Z6II and Z7II firmware update announced for Feb 25
Eric Bowles
Director - Nikonians Academy
Nikonians Team Moderator
My Gallery
Workshops and Private Instruction
Nikonians membership — my most important photographic investment, after the camera
-
#1. "RE: Z6II and Z7II firmware update announced for Feb 25" | In response to Reply # 0
Sat 20-Feb-21 06:49 PMI find referring to the DX sensor as 1.5 the FX sensor rather strange. A DX sensor is 0.5 times the size of an FX sensor not 1.5 times the size.
JBJ.B.
-
#2. "RE: Z6II and Z7II firmware update announced for Feb 25" | In response to Reply # 0
Tue 23-Feb-21 09:46 AMNow that they have figured out how improve human eye focus hopefully they can extend that programming to animal eye focus. Canon and Sony A1 appear to be quite good and far better than the Z system.
JimBVisit my Nikonians gallery.
-
#3. "RE: Z6II and Z7II firmware update announced for Feb 25" | In response to Reply # 2
Tue 23-Feb-21 10:10 AM | edited Tue 23-Feb-21 10:11 AM by ericbowlesDon't assume they are better. I've seen reports of Eye AF working only 50% of the time with the Canon and Sony cameras. It depends a lot on the subject and context. One early YouTube video showed a photographer fail to get Eye AF on 100% of the shots with the Sony A1 and a backlit subject.
Nikon did not exactly say they improved Human Eye AF - they said they changed the way it is handled in the display. The display is being changed so it shows a similar view to Canon and Sony - the Eye box shows at longer distances. But when you are at those distances, there is enough depth of field for the entire head to be in focus even with a fast lens. An actual comparison of images shows the Nikon results are about the same as the Sony and Canon eye focus. The Eye Indicator is not a focus confirmation. Nikon is improving Eye AF, but that's just a normal iteration of software.
The A1 is an equivalent to the D6. It's a flagship camera with hardware associated with that level - faster processors, bigger battery, etc. Nikon will most likely be releasing a flagship mirrorless camera later this year priced at a similar level - along with 1-2 fast focusing telephoto lenses.Eric Bowles
Director - Nikonians Academy
Nikonians Team Moderator
My Gallery
Workshops and Private Instruction
Nikonians membership — my most important photographic investment, after the camera-
#4. "RE: Z6II and Z7II firmware update announced for Feb 25" | In response to Reply # 3
Tue 23-Feb-21 03:38 PM | edited Tue 23-Feb-21 03:40 PM by Jamed600Eric,
Thanks for the response and info. The videos Ive seen may not be representative. And yes, the Alpha 1 is not a fair comparison. Now that I've bought the Z7 II i'm sure Nikon will release the "Z8/9" this year! Maybe there will be a camera and lens announcement on Friday
JimBVisit my Nikonians gallery.
-
-
G
https://www.nikonusa.com/en/about-nikon/press-room/press-release/kg1fn9ef/NIKON-TO-RELEASE-Z-7II-AND-Z-6II-MIRRORLESS-CAMERA-FIRMWARE-VER.-1.10-ON-FEBRUARY-25.html
Here is a review of the new firmware from Ricci:
Ricci mentioned there is a big improvement in Eye AF speed and the distance at which Eye AF is activated and has some videos showing that improvement.
My take is this represents both improvement in Eye AF and competitively matching the display Nikon's Eye AF activation distance with Canon and Sony. I'm not sure the extent to which it really matters since DOF is such that Face Detect would provide in-focus eyes. Nikon had originally set Eye AF to switch to Face AF at nearer distances than competitors which created an inaccurate perception of AF capability.