Switching to Nikon
Image Credit: Canon / Nikon
In 2005, I purchased my first digital SLR camera. It was a Canon, and from then on I was a loyal fan, acquiring more lenses and camera bodies as my skill and professional career advanced. Fast forward to 2024, and the world has changed. Mirrorless is now the future, and it was time to decide if I would stay with Canon, or move to something new. (Spoiler: I switched to Nikon)
Now, you’ve clicked through to get this far, so you are probably wondering how and why I chose to go with a different system. I had thousands of dollars invested in Canon equipment, which has served me extremely well to deliver better results than I could have ever expected. Yet, progress is not simple and linear. What worked before, may not work tomorrow, and if I was going to make a new investment into a new system, I wanted to be sure it was the correct path. Something that I could confidently use for the next 10-20 years as a solid foundation for growth.
What does it take for technology to last for a decade or more? I went into this process with a few requirements:
Megapixels - At least 33, but probably closer to 40 or more. I have been using 18 megapixels in the Canon 1DX for the last ten years, and while this has been plenty for my work up till now, I know that bigger things may come. I live in Japan now, and I plan to visit places that I may only get to see once in my lifetime. I want to capture those in a way that is full of detail and able to be printed at much larger size. Continuing with 18, or something in the 20s doesn’t feel like enough.
8K Video - My Canon 1DX was simply not up to the task of better video capabilities. 1080p was the most it could do, and so this upgrade was a must-have. Why not 4K or 6K? Well, that’s today’s technology. Today’s expectation. If I want 1 camera to rule them all, I need to have the standard that will come later already built in.
In-Body Image Stabilization - Now, this is pretty much standard in all new cameras today, but not all cameras are created equal. This is the primary reason that I didn’t simply buy a newer Canon 1DX Mark III and retain my current system for longer. As I get older, and my hands get shakier, this will certainly be a welcomed improvement.
Lens Portfolio - With Canon, I had easy access through rentals to just about any type of lens that I needed for the job of the day. This wasn’t something I wanted to give up easily, and so I did a lot of thinking about which lenses were essential, and which brands were able to meet those needs with their new mirrorless lineups.
Last weekend I attended the CP+ Imaging Show in Yokohama, Japan. It is one of the major photography exhibitions, and provided the perfect chance to hold and shoot with each brand’s latest offerings. What I learned during that experience sealed my decision to choose the Nikon Z9 as my next camera. Let’s dig into why the others fell short.
Canon - The RF system has been growing steadily. The R3 body is their top offering, yet this only has 24 megapixels, and does not offer 8K video as a result. The R5 is also an option, but holding it and shooting with it a few times at the show didn’t wow me. The spark wasn’t there. Had the R3 been equipped with a higher level sensor, it would have definitely been a great choice - the body feels very intuitive and is extremely rugged, yet much lighter weight than its 1D series predecessor. In the end, it just wasn’t right for me. (Added Note: I also kept up with the rumor mills, and all signs pointed to the Canon R1 not being a step forward in sensor resolution. These rumors turned out to be accurate. The R1 also has a 24 megapixel sensor and lacks 8K video, so I am glad I didn’t wait longer to find out if Canon’s flagship would compete on par with Nikon.)
Sony - There is a lot to like about the innovations coming out from Sony. The a9 III with its global shutter has a lot of advantages, and some important trade offs too, yet lacks the 8K video I was after. The a1 ticks all of the right boxes, as did the Sony lens lineup. Yet, holding it in my hand, there was just something missing that is hard to describe. The grip is small, and the body lacks that feeling of toughness which I had become so accustomed to with the Canon 1DX. Even with an added vertical grip, the a1 seemed to feel unbalanced with a large lens attached at the front. Again, the spark just wasn’t there.
Leica - The SL2 (and upcoming SL3) have great specs, and felt nice in the hand. While the lenses themselves are outstanding, the overall system isn’t as complete as I wish it was. Both in breadth of offerings, and in price, I simply could not take the leap into the L mount. There are too many gaps - a lack of a super telephoto lens, a lack of a good 135mm prime, a lack of bright 1.4 primes - that turned me away.
Hasselblad - Ah, the forbidden fruit. A guy can dream, right? Even though it was one of the smallest stands at the CP+ show, I had to give it a chance. I wanted to love the X2D-100C. It can’t do video, which is something I would have missed, but I knew that the image quality would exceed everything else. I held the camera and played with it for a few minutes, and sadly knew instantly that this would remain but a dream. The viewfinder didn’t work with my glasses. Raising it to my eye, the small digital display stayed black. It was only once I pushed my nose against it and got extra close that the sensor could tell I was using the viewfinder and activated the display. It was a total deal breaker, which luckily saved me from extra thousands of dollars on something which would not have met all my needs. It will have to be a rental someday, and I’ll have to rely on the LCD screen alone to shoot with it, which is not my preferred composition style.
Fuji, Panasonic, Olympus, etc. - Basically out of contention. While there are some great cameras from these other brands, they did not have what I was looking for in a single package.
So, with all of those out of the way, let’s talk about Nikon. They have absolutely hit a home run with the Z9 camera, and are doing all the right things when it comes to their lens releases. I did a demo of a few different lenses, including the latest NIKKOR Z 135mm f1.8 S Plena, and was absolutely blown away by how good it felt to shoot with. Just looking at the back of the screen, I knew the images it would produce were special, and the experience of shooting with it made me excited.
Combine that with a great, pro-level autofocus, a high resolution at 45 megapixels, and the ability to shoot 8K video without the camera immediately overheating (or so I’ve read) and it does everything I can ask of it and more. On paper, and in the hand, it is the perfect camera to continue my photography journey for many years to come.
Keep following along to see what new images this camera helps me produce, and I’ll do a follow up post at some point to comment on the real world capabilities for travel, portraiture, and automotive shooting.
Posted on February 28, 2024 - Gear, Canon, Nikon