What I Think Nikon Can Do To Make Their Cameras Even Better Than They Are

Now that I’ve primarily shot with the Nikon Z8 for several months, as well as recently with the Zf, and with the ability to directly compare them to my years-long experience with other Nikons, Fujifilm and Olympus/OM cameras, I think there are some changes, improvements and additions Nikon can implement to make their excellent cameras even better.  Or so I think so.

DISCLAIMER:  These are my opinions from my point of view based upon my knowledge, experiences, my use of several camera systems and the types of photography I practice.  You and your needs and wants may be entirely different.  My opinion may not be your opinion and that is perfectly okay.  I’m not in the business of deciding what’s good, bad or best for anyone else.  You won’t see the Internet influencers posting a disclaimer such as this.  Most want you to believe they are the authority on gear, what's good, what's bad and your needs.  

First of all, I think the Nikon Z8 is the most capable digital camera I’ve ever owned when it comes to both the quality of the image files and ‘getting the shot.’  Second only to the Nikon Zf, it has the overall best image quality of any digital camera I’ve owned.  

The Z8 is better than my Fujifilm X-T5 in some ways and better than my OM-1 in some ways.  On the other side of the coin, my Nikons don’t have all of the extensive features of the OM-1, some of which are very nice to have but rarely used, nor the external controls I love of the X-T5, which is still my favorite camera to use on a daily basis.  Still, the Z8 is the most capable camera I own.  I'm not sure what I have just written really explains what I mean but I digress.

That said, here are some things I think Nikon can do to make the Z8 better as well as selected other mirrorless cameras in their current lineup even better.  Here are my thoughts in no particular order.

Nikon Z8

First, add a live clipped highlights and crushed shadows warning feature in the viewfinder as well as on the LCD.  Now, other than the histogram, you have no real warning you are clipping highlights or crushing shadows.  When playing back images you’ve already made, Nikon gives you the ability to see clipped highlights.  But not live.  Some cameras only show clipped highlights with so-called "zebras.”  I think OM has the best solution in that they show clipped highlights in the EVF as orange (some say red but mine are clearly orange) areas and crushed shadows as blue areas.  There is no mistaking them.  They immediately get your attention and you can change exposure rapidly.  In fact, I feel it works so well, I no longer use the histogram (nor display it in the EVF) when using the OM-1.  I'm sure Nikon can implement this, most likely in a firmware update.  Let's do it Nikon!  It really makes a substantial difference when speed is a factor.

Second, allow Pre-Release (Pro Capture or Pre-Capture on other cameras) to record in the lossless compressed raw format instead of only JPEG.  What a shame Nikon only allows JPEGs for the pre-capture feature.  I'm not sure why this is so, but Fujifilm and OM can easily do it with raw files so I suspect Nikon can as well.  Again, let's do it Nikon!

Third, implement dual CFExpress B cards instead of a combination of CFExpress B and SDXC cards in the camera bodies that are large enough to handle the larger size.  This is the way the industry is moving in the same way it was with DSLRs moving to mirrorless.  Nikon was late to the party with mirrorless, let's not be late to the party for most of your cameras for this change as well.  

For general photography I like to use the CFExpress B card as my primary storage and the SDXC card as an automatic backup.  Speed and buffer capacity is not really a worry.  But when photographing birds-in-flight or other subjects that require a very high fps, the SD card slows the read/write process down and, in turn, the camera's ability to continue at high frame rates (Note: I do use the fastest SDXC cards).  

My current methodology using my Z8 for high speed photography with the slower SD cards is to only use the CFExpress B card with those high frame rates.  I don't use the SD card for simultaneous backup.  Then when I have a bit of time, I copy the images to the SD card in-camera.  Now I have my backup files.  Right now, that is the best(?) of both worlds.  But it would be nice to have two high speed cards for those occasions when they are needed.

Fourth, GPS built-in to the Z8 and the future Z6III and potentially Z7III.  In-camera GPS is not an absolute must but it sure is nice when traveling day after day and photographing in many different places.  Also, it works better than having to import GPS data using Nikon's app.  I don't use GPS often, but when I want to use it, it is a pain to figure it out.

Fifth, keep improving the AF subject detection.  It is very good right now but still not quite industry leading.  Very close from everything I read and see.  But it also could be better.  Nikon still uses the icons and terminology for detecting 'cats and dogs.'  Let's change that to animals and teach your AI and machine learning algorithms to recognize all four legged mammals flawlessly.

Sixth, fix how the Shooting Banks/Custom Banks combination work.  Compared to other cameras I've used, the way Nikon has engineered this feature is really not very conducive to efficiency nor nearly as well done as other manufacturers.  In fact, the way Nikon has engineered the C1,C2, etc., User Settings in the Z6-7 series cameras works better than how it is configured in the higher cost cameras.  I don't get it?  Give us one place to save all of our settings, not two that save only some settings.  This is a no-brainer in my opinion.

ADDITION (04/27/2024):  I knew there was one other feature that I would like Nikon to address.  When using focus bracketing, the EVF and LCD on Nikon cameras go completely black for the duration of the several exposures set by the user.  OM cameras allow the user to view the variety of exposures and the changes in focus distance live.  That really helps if you are attempting a handheld focus bracketed photograph.  Having that visual reference as the exposures are taking place, at least for me, helps me steady the camera better so the subsequent exposures can be composited more easily and more accurately.  If OM can provide a live view while focus bracketing, I would think Nikon could as well.  It does increase usability.  Seriously.

Nikon does almost everything right.  But there is always room for improvement and that includes all of us as photographers.  I hope Nikon sees this and will take some of what I write under consideration.

Is there something about the camera or cameras you use that you wish were different?  Leave a comment and let us all know.

Join me over at my website, https://www.dennismook.com.  

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!  

Dennis A. Mook  

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