I finally went mirrorless. Traded the DSLRs and most lenses for a Nikon Z5.
As usual, I tried to do my research. No doubt, the D800e is a wonderful camera, with more pixels than I can ever make use of. And for a DX camera, the D7200 is excellent. And the lenses I have are great, I’ve enjoyed using all of it.
But I was attracted by something newer, smaller, lighter. And I wanted to slim down my whole kit, I rarely need two cameras at the same time. And getting something more recent wouldn’t hurt, I figured.
In any case, I wanted a full frame camera, and staying with Nikon means I can keep using some of my lenses. The Z5 seems like a good compromise between features and cost. It takes two SD-cards, which feels secure, and I can keep using the cards I already have.
Some reviews note that its top speed is only 4.5 frames per second, but that seems pretty good for me.
I also got the FTZ II adapter, so I can keep using some older lenses, but my main lens is now the Nikon Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3, but more on that later. I did also get the Nikon Z 40mm f/2 SE, for a small and light walk-round lens. The SE version costs just a bit more than the regular version, but it looks a bit cooler.
I figure the two lenses cover just about everything I will shoot.
And to my surprise, I can keep using my old EN-EL15 batteries. They won’t support charging via USB, like the newer C-model, but they will be good as backup.
Video in the Z5 is limited to 30 minutes recording time and cropping. But I doubt I will do much video with it, to be honest.
This means I also traded the Nissin Di700a flashes, and plan to get the SB-700 later, or the Godox tt350.
There are tons of reviews of the Z5, here’s one of the more detailed ones.
