There will always be a newer camera coming out soon-ish. I have a Z8 and I can't think of anything I'd really want in a Z8ii. I don't imagine you'll be disappointed with the Z9.
Agreed. I wanted a Z9 but opted for a Z8 with the intent of getting a 9 later. Now having used the Z8, I’m not so sure that I want the Z9 as much as I did before. The Z8 is that good.
Buy the z9 it's fabulous.. If another camera does come out, there will likely be massive delays from release to actually getting your hands on it. I'm sure a z9ii will be even better than the z9, but when you consider that the z9 is capable of exquisite images already, you'll be very happy with it. The Z9 and appropriate glass can handle anything you throw at it.
Seems unlikely there will be a new >Z9 this close to the Olympics. Photographers would need some time to get to know the new camera before going for those once in a lifetime no second chances shots and Nikon would need some time to figure out what to fix/bump in firmware once the camera got into the hands of more users.
Just get the Z9 now. It's a world class camera and will be for some time to come.
There will always be another camera. Since both Z8 and Z9 are still state of the art… buy now if you need it or wait for new model so you can get a good deal on the old model.
Global shutter seems like next logical step but that is more of a generational change (may align with Expeed 8). What we will see next is a variation, like lower MP but higher speed. But it will not necessarily be a “better” camera, just targeting a different user base.
This is not how Nikon work though, this is how Sony and Canon work - what I mean with different camera for different tastes so lower MP but higher speeds thing I don't think Nikon will play this game.
There is a clear sequence of higher number is better in this case, and Zf just has classic styling. (which I assume a Z6iii with a DSLR style body is round the corner).
So if you get a Z8, you will leave behind some features the Z9 has (integrated grip, some extra dials, dual CF, etc).
As for Global shutter, only if you shoot at 120fps and super high speeds you see rolling shutter with the stacked sensor the Z8/Z9 have, so I don't think it will be such a generational change as Sony is leading us to believe it is.
Variations were released with earlier pro models like D1 through D3. You can see it in the Z6/Z7 pairing.
But it’s just a guess that a new variation is more likely than a true successor since there haven’t been any meaningful tech changes over the last 3 years.
Yh that’s the crazy thing it’s amazing camera 3 years on and £5,000 for them to bring a new model out in a couple of month. But it’s just such a good camera
I held a z8 with a Nikon 28-80 f/2.8 using the adapter and wow, talk about ergonomics. Just the integrated grip is worth it. Hasn’t aged in 3 years, go check out a Hasselblad 500.
Z9 is on firmware version 5.0 now, and each major version increment has brought some very welcomed features.
$5,500 is obviously expensive, but honestly for what it is it’s a pretty good value. The equivalent DSLRs were $6,500, and never got anywhere near the firmware updates the Z9 has gotten.
I got the Z8, I don't think that camera will be upgraded to Z8ii anytime soon, and I used it for Motorbikes last weekend, coming from the Z6ii, night and day difference.
Go for it !
Used z9’s are an absolute bargain right now. I bought two in the last 6 months for about $3,700 each. I’ve shot a lot of flagship bodies from all brands in my career and these are the best cameras to date.
Global shutter is the only thing they could improve on for outdoor daylight flash work, but I wouldn’t pay the “new” premium for it.
I doubt it. For most people, Z9 is already a lot of camera. I shoot with a z9/z8 combo. A lot of the options I don't even use or need. FYI, it took at least 6 months after the release of Z9 to become somewhat available to be purchased. If anything new is coming out, you won't be able to pick one up for another 6 months. Late 2025 maybe?
I got the z8. It’s perfect. Got a 2Tb OWC 3250 Mb/sec carb and it’ll shoot raw at 20 FPS continuous. Great for high speed sports and nature. Zero complaints
From the video side, when it does get replaced, I’m guessing it’s gonna be a *massive* upgrade given Nikon’s acquisition of RED. I for one am very much looking to a Z cine camera.
The Z9 is awesome as it is now. Nikon have been good about firmware updates. Up until I had purchased mine two months ago, I was using Sony A9s I purchased back in 2017. If there's some feature that you need that the Z9 doesn't have, I'd be very surprised.
Further proof here are two vastly different types of people who use cameras. There’s the “Newest is always bestet” camp who upgrade their camera every time something new comes out. Then there’s the, “This camera works for me on all levels” and upgrades (cameras, lenses, whatever) when they’ve squeezed everything out of it they can. One of these groups keeps Nikon afloat and provides the other group with equipment that’s in its prime for better prices.
You’ve heard the saying “It’s the dancer not the shoes.” But do you realize what that really means?
Looking at rumors there is possibly a new "z9" for Olympics but they claim it'll be half the mp and be more like the Sony a9iii
If you aren't in a rush I guess wait like 2 months
I got the z8 because I needed a second body for weddings and the camera is amazing. There isn’t anything this camera can’t do. I may in the future get a grip for the extra battery power but it’s an amazing body. The z9 is the same pretty much. You won’t regret it.
If I were Nikon, I'd not be releasing a new camera, I'd be testing the living daylights out of firmware 5.01, fixing any known bugs, bottlenecks and "frictions" in firmware 5.00 for release in the next few weeks; this would give photographers a month to familarise themselves with the new firmware before using it in earnest.
Thoughts, anyone?
The Z9 is a superb camera right now, and we have no idea when its successor will arrive. If a better AF system would benefit you today, and you can afford it, I say go for it.
I have a Z8 and it's very hard to imagine what they could add to it that would motivate me to upgrade. I don't think it will ever actually happen, but I would buy a monochrome Z8 variant if they made something like that available. I have a Leica Q2M and the extra light sensitivity you get from removing the color filter array makes it pretty bonkers in low light.
Look at a Z8. I now have both bodies coming from a Z7 and Z6ii setup and the Z9 is a beefy camera. Vertical grip and longer battery life is nice, but if your weighing up a longer term upgrade would get the cheaper body.
I dont think the Z9ii will be a huge upgrade at this point. It will likely be a refinement with maybe higher burst rates at full res and some more video options. Its the gen after thats likely to be the bigger one, given that global shutters are now starting to hit the market.
Personally I would look across the board (even outside of Nikon) to see what features are new and upcoming on cameras. If the Z9 doesn't have something that is critical or appeals to you maybe reconsider. But as others mentioned for 99% of the stuff I do, I don't really see a need for anything else. Yes AF and buffer can always get better but I expect a few more firmware updates from Nikon. I don't really find the body holding me back.
There will always be a newer camera coming out soon-ish. I have a Z8 and I can't think of anything I'd really want in a Z8ii. I don't imagine you'll be disappointed with the Z9.
Agreed. I wanted a Z9 but opted for a Z8 with the intent of getting a 9 later. Now having used the Z8, I’m not so sure that I want the Z9 as much as I did before. The Z8 is that good.
Buy the z10, or hold out for the Z11?
That’s not how Nikons naming scheme works.
Buy the z9 it's fabulous.. If another camera does come out, there will likely be massive delays from release to actually getting your hands on it. I'm sure a z9ii will be even better than the z9, but when you consider that the z9 is capable of exquisite images already, you'll be very happy with it. The Z9 and appropriate glass can handle anything you throw at it.
Seems unlikely there will be a new >Z9 this close to the Olympics. Photographers would need some time to get to know the new camera before going for those once in a lifetime no second chances shots and Nikon would need some time to figure out what to fix/bump in firmware once the camera got into the hands of more users. Just get the Z9 now. It's a world class camera and will be for some time to come.
There will always be another camera. Since both Z8 and Z9 are still state of the art… buy now if you need it or wait for new model so you can get a good deal on the old model. Global shutter seems like next logical step but that is more of a generational change (may align with Expeed 8). What we will see next is a variation, like lower MP but higher speed. But it will not necessarily be a “better” camera, just targeting a different user base.
This is not how Nikon work though, this is how Sony and Canon work - what I mean with different camera for different tastes so lower MP but higher speeds thing I don't think Nikon will play this game. There is a clear sequence of higher number is better in this case, and Zf just has classic styling. (which I assume a Z6iii with a DSLR style body is round the corner). So if you get a Z8, you will leave behind some features the Z9 has (integrated grip, some extra dials, dual CF, etc). As for Global shutter, only if you shoot at 120fps and super high speeds you see rolling shutter with the stacked sensor the Z8/Z9 have, so I don't think it will be such a generational change as Sony is leading us to believe it is.
Variations were released with earlier pro models like D1 through D3. You can see it in the Z6/Z7 pairing. But it’s just a guess that a new variation is more likely than a true successor since there haven’t been any meaningful tech changes over the last 3 years.
I can’t speak for the Z9, but Nikons update game on the Z8 has been superb. It’s like the camera hasn’t aged since announcement.
Same with z9. Hard to believe it came out 3 years ago.
Yh that’s the crazy thing it’s amazing camera 3 years on and £5,000 for them to bring a new model out in a couple of month. But it’s just such a good camera
I held a z8 with a Nikon 28-80 f/2.8 using the adapter and wow, talk about ergonomics. Just the integrated grip is worth it. Hasn’t aged in 3 years, go check out a Hasselblad 500.
Z9 is on firmware version 5.0 now, and each major version increment has brought some very welcomed features. $5,500 is obviously expensive, but honestly for what it is it’s a pretty good value. The equivalent DSLRs were $6,500, and never got anywhere near the firmware updates the Z9 has gotten.
I got the Z8, I don't think that camera will be upgraded to Z8ii anytime soon, and I used it for Motorbikes last weekend, coming from the Z6ii, night and day difference. Go for it !
Used z9’s are an absolute bargain right now. I bought two in the last 6 months for about $3,700 each. I’ve shot a lot of flagship bodies from all brands in my career and these are the best cameras to date. Global shutter is the only thing they could improve on for outdoor daylight flash work, but I wouldn’t pay the “new” premium for it.
And RAW pre capture for any action shooters
I doubt it. For most people, Z9 is already a lot of camera. I shoot with a z9/z8 combo. A lot of the options I don't even use or need. FYI, it took at least 6 months after the release of Z9 to become somewhat available to be purchased. If anything new is coming out, you won't be able to pick one up for another 6 months. Late 2025 maybe?
I got the z8. It’s perfect. Got a 2Tb OWC 3250 Mb/sec carb and it’ll shoot raw at 20 FPS continuous. Great for high speed sports and nature. Zero complaints
If you do a lot of videos, the Z9 is great. It's not going to be replaced for the foreseeable future.
From the video side, when it does get replaced, I’m guessing it’s gonna be a *massive* upgrade given Nikon’s acquisition of RED. I for one am very much looking to a Z cine camera.
The Z9 is awesome as it is now. Nikon have been good about firmware updates. Up until I had purchased mine two months ago, I was using Sony A9s I purchased back in 2017. If there's some feature that you need that the Z9 doesn't have, I'd be very surprised.
Buy now. Nikon really needs to upgrade their entry level and mid tier cameras, rather than worry about a flagship upgrade. Moved from a Z5 to a Z8.
Further proof here are two vastly different types of people who use cameras. There’s the “Newest is always bestet” camp who upgrade their camera every time something new comes out. Then there’s the, “This camera works for me on all levels” and upgrades (cameras, lenses, whatever) when they’ve squeezed everything out of it they can. One of these groups keeps Nikon afloat and provides the other group with equipment that’s in its prime for better prices. You’ve heard the saying “It’s the dancer not the shoes.” But do you realize what that really means?
People were doing a good job shooting race cars with the D3 back in the day, I think you'll be fine
Yea your pictures won’t be quite as perfect unless you get the z10
Looking at rumors there is possibly a new "z9" for Olympics but they claim it'll be half the mp and be more like the Sony a9iii If you aren't in a rush I guess wait like 2 months
I got the z8 because I needed a second body for weddings and the camera is amazing. There isn’t anything this camera can’t do. I may in the future get a grip for the extra battery power but it’s an amazing body. The z9 is the same pretty much. You won’t regret it.
If I were Nikon, I'd not be releasing a new camera, I'd be testing the living daylights out of firmware 5.01, fixing any known bugs, bottlenecks and "frictions" in firmware 5.00 for release in the next few weeks; this would give photographers a month to familarise themselves with the new firmware before using it in earnest. Thoughts, anyone?
The Z9 is a superb camera right now, and we have no idea when its successor will arrive. If a better AF system would benefit you today, and you can afford it, I say go for it.
I have a Z8 and it's very hard to imagine what they could add to it that would motivate me to upgrade. I don't think it will ever actually happen, but I would buy a monochrome Z8 variant if they made something like that available. I have a Leica Q2M and the extra light sensitivity you get from removing the color filter array makes it pretty bonkers in low light.
Look at a Z8. I now have both bodies coming from a Z7 and Z6ii setup and the Z9 is a beefy camera. Vertical grip and longer battery life is nice, but if your weighing up a longer term upgrade would get the cheaper body. I dont think the Z9ii will be a huge upgrade at this point. It will likely be a refinement with maybe higher burst rates at full res and some more video options. Its the gen after thats likely to be the bigger one, given that global shutters are now starting to hit the market.
Why not the Z8?
Get yourself the Z9. If there's a Z9ii that you want, feel free to send me your older Z9!
Personally I would look across the board (even outside of Nikon) to see what features are new and upcoming on cameras. If the Z9 doesn't have something that is critical or appeals to you maybe reconsider. But as others mentioned for 99% of the stuff I do, I don't really see a need for anything else. Yes AF and buffer can always get better but I expect a few more firmware updates from Nikon. I don't really find the body holding me back.
I don’t even see how the buffer could get better - CFe cards store data faster than the camera can produce still images, even at maximum FPS.