Did the new Nikon mirrorless Z7/Z6 cameras leapfrog the competition? Do they crush the competition feature for feature? Did they hit it out of the ballpark?
Nope. And they didn’t have to. The thing that all the major reviewers miss is that this stops the ship from sinking. Many former Nikon shooters have already jumped ship onto the USS Sony or USS Fuji and many, like me, were strongly considering the move. I am no longer scared of investing in something new or, perhaps more importantly, how I’m going to sell all of my Nikon gear to switch to a new system, how I’m going to tolerate an unfamiliar menu system, subpar egonomics, etc. Nikon did it right and made it a priority to have solid backwards compatibility with F mount lens. Well done.
What is interesting is, if you asked me a week ago, if I was ready to jump if Nikon released a solid mirrorless camera, I would have said, “HELL YEAH.” However, today I sit without a confirmation for a pre-order in my inbox.
I feel good about my D500 and D750. They still take awesome pictures. Would it be cool to have an EVF, silent shooting, more resolution? Of course. However, I feel like I have time now. There is no longer a feeling of urgency to get started with a new system. Let others be the guinea pigs. Let the firmware mature. Perhaps, I even need to wait for the Z7 II.
Thank you Nikon for restoring my trust in your brand and vision.
PS I’m SO glad I didn’t buy a D850 :-)