Z6III First Impressions by NPS Members

Kenjiro Matsuo
Sports photographer
Koji Nakano
Bird photographer
Kenta Aminaka
Portrait photographer

“It felt so natural that I forgot whether I was shooting with the Z6III or the Z 9”

Kenjiro Matsuo

Sports photographer

Lens: NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/2000 second, f/2.8 • White balance: Auto0 • Sensitivity: ISO 1250 • Picture Control: Standard
Lens: NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/2000 second, f/2.8 • White balance: Auto0 • Sensitivity: ISO 1250 • Picture Control: Standard
Lens: NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/1600 second, f/2.8 • White balance: Auto0 • Sensitivity: ISO 12800 • Picture Control: Standard
Lens: NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/2000 second, f/2.8 • White balance: Auto0 • Sensitivity: ISO 1250 • Picture Control: Standard
Lens: NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/2000 second, f/2.8 • White balance: Auto0 • Sensitivity: ISO 1250 • Picture Control: Standard

Until I had it in my hands, I didn’t fully believe that the Z6III was comparable to the Z 9, which is the best camera I’ve ever used. However, after using it, I found the Z6III’s autofocus much smoother than I expected. I didn’t feel any stress using it after shooting with the Z 9. The Z6III is something I want to have in my camera bag because it’s smaller than the Z 9 and the ISO performance is actually superior to the Z 9 by approx. one stop.

PICK-UP FEATURES

AF Tracking

There were no issues when tracking a single subject. Even when it was approaching the camera and getting larger in the frame, the autofocus stayed on the subject without shifting to the background. The most difficult situation for autofocus is when another subject crosses the main subject’s path, but even if the focus shifted to another subject for a moment, it usually seemed to quickly snap back to the main subject. It left me with a very positive impression.

Electronic viewfinder (EVF)

The EVF is so important for me. The Z 9’s viewfinder allows me to see the subject the whole time without any blackout, which has enabled me to capture so many more usable images than before. The impact the EVF has on what you can capture is huge. I heard that with the Z6III, the viewfinder image skips momentarily when you fully press the shutter after a half-press, but this difference didn’t really bother me much. What struck me more was that I can see the Z6III will be helpful for outdoor summer sports under strong sunlight and among sunny, snowy mountains, thanks to the bright EVF.

High ISO

It is very helpful that the Z6III has that extra stop of standard ISO sensitivity compared to the Z 9. The quality of an image shot at a high ISO is noticeably higher than the Z 9. You can’t control the lighting of the venue, so if I have the Z6III, I can go shoot with more peace of mind even in low-light locations.

Enlarged image

“The Z6III packs the concepts of the Z 9 and Z 8 into the Z 6 lineup body”

Koji Nakano

Bird photographer

Lens: NIKKOR Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/6000 second, f/4 • White balance: Direct sunlight • Sensitivity: ISO 800 • Picture Control: Landscape
Lens: NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/8000 second, f/2.8 • White balance: Direct sunlight • Sensitivity: ISO 200 • Picture Control: Landscape
Lens: NIKKOR Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/8000 second, f/5.6 • White balance: Direct sunlight • Sensitivity: ISO 800 • Picture Control: Landscape
Lens: NIKKOR Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/1000 second, f/6.3 • White balance: Direct sunlight • Sensitivity: Auto (ISO 320) • Picture Control: Landscape
Lens: NIKKOR Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S + Z TELECONVERTER TC-1.4× • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/125 second, f/9 • White balance: Direct sunlight • Sensitivity: Auto (ISO 4000) • Picture Control: Landscape

While retaining some resemblance to the Z 6 lineup, the Z6III incorporates many concepts from the Z 9 and Z 8. In fact the usability is very close to the Z 8. It stands out as an exceptional camera compared to the earlier Z 6 lineup, offering high enough performance to serve as a main camera while also functioning well as a secondary camera for the Z 8 or Z 9.
With its full-frame 24.5 megapixels, the Z6III isn’t as crop-friendly as the Z 8 for bird photography, so it cannot be used for every occasion. However, the Z6III excels in low-light shooting situations thanks to its standard high ISO sensitivity performance of 64000 and autofocus detection down to -10 EV. This allows me to use the Z6III and Z 8 for different purposes.
The electronic viewfinder (EVF) has made a significant leap from the Z 6II. While it’s not completely blackout-free like the Z 8, the viewfinder image doesn’t jump very often when shooting continuously and swinging the camera, allowing me to frame my subject much more stably. The autofocus performance is comparable to the Z 8, with subject detection for 9 kinds of subject types adopted. Currently, the dedicated “birds” subject detection option is not included, making autofocus for birds less accurate than the Z 8. If this option is added via a firmware update, the Z6III will be significantly more appealing as a bird photography camera.

PICK-UP FEATURES

High-speed continuous shooting

Below is a Spectacled Guillemot flying over a cliff facing the ocean, captured during high-speed continuous shooting. With the Z 6II, shooting moving subjects was difficult due to the EVF view not being as smooth as it could be during continuous shooting. While the Z6III isn't perfect either, it’s smooth enough for me to precisely frame birds in flight. Despite the lack of a dedicated “birds” subject detection option, the autofocus performance is great, demonstrating high accuracy when an appropriate AF-area mode is selected. This is showcased, for example, even in challenging situations like this shot where the autofocus would usually tend to shift to the foreground or background.

NIKKOR Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S • 1/6000 second • f/4 • ISO 800

This is how the EVF looked when I shot the image above. Once the subject is in frame, the Z6III’s autofocus can detect and follow it well. Although not shown in this footage, there’s some blackout and a few frames are repeated at the time of shutter-release, but this doesn’t interfere much with shooting. It can even detect and track small subjects in rapid motion.

High ISO

The next image shows a Japanese Thrush taking a bath, captured with the NIKKOR Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S combined with the Z TELECONVERTER TC-1.4x at a focal length of 1120mm at f/9. The image was taken in the dark woods at a slow aperture – a scenario where high ISO performance is put to the test. The Z6III’s low-light performance is extraordinary thanks to its high ISO sensitivity of standard ISO 64000 and autofocus detection down to -10 EV. Until now, I was comfortable with the image quality at two steps below the maximum standard ISO sensitivity, but with the Z6III, I was surprised at how beautiful the images are even at the maximum ISO.

NIKKOR Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S + Z TELECONVERTER TC-1.4× (1120mm) • 1/2000 second • f/9 • ISO 64000

“The Z6III is essentially a compact version of the Z 9”

Kenta Aminaka

Portrait photographer

Lens: NIKKOR Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/125 second, f/2.8 • Sensitivity: ISO 800
Lens: NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.8 S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/500 second, f/4• Sensitivity: ISO 100
Lens: NIKKOR Z 85mm f/1.8 S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/500 second, f/2.8 • Sensitivity: ISO 100
Lens: NIKKOR Z 85mm f/1.8 S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/640 second, f/4 • Sensitivity: ISO 100
Lens: NIKKOR Z 85mm f/1.8 S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/160 second, f/3.2• Sensitivity: ISO 100
Lens: NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.8 S • Exposure: [M] mode, 1/320 second, f/2.8 • Sensitivity: ISO 100

After using the Z6III, I felt that, despite being much smaller, the usability is closer to the Z 9 than the Z 8. The operability is great, similar to both cameras. For assignments where a large data size is not required, I find the Z6III to be more than sufficient.

While testing the Z6III for a mountain location shoot, I found the vari-angle monitor to be incredibly advantageous. When shooting at high or low angles with the Z 9, I have to rely on my senses to adjust the camera position and angle. However, with the Z6III, I found it really helpful that I could precisely compose my shot using the vari-angle monitor, which also helped me save time. In addition, the Z6III’s light weight encouraged me to move the camera more actively, letting me discover new perspectives I would normally miss. Its support in capturing spontaneous ideas makes it very dependable as a piece of work gear.

PICK-UP FEATURES

AF Tracking

The subject detection is accurate. As I was reviewing my images, I felt the hit rate was equivalent to the Z 9. The detection works really well for small subjects in the frame. Also, the Z6III’s autofocus detects the eye of a face in profile, even when the person is slightly turning away, making it particularly dependable when capturing a subject in motion.

Vari-angle monitor

For location shoots, the vari-angle monitor is very helpful. It felt refreshing to use, since it hasn’t been adopted in the Z 9 or Z 8. The vari-angle monitor makes it possible to respond to spontaneous ideas, offering compositions that are only available with this kind of monitor.
The Z 9 has limitations on the angles at which you can view the monitor, so for example, when shooting overhead with the camera held high, I sometimes had to rely on my intuition without looking at the monitor. However, with the Z6III, I can check the monitor at any angle, allowing me to create my composition precisely. In the same way, I could capture new compositions at low angles by shooting with the lens facing upward.

High ISO

As for the image quality, while the Z6III's image size is only 24.4 megapixels, this is enough for current needs, like for the web, where very large file sizes aren’t necessary. The suppressed noise at high ISO is impressive. In my usual workflow, I use the denoise function in editing software when there is noticeable noise. When I look at the images shot with the Z6III, up to approx. ISO 4000, some results are comparable to the denoised results. However, in some cases, the detail isn‘t as clear as with the higher-megapixel Z 9, so I might have to use a prime lens when shooting at high ISO.