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New Nikon DSLRs in 2021?

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
According to the rather reliable Nikon rumour site, there will be two new Nikon DSLR bodies and several new F-mount lenses in 2021. A replacement for the 850 with D780 style AF, better video and more megapixels is a given. But the second one? Df II? D550?

I have for a long time tried to plan for the D8X0, although Covid-19 has drilled a hole in my money box. I expect that to be a camera that will work well for me for 10-20 years. Time will show, but I'm actually very excited about it.

 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
My guess is we will see a 60MP D860. And that chip will also make it into the Z line. A Dfii would be interesting to many, but I've gone over the edge and am fully in the Z camp now, so re-acquiring F-mount lenses is not going to happen for me. Though I do have a couple F-mount manual classic focals for the way they render -- but I'm not inclined to purchase a body dedicated to them as they work just fine on my Z. The 24MP Z6ii is so good at video and higher ISO stills right now, I'm not certain what they will do to improve it other than possibly further improved AF tracking -- unless possibly there is a comparatively superior 30-36MP chip in the works.
 

Darin Marcus

Well-known member
I doubt there will ever be a Df2 - that was a pet project for a senior manager who "retired" from Nikon a year or so before the Z was announced.

But I am curious to see what kind of F lenses they would announce in the current situation.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
But I am curious to see what kind of F lenses they would announce in the current situation.
A better 24mm f/1.4? Improved 45mm PCE? Modern 135 and/or 180mm primes have been lacking for a while, but launching thos now would almost be weird. Maybe something around 50mm, like a 58mm that is sharp wide open. The lens is apparently a success, but it would be more versatile if it were sharper.

It's of course also possible that they will launch F-mount lenses that are somehow spin-offs of new Z-mount lenses.
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
They have a Z 58 right now that is pretty darn sharp wide open, and sharper still at f1.4!!! (But it isn't AF.) :eek: As good as the 70-200/2.8 is, I doubt we will see a 135 or 180 prime anytime soon. I personally would love to get some dedicated Z-mount PC-E's -- that would be awesome. I would be very happy with a really stand-out sharp 24 or better a 21, plus a really sharp 45 -- my two most-used landscape focals...
 

tcdeveau

Well-known member
I doubt there will ever be a Df2 - that was a pet project for a senior manager who "retired" from Nikon a year or so before the Z was announced.

But I am curious to see what kind of F lenses they would announce in the current situation.
Im wondering if we’ll see a new 200mm f2 finally. Nikon rumors reported this spring that the “old” vrii version was discontinued and a new version had already been tested. Might make sense with an olympics coming up at some point:


The 200mm f2 is/was one of my “dream” lenses
 

Darin Marcus

Well-known member
Yes, there were rumors about a new 200mm f/2, and also about a new 60mm Macro (??) at some point.

IMO they will only release lenses they could sell to D6, D850 & D780 users, as well as to the users of whatever new D cameras will be released next year. I don't think they can afford to have new lenses sitting on store shelves. Perhaps if the D850 replacement has ~ 60MPs, they could replace some current high sellers that do not fare as well at that resolution.

Less likely but still possible is to release AF-P/E versions of some current F lenses that can also be used with the FTZ adapter on the Zs.
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
My guess is any future releases of F-mount lenses will have them built around the assumption of incorporating the FTZ for the Z cams.
 

Darin Marcus

Well-known member
My guess is any future releases of F-mount lenses will have them built around the assumption of incorporating the FTZ for the Z cams.
Wide angle and normal primes/zooms benefit from a Z mount redesign, as demonstrated by the 14-24 and 24-70 f/2.8.
This leaves the telephoto side open for "practical" dual use. However, they still have the 400mm, 600mm and the other 2 telephoto zooms on the Z roadmap, so I am not sure what the plan is...
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
I don't know, but I am not at all interested in any further DSLRs nor in any new F mount glass.

IMO Nikon should bundle all their resources in order to get back on top in their mirrorless game - aka Z mount - especially when considering and believing all the not so rosy financial reports and the current market situation resulting from Covid19.

Just my 5c!
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
I don't know, but I am not at all interested in any further DSLRs nor in any new F mount glass.

IMO Nikon should bundle all their resources in order to get back on top in their mirrorless game - aka Z mount - especially when considering and believing all the not so rosy financial reports and the current market situation resulting from Covid19.

Just my 5c!
The problem for Nikon is that they still sell more DSLR than mirrorless cameras, and without the profit from those sales, they don't have resources to develop the Z-line. Also, among sports photographers, DSLR cameras still dominate the market, and for many good reasons too. The only mirrorless cameras that are really suitable for sports and action are the Olympus E-M1X and the Sony A9, and once it gets dark, the Olympus loses much of its shine, and I will even question how well the viewfinder of the Sony would handle the situation (I haven't tried though). Then there's battery life.
 

jduncan

Active member
My guess is we will see a 60MP D860. And that chip will also make it into the Z line. A Dfii would be interesting to many, but I've gone over the edge and am fully in the Z camp now, so re-acquiring F-mount lenses is not going to happen for me. Though I do have a couple F-mount manual classic focals for the way they render -- but I'm not inclined to purchase a body dedicated to them as they work just fine on my Z. The 24MP Z6ii is so good at video and higher ISO stills right now, I'm not certain what they will do to improve it other than possibly further improved AF tracking -- unless possibly there is a comparatively superior 30-36MP chip in the works.
They may decide to keep it at. 45Mpixels. Sony users are not that impress with the 60mp sensor, and it will make the camera arrive later at a higher cost.

But clearly the extra MP wont hurt. A D880 with the D6 AF will be a killer wildlife machine, even more so with a 60MP sensor.

My main concern is that they could forget about the grip. I have never bought a grip since we move to CMOS (batteries last forever), but that is just me. I fully understand that many people need them or just love them.

Video is another good reason to have the grip.

Best regards,
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
The problem for Nikon is that they still sell more DSLR than mirrorless cameras, and without the profit from those sales, they don't have resources to develop the Z-line. Also, among sports photographers, DSLR cameras still dominate the market, and for many good reasons too. The only mirrorless cameras that are really suitable for sports and action are the Olympus E-M1X and the Sony A9, and once it gets dark, the Olympus loses much of its shine, and I will even question how well the viewfinder of the Sony would handle the situation (I haven't tried though). Then there's battery life.
I am not so sure if Nikon still sells more DSLRs than mirrorless cameras, at least this is going to change pretty soon. On the other hand I could not be less interested in any new DSLR since already 5 years, so for me any DSLR from whatever brand seems just ridiculous in these times. Sure there may be some Pros who need a DSLR for their business, but modern mirrorless cameras have come a long way and IMO can be as good.
I am pretty sure that Nikon will come with their Pro level Z8 or/and Z9 and I applaud them for that. This will definitely happen next year and as soon as their mirrorless D6 is on the market everything will also change in mirrorless land. Especially Sony, who were not able to bring their A9 series to real Pro level will learn then the hard way - finally 👍
Summing all this up - IMO it is best for Nikon to fully concentrate on their Z system - which they do (lenses and cameras) and forget asap about DSLRs. That does not mean there are no longer people who desire (new) DSLRs, just like you Jorgen, but I think we have to accept that this is becoming a dying species 😭
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
There's an interesting side to this from my point of view:
There have so far been two main reasons for me to use mirrorless cameras for video, and since I prefer to carry only one system, also for stills. One has been AF when shooting video, which Canon solved ages ago, and Nikon solved with the D780. I assume that all new Nikon DSLR cameras will have on-chip PD AF.

The other was the electronic viewfinder, since I expected to mostly use the viewfinder when shooting video. In reality I don't, and most of those who shoot much video will understand why. When shooting video, the camera will mostly live on a tripod or a gimbal, often connected to all kinds of cables and stuff. Using the viewfinder is simply not a practical solution much of the time, at least not for paid shoots.

Since I still prefer an optical viewfinder for stills, it should be an easy choice for me then. Except for the occasions whn I choose a really compact kit, I would rather use a DSLR, even for video, if the DSLR offers the video quality and features that I'm looking for.
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
There's an interesting side to this from my point of view:
There have so far been two main reasons for me to use mirrorless cameras for video, and since I prefer to carry only one system, also for stills. One has been AF when shooting video, which Canon solved ages ago, and Nikon solved with the D780. I assume that all new Nikon DSLR cameras will have on-chip PD AF.

The other was the electronic viewfinder, since I expected to mostly use the viewfinder when shooting video. In reality I don't, and most of those who shoot much video will understand why. When shooting video, the camera will mostly live on a tripod or a gimbal, often connected to all kinds of cables and stuff. Using the viewfinder is simply not a practical solution much of the time, at least not for paid shoots.

Since I still prefer an optical viewfinder for stills, it should be an easy choice for me then. Except for the occasions whn I choose a really compact kit, I would rather use a DSLR, even for video, if the DSLR offers the video quality and features that I'm looking for.
Maybe you are right, but that does not change the facts that

1) the Nikon mirrorless cameras are stunning
2) the Nikon mirrorless cameras are much lighter and easy to carry than their DSLR equivalents
3) the Nikon Z mount S lenses are much, Much, MUCH better than their F mount counterparts - all of them - period
4) Nikon Z allows easy adoption of third party lenses and in my case even the very tricky Leica M lenses are exceptionally good even on the Z7 sensor. I would go even as far as the Nikon Z color science is pretty close to Leica color science

Alone for 3) I would not get back to DSLR which requires F mount - and if you need a special F mount lens then it works easily with the FTZ adapter on any Z body.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Maybe you are right, but that does not change the facts that

1) the Nikon mirrorless cameras are stunning
2) the Nikon mirrorless cameras are much lighter and easy to carry than their DSLR equivalents
3) the Nikon Z mount S lenses are much, Much, MUCH better than their F mount counterparts - all of them - period
4) Nikon Z allows easy adoption of third party lenses and in my case even the very tricky Leica M lenses are exceptionally good even on the Z7 sensor. I would go even as far as the Nikon Z color science is pretty close to Leica color science

Alone for 3) I would not get back to DSLR which requires F mount - and if you need a special F mount lens then it works easily with the FTZ adapter on any Z body.
I don't consider a DSLR camera because they are "better". My MFT gear is good enough for most of what I do. Even the D2Xs is good enough for most of what I do. I consider a DSLR camera because I enjoy shooting with those cameras, and because it enables me to swap lenses between digital and film cameras. When I consider whatever comes after the D850, it's mostly because I enjoy using state-of-the-art equipment, like I enjoyed the D810 and the F6 when I had those. In principle, and except for video, any high end Nikon FX DSLR would work to my satisfaction, from the D700 to the D6.

While I enjoy talking about what I would like to buy, most of the time I end up buying some second hand body, one that somebody else has enjoyed before me, but also lost a bunch of monies when upgrading to the latest, greatest. All of my current gear, except the Panasonic 100-300mm and the Panasonic GH1, is bought used, and nobody has ever said to me "Jørgen, this photo seems to have been taken with a second hand camera".

So in reality, it's more likely that you see me here bragging about my "new" D700. On the other hand... if I buy the new D8x0, it's probably the last camera I need to buy. I'm sure it will last 20+ years.
 

tcdeveau

Well-known member
It'll be interesting to see what Nikon does with the dSLR/F-mount line. IMHO the future is mirrorless and I think Nikon and Canon see the writing on the wall. That said, I personally thought the D6 would be the last of the new dSLRs, yet here we are.

The nice thing about mirrorless is if that's your cup of tea, Nikon has a pretty aggressive strategy looking forward to 2021 with several new bodies and new lenses.

If it's not, there's plenty of "old" F-mount gear available at a fraction of the cost of the Z-system stuff. The F-mount stuff is also obviously perfectly capable and will last for years to come.

The weekend before last I went out to get family pics of my wife, son, and I, and maternity pics of my wife. I brought the Z6/24-7 2.8s and D800 and 50mm 1.4g. The shoot ended up being very chaotic trying to wrangle our two year old and get him to pose and smile, and the D800/50 1.4g ended up being used simply because it more accessible than the Z6 in the bag. The shoot turned out great and we're really happy with the pics. No, the 50mm 1.4g isn't perfect in any way and I'm sure if Nikon made a Z 50mm 1.4 it would run circles around the older version, but the end result still looked great after some post work. It's also a heck of a lot smaller than the 50mm 1.2s Nikon has coming out.

I have no interest in new F-mount gear, but my latest experience rediscovering the D800 got me thinking about picking up a used 85mm 1.4g and 70-200 and waiting a couple years to get the Z equivalents.

We'll see what Nikon does in 2021...should give some exciting options for both dSLR and mirroless camps from the looks of it.
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
They may decide to keep it at. 45Mpixels. Sony users are not that impress with the 60mp sensor, and it will make the camera arrive later at a higher cost.
I agree. But I also suspect Nikon will release a 60MP camera to compete. Whether or not it will be better in actual use than the 45MP Z7ii remains to be seen. And for me yes, 45MP is plenty for my current work too -- in fact 24MP would probably be adequate for 98% of my work... I remember back when I had just moved up from an 8MP to a 12MP cam I declared, "Once they get FF35 digital to 24MP, I will be done, because the lenses won't be good enough to use any more." Ahem... Even though I was "mostly" correct, we all know how well I stuck to that! 😂😂😂

I am well satisfied with the first gen Z7 camera now, I don't feel compelled to upgrade to the ii series. But if AF is confirmed to be truly superior, I may bite the bullet and get a 7ii... If I shot video at all, I'd have a Z6 or Z6ii as well -- the grandbaby is growing fast, so maybe sooner than later ;)
 

Darin Marcus

Well-known member
I am well satisfied with the first gen Z7 camera now, I don't feel compelled to upgrade to the ii series. But if AF is confirmed to be truly superior, I may bite the bullet and get a 7ii... If I shot video at all, I'd have a Z6 or Z6ii as well -- the grandbaby is growing fast, so maybe sooner than later ;)
From the few rumors I've heard in some shadowy places, Nikon is testing a new type of on-sensor AF (hardware) technology that will bring really superior AF to their mirrorless cameras. However, I believe that will show up first in the mirrorless D6 camera (Z1?, Z9?) whenever it may be released, and only after that it will trickle down to Z6/7 Mk x...

I will definitely skip the next 1-2 generations.
I am still having fun with the D810 :cool:
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
I'm generally happy with the D800E, but given how I've completely lost myself to the Z glass I'd like a second Z body... But at the price I can't really see buying a second Z7 new or used. I'd prefer to spend that kind of money on a true upgrade, and relegate the Z7 to backup/second body. Or something complementary, like a built-in grip or other complementary functionality, say replaceable viewfinders. Don't think there's enough in the 7II though... it looks very much like a small increment over the Z7. Which is fine of course, but just not that appealing to me personally.
 
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