Nikon’s Z9 will get 8K 60p RAW video and extra through a significant firmware replace | Engadget

Nikon has launched the firmware 2.0 update for its flagship mirrorless Z9 digital camera that provides it vital new video powers together with 8.3K 60p RAW. It additionally gives advantages to photographers with autofocus and EVF enhancements together with a brand new characteristic that pre-captures images earlier than you hit the shutter button. 

The 45-megapixel Z9 was already a strong mirrorless digital camera for video, however the brand new enhancements put it forward of all rivals, together with Sony’s A1 and Canon’s EOS R5, no less than on the spec sheet. The largest replace is the addition of 12-bit RAW video at as much as 8.3K 60p utilizing Nikon’s new RAW video format known as N-RAW, together with 12-bit ProRes RAW HQ seize at as much as 4.1K 60p.

N-RAW “records a vast amount of scene information, yet is a significantly smaller file size, allowing for much more recording time and [a] less intensive workflow,” Nikon wrote in a press launch. The information take up about half the area of equal ProRes RAW HQ information (ProRes RAW HQ 12-bit, 4K 24p video has an information price of 80-140 MB/s). 

An organization known as IntoPix previously said that Nikon can be utilizing its TicoRAW expertise for RAW video. When the firmware is launched, N-RAW will probably be supported on DaVinci Resolve and Edius, however not Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro or different enhancing apps. 

On prime of 8.3K 60p, the Z9 can seize N-RAW 4.1K 120p, 60p, 30p and 24p (plus equal PAL codecs) in full body FX mode, 5.3K 60p, 30p and 24p with a 1.5X crop and three.8K 120p with a 2.3X crop. It additionally creates an MP4 proxy file, permitting for “previews, quick transfers or edits on the fly,” in response to Nikon. 

If you’d slightly shoot ProRes RAW HQ, 8K is not an possibility as seize is proscribed to 4.1K 60p, although crop choices can be found. Nikon has additionally launched an “extended oversampling mode” delivering 2:1 oversampled 4K 60fps footage from an 8K seize. That setting requires a really quick CFexpress card, restricted to ProGrade’s Cobalt 650GB or 325GB memory cards. Nikon additionally launched its personal CFexpress card at the moment, the 660GB MC-CF660G, arriving in June 2022 with as much as 1700 MB/s and 1500 MB/s learn/write speeds.

Video operation can be improved with a number of new options. The most requested is the addition of a waveform show that vastly helps visualize publicity, significantly with in log modes. You can even put a pink body across the show throughout recording and modify the magnification. Other options embody finer ISO increments for smoother transitions and a “Fast AF On” perform that allows you to rapidly change the AF pace with out diving into menus — one other much-asked-for setting.

On the pictures facet, the Z9 now has a pre-buffer possibility for JPEGs solely, at 30fps full decision and 11-megapixel 120 fps modes. It captures buffered photos when the shutter button is half press pressed, conserving as much as a second of photos whenever you totally press it. It additionally retains as much as 4 seconds afterwards. 

Meanwhile, Nikon boosted the EVF’s refresh price to a smoother 120 fps, bringing it in keeping with rivals like Sony and Canon — although enabling the setting will cut back battery life. It additionally added customized Wide AF zones, letting you choose which components of your scene are energetic and create two user-defined zones. That manner, you may maintain the AF and topic monitoring in an outlined space to enhance focus reliability. 

The replace is likely one of the most spectacular I’ve seen and considerably improves the $5,500 Z9’s performance and desirability. Features like MP4 proxy recording are normally solely seen on professional video cameras. However, Nikon has nothing to lose by making the Z9 a limit-free video powerhouse, as a result of not like Sony and Canon, it has no skilled video lineup to cannibalize. The firmware 2.0 improve will probably be obtainable to obtain totally free beginning on April 20, 2022 at Nikon’s website.