Nikon P1000 (1 Viewer)

I have been looking for an upgrade from my Canon SX50 for a long time. The SX70 reviews do not look good. (Unless anyone knows differently.) I want 4K and a bit more zoom. 83x optical on the Nikon P900 is about right I think. But it doesn't have 4K. I was wondering what the P1000 would be like used at half its zoom capacity. All the reviews seem to want to touch the moon. I've not seen any half zoom reviews. At full zoom wobblies seem to creep in on what I've seen online. Can anyone comment how the P1000 performs at half zoom as I want to keep the videos pretty solid.

There is a long running thread on here that should help. You can see lots of my shots on here https://flic.kr/p/2hBT7oD

I have both the 900 and the 1000 and the 1000 is a far better camera in every respect, I would feel very dissatisfied if I had to go back to using my 900.
Den

poledark said:

There is a long running thread on here that should help. You can see lots of my shots on here https://flic.kr/p/2hBT7oD

I have both the 900 and the 1000 and the 1000 is a far better camera in every respect, I would feel very dissatisfied if I had to go back to using my 900.
Den

Click to expand...

Thank you Den. You must have tried your camera for stills and video at half zoom or thereabouts. Do you think it is better at half zoom? E.g. Less grain and wobbles.

John,I get all sorts of shots at all sorts of distances and zoom levels. I normally zoom as far out as I can to fill the frame. Rarely get very close to birds more like 30yards away or very often a lot further.

Therein lies the problem with huge zooms, one tends to use it a lot and you will never get super fine feather detail or low noise at 1500 mm or more. I don't pixel peep, but if I was concerned then I would get a DSLR and good prime lens, but the shots I get with my 1000 are usually plenty good enough for PC or 10X8 prints on a decent printer.

When I switched to the 1000 I noticed an immediate improvement in image quality, particularly in my garden comparing shots from the 900 and the 1000 all from similar distances with similar birds on the same feeders. Low light is never a problem, if I can see it then the camera will see it more clearly. the huge dia front lens enables me to shoot at F5.6 and 2000mm in good light.

I keep saying it, but the 1000 is an excellent walkabout camera, use as a telescope to scan around, close focus for an ant, manual so easy for tricky foliage shots, peaking to get precise focus for birds on the ground 50 yards away, up to 7fps burst (I mostly do a burst of 3) lovely bright EVF,, decent battery life, image stabilisation and more
I never feel that there is something lacking in use, the 900 manual was a pain in the backside, the 1000 "click and turn" is superb.
I love mine but if IF you want top quality images then get a DSLR, but from what I read on BF no one is ever completely satisfied with their cameras

Den

poledark said:

John,I get all sorts of shots at all sorts of distances and zoom levels. I normally zoom as far out as I can to fill the frame. Rarely get very close to birds more like 30yards away or very often a lot further.

Therein lies the problem with huge zooms, one tends to use it a lot and you will never get super fine feather detail or low noise at 1500 mm or more. I don't pixel peep, but if I was concerned then I would get a DSLR and good prime lens, but the shots I get with my 1000 are usually plenty good enough for PC or 10X8 prints on a decent printer.

When I switched to the 1000 I noticed an immediate improvement in image quality, particularly in my garden comparing shots from the 900 and the 1000 all from similar distances with similar birds on the same feeders. Low light is never a problem, if I can see it then the camera will see it more clearly. the huge dia front lens enables me to shoot at F5.6 and 2000mm in good light.

I keep saying it, but the 1000 is an excellent walkabout camera, use as a telescope to scan around, close focus for an ant, manual so easy for tricky foliage shots, peaking to get precise focus for birds on the ground 50 yards away, up to 7fps burst (I mostly do a burst of 3) lovely bright EVF,, decent battery life, image stabilisation and more
I never feel that there is something lacking in use, the 900 manual was a pain in the backside, the 1000 "click and turn" is superb.
I love mine but if IF you want top quality images then get a DSLR, but from what I read on BF no one is ever completely satisfied with their cameras

Den

Click to expand...

Thanks Den, I already have a DSLR and lens. Canon 90D and 100-400Lii. I want a bridge camera to use for video mainly with a longer reach than the 400mm. I think you have sold me on a P1000. I also contemplated the Nikon B700 for this purpose but there doesn't seem to be many around now.

Went Owl watching the other day, but Owl kept its distance. Perched on a pole across the field and I zoomed in, hand held and took a series of bursts. Staggered to find that it was 329yards away..

https://flic.kr/p/2hRDnxM

Den

Noticed a lack of birds in garden lately, Sparrow Hawk visiting quite often...………………. Not seen to many Long Tail Tits recently either until today when a small flock came buzzing through, They never stop for long but this time they all descended on the fatball.
https://flic.kr/p/2hWA1MQ

Den

I usually take bird photos using a DSLR or more recently, a mirrorless (Nikon Z7), but I do own a P1000, which I bought refurbished from Nikon. I must say that I have developed utmost respect for people who can coax the maximum performance from the P1000. In my experience, it is wise to keep the ISO level below 800 to avoid excessive noise, and as the OP indicates, when generously zoomed it is very hard to achieve optimal sharpness. One issue here is that there is a temptation with a very long zoom to think that you can reel in a bird at a very great distance and get a good image because the zoom is so powerful. But the further away a bird is, the more air you are shooting through, and hence, more potential for image degradation (depending on atmospheric conditions). In my limited experience, I can get pretty good closeup photos of birds at distances up to say, 50 feet, but anything further away becomes a crapshoot.

The other day I went out to a local marsh with the P1000 on one hip and my Z7 coupled with the Nikon 500mm f5.6 PF lens on the other. Not surprisingly, the multithousands of dollar rig got me better photos than did the superzoom, but what really struck me was how much easier it is to optimize the potential of the "bigger" rig than the P1000. My point is that some people (no one in this thread) might think that by getting a P1000 they can make bird photography "easy"-- after all, there is a specific setting on the control dial for "bird photography." But getting the most out of a P1000 or any other superzoom, for that matter, requires dedication, practice, and skill. I am in awe of the people like poledark who get great photos from this camera, as I have had a devil of a time doing so.

A couple from today all straight from the camera, no cropping.
https://flic.kr/p/2i4jmFP
https://flic.kr/p/2i4jh8q
https://flic.kr/p/2i4mxko
https://flic.kr/p/2i4jge6

Happy Xmas everyone,

Den

poledark said:

A couple from today all straight from the camera, no cropping.
https://flic.kr/p/2i4jmFP
https://flic.kr/p/2i4jh8q
https://flic.kr/p/2i4mxko
https://flic.kr/p/2i4jge6

Happy Xmas everyone,

Den

Click to expand...

Cracking samples, well done

Very happy with then Mike, hand held, through the passenger side window, bird swaying about in the wind, 1000 sec here is a video link to same bird...…….

https://flic.kr/p/2i4PSWj

Happy xmas to you all