Nikon may have moved on years ago from producing SLR film cameras, but it certainly has never lost its love of their design. And why shouldn't it indulge in a bit of nostalgia? After all, it was the fantastic success enjoyed by the Nikon F when first introduced in the late 1950's that made the company into the behemoth it is today. And so it should come as no surprise that Nikon has routinely turned out DSLR's (the full frame Df that is now all but discontinued) and mirrorless models (the APS-C Zfc and now the full frame Zf) whose appearance is decidedly retro. As a long time photographer whose go-to camera for the past 35+ years has always been the F3T (the T stands for my model's titanium body) I've always been intrigued by these cameras and currently own both a Df and Zfc. It was only natural then that I should be intrigued by the release of the Zf whose design mimics that of the long discontinued FM.
I don't see much point in regurgitating the Zf's specs when they can easily be viewed both on Nikon's own website as well as B&H's, so I'll content myself with a few random observations.
First, the Zf's sensor size is at only 24.5 MP far smaller than that of the Z8 and Z9 and much more in line with the Zfc's 20.9 MP. For me, this indicates right off the bat that the Zf is not intended for professionals but rather for the so-called "enthusiast" market. Nevertheless, 24.5 is still a substantial size and should be adequate for most users especially as it is now quite easy to upsize images with third-party apps such as Topaz Labs' Gigapixel and On1's AI Resize.
In many ways the Zf's specs are similar to those found in the Z6 II, but there are some key differences. For one, its AF detection capabilities go as low as -10EV, a boon for those who depend on autofocus in low light. The Zf also boasts a fully articulating touch screen which, for me at least, would prove extremely useful. Also useful for those who like myself suffer from poor eyesight is the subject recognition with 3D tracking and the eye-detection autofocus for both photos and videos. I also appreciate the inclusion of dual card slots even if one of these supports only micro-size cards. Of much lest interest to me, however, is the camera's ability to quickly toggle between color and b&w modes. Though for most of my career I specialized in shooting b&w film, when it comes to digital I always shoot in color and leave the b&w to post-processing apps, of which I've found NIK Silver Efx to be the best. Finally, I should mention that the Zf's shutter release, like that of my Df, is threaded for the use of a cable release which is what I always use when shooting with a tripod.
The Zf is now available for preorder from both Nikon and B&H for $1,999.95 (body only), though no date I can see has been given when the camera is actually expected to ship. That seems a reasonable enough price for a full frame camera with the Zf's specs, especially when compared to the double-that-amount price for the recently released Z8 which, however, admittedly contains a slew of professional features not available on the Zf starting with its 45.7 MP sensor.
I probably will purchase the Zf at some future date but see no need to rush out and be the first to buy. As I'm pretty much retired now I can get along quite well with my current array of cameras and would prefer to wait to see if there turn out to be any quirks that need to be addressed with updates. There almost always are following the release of any new camera model.
EDIT: According to an update on B&H's website, the Zf will begin shipping on October 31.
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