Big test
SPECS › Price £3999 body only, £4839 with Z 24-120mm f/4 › In the box Z 8 body, EN-EL15c Li-ion battery, charger, body cap, strap, USB-C cable, hot shoe cover › Sensor Stacked CMOS sensor 45.7 megapixels › Processing engine Expeed 7 › Sensor format FX format 35.9x23.9mm, 8256x5504 pixels with image ratios of 1:1, 3:2 and 16:9 › File formats 14-bit NEF, JPEG, HEIF › Lens mount Nikon Z › ISO range Native range is ISO 64-25,600 expandable to ISO 32- 102,400 equivalent › Shutter Electronic shutter with shutter sound and sensor shield › Shutter range 30secs-1/32,000sec, expandable to 900secs in M mode, bulb, time; Flash sync 1/250sec or slower, FP high-speed sync allows up to 1/8000sec › Drive modes Single frame, continuous low-speed 1-10fps, continuous high-speed 10-20fps, high-speed frame capture at 30fps, 60fps or 120fps, pre-release capture at 30fps, 60fps or 120fps up to 1sec beforehand › Exposure system PASM. Matrix spot, centre and highlight weighted › Exposure compensation +/-5EV in 1/3 & 1/2EV steps; Auto exposure- bracketing up to 9 shots, at up to +/-3EV in 0.3EV steps; Video exposure compensation at +/-3EV › Monitor Tilting 3.2in LCD, 2.1m-dot touch screen › Viewfinder 3.69m-dot OLED EVF › Focusing system Hybrid phase- detection/contrast AF with AF assist, detection range -7 to +19EV › Focus points 493 AF points, face detect, multi-area, centre, single point; subject detect: people, animals, motorbikes, aeroplanes › Image stabiliser Five-axis in-body image stabiliser with 6EV benefit › Video 7680x4320 (8K UHD): 30p/25p/24p 3840x2160 (4K UHD): 120p/100p/60p/50p/30p/25p/24p 1920x1080: 120p/100p/60p/50p/30p/25p/24p › Video frame size (pixels) and frame rate (Raw video) 8256x4644: 60p/50p/30p/25p/24p 5392x3032: 60p/50p/30p/25p/24p 4128x2322: 120p/100p/60p/50p/30p/25p/24p 3840x2160: 120p/100p/60p/50p › Movie format MOV, NEV and MP4 › Connectivity USB-C data connector and power delivery, HDMI type A, 3.5mm audio in, 3.5mm audio out, ten-pin remote, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth › Key features Weather-sealed body, picture control system, creative picture controls, multiple exposure, focus bracketing, active D-lighting, backlit buttons, starlight view › Battery EN-EL15c lithium-ion battery, 340 exposures › Storage media Dual slots: 1x CFexpress/XQD, 1xSD/SDHC/SDXC, UHS-II › Dimensions (wxhxd) 144x118.5x83mm › Weight 910g with card and battery › Contact nikon.co.uk
PERFORMANCE: ISO The Z 8 has a native ISO range of 64-25,600, with the ability to expand to equivalent ISO 32-102,400. This set of night exposures was taken with no in-camera noise reduction. The Raw files were then processed in Lightroom with manual noise reduction and the Luminance slider set to 25. The exposure of the ISO 100 frame was 10 seconds at f/8. Image quality remained excellent all the way up to ISO 3200, with no appreciable digital noise and crisp rendition of fine detail. There was a drop-off in quality from that point onwards, although it was minimal, with ISO 6400 perfectly capable of critical results, given some extra attention to detail in editing. For interest, I processed the ISO 12,800, 25,600 and 51,200 frames through Lightroom’s Denoise AI. The results were truly remarkable – very clean, smooth and rich in fine detail. In summary, if you need to tap into the Z8’s high ISO skills, you won’t be disappointed – especially if you use a noise-reduction app.
GIVE ME A BOOST For night-time shooters, the high-ISO abilities of the Z 8 will be a real boon, particularly in combination with noise reduction
100
3200
25,600
25,600 – ENHANCED
800
6400
51,200
51,200 – ENHANCED
1600
12,800
102,400
12,800 – ENHANCED
“EXPOSURES AND AUTO WHITE- BALANCE WERE CONSISTENTLY SPOT-ON AND, WHILE I DID DIAL IN COMPENSATION OCCASIONALLY, IT WAS FOR EXPECTED SITUATIONS”
enough and the AF just went to the background. So instead I went with the Wide-L option, which was generally consistent and accurate. Nikon has just updated the Z 9 firmware for better 3D tracking, so perhaps it will arrive for the Z 8 too. I shot some very active black- headed gulls on a bright day using the 100-400mm zoom, with animal detect and the Wide-L focus zone selected. If I kept the bird in that zone, acquisition was very quick and I could see the eye-detect box appear on the bird’s eye as I tracked. It proved reasonably tenacious in staying on target as the creatures ducked and dived around. Generally, the AF system has huge potential and just needs time spent to refine the set-up to suit the user and subject.
SMART DESIGN The large, info-packed LCD means you can check camera settings with a quick downward glance
Issue 109 | Photography News 13
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