nikonboy Loc: Apple Valley, MN and Pine Island, Florida

I am intrigued by the Nikon 1 v3 with its 18 megapixel sensor, and 20 frames per second in full auto focus mode, and up to 60 frames per second in single focus mode. It is also reputed to have extremely fast focus. I like that I can use my current Nikon AF-S lenses on it with the FT1 Mount Adapter. On the negative side is a very small sensor, smaller than most other mirrorless cameras.

I have done a fair amount of Birds in Flight photography with my D200, D300, D5200, and now my D800. I actually took one of my lenses, the Nikon AF-S Nikkor 28-300 lens to the local camera store to try it on the v3 and was impressed with the effective 810mm that lens gave me with the v3’s 2.7 crop factor. I used my own micro SD card with the camera and again was impressed with the IQ compared to that of the D300 and D5200 with the same lens. It hardly seemed fair to compare it to the D800.

My question is, has anybody used the Nikon 1 v3 as a bird-in-flight camera with good success? Those that have the camera, is the 20 fps useful? Is the focus system good for fast acquisition of birds in flight? What is your overall impression of the camera and the photos you are able to get with the small sensor? Actual experience, as well as theoretical opinions are all welcome. Thank you.

tradergeorge Loc: Newport, Kentucky

I do not have the V3, but I have the J1 and have used it a lot....I would not concern myself too much with the physical size of the CX sensor. They do a lot of "magic" in the software and in-camera systems that compensates for this in ways I do not fully understand, but can appreciate when I see the images. My opinion is that you would probably NOT be disappointed with it for birding. I have NOT tried it with anything other than the two lenses I got with my kit, which were 10-30mm and 30-110mm, but using the 110mm at full zoom was not nearly as bad as one would imagine, and was still quite bright...As usual, JMHO, YMMV...

Jerry Green Loc: Huntsville, AL

I use one for BIF. Two examples here:
http://gofish.smugmug.com/Other/Nikon-1-V3-and-Nikon-1-70/i-gmPw8Lg
Twenty examples here:
http://gofish.smugmug.com/Nature/Wheeler-and-Wilson-Dams-2014/i-tCtQS8F
Photos made with the Nikon 1 70-300mm lens and F-mount lens in other galleries too. Click on the circle with an "i" at the lower right of the large photo to see the name of the camera and focal length of the lens used.

nikonboy Loc: Apple Valley, MN and Pine Island, Florida

You have some beautiful photographs there. It appears the camera is capable of taking fine wildlife pictures. I am wondering if you use the 10 fps or 20 fps setting for birds, and if so does the buffer keep up with those high data rates for several seconds? I presume that would depend on whether or not you are shooting in RAW. Were those prints derived from RAW?

Jerry Green Loc: Huntsville, AL

I shoot RAW and 10 or 20 fps bursts. I get several shots but have not actually counted how many it takes to fill the buffer.