Nikon Z8 vs Nikon ZF
Nikon Z f is the newest camera from the Nikon mirrorless camera line. It’s an interesting camera - it has the vintage aesthetic of a film camera, and it is also the first Nikon priced at $2000 with internal N-Log and 10-bit recording. We decided to test it against the Nikon Z8 in a few areas to see how it holds up to a more expensive and capable camera.
SHARPNESS
For a fair comparison, we set both cameras at UHD 24p, even though the Nikon Z8 can go up to 8k. Judging the image, the Nikon Z8 has a slight edge over the Nikon Zf but both cameras perform very well in this mode.
In UHD 60p, the Nikon Z8 stays sharp and detailed while the Nikon Zf applies 1.5x in this mode, and the image softens a lot with more pronounced noise and some artifacts visible when zooming in. Nikon Z8 uses an oversampled mode for 60p, which helps with the sharpness, although some moiré might be visible. 60p mode on Zf is perfectly serviceable if not filming in low light or scaling it up in post, where compression artifacts might become apparent.
COLOR
In this test, both cameras were set to manual white balance at 5800k and N-Log profile. With the same settings and the same processing, Nikon ZF appears to lean a little toward green compared to Nikon Z8.
In terms of color rendering, they’re almost identical. Nikon Zf can be easily used as a second camera to the Nikon Z8 or Z9 and cut together without issues.
NOISE AND COMPRESSION
In this test, both cameras were set to UHD 24p mode in H265. The results look similar, with both cameras being fairly clean in ISO up to 3200. We haven’t tested dual gain ISO.
The thing to note is the Nikon Z8 has 8k mode, which would make noise appear smaller and, therefore, cleaner than the Nikon Zf. Also, Nikon Z8 has internal N-RAW and ProRes codecs, which retain fine texture with noise, and H265 doesn’t hold the details, making the image appear less noisy but also less organic.
CONCLUSION
Nikon Z f holds up well compared to Nikon Z8 and can be used as a second camera. Nikon finally added a 10-bit internal Log recording into the affordable camera body but it’s hard to recommend it for video work because of the ergonomics. The body style lacks grip, and it can be challenging to balance it on a gimbal stabilizer.
We hope Nikon will update the Z6 line next year and add a much-needed N-Log2 profile to their camera lineup.