• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

decent 1" sensor: any more? (1 Viewer)

earlytorise

Well-known member
I now own a superzoom from Nikon. But because it refuses to focus reliably on warblers, flowerpeckers and so forth, I wanted to make an upgrade, and the Nikon 1 mirrorless camera seemed the perfect option for somebody who did not want to lug huge lenses around. The 70-300 mm lens gives 810 mm of reach. That and the camera will set me back less than USD 1500.

But now Nikon has as good as discontinued the series, in view of which its potential value at resale makes me think twice.

What are the alternatives for me? There are superzooms (e.g. the Canon G3X) with a 1" sensor but the autofocus is lamentably slow, or so I hear. And Olympus lenses will cost a lot.

Thanks
 
Last edited:
Hi,

What are the alternatives for me? There are superzooms (e.g. the Canon G3X) with a 1" sensor but the autofocus is lamentably slow, or so I hear.

Have you had a look at the Panasonic FZ1000? I'm pretty happy with its autofocus speed, as good as my (old) Sony alpha 700 DSLR's.

Regards,

Henning (HoHun)
 
The fact that an item is coming close to manufacturer withdrawal can actually improve it''s potential resale value - if the camera is wanted for others wishing to do the same as you and they cannot get it from nikon, they are apt to pay a premium for a good quality well presented previously owned unit.

Also the crop sensor Sony mirrorless range have available fully auto lens adaptors for various lens fitting so you could re-use your existing lenses
 
The 1" interchangeable sensor cameras have for now come to an end - though of course they still work, so you can still pick up a Nikon One series and lens on the used market, or old stock...just because they've discontinued doesn't mean they won't work fine for many years.
The 1" sensor lives on in the form of fixed-lens cameras - with the Panny FZ1000 and FZ2500, afformentioned Canon, and Sony RX10III - the Panny is the less expensive option for just getting as much reach as you can on a lower budget, while the Sony is higher-priced but range-topping feature set with weather sealing, very highly rated lens, and all kinds of fancy features in a more solid build, plus faster lens aperture, fast focus, and fast burst speed (the Panny is also faster at burst and focus compared to the Canon, which is the slowest of the bunch - but the Pannys are both shorter overall reach at 400mm equivalent (480mm for the 2500 model - the Canon and Sony both reach 600mm equivalent, with the Sony at F4 compared to the Canon's F5.6).
 
I have recently purchased a Nikon 1 V2 and am very happy with it. Can snap bifs with ease, unlike any super zoom I've ever used and better than the m43 I had a few years ago (although maybe m43 focus has got faster).
 
I now own a superzoom from Nikon. But because it refuses to focus reliably on warblers, flowerpeckers and so forth, I wanted to make an upgrade, and the Nikon 1 mirrorless camera seemed the perfect option for somebody who did not want to lug huge lenses around. The 70-300 mm lens gives 810 mm of reach. That and the camera will set me back less than USD 1500.

But now Nikon has as good as discontinued the series, in view of which its potential value at resale makes me think twice.

What are the alternatives for me? There are superzooms (e.g. the Canon G3X) with a 1" sensor but the autofocus is lamentably slow, or so I hear. And Olympus lenses will cost a lot.

Thanks

Which super zoom do you have,the Nikon 1 series is fast with the CX lenses but used with the adapter and Nikon dx/fx lenses it slows down a lot,i have the V2 and often use it with Nikon or Sigma lenses its good for static birds but not BIF with those lenses.
M4/3 is fantastic the Panasonic G80 and something like the 100-400 can do nearly anything.
 
[...] the Nikon 1 mirrorless camera seemed the perfect option for somebody who did not want to lug huge lenses around. The 70-300 mm lens gives 810 mm of reach. That and the camera will set me back less than USD 1500.

But now Nikon has as good as discontinued the series, in view of which its potential value at resale makes me think twice.

Following the offers at the "Bay", lately I saw a Nikon V2 selling for Euro 140, the CX70-300 for Euro 515. Of course buying new, or the V3, costs more. As the N1 development has ended, prices for the cameras may drop further, I don't know. The CX70-300 is a rarer item, even used it should keep much of its value.

Last week I spent a few days at the German North Sea coast. To prepare for it, I spent three hours practicing with swallows, coming home with nice BIFs of three swallow species. The coast trip was a great experience, all kind of birds in flight (and otherwise). 13,500 photos, 14 new species on my lifer list... I remain enthusiastic about this camera/lens combination. People willing to practice BIF (regularly) get a useful tool that rarely misses a bird.
 
Last edited:
I now own a superzoom from Nikon. But because it refuses to focus reliably on warblers, flowerpeckers and so forth, I wanted to make an upgrade, and the Nikon 1 mirrorless camera seemed the perfect option for somebody who did not want to lug huge lenses around. The 70-300 mm lens gives 810 mm of reach. That and the camera will set me back less than USD 1500.

But now Nikon has as good as discontinued the series, in view of which its potential value at resale makes me think twice.

What are the alternatives for me? There are superzooms (e.g. the Canon G3X) with a 1" sensor but the autofocus is lamentably slow, or so I hear. And Olympus lenses will cost a lot.

Thanks
Have a good look at the new Sony RX10 IV. Native 24-600mm f4 Zeiss zoom and phase detect should be what the doctor ordered - even for BIF. http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=350436



Chosun :gh:
 
Warning! This thread is more than 7 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top