The new Nikon Z 9 is almost a perfect camera for my needs. So how can it become even more perfect?
I do not hide in my articles about the new Nikon Z 9 about my satisfaction with my purchase. I’ve written in-depth introductions and reviews of the system, and it’s safe to say my words are mostly positive. This is not because I am a Nikon fanboy. I’ve been shooting with Nikon my entire career. So I like the brand. However, my toolbox also includes cameras and lenses from many other brands, which have also performed well in this area. So I have no illusions that there is only one brand capable of producing an excellent camera.
Instead, my words about the Z 9 have been overwhelmingly positive because, despite having shot with it almost non-stop since receiving mine late last year, I have yet to find any problems. What a big deal with the camera. prevent me from doing my best work. This opinion, of course, is highly dependent on my workflow. I am a commercial photographer, director and videographer. Many of my clients are major sportswear brands and I spend a lot of time creating images of athletes and/or fitness models in motion in dynamic motion. I am not a photojournalist shot from the sidelines. I am in an organized (or somewhat organized) assembly that I have lit and have some control over. I needed to provide both still photography as well as commercials, so I used both the Z 9’s high frame rate for stills and the high resolution for video. Given its size and bulk, I realize the camera won’t be the right tool for every photographer. But, until proven to the contrary, it seems to be the right tool for me.
However, because I provide full reviews and have promised you I will cover the things I don’t like about the camera as well as the things I do, I have noticed something less bright. than to say. Not sure I’ve found anything to fully satisfy the haters yet. But I did find a few things that I wish were better. However, when I racked my brains writing an article about the camera’s downsides, I realized that pretty much everything on my list is something that can be easily fixed in the firmware. For all I know, many of these could have come. So instead of framing this essay as a list of Z 9 defects, think of the following as a wish list for future firmware releases. Just in case Nikon stumbles across this message, hopefully some of these items make it to the next round of downloads.
Wrong waveform and color
Shooting in N-log and using the technical LUT preview in the camera, I had absolutely no trouble getting the correct exposure in the video. Just using the histogram, it’s pretty easy to determine your exposure. And I have found the files to be very malleable to push or pull exposure in post without any loss of quality. But since, without a cinema camera line, the Z 9 is the most powerful video option Nikon makes, I’d love to see them add some of the extra surveillance functionality you’ll find in most cameras. cinema camera.
Specifically, I want them to add a waveform as well as the option to use the wrong color. For those who don’t do a lot of video, think of these as different ways to measure exposure. Both are more graphical than traditional histograms and allow you to be a little more precise in knowing the exposure of every detail in your scene. When trying to get the most accurate exposure out of a camera and manage light ratios, these tools can be an absolute game changer.
Updated N-log profile
Nikon has announced that an upcoming firmware update will include both ProRes RAW and the newly developed Nikon RAW video format. Until then, I’ve simply shot in ProRes HQ 4:2:2 using N-log. When I do post-production through DaVinci Resolve Studio, my post-color workflow is to use the DaVinci YRGB Color Managed workflow and simply assign the Input Color Space of the Z 9 clips to the N-log . This gets me 99% of the way to where I want to be in most cases and is ready to edit and/or create more creative color layers. I have never dissected the nuts and bolts of an N-log configuration. I have neither the interest nor the skill to do so. But as with many other camera systems I’ve used, including Sony and Canon, there have been multiple flavors of log over the years, often corresponding to increased levels of dynamic range, I’m curious to see What is N-log 2 possible records can be brought to the table.
Do not misunderstand me. N-log straight out of the Z 9 looks great. But, I believe it’s the same log format as the original Z cameras? And I’m curious to know what can happen about dynamic scoping with an updated version.
Incremental integration with post-production plugins
Until recently, the idea that Nikon would become a major player in the video market simply never happened. Sure, stills cameras are always excellent. However, up until the Z series, Nikon simply didn’t have much of a presence in the high-end market. As I mentioned earlier, they still don’t have a cinema camera at the time of this writing. And the Z 9 is the best video camera they’ve made.
The good news is that they got it right with this camera. There’s a part of me that would prefer a full-sized Nikon cinema camera, but in practical terms, I see very little that the Z 9 can’t do. It’s just as good as competing mirrorless video options, if not better in many cases, and I plan on using it as much as I can to do my job.
One thing I noticed, however, is that when it comes to post-production, there aren’t as many 3rd party applications set up for N-log as they are for different versions of S-log or C-log. It’s not that N-logs aren’t included in the majors. Like I said, I ran it through DaVinci Resolve Studio every day and it is very well supported. But there are some third-party plugins, such as those aimed at adding more movie effects, that don’t include N-log as default in their input Gamma set. They tend to include adults like Arri and Red. And they include S-log and C-log formats. But N-logs are not always as well represented as the others.
This is not a surprise. Once again, Nikon is relatively new to the game when it comes to establishing itself in the video market. And you can’t expect that every plug-in developer will have the bandwidth to keep up with any log format right away. However, because the Z 9 has proven that Nikon can not only compete but exceed expectations in the video market, I want to start seeing that recognition show up in all third-party apps. father.
This is not a Nikon problem. It’s the third party app developer’s problem. And it’s not something that can be fixed by firmware. Like a phone call. So whoever it is at Nikon is to contact the third-party developers and make sure they integrate the Nikon camera and log profiles into their software, it’s time to get your Rolodex out . Especially with the newly proposed N-RAW video format coming soon. I hope programs like DaVinci Resolve Studio will fully support this format once the firmware is available. I, for one person, can’t wait to try this combination. The Z 9 is a camera that can rival any other camera on the market. Therefore, the post-production process must also be smooth.
Oh that’s it. Those are the only things I’ve found in my experience with the Z 9 so far that I’d like to add to the camera. My original plan was to include some static features in this list. But, to be honest, I didn’t find anything on the photography front that I would change. Even the video features listed above are things that can be easily fixed through a firmware update or a phone call to some third-party developers. If Nikon updated the Z 9’s firmware with the same passion, it released updates to the original Z 6 and Z 7 camera, there is nothing to indicate that this camera is fully capable of it. It has been a perfect camera for my workflow. Could it get any better?
