Review: Nikon Z9 mirrorless camera
I’ve had the very best camera in my hand for the past month, the Nikon Z9. To plagiarise Tina Turner, it is simply the best.
If the best camera is the one in your hand, then I have had the very best camera in my hand for the past month, the Nikon Z9. To plagiarise Tina Turner, it is simply the best.
Nikon has been subjected to plenty of criticism over the past couple of years of being late to “join the mirrorless party”, and while there is some justification in this criticism, the arrival of the Z9 to back up the release of the Z6II, Z7II and even the Z Fc, puts Nikon in a very solid position.
The past 12 months had seen a plethora of rumours concerning the pending release of a flagship mirrorless model. Finally Nikon confirmed that the Z9 was on its way. The Z9 essentially combines the two leading Nikon DSLR models, the D6 and the D850, with some serious updates to both.
Knowing the camera was on its way to me, I downloaded the 914-page reference guide for a review. Yes, correct 914 pages. Being a long-term Nikon user, I was able to quickly set up the camera for some surfing shots, and basically, I went with 20 FPS at 45MP images in RAW at a maximum burst of 200 images using spot metering in AF-C (auto focus continuous in Nikon speak).
Click on the images to enlarge them.
With the camera finally in my hand and fully charged I headed out. The thought of 45MP images capturing sport at 20 frames per second in RAW with promise of improved tracking and focusing was something unimaginable to me.
The Z9 is the first mirrorless camera to be released with only an electronic shutter. Its fastest shutter speed of 1/32,000 enables the Z9 to support continuous shooting at up to 120 fps with full AF/AE for JPEG/normal images at a file size of 11 megapixels when the high-speed frame capture mode is used. With 20FPS at full resolution producing superb images, this is something I just can’t see many serious photographers using, unless they want to save space on the CFExpress Type B memory cards.
The Z9 is backwards compatible with the older XDQ cards, although you will suffer a huge loss in read/write capabilities using these.
First stop the annual Newcastle Merewether Beach Surfing Santa’s, right at sunrise and shooting directly into the rising sun. I used a Nikon 180-400 f4.0 TC1.4 and coupled to the Z9 with the Nikon FTZ adaptor. The Z9 is nothing like other mirrorless bodies, it’s far larger, more like the D6 it replaces in both size and weight, and it also features full focus and shutter controls in both the portrait and landscape orientation. To counter the size and weight of this combination, I used a monopod with a Wimberly Monopod Gimbal that allowed me to perfectly balance the unit.
From the moment I focused through the EVF and pressed the shutter button, I knew this camera was sensational. There is something special of hearing the images being taken so rapidly and so quietly. Shooting an initial burst of around three seconds of a surfer, I was most surprised, no, I was amazed to see that immediately I could review the last image taken, absolutely no lag. This was due to the dual stream technology, which outputs two streams of data from the stacked CMOS sensor, one for writing to the memory card and the other for viewing, either via the EVF or the monitor.
The image quality was simply amazing, the tracking so precise insofar that in my initial outing with the Z9 just a handful of images were lost. Add to this I could instantly review the images, something I was to use all the time I had the Z9. I found this technique very useful in glaring conditions as I could isolate the image without the need to cover the monitor up.
It was pleasing to be able to download and process the images using Adobe camera raw and while I do not have any complaints with the way ACR handled the image, I notice other reviewers have been critical of ACR and endorsed the Nikon’s Capture NX 2, which is a free download.
Wildlife photography is well suited to the tracking ability of the Z9 and with the Hunter Wetlands in full breeding and nesting season, it was time to put the Z9 through some more severe tests. I was able to lock focus on a pelican coming into land and while the pelican disappeared behind trees and other birds on the lake, the Z9 never lost focus.
For me, the standout feature of the Z9 is its hybrid phase-detection, contrast detection system, which has 493 phase detection points covering 90 per cent of the frame, both vertically and horizontally. The new camera provides the usual AF-S, AF-C and MF modes. For birds in flight, I like to shoot in shutter priority of 1/3200th of a second, or even 1/4000th of a second, using auto ISO and an aperture of f5.6-f8.0
You can choose from 10 AF area modes: pinpoint, single-point, dynamic area AF with small, medium and large area sizes, Wide-area AF (small and large), 3D-tracking AF, subject tracking AF and auto-area AF.
One major positive point for me is the FTZ adaptor, allowing the use of Nikon F mount lenses to all Nikon mirrorless cameras. I used the FTZ adaptor with a range of Nikon F lenses and also a couple of other 3rd party lenses and it worked without a single issue
Subject detection AF is highly sophisticated in the new camera, with automatic detection and tracking of human faces and eyes plus face and eye detection of a cat, a dog or bird in animal mode. Selecting vehicle detections allows he camera to detect and track a bicycle, a car, a motorcycle, a train, or a plane.
The focus point is displayed over the area detected and, if more than one subject type is detected in the auto mode, a grey box will appear over each of the subjects detected. Note that 3D-tracking AF is only available in AF-C mode and for stills photography. Time did not permit me to fully evaluate these features.
I have heard many negative comments about the price of the Z9, to me that’s false. For starters the D6 which the Z9 replaces was more than $1000 extra at the time it was released and the fact with one camera you can combine the D850 and D6, makes the Z9 attractive at the recommended price of $8999.
Summary. Is Z9 perfect? No, it is not, but it is the best camera I have used. A single camera to cover sport, wildlife, landscapes and seascapes and portraiture. I am certain it will excel at astrophotography as well, but during my time with the Z9, the Milky Way core was not visible.
I have a few gripes. The locking mechanism covering the memory cards is a disaster. What on earth was wrong with the previous methods of having a sliding door over the cards? Secondly, I struggled on occasions with the delay of getting the camera on and focused on a rapidly moving subject. It would be nice to limit such a delay to something like a DSLR although I am surmising there are technical issues preventing this.
There’s the cost of CFExpress Type B cards. With the capacity to capture images so rapidly, you need to outlay a further $2000 for a couple of memory cards capable of matching the cameras performance. For several years I have been hearing the prices will fall, but not so far.
One thing is for sure and to plagiarise a line from Jaws, ‘you are going to need bigger storage’. Price $8999, body only.
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Key specs
• 45.7MP FX-format stacked BSI CMOS sensor
• EXPEED 7 image processor
• 493-point phase-detection AF with intelligent subject detection
• 20 fps shooting in Raw, 30 fps Shooting in JPEG, 120 fps Shooting at 11MP
• Up to 8K30p and 4K120p video recording
• Internal 10-bit recording, ProRes 422 HQ and H. 265 Support
• New high-efficiency Raw file format
• Blackout-free EVF and four-axis tilting LCD touchscreen
• Integrated vertical grip, dual CFexpress type B card slots
• Built-in 5 GHz Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GNSS
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Pros & cons
Pros: Build quality, image quality, speed (frames per second), FTZ adaptor
Cons: Cost of memory cards, memory card latch
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