Shetland 2024. Wildlife photography with Nikon Z8 and Z50.

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Thank you for watching this video.
I had been looking forwar to this willife adventure for quite some time. We where 8 willife and nature photographers who travelled together. 10 days with wildlife, sightseen, hikes, and conversations in the company of friends. We started in Sumburgh and stayed there a few days, making short visits to St. Ninians, Isle of Noss, Leirwick and Mousa. Then we went to Hillswick for a few days, visiting Scalloway and Esha Ness. Then the journey went to Unst and Hermaness, before we had some more time in Sumburgh before the returnflight to Bergen.
It was my first trip to Shetland, and I'll be back next year too. I'm in deep respect for the hospitality and friendliness we experienced on the islands.
Camera: Nikon Z8 and Nikon Z50.
Lenses: Nikkor Z400mm f4.5 S and Nikkor Z24-120mm f4 S.
As you see, I let you know when I use the Z50 and the teleconverter. I used the Z50 for a lot of landscape photography as well. Its not as good as the Z8 on that as well, but it is easy to set up the Z50 on the tripod, and having the Z8 ready in case a bird comes along.
Some thoughts:
As mantioned, I brought with me the 2X teleconverter. I had used it already this winter, in low light here in Norway and learned this is gear that should be used only i some situations. Its also much more convenient to bring it in you luggage, than a 800mm lense. My experience is that the 400 f4.5 lens is so sharp, that it is possible to use it together with the 2x teleconverter for filming, but also photography, if you know you have to crop the image anyway. But the ISO increase and the shutter speed might be forced down. This will challenge the sharpness. There will definnetively be more slightly unsharp than with the 400mm f4.5 lense on its own, but that again is very sharp. One solution is to take much more photos of the subject and hope for some really sharp photos. If you consider to invest in this teleconverter, the first question should be if your lens is sharp enough, and fast enough. The 800mm F6.3 S lens from Nikon is faster than the 400mm f4.5 S with this teleconverter, hense with less ISO, but it is a huge extra lens to bring on such a journey as our visit to Shetland. It's also expensive. And I needed the 400mm for bird in flight, so that had to come along. In the everyday photo sessions, the 400 is the right lens for me. The 800 is simply not fitting in my collection, and I can save that money for lenses I need for milkyway photos and landscape, requireing faster apperatures.
I only used the teleconverter one out of the 10 days. The Z400mm f4.5 is simply enough and much more usable without the teleconverter.
Another observation is the Z400mm f4.5 S lens on the Nikon Z50. My experience is that the Z50 love S lenses and the S lenses demonstrate the power of the Z50. Paired with the 400mm f4.5 S lens, the Z50 easily capture birds in flight. Still, I prefer to use the Z8 for this, as it don't have the blackouts that you will se with the Z50. However, for birds in flight, ont he Z50, the field of view is narrowed down quite a lot, demonstrating why 400mm is the perfect lens for me… paired with the Z8. Hence, I rarely use it for birds in flight with the Z50.
For the 24-120mm f4 S lens, I have invested in the Kase magnetic filters. They are easy to use in the field. Landscape photography is really not my thing, but I am learning step by step.
I have used the Z50 for two years now, and the Z8 for over a year. I have no reason to sell anyone of them, and no need to buy a new camera either. Both cameras are excellent. I will instead invest in new S line lenses. If you do have a Z50, but no S lenses, and consider to buy a new camera, then a new S lense might be a better investment. However, that all depends what you need it for, and which ability you need your camera to have.
So, this video is more than just a memory from this amazing journey to Shetland. It also show some examples of the Z8 and Z50 capabilities with various combinations of lenses, but also what happens if you add a 2x teleconverter to the very sharp z400 f4.5 S lense.
Music with license from Audiio.com feathuring Chasing light by Eleven33 and Magic hour by Adi Goldstein
Please write in the comment field if you have any questions related to any of the cameras, lenses or teleconverter. Are there anything I should test, based on the equipment I list above, that you want to see, please let me know in the comment field.