Refurbished Nikon Z9 sells out instantly

[MrFotoFool]

Nikon USA posted a few refurbished Z9 cameras for a thousand bucks off retail price. Needless to say they sold out immediately and the page is now gone from their site.

(This is a camera I am considering as I only use one Sony body to complement my two Nikon D850's and I don't love my Sony body, but do like the 200-600 lens. When Nikon comes out with their 200-600 this year I may make the switch, especially if they offer this Z9 special again.)

 

[Clix Pix]

Back in 2019 I made the switch from Nikon (which I had used for many, many years so it wasn't an easy decision) to Sony and I have absolutely no regrets. The reason at the time was the reality that Nikon was nowhere near truly competing in the ballpark when finally coming up with their first mirrorless FF cameras and a few lenses and their "roadmap" at the time being less than exciting.

It is nice to see that now in 2023, Nikon is more-or-less making progress in catching up, but in the meantime I and others who switched to Sony or other forward-moving mirrorless systems have been more than happy over the past two or three years using the systems which we chose which offered the camera bodies and lenses which we wanted.....

Do let us know how you like Nikon's version of the 200-600mm lens when they finally get around to releasing it.

 

[MBeltran]

With a flange distance of 16mm (vs. Sony's 18mm), the new Nikon line is kinda late to get into it. I'm now committed to Sony and their camera bodies fit in my hand quite well. I'd like to see how Nikon would be open to allowing other brand lenses to be adapted to their Z9, et al. One could theoretically adapt Sony's 200-600mm to the Z9. The adapters exist. I was a Nikon user way back, but they kept stringing us along, which I found unacceptable.

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

Hi Fred et al,
as I have indicated in the past on the forum i am a Nikon transferee to Sony but still
retain elements of my prior Nikon holding including a 500mm f4 long lens and 2 x D850 Cameras.

Due to a credit i had with a previous local agent against past Nikon purchases i had a balance outstanding
and despite having made the move to Sony, the credit was against further Nikon purchases and I thought
I would try the Nikon Z9.

I had a preferential preorder arrangement and received the Z( long before most other VIP preorders.

To cut to the chase, I bought the NIKON-Sony mirrorless adapter and in field testing with my 500mm f4 found
the set up of the lens, adapter and camera to be very very heavy......and with the lens x1.4 teleconverter to be
unmanageable for hand held shooting.

I know on the forum many feel the Sony 200-600m plus camera and possible teleconverter to be heavy which i don't
particularily find to be the case, but, inspite of the fact i used Nikon for a good number of years to shoot handheld
the Z9 was a bridge too far and a total change to overall weight issues.

I sold the Z9 shortly after receiving it and using it, and was in fact able to get more than retail price for it given the high
demand for the Z9 in the early days.

To add to the Z9 weight, is the fact it does not have a detachable battery grip and at that time i didn't find the focus
efficiency for action/BIF to be better than Sony.....subsequently i believe the Z9 focus issues have been addressed
in subsequent firmware updates.

Bottom line i would not recommend the Z9 for any one wising to use it with retrofit DSLR long lenses/adapters.

For those who are new to the Z9 mirrorless environment with no DSLR baggage, and using potentially lighter Nikon
mirrorless long lenses I cant comment.

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

Hi Fred et al,
as I have indicated in the past on the forum i am a Nikon transferee to Sony but still
retain elements of my prior Nikon holding including a 500mm f4 long lens and 2 x D850 Cameras.

Due to a credit i had with a previous local agent against past Nikon purchases i had a balance outstanding
and despite having made the move to Sony, the credit was against further Nikon purchases and I thought
I would try the Nikon Z9.

I had a preferential preorder arrangement and received the Z( long before most other VIP preorders.

To cut to the chase, I bought the NIKON-Sony mirrorless adapter and in field testing with my 500mm f4 found
the set up of the lens, adapter and camera to be very very heavy......and with the lens x1.4 teleconverter to be
unmanageable for hand held shooting.

I know on the forum many feel the Sony 200-600m plus camera and possible teleconverter to be heavy which i don't
particularily find to be the case, but, inspite of the fact i used Nikon for a good number of years to shoot handheld
the Z9 was a bridge too far and a total change to overall weight issues.

I sold the Z9 shortly after receiving it and using it, and was in fact able to get more than retail price for it given the high
demand for the Z9 in the early days.

To add to the Z9 weight, is the fact it does not have a detachable battery grip and at that time i didn't find the focus
efficiency for action/BIF to be better than Sony.....subsequently i believe the Z9 focus issues have been addressed
in subsequent firmware updates.

Bottom line i would not recommend the Z9 for any one wising to use it with retrofit DSLR long lenses/adapters.

For those who are new to the Z9 mirrorless environment with no DSLR baggage, and using potentially lighter Nikon
mirrorless long lenses I cant comment.

Please note the typo above, the adapter i bought for the Z9 was the Nikon DSLR to Nikon Z9 mirrorless...and not Nikon-Sony...

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

I've no doubt it's a great camera, but they are still a world behind in lenses and filtering the tech down to more affordable cameras. Canon are the kings in the lower end now, the lowest end range have all of the AF speed of the upper range cameras. I am seriously considering one, maybe the r7, because I could buy it and the 100 500 lens for less than an upgrade in Sony.

 

[MrFotoFool]

I've no doubt it's a great camera, but they are still a world behind in lenses and filtering the tech down to more affordable cameras. Canon are the kings in the lower end now, the lowest end range have all of the AF speed of the upper range cameras. I am seriously considering one, maybe the r7, because I could buy it and the 100 500 lens for less than an upgrade in Sony.

The Canon 100-500 is an intersting option in that it is much lighter (and smaller when not zoomed out) than the Sony 200-600. I have looked at it myself. The problem I have is with the viewfinder of the R5, the only body I might want. I had an opportunity to try one on two different occasions and it is hideous. As someone who still largely uses SLR (Nikon D850) I am not a fan of electronic viewfinders in general, but at least my Sony A7 IV is tolerable. Reporetedly the Nikon Z9 is the best electronic viewfinder (if you define best as most SLR-like, which I do). I realize a lot of people don't have the issue with the viewfinders that I do and a lot of people use and like the Canon R5 (and their other low end bodies). But I found it unuseable, so I would encourage you to at least look through a Canon body or rent one before you buy.

 

[Brownie]

I'm one who doesn't get the viewfinder issue. I have used some of the worst. I bought one camera that was particularly known for its crappy viewfinder and had no issues. Maybe it's because of what I shoot, maybe it's because I'm just used to them, or maybe I'm a Neanderthal and am too stupid to understand.

I shoot everything from TLR to SLR to P-N-S, film to digital. I honestly pay zero attention to the quality of the viewfinder. The viewfinder is something I look through to compose. Other than extended blackout on some older models when shooting bursts, none of the other stuff bugs me. Truthfully, I find the advantage of WYSIWYG from an EVF far outweighs any negatives. The only thing I can think of that a DSLR viewfinder does better is let you see the scene the same as the naked eye.

Of all the posts you've made about EVFs I don't think I've ever seen an articulation of what you find objectionable. You've said you prefer the SLR look to EVFs, and ok, I can certainly understand having a preference. What I don't understand is how it could be so strong as to cause you to toss in the towel on an entire generation of cameras?

Maybe you don't have anything specific and comes down to preference. Fair enough. But if that's the case, I reiterate what I believe is the need to get comfortable with them, they're here for the long haul while DSLRs are all but extinct. Even if you keep your Nikons until they die at some point you'll be right back where you started, trying to come to terms with the EVF. Seems like you'd be further ahead to wrestle with them now.

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

The Canon 100-500 is an intersting option in that it is much lighter (and smaller when not zoomed out) than the Sony 200-600. I have looked at it myself. The problem I have is with the viewfinder of the R5, the only body I might want. I had an opportunity to try one on two different occasions and it is hideous. As someone who still largely uses SLR (Nikon D850) I am not a fan of electronic viewfinders in general, but at least my Sony A7 IV is tolerable. Reporetedly the Nikon Z9 is the best electronic viewfinder (if you define best as most SLR-like, which I do). I realize a lot of people don't have the issue with the viewfinders that I do and a lot of people use and like the Canon R5 (and their other low end bodies). But I found it unuseable, so I would encourage you to at least look through a Canon body or rent one before you buy.

I will be looking at one, but generally I am fine with modern EVF's, they are all bright and hi res now. The worst I've seen was on the RXV Bridge, it actually put me off buying it.

 

[AlphaWorld]

I'm one who doesn't get the viewfinder issue. I have used some of the worst. I bought one camera that was particularly known for its crappy viewfinder and had no issues. Maybe it's because of what I shoot, maybe it's because I'm just used to them, or maybe I'm a Neanderthal and am too stupid to understand.

I shoot everything from TLR to SLR to P-N-S, film to digital. I honestly pay zero attention to the quality of the viewfinder. The viewfinder is something I look through to compose. Other than extended blackout on some older models when shooting bursts, none of the other stuff bugs me. Truthfully, I find the advantage of WYSIWYG from an EVF far outweighs any negatives. The only thing I can think of that a DSLR viewfinder does better is let you see the scene the same as the naked eye.

Of all the posts you've made about EVFs I don't think I've ever seen an articulation of what you find objectionable. You've said you prefer the SLR look to EVFs, and ok, I can certainly understand having a preference. What I don't understand is how it could be so strong as to cause you to toss in the towel on an entire generation of cameras?

Maybe you don't have anything specific and comes down to preference. Fair enough. But if that's the case, I reiterate what I believe is the need to get comfortable with them, they're here for the long haul while DSLRs are all but extinct. Even if you keep your Nikons until they die at some point you'll be right back where you started, trying to come to terms with the EVF. Seems like you'd be further ahead to wrestle with them now.

You are definitely not a Neanderthal, nor too stupid to understand. I think it’s a measure of your experience that you can use a poor viewfinder effectively.

I very much enjoy a good EVF - the A7RV is particularly good for me. I depend on it for composition, but I also depend on it for things like level (my sense of level is terrible!). And now I run some of the menus in there - mainly when switching subject recognition and turning burst on and off. I could probably put those on buttons, but I find it easier to use the Fn menu because it shows my current states.

For me another advantage of an EVF is the MF magnify - I could never see well enough in an optical viewfinder to be able to MF accurately.