The issue with these youtubers who borrow a camera body, try and conclude "tests" meanwhile there are a TON of factors that could cause differentials. Whatever BS they have concluded i have not experienced at all. in fact i found the AF system of the Z6iii to be the same of the Z9 (minus some of the settings, i.e. plane, bird and so on, but its covered more broadly with the Z6iii). I would also argue that the 8 stops of image stabilization give the Z6iii more of a slight advantage over the Z8 and Z9 6 stops.

jessem101 · Jul 11, 2024

Carol T said:
I am perhaps missing something here, but why are you comparing cameras in two completely different systems? Are you looking to get into one system or the other? Or are you already in some mirrorless system? (You mention Nikon dSLR stuff)

If the former, I would really recommend taking a step back and comparing systems based on what you want to use them for rather than based on just the camera body. Sure, the controls and features may be the defining criterion, but when I got into FF mirrorless I also factored in the lens selection. I am not saying that is what you should do, but I for instance traded off class-leading/matching AF and some other features for the lenses Nikon offered.

Just something to think about, if I am not totally off base here…

LOL! i was about to ask the same question...

Carol T · Jul 11, 2024

jessem101 said:
Carol T said:

I am perhaps missing something here, but why are you comparing cameras in two completely different systems? Are you looking to get into one system or the other? Or are you already in some mirrorless system? (You mention Nikon dSLR stuff)

If the former, I would really recommend taking a step back and comparing systems based on what you want to use them for rather than based on just the camera body. Sure, the controls and features may be the defining criterion, but when I got into FF mirrorless I also factored in the lens selection. I am not saying that is what you should do, but I for instance traded off class-leading/matching AF and some other features for the lenses Nikon offered.

Just something to think about, if I am not totally off base here…

Click to expand...

LOL! i was about to ask the same question...

Laqup · Jul 11, 2024

jessem101 said:
Laqup said:

They will be similar, but the Canon will have a slightly better performance overall.

Why do I come to this conclusion? The Z6 III seems to be slightly worse than the Z8 in some scenarios (reported by various reviewers, check e.g. Jan Wegener when using the camera for birding) and even the Z8 is only able to keep up here with the R6 II/R5 after the dedicated firmware update, therefore the Z6 III can't be better.

On top the Z6 III has a similar implementation (if not identical) as the Zf and this is a camera that I am using in conjunction with my R5 and R8 (same as R6 II) on a daily basis and in this comparison the canons deliver a slightly better keeper rate (and more critically sharp images), especially when a lot of action is involved (people). It's not world shattering though, maybe 5-10% in not that demanding shots and a bit more for action (15-20%).

Overall both cameras will not disappoint. I use the Zf basically for every type of setting, the canons give me more confidence when shooting playing kids though.

Click to expand...

What reviewers has stated the Z6iii AF performance differs between the Z8 and Z9? i call BS LOL

I have owned the Z9 for a while now, been shooting with the Z6iii for a little over a week in many different scenarios. Not once have i felt if the Z6iii AF differs from the Z9. they have the same AF system.

The issue with these youtubers who borrow a camera body, try and conclude "tests" meanwhile there are a TON of factors that could cause differentials. Whatever BS they have concluded i have not experienced at all. in fact i found the AF system of the Z6iii to be the same of the Z9 (minus some of the settings, i.e. plane, bird and so on, but its covered more broadly with the Z6iii). I would also argue that the 8 stops of image stabilization give the Z6iii more of a slight advantage over the Z8 and Z9 6 stops.

A) Nobody mentioned Z8 vs Z9, but you probably meant Z8 vs Z6 III in your first sentence.

B) According to some of the forum users here NIKON themselves stated an AF difference in their "Z6 III kickoff events". I think they claimed the Z6 III to be like "90%" of the Z8. (Too lazy to search for the post though, if your life depends on it I would probably be able to find it again though, let me know..).

C) You said it yourself, the UI and settings / parameters are not identicaly, therefor you can have different settings and will get a different behavior, aka not the same.

D) Other than that the majority of reviewers reports similar findings ("not exactly on par but close"), a bit more unspecific overall, but if many of them have similar conclusions it probably contains some truth. So maybe you are the one that is not that demanding or less experienced (no offense).

Nikon z6iii equal or better Auto focus than Canon EOS R6 Mark ii

Well-known member

Veteran Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Veteran Member

Forum Pro

Senior Member

Veteran Member

Active member

Forum Pro

Senior Member

Senior Member

Veteran Member

Active member

Veteran Member

Senior Member

Forum Enthusiast

Forum Enthusiast

Senior Member

Senior Member

Similar threads

Keyboard shortcuts