Z 8

14 September 2025
I just sprung for a new Z8 after longing for one for the last two years. I thought my Z7 was great with its large sensor but the Z8 takes the cake. I have never been so excited about a camera since I got my Nikon D300 way back when. The big difference for me in the Z8 is the fast and accurate autofocussing which surpassed my expectations despite the praise lavished on it by reviewers since it came out. They were right. This thing sings when you need fast action on moving objects in the lens. I have a flash but the high ISO on this makes a flash almost unnecessary. The Z8 has a solid heft to it that fits right in the hand. The new positioning of some of the buttons seems more intuitive which I like. The swing out monitor makes sense but the EV is still my go to viewer for photography. The use of double memory cards is finally right after only one on the Z7. The CF Express cards are so fast now and the SD card V series aren't far behind. The weather proofing of the Z8 body takes the worry out of getting moisture in the camera, a feature I have always admired in Nikon bodies. I bought a Nikkor Z 24-120 S lens last year, my first Z lens and the S-line quality is humbling. In combination with the Z8, this is the camera I have always wanted since the old days of medium format fim cameras.
My initial forays inside the house and outside have produced the sharpness, colours and fast lighting controls I want and I am ready to head out to find some local wild birds in their habitats along the shore. With fall approaching, the ducks and geese heading south will be stimulating to shoot with the Z8 and long lenses on tripods. The colder air will also provide some clear nights for astrophotography as well as city skylines. I feel a renewed energy with this Z8 to get out and shoot more which is what it is all about. Good one, Nikon!

Beast of a camera. Jumped from the Z6ii and I have no idea how I was taking pictures before.

Truly a better replacement to D850. Superior autofocus right into the corners of the frame. Amazing subject tracking. No blackout viewfinder (most of the time), 20fps raw capture. Rear screen tilting in both axes is great on a tripod. And significant improvements via firmware updates. And those Z lenses are fantastic! Got mine when it first came out, not regretted it one second.

Z8 performs as described. As a macro/micro hobby photographer I find Nikon's failure to design and market a Nikkor 200mm f/2.8 macro lens for the Z platform a glaring omission on their part. With all the pixel shifting, focus stacking capabilities built into the Z series camera bodies Nikon is missing a unique opportunity to corner a niche market of dedicated users by failing to support their Z camera bodies with a macro zoom lens and a 200mm macro lens.

Sure miss the optical finder from the D850 - and especially my F3HP which was even better.The little TV screen type of finder doesn't show what is there - just an electronic picture. Am used to knowing my exposure settings on the fly - this thing shows changes in exposure in the finder - for now it is confusing as the final image isn't quite a match for the view.The camera handles like a Nikon - no trick or clunky feel. Comfortable in hand.Nice & quiet & so many options - will take time to get it set up & be comfortable.Would really like to see ISO 25 and down to ISO 3 as we had with Kodak Tech Pan - as long as the image would be that sharp, even with more contrast that it had. Great for very dim situations on a tripod. As it is, ISO 64 will see a lot of use in my work.Overall, positive.

Just had it a week, having had nikon cameras up to the D810 since the 70s has helped a lot. Already taken a few awesome images but this is an amazing and really complicated camera. But I'll get it down!!

Too early to tell much. So far I’m impressed!

Great camera for bird photography - a truly invaluable tool for identifying little brown birds in foreign places. Without this camera my life Birds list total would be a lot lower! Having a clear irrefutable photo to place on eBird is huge. The focusing capabilities are way above my previous camera the d850. Fewer out of focus shots and it's great at capturing Birds in Flight. I created my own menu for birding and set up the F1 and f2 buttons to suit the way I use the camera to quickly switch between focus settings depending on the situation ( i.e. sitting vs flying subject). The built in "bird" subject locating feature is great. I have the 400m 4.5 lens combined with the 1.4 z teleconverter. A great combination for birders.

Incredible photos, ergonomics and just fun to use!