Using the Nikon Z8 in Low Light and Crop Mode
FEBRUARY 24, 2024
These are the photos I took at the Wenatchee Valley Senior Activity Center crab feed/fundraiser earlier this month. Most are from one of my Nikon Z8s, though there are few mixed in from my Samsung s23 Ultra smartphone. Sometimes I can get into small spaces with my s23 that I can't with a full-sized camera.
The Nikon Z8s are pretty amazing in low light. The 24-120 f4 kit lens is excellent, though I do miss having the extra f stops on the low end. Even at high ISO settings, the photos hold together well. I can easily remove moderate high ISO graininess with Camera RAW filters.
One of the great things about shooting with a full frame camera is I have the option to shoot in crop mode when I don't need the massive 47MP full frame images. While the end result is effectively pre-cropping photos, in camera, it's easier to compose shots since everything is zoomed in 50%. So the 24-120 feels like you're shooting with a 36-180 lens.
I do the same thing when I'm shooting hockey photos. I don't need huge photos anyway, so I shoot with my 70-200 f2.8 lens in crop mode, which is like shooting with a 105-300, and I get 21MP files. That's plenty of range for shooting close to mid-range sports photos.
