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by Bruce Sherman on Tue May 28, 2019 1:36 pm
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I am considering making the move to mirrorless with one of my camera bodies. I currently have a Nikon D500 and Nikon D850. I love the D500 with my 150-600 for birds so I would sell the D850 and get a Z7. I have read comparisons of the Z7 with the latest Sony mirrorless bodies. Seems like the biggest knocks on the Z7 are battery life and the lack of a second memory card slot.

If anybody has first hand accurate knowledge about how the Nikon FTZ adapter on the Z7 does I would love to hear it. Nikon claims that all their "modern" lenses will work with the FTZ/Z7 combo. Does this mean that AF and exposure control work just like it would if the same lens was used with the D850? Also, Tamron, Tokina, and Sigma claim that some of their lenses work with the FTZ/Z7 combo. Does this mean that AF and exposure control work just as well as if the lens was used on a D850?

Thanks in advance for any help.
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by Scott Fairbairn on Tue May 28, 2019 2:58 pm
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The Z7 seems to work fine with the adapter on the 500mmf5.6 PF, but the AF on the Z7 is quite a bit below the D850 in capability.
 

by E.J. Peiker on Tue May 28, 2019 3:27 pm
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As Scott said, the AF isn't as good for tracking a complex moving subject on the Z7 but most everything is as good and the native lenses available and on the roadmap are better than their DSLR counterparts.  Do note the Nikon just rolled out a FW update for the Z series that does substantially improve the AF but I haven't had a chance to test it - it also adds human eye detection.  I would love to go to a Z7 as my primary body even with the 500PF, my favorite wildlife lens, if the AF performance is improved enough.

As for what works, any G and E lens (that's the letter right after the aperture number in the official product name) will work without question and almost as well if not as well.  Earlier lenses than that, you will have to check the Nikon site as to what works and doesn't work.  Another benefit is that AF is done on sensor, it is accurate without the need of AF Fine Tune.
 

by Gary Irwin on Tue May 28, 2019 5:16 pm
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From a couple of youtube videos I've seen the Z7's new eye-AF performs quite well and will be a welcome addition for those that need it, even if it isn't quite up to Sony's standards. Early reports are that the low light AF performance has improved somewhat as well. Unfortunately for us birders, I can discern virtually no improvements in the Z7's general AF-C performance. I truly hope Nikon will continue work on that because I really like my Z7 (and the 500PF), but as it is, the Z7's AF can't even come close to replacing my D850 for birding.
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by E.J. Peiker on Mon Jun 03, 2019 4:09 pm
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The second question in the following link addresses using the Z bodies for action photography, in short, the new FW changes almost nothing in that regard:
http://www.sansmirror.com/newsviews/201 ... answe.html
 

by DChan on Mon Jun 03, 2019 5:14 pm
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If action photography is crucial to you, you should hold on to your DSLRs. If you really have to have a mirrorless for action, try the Sony A9 and a new set of Sony lenses. Olympus can do it but D500 is still more reliable.
 

by sdaconsulting on Tue Jun 04, 2019 10:13 am
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DChan wrote:If action photography is crucial to you, you should hold on to your DSLRs. If you really have to have a mirrorless for action, try the Sony A9 and a new set of Sony lenses. Olympus can do it but D500 is still more reliable.


A lot of people think the A9 is significantly better in AF ability than any other camera after the recent firmware update which enhanced an already world-class AF system.
Matthew Cromer
 

by Scott Fairbairn on Tue Jun 04, 2019 10:22 am
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sdaconsulting wrote:
DChan wrote:If action photography is crucial to you, you should hold on to your DSLRs. If you really have to have a mirrorless for action, try the Sony A9 and a new set of Sony lenses. Olympus can do it but D500 is still more reliable.


A lot of people think the A9 is significantly better in AF ability than any other camera after the recent firmware update which enhanced an already world-class AF system.


I certainly agree with that comment. The A9 is superb. After using mirrorless for the past few years, I found it very difficult to go back to a DSLR. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of long lenses in their lineup other than the expensive 400f2.8. Although there is a rumour that a "wildlife" lens is coming soon.
 

by E.J. Peiker on Tue Jun 04, 2019 10:29 am
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The a9 in it's current incarnation is the best autofocusing camera on the market when all things are considered.  These include speed of acquisition, complex tracking, viewfinder coverage, and most importantly focus accuracy.  Next in line and very close is the D5 and then the D850 and D500.  Everything else is behind those.
 

by DChan on Tue Jun 04, 2019 11:01 am
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E.J. Peiker wrote:... Next in line and very close is the D5 and then the D850 and D500.  Everything else is behind those.
I'd say it's "D5 and then the D500 and D850".
 

by E.J. Peiker on Tue Jun 04, 2019 11:04 am
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It may have not been clear the way I wrote it but I put the D850 and D500 pretty much on the same plane for AF. Perhaps the full frame coverage gives the D500 an edge but if you shoot the D850 in DX mode you have the same coverage of F sensors.
 

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