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Nikon Announce Retro DX Z Body, Z fc, with Retro Lenses


ShunCheung

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Question to those people who want the product made in a specific country (such as Japan): Don't you believe that people living in other countries (such as Thailand or China) deserve a chance to improve their level of income and quality of lives by manufacturing and exporting products?
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Question to those people who want the product made in a specific country (such as Japan): Don't you believe that people living in other countries (such as Thailand or China) deserve a chance to improve their level of income and quality of lives by manufacturing and exporting products?

But if you ask the people in Thailand and China they would prefer cameras made in Japan.

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I do care a lot mostly people in the US don't care. People in Japan do care and in other countries and yes in China they do care. To a certain degree in Germany.

What's this thing BeBu? Does your Japanese preference relate to product quality? I think all the Z stuff are now made in Thailand (?). - Haven't checked mine. However, I don't think the presence or absence of a Nikon factory would not wreck a country's economy.

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What's this thing BeBu? Does your Japanese preference relate to product quality? I think all the Z stuff are now made in Thailand (?). - Haven't checked mine. However, I don't think the presence or absence of a Nikon factory would not wreck a country's economy.

It's about using cheap labor. That's I don't like. If they manufacture in another country not for reason of cheap labor I would like that. Like the case of Japanese and German cars made in the USA. I certainly having no problem buying Jasmine rice from Thailand. No problem even buying DJI drone from China. But I wouldn't want to buy a Leica made in Japan.

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cheap labor

Sweat shop? Don't think so, they are Nikon- trained and likely to be compensated adequately. If made in the USA with unions and all, think people in this forum would be complaining loudly and threatening to switch to Leica - their SL2 ain't bad.

 

PS On second thought, I do prefer that they keep the shop in Japan to retain authenticity - good for their marketing reasons if not for anything else.

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Sweat shop? Don't think so, they are Nikon- trained and likely to be compensated adequately. If made in the USA with unions and all, think people in this forum would be complaining loudly and threatening to switch to Leica - their SL2 ain't bad.

 

PS On second thought, I do prefer that they keep the shop in Japan to retain authenticity - good for their marketing reasons if not for anything else.

At one time there were talk about Nikon having factory in the USA. I would fully support Nikon if they did. But this was back in the 80's.

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I actually like the clicking dials and the idea for me would be so I could adjust settings before putting the camera to my eye. However, since there is no dedicated dial for aperture in this case (unless used with FTZ and a lens with an aperture ring) then this approach would not necessarily work. The small display shows the aperture in use, but I suspect it would require turning the meter on, and certainly turning the camera on. With the F3 HP that I used for many years, I could set both aperture and shutter speed while the camera was still OFF, and on my hip. I liked that approach. Now (with the modern cameras) I have to turn on the camera and meter before any settings can be adjusted.

Some 40 years ago, my first camera was a Nikon FM and I've been using two FM2 bodies for decades - I do like the look of the Z fc but that's about it. I have no nostalgia to go back to clicking dials and most certainly not to holding a camera with the ergonomics of a bar of soap (I had MD-12 drives on my FM2 to make up for the lack of a grip on the camera itself).

 

I also don't see it as an inconvenience (or as an advantage of) having dials like on the Df or Z fc to be able to change settings when the camera is off - I am generally not in the habit of changing those unless I am ready to make an image (in which case I need to turn the camera on anyway). Having everything neatly displayed on the top LCD (or if necessary on the back LCD) to me is much better than having to scan dials scattered all over the camera. Especially not if the dial position might not indicate the correct state of the camera (how would I know that AutoISO is on, for example)? Or what the shutter speed is if I selected 1/3 steps on the dial?

 

I never really migrated to the joystick.

The most important part for me on the D500 and D850 - it allows me to select the AF area position and - by pressing down on the joystick - to initiate focus. Wouldn't want it any other way anymore when shooting any kind of action. Don't miss the joystick on the D810 since I shoot mostly static subjects with that camera; that camera isn't meant to shoot action anyway.

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Some 40 years ago, my first camera was a Nikon FM and I've been using two FM2 bodies for decades - I do like the look of the Z fc but that's about it. I have no nostalgia to go back to clicking dials and most certainly not to holding a camera with the ergonomics of a bar of soap (I had MD-12 drives on my FM2 to make up for the lack of a grip on the camera itself).

Prior to Nikon, I bought a Minolta SRT-101 in 1972, followed by a Leica CL in 1974. My first Nikon was a 1977 FT-3 and then a 1978 FE; both of those I bought in the very year they were introduced, respectively. In 1997, I added an F5 to my F4 and N8008 (F801). Once I got used to the two command dials on the F5, I quickly realized that I couldn't use the F4 any more. Today, I have zero interest in any FM/FE-style cameras. Nikon USA was nice enough to send me a Df for testing, but I never bought one and today, I don't care at all about how the Zfc looks.

 

Incidentally, in 1974, the Leica CL was made by Minolta in Japan. I bought two lenses, a 40mm/f2 that was made in then West Germany and a 90mm/f2.8 made by Leitz Canada. I still have that entire set today. I have no problem with that Canadian-made Leica lens.

 

However, where a camera or lens is made shouldn't be debated in thread after thread. Today, we have Leica lenses made by Panasonic or even Sigma in Japan, and Nikon no longer makes any camera bodies in Japan (at least soon they won't any more). If for whatever reason some individuals won't buy Nikon cameras any more, that is their free choice.

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However, where a camera or lens is made shouldn't be debated in thread after thread.

True. Especially since "Made in" no longer means that the item is completely manufacturer in that particular country. Some Leica cameras have their final assembly in Germany to allow for the "Made in Germany"; their components are put together in Portugal.

 

I have no problem with that Canadian-made Leica lens.

Quite a few of Leica's lenses have been designed (by Walter Mandler) and manufactured in Canada (like the R-mount Apo-Telyt 180/3.4 that I still occasionally use).

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If you can power a 4lb laptop, you can feed a couple of batteries.....

I would reduce weight by leaving out the laptop.

The laptop is essential on a trip. It's included inside the camera bag for convenience of TSA security check. Yes one can probably check it into the luggage but that's not necessary for the short duration of carrying it. It is left out in the hotel room after reaching the destination.

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The most important part for me on the D500 and D850 - it allows me to select the AF area position and - by pressing down on the joystick - to initiate focus. Wouldn't want it any other way anymore when shooting any kind of action.

 

I am having a problem with the joystick on the D850. I set it up so that pressing it selects and activates a specific focus mode, but often when I try to press it, I inadvertently nudge it in one direction, and the selected focus point starts moving around instead of activating AF with the already selected point. It seems like the joystick is very easily displaced from the center position, and if I apply the slightest sideways force on it while trying to press it, the focus point starts moving, sometimes even if I pay special attention to avoiding it. Maybe I just need more practice, but as a result of this, often I will rather change the AF mode by pressing the dedicated button on the left of the lens mount and rotating the command dial, thus negating the convenience of the joystick.

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I am having a problem with the joystick on the D850. I set it up so that pressing it selects and activates a specific focus mode, but often when I try to press it, I inadvertently nudge it in one direction, and the selected focus point starts moving around instead of activating AF with the already selected point. It seems like the joystick is very easily displaced from the center position, and if I apply the slightest sideways force on it while trying to press it, the focus point starts moving, sometimes even if I pay special attention to avoiding it. Maybe I just need more practice, but as a result of this, often I will rather change the AF mode by pressing the dedicated button on the left of the lens mount and rotating the command dial, thus negating the convenience of the joystick.

you are not alone with that issue ! I gave up using it like that after a couple of months, and I used it more or less daily.

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It seems like the joystick is very easily displaced from the center position, and if I apply the slightest sideways force on it while trying to press it, the focus point starts moving, sometimes even if I pay special attention to avoiding it.

you are not alone with that issue !

It is indeed an issue - but with increased practice I manage to mostly avoid it nowadays; it requires an effort though to make sure to press straight down on the joystick without exerting any lateral force.

I will rather change the AF mode by pressing the dedicated button on the left of the lens mount and rotating the command dial

Not an option for me - that button is unreachable when I am using a long lens like the 500PF or the 200-500. To have access to different AF modes, I utilize three different programmable buttons on the D500 and D850: the joystick for GRP, AF-ON button for single point, and the DOF button for D153 on the D500 and D9 on the D850.

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I am having a problem with the joystick on the D850. I set it up so that pressing it selects and activates a specific focus mode, but often when I try to press it, I inadvertently nudge it in one direction, and the selected focus point starts moving around instead of activating AF with the already selected point.

 

I also have had this problem, and therefore decided against using the joystick to change focus area mode. But with the D6, you can choose whether the sub-selector center press and hold can still move the focus point around by moving it sidewise or not, using a custom function button. I still am not using it to select focus area modes. I am not comfortable with the ergonomics of using this control for that. What I could do is select on for the f13 custom function in which case it could be used safely to AF-ON + change AF area mode, and then separately, without depressing it, move the focus point around. I should test this. But in practice for me to start using it regularly it would also need to work on my other camera bodies.

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