Nikon Z-7 or soon to be Z8 vs a Sony 7R IV: Looking at the possibility of making a change in the near future... I now have the Nikon D850, and have so for three years. I shoot many...

alexskoz Loc: Scottsdale, Arizona

Looking at the possibility of making a change in the near future... I now have the Nikon D850, and have so for three years. I shoot many landscapes & astro photography. Thinking of changing my whole system! Love the D850, but arthritis coming on & sore wrist form the D850, Like I said Just Thinking! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

CO

The Z7 has stellar image quality but its autofocus performance won't match the AF performance of your D850. I'm waiting for Nikon's 2nd or 3rd generation Z cameras to come out to evaluate them again.

I've heard that Nikon's next Z series mirrorless cameras will have a shutter that closes in front of the sensor when you have the lens off. Currently, the sensor is exposed when changing lenses. Dust on the sensor is more of a problem with the mirrorless cameras.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

alexskoz wrote:

Looking at the possibility of making a change in the near future... I now have the Nikon D850, and have so for three years. I shoot many landscapes & astro photography. Thinking of changing my whole system! Love the D850, but arthritis coming on & sore wrist form the D850, Like I said Just Thinking! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Wait see what the Z8 is actually like. In the meantime, take inventory of your equipment and see which lenses would work with the FTZ adapter.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

The difference in weight between a full-frame mirrorless and full-frame DSLR is not much at all, the Sony A7RIV shows 665 grams and the D850 1000 gram, roughly 1-pound difference. The full-frame lenses are much the same size and weight for both models. If you really want a different weight, you need to change the sensor size.

luvmypets Loc: Born & raised Texan living in Fayetteville NC

Have you considered a wrist brace for support? Some where in my life I broke my wrist and didn't know I had then several years ago I fell and sprained it. The doctor took an X-ray and informed me about the previous injury and that arthritis was now starting to form. She put me in a wrist brace that went from my fingers half way to my elbow and recommended that when I was done with that brace that I should continue with a smaller version. The one I followed with went just around the wrist and is about the size of a sweat band but the support it gives allowed me to continue to do the work I was doing without pain. Now that I am retired I use it when I am going to do something that will put a lot of strain my wrist. I always use it when I am going to photograph for several hours, do yard work, ride my motorcycle, lift or move a lot of weight. It really has helped. A brace may give you a little more time with your current camera.

Dodie

PS. I buy them in the drug store or you can purchase them from Amazon.

rwoodvira

I made the switch to a Sony a7Riii from Canon over a year ago and haven't looked back. The lenses are superb, but expensive. The eyefocus is exceptional. Sony has posted new firmware twice adding functionality. I will warn you there is a bit of a learning curve on the menu. If ou go in that direction, I strongly suggest you go to markgaler.com. His settings and tutorials are a big help.

alexskoz Loc: Scottsdale, Arizona

Thank You!

Hammer Loc: London UK

Hi,

I am in the same position as you . Got a D850 and then purchased a Z6 . At first I was not that impressed with the auto focus but the last two firmware update have now put the Z series in a different league . The tracking, eye auto focus are brilliant and will track the image, though the view finder across the whole frame, unreal. You will get photos that you cannot get with the D850 , which I love . The new tracking firmware on my Z6 works well with F mount lens and the adapter. Suspect that there will be blinding performances from the native Z mount lens .

You might want to have a look at a Youtube video by Jared Polin on the new firmware update on the Z series , its about an hour long and tests it very well. JP states that he is of the opinion that the Sony system is better with a better choice of fast lens . So you takes your choice .

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

alexskoz wrote:

Looking at the possibility of making a change in the near future... I now have the Nikon D850, and have so for three years. I shoot many landscapes & astro photography. Thinking of changing my whole system! Love the D850, but arthritis coming on & sore wrist form the D850, Like I said Just Thinking! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

If you have sore wrists using the D850 your wrists will not get relief from either the Z-7 or the Sony 7RIV. I suggest laying the camera in your left hand and holding the camera tightly against your face and help support it with your right hand also.
Learning a new grip will save you a ton of money. Again, press camera into face and your face will actually help support the camera also.
Professional secret, keep your elbows into you body also helps support the load. Practice these new techniques and you should get some relief.

Bill_de Loc: US

It would make sense to wait at least until you see confirmed specs on a Z8.
If weight is an issue plan on switching your F mount lenses for Z mount when the Z version is lighter.
Steve Perry did a review of the focus options on the Z6 and Z7 with the latest firmware update. He wasn't thrilled, but as usual points out the good and the bad.

Somebody already linked to that review.

https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-635292-1.html

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wildweasel

The Olympus EM 1 Mark ll will solve the weight and strain problems, and the images out of this camera are very good. And it can be had at a good price since the Mark lll came out a few weeks ago.

xt2 Loc: British Columbia, Canada

Ched49 Loc: Pittsburgh, Pa.

Both the Sony and Nikon are pretty much neck & neck as far as performance, what brand are you most loyal to?

Judy795

Half of my senior age camera club switched from Canon to the Olympus mentioned above.. bit of learnIng curve for a few months but the pictures are great.

Doc Barry Loc: Huntsville, Alabama USA

If you can afford to change to the Sony, you will be happy. Sony is a couple of years ahead of Canon and Nikon in mirrorless cameras. I have the D810 and love it. Recently bought the RX100VII and have found it to be excellent for a compact camera. The menu is different, but I found that playing with the camera for a couple of hours and reading the manual as needed allowed me to use the camera effectively. Have fun!