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Nikon V2 (1 Viewer)

Should I buy a bargain V1?

The V1 is still available in the USA, where the V2 has not yet gone on sale. You can pick up a V1 for US$ 350-400, where as the V2 will cost $800-900. My in-laws are coming from the USA for Xmas so I'm thinking of getting them to bring me a V1 and the FT-1 adapter...

I'd be using it on my 300m f4 af-s lens.

My reading of this thread is that the advantages of the V2 may not justify the extra cost over an end-of-line V1, is that correct?
 
gandytron said:
My reading of this thread is that the advantages of the V2 may not justify the extra cost over an end-of-line V1, is that correct?
Click to expand...

Yes, that's how I would read it, having never used a V2. I think the V1/FT1 combo with the 300 f/4 is a very usable setup.

One thing which bothers me about the V2 is moving away from the EN-EL15 battery to the EN-EL21. The EL15, being shared with the D600 and D800, was great. You're out in the bush with your D800 camera rig. If you have a V1 in your bag, you can use it for location shots, or if you want more reach for a distant bird, mount it on your big lens with the FT1. Same battery for both cameras-- sweet. Also, if you're on a trip and you drop your D800 in the lake, you can use the V1 as a backup camera.

The different battery makes all this that much less workable with the V2.

regards,

Jim
 
gvca1 said:
One thing which bothers me about the V2 is moving away from the EN-EL15 battery to the EN-EL21. The EL15, being shared with the D600 and D800, was great. ........

The different battery makes all this that much less workable with the V2.

regards,

Jim
Click to expand...

I agree Jim, the move to a new battery was a definite no sale to me.
 
gvca1 said:
Yes, that's how I would read it, having never used a V2. I think the V1/FT1 combo with the 300 f/4 is a very usable setup.

One thing which bothers me about the V2 is moving away from the EN-EL15 battery to the EN-EL21. The EL15, being shared with the D600 and D800, was great. You're out in the bush with your D800 camera rig. If you have a V1 in your bag, you can use it for location shots, or if you want more reach for a distant bird, mount it on your big lens with the FT1. Same battery for both cameras-- sweet. Also, if you're on a trip and you drop your D800 in the lake, you can use the V1 as a backup camera.

The different battery makes all this that much less workable with the V2.

regards,

Jim
Click to expand...

That's my take as well. I have the V1 and adapter. It gets taken along because I don't need an extra battery and charger (I have a D7000 and D800E). At the closeout price, it is a remarkable little camera. And the 300 f/4 AFS is excellent with the V1.

I'm a little disappointed the V2 has replaced the V1 so quickly, but overall the Nikon 1 lineup is a nice direction.
 
ericbowles said:
That's my take as well. I have the V1 and adapter. It gets taken along because I don't need an extra battery and charger (I have a D7000 and D800E). At the closeout price, it is a remarkable little camera. And the 300 f/4 AFS is excellent with the V1.
Click to expand...

Have now ordered the V1 and FT-1 adapter, will receive them just before Xmas and will have a chance to test it out over the holiday season so I will post my thoughts early in the new year.

I would have been tempted by the V2 if the focus point could be selected (rather than fixed), and if Nikon hadn't cut the price of the V1 so much!

Best wishes

Dave
 
Dave,
Hope you got a good price - just saw Nikon is dumping the V1 for $299.-
Does not go down well with me - guess that is the price of being an earlier adopter (or fool).
Cheers, P:)
 
Pasquier said:
Dave,
Hope you got a good price - just saw Nikon is dumping the V1 for $299.-
Does not go down well with me - guess that is the price of being an earlier adopter (or fool).
Cheers, P:)
Click to expand...

I paid US$ 350 on the day before the latest price drop, which was a bit annoying but considering that it is still selling in Thailand for more or less the original price I can hardly complain!
 
Last edited:
I'm not sure why we are surprised about ISO performance. The Nikon 1 sensor is small, and the V2 has crammed 40% more pixels into the same small space. I think its a major step forward that you can maintain noise performance with much smaller pixels.

That being said, these cameras are not high ISO cameras. For high ISO performance you want large pixels or a large sensor. You can get away with ISO 800 in a pinch, but the sweet spot for the Vi/V2/J1 is base ISO - which means bright sunny days.

I'm seeing overall image quality just a little behind cropping a D800 image. The weakness is in the AF system with a longer lens mounted using the FT-1. I also struggle to get enough light to have fast shutter speeds.
 
Pasquier said:
The latest DxO results are not encouraging - see:
http://nikonrumors.com/2012/12/20/n...r-18-300mm-lens-test-results-at-dxomark.aspx/
Recommendation don't upgrade & if you don't have a V1 - look elsewhere!
Click to expand...

I'm a little disappointed as I was looking for a 10% improvement to make the upgrade worthwhile.
Don't forget some of the V1 and V2 strengths though
1. Silent running - in Electronic Mode it's silent, not quiet, SILENT. I gave it to someone to test on their 70-300 and she said "have I taken any photos yet" . She had taken 30 frames without realising it.
2. Up to 60 frames/second in RAW - My D800 can't do that, nor can anything Canon has.
These may be very specific features that don't apply to most people, but for photographing nervous birds up close,inside churches,concerts,museums,libraries. Very useful.
I might wait for the V3 though.
Neil.
 
just purchased a new v1 for £279 pounds from john-lewis stores ,hope the results justify it .waiting for my ft1 to arrive later this week ,i was going to go down the astroscoping route for a longer reach but manual focus only put me off .i realise that the v1 is not good for bif ,but hows performance on stuff on the ground ,round ponds etc
 
I have now used my newly arrived V1 with FT1 and 300f4 for about 7 hours birding and have been very pleased with the results.

Bif are a limitation and the AF struggles on occasion, but overall I really like it. Will post images when time allows.

Happy New Year!

Dave
 
the black fox said:
just purchased a new v1 for £279 pounds from john-lewis stores ,hope the results justify it .waiting for my ft1 to arrive later this week ,i was going to go down the astroscoping route for a longer reach but manual focus only put me off .i realise that the v1 is not good for bif ,but hows performance on stuff on the ground ,round ponds etc
Click to expand...

There is a long digiscoping thread for the V1 here http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?p=2625743#post2625743 and one on Nikon Mirrorless cameras in this section which should have the answers to your questions.
This thread is trying to kickstart a V2 discussion but not enough cameras in the field as yet. I may have to buy one.
Neil
 
just got my FT1 adaptor and bolted it on the V1 ,conditions here are terrible with dark overcast skies and rain .i have though managed to try a few images with the 300mm f4 and 1.7tc ,weird until you get a lock on but i,m sure that will improve with the weather .

one question i have a flashing letter P on the top left of the screen any ideas what this is ?

going to try it tripod mounted in a bit so far got acceptable images given the conditions with a monopod i,m sure lots more questions will follow this
 
the black fox said:
just got my FT1 adaptor and bolted it on the V1 ,conditions here are terrible with dark overcast skies and rain .i have though managed to try a few images with the 300mm f4 and 1.7tc ,weird until you get a lock on but i,m sure that will improve with the weather .

one question i have a flashing letter P on the top left of the screen any ideas what this is ?

going to try it tripod mounted in a bit so far got acceptable images given the conditions with a monopod i,m sure lots more questions will follow this
Click to expand...

Two things I can suggest -
1. Select Aperture Priority
2. Check that your camera has the latest Firmware update for using with the FT1.
Neil.
 
had a look at the firmware and mine read A 1.20 and B 1.20 i have taken a couple of hundred pictures so far with various settings and various lenses and not got one i would class as acceptable so far ,most disappointed at the moment


update on this my user error i tried for multiple shot and it put the camera back into P mode .re-set it now and went out on the green and got a half useable seagull shot ,V1 +FT1-+300MM-F4 +1.7TC focal length 1350mm hand held ,so yep its got possibilities

just posted one of todays pics in my gallery on here ,yep starting to get impressed
 
Last edited:
Neil said:
I'm a little disappointed as I was looking for a 10% improvement to make the upgrade worthwhile.
Don't forget some of the V1 and V2 strengths though
1. Silent running - in Electronic Mode it's silent, not quiet, SILENT. I gave it to someone to test on their 70-300 and she said "have I taken any photos yet" . She had taken 30 frames without realising it.
2. Up to 60 frames/second in RAW - My D800 can't do that, nor can anything Canon has.
These may be very specific features that don't apply to most people, but for photographing nervous birds up close,inside churches,concerts,museums,libraries. Very useful.
I might wait for the V3 though.
Neil.
Click to expand...

Yes I'm going to skip the V2 also, even though it has many of the ergonomics asked for, with a few messed up too (battery).
What I hope is that by the time the V3 comes out it will have an RX100 quality 20 mpx sensor along with the on sensor pdaf of the current aptinas along with pro ergonomics.
 
The V1 price seems to have fallen again, I just got hold of one for £214!
Now waiting for a FT1, which is ridiculously overpriced and only maginally less than the actual camera...
 
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