Rick Oldano Photography wrote:
Obviously, this isn't a new item from the photo press but, are photographers rushing to embrace the mirrorless cameras?

There are many reasons.  I purchased my first mirrorless from Sony even though I couldn't stand Sony products at the time (they're known for false advertising for one).

Y'see, I have a whole bunch of quality lenses from many different cameras that I've owned through the years.  With an inexpensive adaptor, the mirrorless cameras allow me to use ANY and EVERY ONE of those lenses AS THEY WERE INTENDED.  In other words a 1970's vintage 50mm f/1.8 Oly lens mounted on a mirrorless is still a 50mm f/1.8 lens. (The FEW adaptors made for SLR cameras change the lens to different specs).  Even some of the electronically controlled lenses from various manufacturers will still be fully controllable.

Rick Oldano Photography wrote:
Do we really need a new set of lenses

Nope, not at all, simply for the reason I've stated above.

Rick Oldano Photography wrote:
, do we really need to look at our world through an LCD display on the back of our camera? From what I have seen so far, the view does not compare with the optical scene from a DSLR.

Nope, you can look at the world through an electronic viewfinder located in the same place where you'd look at the world through an SLR instead of the back of the camera.

Most of the newest viewfinders are high enough resolution where you couldn't tell that you were looking at an electronic image.  The mirrorless viewfinders will help you to see the subject where an SLR would totally fail (ie: extremely dark rooms, or during loooong exposures where the SLR mirrors black out the view.)

Even better, an SLR wouldn't allow me to shoot images like this without climbing up a ladder.  The flexible viewfinder on the back of the mirrorless allowed me to shoot the image while standing right next to the model.  As a matter of fact, I don't even need to use the viewfinder because the mirrorless camera can transmit the image to a phone, tablet, or computer and EVERTHING can be viewed and remotely operated

Rick Oldano Photography wrote:
To be fair, I have been shooting with SLRs and DSLRs for numerous decades now. I have absolutely no plans to switch - I have already donated enough cash to Canon, they don't need more from me. I daresay there are more than a few Nikon, etc., photographers who probably feel the same...

If I didn't need any of the features that mirrorless camera offer that I mentioned above, I wouldn't switch either.  In my case, I needed several of those features.

Bob Helm Photography wrote:
Adding a second Z9 soon, the fate of the 850 is questionable at present. One reason I am keeping it is I use Godox flashes and they do presently not work TTL on camera something I use a lot.

That is interesting. It works on the Canon R5, at least in 12FPS mode. In Electronic shutter, 20fps Godox flash does not work and it tells you that in the manual., Well I just remembered that the z9 does not have a shutter so that may be the reason, although I know Godox works on my OM-D E1x in electronic shutter. I also went to the interwebs and there are people with Z9 who are using godox in TTL. Not that I doubt your word, but perhaps you have not upgraded all you gear, or you updated and it did not take.

Rich M Photo wrote:

That is interesting. It works on the Canon R5, at least in 12FPS mode. In Electronic shutter, 20fps Godox flash does not work and it tells you that in the manual., Well I just remembered that the z9 does not have a shutter so that may be the reason, although I know Godox works on my OM-D E1x in electronic shutter. I also went to the interwebs and there are people with Z9 who are using godox in TTL. Not that I doubt your word, but perhaps you have not upgraded all you gear, or you updated and it did not take.

I think it is a firmware issue as the Remote do you TTL with the flash. My understanding is that Nikon does not license flashes for Nikon Creative System, their TTL , so all the flashes have to self identify as Nikon flash to work and for some reason they dont work in that one mode on that particular camera and perhaps on other Z cameras although they did have a firmware update for the Z7. Since it is no longer a current flash I would expect it a low priority for Godox. BTW the flash is the 860ii not 850, I use the Adorama ones that have different names

Bob Helm Photography wrote:

I think it is a firmware issue as the Remote do you TTL with the flash. My understanding is that Nikon does not license flashes for Nikon Creative System, their TTL , so all the flashes have to self identify as Nikon flash to work and for some reason they dont work in that one mode on that particular camera and perhaps on other Z cameras although they did have a firmware update for the Z7. Since it is no longer a current flash I would expect it a low priority for Godox. BTW the flash is the 860ii not 850, I use the Adorama ones that have different names

Frankly speaking, as a photographer, I never use ttl, whether it is canon, sony, nikon, panasonic, or pentax, I always use an external flash, maybe use nd to balance the maximum shutter speed of 125.
I understand that most wedding photographers need to respond quickly to get the right fill light, but as far as I know a few years ago, many brands of flash have a nikon hot shoe interface for easy use of ttl, including the one you mentioned Niu, by the way, when I use Nikon, I only used d7000, d3200, d610, d750

Model Mayhem Edu wrote:
Well, just when you thought they were dead, the Pentax K-3 III Monochrome DSLR is so popular that they have sold out their entire Japanese allocation twice!

Almost makes me want to pull out all my old Canon F-1s and buy some T-Max 100 or Tri-X.

Almost, but not quite.

Rick

Rick Oldano Photography wrote:
Obviously, this isn't a new item from the photo press but, are photographers rushing to embrace the mirrorless cameras?

Do we really need a new set of lenses, do we really need to look at our world through an LCD display on the back of our camera? From what I have seen so far, the view does not compare with the optical scene from a DSLR.

To be fair, I have been shooting with SLRs and DSLRs for numerous decades now. I have absolutely no plans to switch - I have already donated enough cash to Canon, they don't need more from me. I daresay there are more than a few Nikon, etc., photographers who probably feel the same.

I think I have one more DSLR camera body in my future, probably a Canon EOS 5D, Mk IV, and that will be it. I guess I best go get it soon before even those cameras start to fade into history.

Unless I win the lottery and I can get a 'Blad H6D-100C.  ;-)

Rick

Are photographers rushing to embrace the mirrorless cameras?  Probably not. Well maybe those who have the money to replace their entire kit. The newer stuff is so expensive! 

Call me a collector, but conservative with money.  I don't think I've bought a new cameras since .. I don't remember.  I have been using Ebay, and Craigslist for almost a couple decades now. I'm only into Olympus though!  I've nearly 2 dozen cameras, most all are used. About half are my old Olympus OM-1's and 2's (film cameras) then the other half are various Olympus digital cameras (some DSLR, some mirrorless) which might make me some kind of spokesperson for Olympus.

I buy extra cameras for back ups and parts.  Cameras are nothing more than tools.  It's funny that I do like Nikon, as I've used plenty of them for jobs where I borrowed F3's for example, but when I first got into photography, I needed to start with a new camera and could not afford Nikon, so I got an Olympus OM1.  There are some "cheap" cameras that can still take great pictures.  There are cellphones that can do the job too.

There are people creating art with everything from pencils, paint brushes, old glass plate view cameras, 35mm and medium format film cameras, and of course all the available digital cameras.  People are creating on their computers using graphic art software.  It's all a matter of your own vision.  I'm not ready to go all in on mirrorless cameras, but it's nice to know that they are available.

Rick Oldano Photography wrote:
Obviously, this isn't a new item from the photo press but, are photographers rushing to embrace the mirrorless cameras?

Do we really need a new set of lenses, do we really need to look at our world through an LCD display on the back of our camera? From what I have seen so far, the view does not compare with the optical scene from a DSLR.

To be fair, I have been shooting with SLRs and DSLRs for numerous decades now. I have absolutely no plans to switch - I have already donated enough cash to Canon, they don't need more from me. I daresay there are more than a few Nikon, etc., photographers who probably feel the same.

I think I have one more DSLR camera body in my future, probably a Canon EOS 5D, Mk IV, and that will be it. I guess I best go get it soon before even those cameras start to fade into history.

Unless I win the lottery and I can get a 'Blad H6D-100C.  ;-)

Rick

Those of us actually using mirrorless bodies can tell you that if you are “looking at the world through an LCD on the back of the camera” then you are doing it wrong :-)

The Sony A1 and A7RV (both excellent cameras) have an OLED viewfinder with a significantly higher resolution than the screen on the back.

Moreover, that viewfinder can do things that an optical viewfinder never could. For example, when you are using manual focus, the viewfinder can zoom in on your point of focus, making it far easier to get your focus exactly right. It can, if you want, overlay focus peaking, or zebras. It can overlay a level. On my latest I can even operate key menus without taking my eye from the viewfinder - switching subject recognition and frame rates, for example

That’s before we consider the large number of other advantages - I love being able to shoot in complete silence on the A1 with electronic shutter.

You don’t have to buy a new set of lenses - your EF lenses can be used on a Canon or a Sony with an adapter, and you will get better AF using them than a DSLR can manage. You can have hundreds of autofocus points across most of the frame instead of a small cluster in the middle.

But no one is going to force you to discover the advantages - that’s up to you.

Frozen Instant Imagery wrote:
But no one is going to force you to discover the advantages - that’s up to you.

I'm all in for my next camera being mirrorless. It might be a while, so it goes.
There isn't anything about mirrorless that I don't like.  Someday...

Studio NSFW wrote:
Same, sorta. If Phase One were to come up with a mirrorless version of the XF so I can protect my investment in backs and glass, I would sure be looking at it.  You haven’t experienced mirror slap until you’ve felt medium format mirror slap. The  XT is “Mirrorless” but is for a different use case and uses view camera style lenses. 

For the Phase One XF with its interchangeable viewfinders, it might be as “Simple” as a new electronic viewfinder assembly  and mirror lock up.  I am positive such  a view finder would not be inexpensive….

Through the decades, I've gone back and forth between Olympus and Nikon for 35 mm. The lens glass is comparable in quality.   As for the medium format mirror slap, I know exactly what you mean!  I shot weddings and have been a fan of Mamiya medium format cameras.  Many times photographers focus on the camera body more so than the lens.  I'm of the opinion that class it critical to getting sharper, thus more detailed images.  Now you've got me looking at the Phase One camera's with those Schneider Kreuznach optics!  That is some high quality glass!  It's my opinion that the lens is as important as the body.

Studio NSFW wrote:
Same, sorta. If Phase One were to come up with a mirrorless version of the XF so I can protect my investment in backs and glass, I would sure be looking at it.  You haven’t experienced mirror slap until you’ve felt medium format mirror slap. The  XT is “Mirrorless” but is for a different use case and uses view camera style lenses. 

For the Phase One XF with its interchangeable viewfinders, it might be as “Simple” as a new electronic viewfinder assembly  and mirror lock up.  I am positive such  a view finder would not be inexpensive….

I owned a Mamiya RB67, I know about mirror slap! You'd need one hell of a tripod to stop that thump.
I also owned a Mamiya TLR -"something" 330? No mirror, no mirror slap but the viewing lens was not the taking lens so only useful for distances.

The 6d is nothing by comparison and I'm OK with it for now. Hobbyist so not in a hurry. I did look at the Fuji cameras, I love the idea of a 56 1.2 but not sure how often I'd use it wide open and I'd rather have the full frame sensor.

Time is on my side, digital tech comes out $$$$ and slides down to $$$ or $$ as it becomes "obsolete."
I used a Sinar 4x5 with a Rodenstock lens in college, talk about "obsolete"!!!! Fantastic images, no two ways about it. PITA these days, so it goes...

Studio NSFW wrote:
Sorta the same although I was dyed-in-the-wool Olympus in the film days going back to Art School and never strayed into Nikon.  But that was the film days, and you got a new “Sensor” with every roll of film.  A camera body could be a simple light tight box like an OM-1, and so the Glass was all that mattered.

In these digital days, the only analogue to that is an interchangeable back system, and the few that are out there are silly expensive….like Hasselblad CM500 system back when. Yes, the Schneider glass is very, very good, but being able to also take the sensor portion (the extremely expensive bit) and mount it to a view camera to get access to glass ranging from my old 1960s Rodenstock Imagon to my Sinaron SE 180mm or convert to a digital process camera with an APO-Ronar depending on what’s going on that day is really a cool functionality. Technically, I can and have mounted my Canon 5Ds body to the same view camera but with any body mounted sensor you’ll quickly find significant limitations due to the lens flange and body depth…

But I’m at the far end of the pro market, I think, and how I personally use my tools is not reflective of a significant section of the market…frankly, a camera manufacturer would be foolish to listen to me for input on a product aimed at the broad market, like mirrorless digital cameras currently are.    Still, an EVF for a Phase One XF would be an attractive product in my slightly weird opinion.

I'd love to sit down with you over coffee and chat camera tech!  There are more choices than ever on the high end market when it comes to photography, but the vast majority of buyers for cameras are going to want what is simple and far less expensive.  I see the mirrorless cameras as the most popular and affordable, but medium format, DSLR's and even film cameras should still be around years from now.  At least I hope so.

Anyway, it's much too soon to say rip to DSLR's!

Robert Mossack wrote:
I've been shooting mirrorless, Fuji in my case, since 2017. I wouldn't dream of going back to a Dslr at this point, mirrorless has to many advantages. I am itching to go FF, so I might go back to Nikon in the future though, and invest in the Z system.

Nikon has done two things to make it easier for you: the Z8 appears to give you everything that's in the Z9 (except battery size) but at a significantly lower price; and now they are allowing third party lenses on Z mount. Plus a third party has brought out an adapter than lets you adapt Sony E glass - and there is a lot of glass in E mount.

One of the telling descriptions of the Z8 was "the mirrorless D850, but lighter". It's still as big as the D850, though.

I won't be buying one (my last Nikon was a D810) - I am happily using an A1 and A7RV.

You'll see lots of arguments about which of Canon / Nikon / Sony is doing the best with full frame mirrorless, but honestly, they are all good.

Patrick Walberg wrote:
Anyway, it's much too soon to say rip to DSLR's!

Naw, let everyone believe that, so the resale price of all those 3 year old Pro DSLRs continues to fall.  I want another couple of 5DS bodies.

Thank you to all those folks that believe everything in the trade press and buy all the new hotness every time...the used equipment market would not be the same without you!!