Pros and Cons of the Nikon Z8 : Bird and Wildlife Photography 3-Month Review

Our review of the Nikon Z8 after testing over the last 3 months in Alaska and the wild Kodiak Islands. We discuss the pros and cons of the camera and discuss how food it and who its for.

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SOCIAL MEDIA & WEB

WHO I AM.
My name is Scott West and I am a nature and wildlife photographer located in Alaska. I am very lucky to live in a place surrounded by amazing landscapes and even more amazing wildlife.

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Best Wishes
Scott

[RadAlzyoud]

An excellent and fair review. I usually don’t trust reviews from shooters who shoot one brand for 365 days a year and then complain about another brand after trying it for just 1-2 days. You’ve actually put in the time and effort to learn the system you’re reviewing. Well done.

[marcusalanphotography]

Awesome review…I use the Z8 and Z9 and they are great cameras. It is refreshing to see a real photographers review on a product. You have spent the time with the camera and you know to get the most out of it. I also want the 400mm 2.8 but I refuse to sell a kidney. Keep up the great work

[dansouth]

Wow, this is very well done! Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience with the Z8! I just got mine and feel I need to go back to school just to learn how to set it up, but actually that is half the fun!

[VABrowneMDPhD]

Really excellent review, Scott! Right now, Nikon has the best price to performance ratio of the top three professional level cameras. In addition, the new 180-600 mm f/5.6 to 6.3, 400 mm f/4.5, and 800 mm f/6.3 lenses are well-suited for wildlife and bird photography, and are much more affordable than the similar focal length lenses from Canon or Sony. To be certain, the prime f/2.8 and f/4 prime super-telephoto lenses from Nikon, Canon, and Sony are exceptionally sharp and bright but very expensive! For most of us, the difference in price is money that can be used to pay for trips to awesome locations rather than buying additional or more expensive gear.

[PhillipJ]

Just picked up my z8 the other day and coming from the D500 and D750 it's quite a change....completely honest video, thanks!!

[cliffordhare]

I have the z6ii but now I want the z8. Great video excellent review. Very well done.

[johnvanderploeg]

Excellent review! I really enjoy your perspective as you’ve spent enough time shooting both Canon and Nikon to accurately compare the pros and cons of each brand. The z8 is a phenomenal camera and for wildlife shooters its really hard to beat! Looking forward to your upcoming videos!

[dancejam]

Stewart, thanks as always. I know there is a lot to cover. There are several things I could point out, but the 20 FPS is NOT in UNCOMPRESSED RAW, it's lossless compressed RAW. I know you know this, just pointing it out.

[livejames]

Thanks for taking adequate time to learn the system in order to get the most out of it. Your perspective matches my experience as a Nikon and Canon user.

[randyschwager]

Thanks for this review! It sure would be great to see that video of you actually using the autofocus system in the field! It’s a training step that no one else has tackled! Thanks for all your advice!

[cathco]

Great review, Scott. I'm a Canon shooter (R5) but three of my friends shoot with this Z8. I'm loving all of the features you outlined, especially the BSI stacked sensor. Why? Canon needs to pay attention for the R5 II. THE R5 is 3 years old now, older when you think of when it was developed. Time for many upgrades. Thanks!!!

[guylorenzo]

Scott - only recently discovered your channel. I really enjoy your content and just subscribed. Thanks for this great review of the Z8! Your descriptions and explanations of the features/benefits/negatives of the camera are clear and concise. I was especially interested in the challenges you faced with the Z8/Z9 autofocus system. An in-depth video dedicated to that subject and what modes you use in various scenarios would be great. As an aside, I own the Z9 and a D850 and love both but am considering replacing the latter with a Z8 as part of a longer term transition to mirrorless. Based on your review it seems you would agree.

[brianglock]

I have both, it’s like having two different size hammers in your tool box. Both have the same results but each is best for different jobs.

Shooting with both together is a joy. 100-400 on z9 wide or other on Z8

[gregcorker]

Thanks for your informative, engaging, and unbiased videos!

[brianglock]

Love and use both the Z9 and Z7. On the Z9 you can rotate the dial all the way to the two squares then press the two square top button and use command duals to chose single, low for, high, 30…… times. Just like you are doing on the Z8. 🙂

[matthewbell]

Top drawer review Scott, really interesting and informative in equal measure. Keep the videos coming of beautiful Alaska 👍

[Ben_Stewart]

I love this camera. I kept my Z6ii for Astro modified and sold my Z50 hoping for a mark 2 to come around. I think your bang on. People need learn AF systems before barking about how they don't work like their automatic car.

[Frippin-MTBD]

I have Z6 and really want the Z8/Z9, not just because of autofocus... but because the stacked sensor + whatever they are doing for stabilization for still and video is amazing! Yes AF is much more amazing but that's not what annoys me on my Z6. It's mostly shooting video and avoiding warpy corners and jiggles or ripples in the video from sudden movements and maxing out IBIS+VR on a non-stacked sensor. It just seems amazing on Z8/Z9.

[danielelcolombo]

Great review, very informative, thanks! Can you shoot a video looking through the viewfinder, or are you limited to the LCD (as in the D850)? Thanks!!!!

[markwalker]

I enjoy your channel Scott. I have the Sony A9 and would like to upgrade as I am becoming more of a hybrid shooter and the high quality 4k 120 fps with much better stabilisation than Sony can offer is very tempting. I'm sure many Sony shooters with the 200-600mm are eyeing the Z8 (with MegaAdapter) as the A1 is too expensive and well behind on firmware updates. But then again next year is an Olympics year so the R5 MkII and A1 MkII should be due out by year end. Could you cover the video aspect in your upcoming flagship comparison or do a separate video on filming wildlife clips. Thanks