Nikon Z* mirrorless

I use it for Macro and it's very good, it's good for portraits too, much better than the old F-mount version.
As Peter has said, the lack of teleconverter compatibility is a poor design choice, but probably it's only draw back.
I could see a MkII version down the line, that allows teleconverters.
 
jknights said:
Naah never used the gym, it is for those who want to be musclebound!
To each his own.
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Just been looking at the F mount 80-400g lens only 3.3 lbs and looks to be a sharp option .. mulling it over at the moment , don’t need it but I do like it
 
the black fox said:
Just been looking at the F mount 80-400g lens only 3.3 lbs and looks to be a sharp option .. mulling it over at the moment , don’t need it but I do like it
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Pretty sure there are two versions. The first was very slow to focus.
 
rob-nikon said:
Has anyone got the Nikon Z 105mm MC f2.8 marco lens? I thought I’d ask opinions on it as I potentially fancy a change (will probably look to pass on my Nikon 70-180 f2.8 as I’ve hardly used it).
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The 105mm f2.8 z is very fine lens. It is probably my sharpest lens even better than the the F mount version with VR which is excellent as well.
 
rob-nikon said:
Has anyone got the Nikon Z 105mm MC f2.8 marco lens? I thought I’d ask opinions on it as I potentially fancy a change (will probably look to pass on my Nikon 70-180 f2.8 as I’ve hardly used it).

I’ve had a macro lens in the past on the Nikon d750. I liked it but bit of a niche lens. I want to do more photography and macro could potentially be something to help me get back into more photography.

I’m off to the NEC at the weekend so should get a chance to try one out if I take the Z8 with me.
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As with ALL macro lenses they are not the fastest to focus. I've never used a teleconverter with any of my macro lenses but it's something to think about if you do and this cannot accept one. I always seem to buy one and it's always there if needed. You don't just need bugs to get some use from the lens and it's just about using your grey matter to find a subject. If you can get one cheap enough then go for it.
 
the black fox said:
Just been looking at the F mount 80-400g lens only 3.3 lbs and looks to be a sharp option .. mulling it over at the moment , don’t need it but I do like it
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I have the Z mount version, it is excellent. Only surpassed by my 105mm Z.
 
trevorbray said:
Pretty sure there are two versions. The first was very slow to focus.
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Yes Trevor you’re correct ,the mkii G version is the one I’m looking at . The older version with the aperture stops visible was terrible
 
wilt said:
I use it for Macro and it's very good, it's good for portraits too, much better than the old F-mount version.
As Peter has said, the lack of teleconverter compatibility is a poor design choice, but probably it's only draw back.
I could see a MkII version down the line, that allows teleconverters.
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jknights said:
The 105mm f2.8 z is very fine lens. It is probably my sharpest lens even better than the the F mount version with VR which is excellent as well.
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Thanks for the replies. Good to know the good reviews are true. I will take a look around the photography show to see what they have on offer.
 
Hadge said:
As with ALL macro lenses they are not the fastest to focus. I've never used a teleconverter with any of my macro lenses but it's something to think about if you do and this cannot accept one. I always seem to buy one and it's always there if needed. You don't just need bugs to get some use from the lens and it's just about using your grey matter to find a subject. If you can get one cheap enough then go for it.
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I don’t think it would be my most used lens but good to have one in the bag. Good to know it performs well too.
 
Kieran_89 said:
Got hands on with the 400 4.5 today and it felt great, coupled with a 2x teleconverter i think is going to be my next purchase.
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I love my 400 f4.5! It was the lens I moved back to Nikon for as I always wanted a fast f4(ish) lens that was much lighter than the 200-400 f4 I had several years before. I very much had a love hate relationship with 200-400 lens because I loved the quality but hated the weight. As I couldn’t hand hold it steady I had to carry it around on a tripod meaning I was carrying around 8.5kg! The 400 f4.5 is an absolute dream as I can hand hold it so easy that I don’t use a tripod any more for wildlife.

I’ve not tried it with the 2x teleconverter but have a 1.4x TC that I must use more often on the 400 f4.5.
 
After a weekend of going through alternative lighter weight lens options to the 180-600 Z . Any of the Z series are to expensive and having a FTZii anyway it came down to F mount alternatives , missed a. 300pf with 1.4 tc and a lot of lenses are either to expensive ( dealers) or advertised with fungus ( that doesn’t effect I.q ALLEGEDLY) in the end I stretched my budget a bit and went for a as new 80-400G which looks to fit all criteria and has a 30 day return policy if not as advertised. Should be here tomorrow all things being equal
 
Jeff, had that lens back in my F mount days - sadly I wasn't overly impressed. Compared to modern lenses, AF speed was decidedly leisurely and relatively speaking - loud :(

Mine might have been a bad copy though ?
 
Thanks for the replies peter and Andrew did you have the earlier version with the apeture rings , the G version supposedly cures those problems , seen quite a few good reviews of it on Z mount cameras . Got a 30 day return window anyway and decent weather this week for testing.
 
rob-nikon said:
I love my 400 f4.5! It was the lens I moved back to Nikon for as I always wanted a fast f4(ish) lens that was much lighter than the 200-400 f4 I had several years before. I very much had a love hate relationship with 200-400 lens because I loved the quality but hated the weight. As I couldn’t hand hold it steady I had to carry it around on a tripod meaning I was carrying around 8.5kg! The 400 f4.5 is an absolute dream as I can hand hold it so easy that I don’t use a tripod any more for wildlife.

I’ve not tried it with the 2x teleconverter but have a 1.4x TC that I must use more often on the 400 f4.5.
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Glad to hear your positive thoughts. :)

Any chance I can borrow it when I go to Madeira in 3 weeks? :naughty:
 
well the 80-400G ED VR turned up , as stated unmarked condition . been dow the estuary took a few hundred mixed shots all with the lens wide open .. yes it could possibly be improved by stopping down and or upping shutter speed all at 1/1000th sec ,but quiet good enough will give it a few more tests before deciding but at the moment it looks like a good buy
tester 1 by jeff cohen, on Flickr
tester 2 by jeff cohen, on Flickr
tester3 by jeff cohen, on Flickr
tester4 by jeff cohen, on Flickr
tester5 by jeff cohen, on Flickr
 
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just been out and took some further test shots its a fair bit sharper at F7.1 which goes along with comments from others also increased the shutter speed
tester 6 @f7.1 by jeff cohen, on Flickr
 
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Wow, there's so many pages in here that it's impossible to filter through and find what I need.

Can anyone recommend a good CFEXpress Type B memory card for the Nikon Z6 III? I'm using LEXAR at the moment, and I'm not having a great experience with it
(after I record a video and immediately try to playback, it's not responding. - I have to switch the camera off and on again. To be fair it might not be a memory card issue, but I want to rule it out with a new memory card).

Looking for minimum 512GB capacity. Annoyingly the Nikon MC-CF660G card (660GB) doesn't seem to be available with any of their approved suppliers.
 
snap_snap said:
Wow, there's so many pages in here that it's impossible to filter through and find what I need.

Can anyone recommend a good CFEXpress Type B memory card for the Nikon Z6 III? I'm using LEXAR at the moment, and I'm not having a great experience with it
(after I record a video and immediately try to playback, it's not responding. - I have to switch the camera off and on again. To be fair it might not be a memory card issue, but I want to rule it out with a new memory card).

Looking for minimum 512GB capacity. Annoyingly the Nikon MC-CF660G card (660GB) doesn't seem to be available with any of their approved suppliers.
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I have been using one of these for a year or so, no issues whatsoever.
Sabrent Cfexpress 512gb
 
snap_snap said:
Wow, there's so many pages in here that it's impossible to filter through and find what I need.

Can anyone recommend a good CFEXpress Type B memory card for the Nikon Z6 III? I'm using LEXAR at the moment, and I'm not having a great experience with it
(after I record a video and immediately try to playback, it's not responding. - I have to switch the camera off and on again. To be fair it might not be a memory card issue, but I want to rule it out with a new memory card).

Looking for minimum 512GB capacity. Annoyingly the Nikon MC-CF660G card (660GB) doesn't seem to be available with any of their approved suppliers.
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I’ve been using an Integral card for 5+ years now and it’s been great, very quick card and reasonably priced.
 
Does anyone have real world experience using the sigma 150-600 adapted? Ive used it in the past on other systems and am happy with the optical performance, but haven’t tried it on Nikon with the ftz. Wondering if the af performance is decent. Assuming it’s fine as I have older sigma lenses that work fine adapted.
 
snap_snap said:
Wow, there's so many pages in here that it's impossible to filter through and find what I need.

Can anyone recommend a good CFEXpress Type B memory card for the Nikon Z6 III? I'm using LEXAR at the moment, and I'm not having a great experience with it
(after I record a video and immediately try to playback, it's not responding. - I have to switch the camera off and on again. To be fair it might not be a memory card issue, but I want to rule it out with a new memory card).

Looking for minimum 512GB capacity. Annoyingly the Nikon MC-CF660G card (660GB) doesn't seem to be available with any of their approved suppliers.
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Delkin Black
 
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addicknchips said:
Does anyone have real world experience using the sigma 150-600 adapted? Ive used it in the past on other systems and am happy with the optical performance, but haven’t tried it on Nikon with the ftz. Wondering if the af performance is decent. Assuming it’s fine as I have older sigma lenses that work fine adapted.
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I have the Sigma 150-600mm contemporary I used on the Z8 and happy with the performance for the cost, I don't use the lens a huge amount due to the weight but you'll be familiar with that aspect already.
 
addicknchips said:
Does anyone have real world experience using the sigma 150-600 adapted? Ive used it in the past on other systems and am happy with the optical performance, but haven’t tried it on Nikon with the ftz. Wondering if the af performance is decent. Assuming it’s fine as I have older sigma lenses that work fine adapted.
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I have retained this lens as I moved to the mirrorless set up and still use it on occasion. I took it to RIAT last July and the extra reach over my 70-200 was very welcome. Autofocus wasn’t an issue and I was pleased to have it with me for the day.
 
addicknchips said:
Does anyone have real world experience using the sigma 150-600 adapted? Ive used it in the past on other systems and am happy with the optical performance, but haven’t tried it on Nikon with the ftz. Wondering if the af performance is decent. Assuming it’s fine as I have older sigma lenses that work fine adapted.
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I had the Sport version for Tripod use and in the end I bit the bullet and bought the Z 180-600mm. I also had the 400mm f4.5 and 1.4TC and if you can stretch the budget that's the route I would take. The only F mount lens I found that really shone with the FTZii was my Sigma ART 24-35mm f2.
 
I don't know if anyone has spotted this, but I picked it up from a Petapixel article:

Nikon Issues Advisory: Some Z6 III, Z5 II, and ZR Have a Hardware Problem​

Key Details of the Hardware Issue:
  • The Problem: Nikon confirmed a manufacturing issue in certain units that may cause them to become inoperable.
  • Affected Models: Specific serial numbers of the Z6 III, Z5 II, and ZR cameras.
  • Action Taken: Nikon is offering free repairs for affected units, including shipping, regardless of the warranty status.
  • Where to Check: Affected owners can check their serial numbers on the Nikon USA service advisory website.

  • “For more information or to check to see if you have an affected product, please visit this link: Nikonusa.com/service-advisories/z-tsa-3-2026.”
I don't know if it's only a USA problem, but the link is genuine as I've checked the serial number of my Z6iii - it's unaffected.
 
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Hogboy said:
I have been using one of these for a year or so, no issues whatsoever.
Sabrent Cfexpress 512gb
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That's the card I use in my Z8 mostly so I could use it for 20fps shooting and never had any issues with it, if anything it's a bit too easy to keep going at 20fps because the camera doesn't slow down or fill up a buffer.

Although Sabrent aren't well known for memory cards they specialise in high speed SSDs for PCs where they have a decent reputation.
 
Kieran_89 said:
What happened with the 70-200 + tele? Have you been using it or decided not to bother?
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I bought a 80-400 this week but have returned it ,just a bit too soft for my liking . I do have a 70-200 f4 that works great if and when needed though
 
Any one used the Nikon 105mm G macro on a Z body , looks a cheaper option than the native Z. One ..I don’t do a lot of macro ,currently have a sigma 150 mm f2.8 but it’s heavy and arkward in use . Would prefer the smaller form of the 105
 
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