Problem with Nikon Zf 

When I used FM2 over 3 decades ago, I was used to hold the lens instead of the body to walk around

Gosh, I'm so old I remember when nothing had a grip. Life was intolerable, yet here I am. Let's try to strengthen our hands.

My tip for the SD-card being so hard to get out: Simply don't. Just use a USB cable to transfer the data to your PC. I have been doing this with all of my cameras since the SD card reader on my old laptop broke.

No whining…Man up! Push in on the card and it springs out.

Nobody would complain about the ergonomics involved in playing a chord on a guitar. People need to get working with the camera and enjoy the excellent results and stop the mostly silly complaining. High marks to the presenter for showing how a fix for a non problem has problems of its own and costs money while doing it.

I have the Smallrig grip. It's not a L bracket because it's missing the "L" part of a L bracket that allows for easy vertical mounting. I just use the spring mechanism to shoot the SD card out to where it's super easy to just use my fingers to take it out the rest of the way. The micro SD stays in the card and acts as backup, so no reason to really be fiddling with that on a regular basis.

SD card - you can get little pull-tabs, that stick on to the card. I’ve seen these in use with other cameras with similar tight space near the card. Tabs are flexible and just fold down when door closes. Easy 🙂

Does this camera not have WiFi for photo transfer? Haven’t removed my sd cards in my Olympus/ OMS cameras for fun and paid work since 2016.

Got my ZF on Wednesday, I'm so happy with it so far , a number of UK retailers are including the grip for free when purchasing the camera

Nikon zf picture control profile kelvin and stander pic. profile (SD) still & video both are same - is it problem? how can solve it. please tell me.... I want two different picture control - Still and Video

I really think you are missing the point of the ZF. This camera (from what I've heard) is an homage to the FM3. It is every bit as capable as the z8 for everyday use. I have the Z5 and the D850, I think I will consider the ZF in the future because the auto focus is so good.

I have quite a number of problems with the Zf, starting with the flippy screen and ending with the weird combination of dedicated dials and a PASM switch, but the grip is absolutely a nonissue for me because I still have two arms and hands which quite a lot of photographers seem to lack nowadays. Even on my Leica M10-R, which doesn’t have the slightest grip at all, it’s a nonissue. Guys, no one forces you to use your camera without a strap and with just one hand. Yes, it’s possible to take your left hand out of the pockets of your trousers - just do it and you will realize that big clumsy grips on cameras are not only looking ugly, in 99.9 percent of all usecases, you simply don’t need them.

Does Smallring’s handle damage the camera from the bottom?

I actually like the small grip. It's similar to old film SLRs and those never had any grips. I think the ZF should only be used with primes due to this design though. I can't imagine f/2.8 zooms balancing well on it.

Sticking to it a little piece of tape would do the trick and no interfere with the lid, right?

Is the autofocus loud for anyone else on this camera, I’m using the 35mm 1.8s and it seems very noisy.

I don't use a grip. My SD and micro cards pop right out with my fingertip.

I prefer the small grip even shooting Zf with 70-200 2.8. It was a good idea to start small, allowing users to add a grip that suits them.

I have the Zfc with the original Nikon grip from Japan. I never had an issue getting the SD card out with my fingers. Secondly, you can also keep the card in and connect the camera to the computer with USB-C.

The EVF won’t “blink” sometimes when you shoot in silent mode.

Thats weird, I can manage to shoot my Nikon F3 film camera all day with a heavy Nikkor 135mm F2.8 lens and not need a grip to hold it. All the pros back in the 80s and 90s could do the same. I wonder what that says about young photographers today? This is a retro inspired camera, so maybe its not for you. Wait for the z6-3 it has a girly grip built into it.

I tend to push down on the card and then slide my finger off the card while it's depressed and the spring shoots it up much further. Just have to be careful it doesn't fully launch it out of the camera.

There's a NEEWER brand ZF grip that's available on Amazon, much much better , It has a tripod screw on the sides, comes with a brass shutter button too. The limitations of the Smallrig were quite solved on the NEEWER.

Remove the card!? What a thought. Have you tried the micro SD card?

I personally have no problem with removing SD card with small rig attached ZF For micro SD I do not remove it because I do not often back up my taken photo. I have been lived with single card slot camera for my whole life. When i want to go light I take off small rig grip and have no issue I used to have Leica M240 which is a heavy camera and never have any issue with holding camera It depends on shooting styles and preferences. If you use it with a heavy lens, a better grip would be a point. i think ZF should be used with prime lens or manual vintage lens that what it was designed for. ZF is a good camera though, i love it

Don't have an issue swapping the cards or getting the card out with the same small rig frame

You can use a kepton tape or normal sellotape to make a small extension or handle to your SD card. We used to do this for SD sockets which didnt have spring load action to eject the SD card. Honestly, with spring eject SD sockets, if you do it right, you dont need anything else to get the SD out. :D

I used a piece of hi quality tape to my sd cards and i simply grab the tape that sticks up a quarter to half inch, works on all my cameras.

Camera is superb BUT I really wish they didnt put the flip out screen. The tilt screen is much more preferred given the photo first approach to the camera.

Correct, and yes Nikon should have done better and put a good grip even if it means ruining the looks. I just bought a big fast card, because I am not a professional photographer so I can deal with it.

I am waiting for my Zf to arrive. I have not purchased a grip at this point as I am sure there will be many more to pick from in coming months. Also it's mostly men used to modern DSLRs that miss the grip. I am a woman and for the most part grips are too big for my hands, so I am happy with the approach Nikon took.

I simply put some tape attached to the SD card that I can pull. Did that on my old E-M5 and X-T30 that had similar issues.

Zf is a cool camera but there's a reason why ergonomics have led to a Z8 style shape in the 40 years since the cameras the Zf is trying to emulate. Again, gorgeous...but not exactly a shape for function

You really don't need the additional grip - maybe with big lenses use one..

Sorry Vitaly it will be my first time disagree with you but you should have thought first that this camera it is a RETRO camera which obviously mimicking the cameras of the past which they didn't have the luxury of a grip etc.!... I wasn't expecting a reaction like this from a Pro! Personally I NEVER liked the retro style in almost everything but I understand the people who do... You should have waited for the Z6 III probably if you wanted the modern ergonomics...

Everything is a compromise, in this case Nikon is giving us the current focus system with the original Z6 sensor which in a package that does not work well with all the Nikon Z lenses. This is a consumer camera not a pro camera it's really a great option for a lot of people. It's fine to take out the battery to get the MICRO card out. It's not meant to be removed much anyway it's just a backup

By the way, the SmallRig grip you have is NOT an L-Bracket. Not sure why you keep referring to it as such. It's L-Shape but not L-Bracket.

Just tried to remove my SD card as I never had to until now … I do own the smallrig grip as well, and with just using my nails I succeeded in removing the card … not convenient I must admit, but not that complicated either… Not a problem for me then

Hello! We own a two ZF’s and yes having to access the SD Card with the SmallRig grip was annoying. (In a nutshell, Get Larger SD Card or Connect the Camera to the Computer) We have a 128 GB SD card and a 1T micro SD card. We haven’t run into an issue of needing to swap out SD cards. During an Event. Depending on how I am feeling that day I either remove the grip or connect the camera with the cable. Not sure what your work flow is but the first thing I do is copy all my files to an external SSD and to a desktop folder than upload to Lightroom from the desktop. Maybe a bit over kill and thank God that I have yet to experience any corrupted files (knock on wood) but that’s advise.

You can buy grip (handheld) in order to improve ergonomic aspect of Zf.

I have absolutely no issue taking out the Sd card, pretty fast in and out

I have changed holding my cameras to holding them by the lens. I put my thumb and pointing ☝️ around the lens and the bottom plate rests on the ball of my hand. This prevents ripping out the bajonet on light cameras with heavy lenses and is a safer hold with cameras without grips.

You can use a piece of tape, or something has friction like rubber. And paste it on the SD card. Then it's easily to take it out. The tape is that kind not so sticky. Maybe used for car painting covering, or in new home appliance to fix accessories. You can search 3M for variety of tapes.

Take some tape -- any kind -- and fold it over the edge of the SD card, leaving a 1/2" tab that sticks up above the edge of the card. When you close the door, the tape tab will fold over flat, but when you open the door, you can easily grab the tab and pull out the card.

Page 83 of the Zf reference Guide on removing Memory cards. Unfortunately, it wouldn't let me copy and paste it here. Remove the battery first for the micro card. Wow, you never know what Nikon writes in these things.

This is not a dealbreaker for me. I rarely need to remove the SD card. When I do, if getting the card out is a problem, I can easily remove the grip.

Using Fuji as comparison perhaps XH more convenient than XT body when using heavier lenses. However XT body not so heavy as XH body. XT body with L bracket as the best option. As with Nikon Zf with L bracket works fine.

Attach tape tethered sticking out for easy grips.

Nikon raw weak processing on Lightroom. I'm facing this colour issue with the D750 and Z5 & Z50. Nikon must work for that. overall best camera for portrait Photography.

Tape the sd card with scotch tape in such a way that the tape will extend a little bit on the edge of the sd card enough for your fingers to grab the extended tape to pull out the sd card…kinda like a pull tab.

Oh. What a huge problem! Almost as world hunger. Come on.

Yup, I had some difficulty getting the SD card out. Here is my solution. With the camera mount side facing up and the battery door side toward you. Use some thin but hard object (Even an old sd card would do). Now use the card like an extension of your thumb, the card would go at the bottom side of the ejected SD Card where you finger can't fit, then you should be able to get it out using your other finger from the top side.

complètement d'accord avec toi et personne n'en parle, je rencontre exactement le même problème, cela dit c'est vraiment un bon appareil

I tried using a Mini Cooper once in a formula 1 race… didn’t go too well! - this camera is targeted to a specific photographer. It’s a street, travel and everyday carry camera. Why would you put a super telephoto lens on it and then about the ergonomics, get the camera that makes more sense for the job.

If you want to take out both memory cards just take off the L bracket. Or else wait for an upgraded version of the L bracket.😅

People still mentioning nostalgia and non pro work with ZF. Have you worked with this camera? It is amazing. I am considering in buying a second one. The grip:, use a single or dual leather cowboy strap and it is solved. If you are picking up cameras by the grip and not by the lens, with zooms, then something is wrong there also. The camera is great, the grip is not a weak point it is part of the ergonomics, which I understand someone needing the new bigger grips. Guys make life a bit simpler, modern cameras are a bomb an anyone can work professionally with any camera released in the past 3/4 years.

Nikon zf is better without grip: combine it with a pancake 26mm and it slides to your pocket. And put small grip if you want to use big lenses.

this seems like a you problem not a camera problem, i shoot regularly with film cameras during my wedding shoots and have no issue with the cameras grip

All kinds of problems have all kinds of solutions for Nikon Zf. So I am perfectly happy with it. If you don’t like it, it is not the camera for you. Hey the one you like that does not have any problems. Everyone knows the ergonomics part as it is retro camera and retro by nature are not ugly for a reason.

Have you tried turning the camera around, lens facing Out ? Using your thumb and index should be quite easy at least for the SD card. It works for me and never any issues. There are always more ways to skin a cat ! 😂

Mm, as a normal Joe, I never put out my SD cards, I just connect it to PC and transfer all. But right, for a Pro this is not good, but I`d go for Z8 or wait for Z6III if I´m Pro.

Nikon user manual clearly recommends removing battery before removing the memory cards

I never ever take Our cards at a job. Get big enough cards not Get you through the day. 128 or 258 to get you through the whole day. Another thing you can do is click it then spring it out by half pressing it down.

The Nikon ZF is a camera for a particular person, who loves nostalgia, the same as the ZFC, if you want a Nikon FF camera with a grip, theirs plenty of alternatives, Z5, Z6II Z7II Z8, for god's sake, it's not rocket science !

Re: Grip. It's like buying a Classic Aston Martin car and complain it can't handle the snow when you take it to the mountains on a snow day.

You've got to love Nikon fanboys/girls. This person is raising legitimate issues they've had and the answer: Man up! Strengthen your hands! Young photographers nowadays, gosh! There were cameras like these back in the day! Pros could do it back in day! LOL. The amount of copium is actually hilarious.

I just press the sd card down with my fingertip and let it freely spring up. This results in the sd card ejecting far enough to easily grab it with my fingers. No tools required.

Perfect video. Thank you for this amazing piece of content. This is how I feel 100% Thank you for not sugar coating everything. Vitali. you are the real deal my friend.

Sir, your problem is with the SmallRig baseplate not the Zf. 😅

Seriously, I have no trouble removing my SD card with the grip bracket on. Some of you RU-vidrs will whine about everything.

I have issues with this camera overall which I think this video doesn't necessarily address so I will put them here. It has some preettttty jarring caveats which get in the way of a seamless experience. Using cameras isn't just about knowing where things are and what settings to use. It's about not having a camera fight you along the way so that you don't miss your shots. The Zf is a lifestyle camera that is in many ways a portmanteau of the Z8/Z9 architecture into a smaller frame that is primarily aimed at enthusiasts; it excels at video features, and street-style photography, but is prohibited in several ways to succeed; for starters, no 4k60 without a crop, which other cameras in its class can in fact perform with. Even in the places it excels, like lifestyle, street, and video-- you can spend much less money than $2099 for a lighter, less obtrusively shaped/more ergonomic camera, like a Fuji X-S10, or a Canon R10, both of which you can get WITH a lens for still shaving hundreds off the price of a Nikon Zf brand new. And I'm not sure what Nikon was really thinking with this camera, because while it came into being to solve a few problems, it only came in with a few more. It can't excel at astrophotography because the silent shutter release attachment DOESN'T WORK, an essential piece of gear for making sure your camera is uninterrupted and unmoved when the shutter clicks, andwhich I patently refuse to shoot astro pictures without one; for weddings...not a chance with these caveats. There's a dozen other cameras that would do the job better. This camera is aimed at people over the age of 40 who "miss their film camera days" and want a modern camera like what they were made to use because the film camera became less convenient. Creating such a defined niche for a camera alienates the rest of the fanbase to then buy other cameras that just do the job better, whether they cost more, or less money. It is absolutely and irrefutably outpaced by the Z8, and Z9 in Sports, because of their ergonomics as-is, and higher resolutions. It doesn't matter that they have stacked sensors without 3D imaging. The Z7ii is similar in price and while it might have less weather sealing, and performs at a slightly lower standard than the Zf, I'd feel so much better taking this camera with me across the world than I would the square, offish Nikon Zf because it could fly out of my hand at any time. For Night Concerts, what I've shot for the last 10 years, this camera would be a chore to use because it doesn't even have U1, U2, or U3 custom function buttons to recall certain settings on the fly. Why is this important? Because we are only allowed about 10-15 minutes in the camera pit, and I cannot be bungling around on the controls to dial in shots, I need to be gunning shots down range. My D780 is more effective as a Nikon camera than the Nikon Zf. Even my Nikon D610 from TEN YEARS ago has more dial features and ease of use than this Nikon Zf does. And that's because it can also use every single Nikon lens on Fx all way back to 1977, with zero issues, working seamlessly with the 7-pin connection. Meanwhile the Zf will struggle mechanically on any manual lens, because you have to use the 250 dollar outrageously priced adapter to adapt from 11-pin to 7-pin F-mount glass, but the FTZ and FTZ-ii cannot adapt to those AI-S style lenses, because of communicative errors in the pin connection. Furthermore, needing to spend more money on a camera after purchasing it just to get the bare minimum is a huge demerit. The camera has absolutely god-awful ergonomics, and that's because it's a Tribute camera based on the Nikon FE from 1977. The problem is that the Zf weighs like 3 times more than the FE ever could even with a battery mount. The only way to correct for the poor grip is to get a SmallRig L-bracket Nikon Z grip, which is another 50 bucks. Not much, but still annoying. Made more annoying is what you've mentioned here.

Again, many of the reviewers out there find it difficult holding on to the Zf without a hand grip.. Come on people.. My Minolta SR7 weighed 280 grams more than the Zf and had no grip at all. I used a 55mm f1.4 primary and a135mm f2.8 and carried it all over Europe (Navy). I wasn't a big guy, 145lb 5'8".

Just got my ZF with the Small Rig L-bracket Today. Just rotate your fingers by 90 degrees and grab the SD card that way. It's a no-brainer. You're really searching for stuff to complain about 😅

Firstly, it is clear that Nikon's proposal with the Zf is to serve an enthusiastic audience, not necessarily professional, that is, one that doesn't spend hours with the camera in their hand. Secondly, Leica cameras are straight and I don't see anyone complaining. Lastly, buy a micro SD card with 256 GB or larger and set it as main (like I did) and you won't need to change cards all the time.

yeah. Buy a camera like that , and you have to buy a wierd grip like that for me its insane. Nikon should make a z6 III fast.

Well, there us 7 minutes and 13 secs of my life, I will never get back. The Zf is a Homage to Nikon film cameras. If you want the ergonomics of a Z8 or Z6II, buy that camera. It's not designed to be a pro wedding camera, although it certainly can be used that way. In terms of the SD, it's not easy to get out, but I have not found the need for tweezers.

I have no problem taking out the SD card. I think your camera is defect

I solved the problem by getting bf rid of the camera lol

Its kind of ridiculous to blame the camera for adding a grip and blocking access to something. Try changing film at an event. The obvious solution is to take off the bracket with the magnetic tool equipped with the bracket. Modern photagraphers are just a bit too spoiled nowadays.

It isn't 8-minutes video issue!)))

He has the finger dexterity of an African elephant :) I am 6'4 300 lbs and its not really an issue after a week or so using it

As I said on some other channel, I don't care about the grip. I am an amateur and have been photographing since the 60's with SLR's and no grip, plus I'm left-handed and always hold the camera by the lens! Don't know about the card issues because I don't have Zf!

You complain about the ergonomics of a retro style body. Of course it will have the similar problems of camera designs before. The Zf is a novelty camera, though capable, not intended to be as functional as current camera design.

If you urinate in the battery compartment the SF card will float to the surface.

A Mosquito bites me today, lets make a video..

You must have super large man-hands if you have such trouble taking out the SD card. I have no issue, and I have large(er) hands.

No problem for me…

Super big problem?)))) z5 autofocus - it's a big problem.

Looks like you looking purposly for something to critisize, sorry, but that's so cheap .....

Simply grow your right thumb nail to about 1/4 a cm.

The Classic Nikon models the Zf is based on, FE, FM etc, did not have hand-grip bulges either. Very few cameras did back then and I know because I am old enough to remember using many of them. Suddenly the world cannot manage without this lump and will knock a manufacturer who leaves off this item. I note than even much-desired modern cameras such as the Leica M11 also do not have a lump. This is a particularly pointless video by someone who just wants to jump on the latest bandwagon. I have two Nikon ZF cameras and they are definitely great cameras and do not need any extras. The SmallRig grip is nice and I do have two of those as well but the ZF handles just beautifully without them fitted. Not that anyone cares, especially this presenter, but this was my first, and last, visit to this channel. 👎

How do you Americans call that? Nitpicking? ;) ;) ;)

Wow, you make a problem of something that isn't even a problem. I understand you need the views but again, it is not a problem. Use the USB-C cable and leave both cards inside the camera. If you need to the switch cards during a shoot, you need to buy a bigger card.

Comparing this with the z8 is nonsense, people that want this camera is because of that look and ergonomics, otherwise, z6,z7,z8

Come on, Big Problem??

This really is looking for problems where no problem really exists. Take the L-shaped rig off. It’s not that difficult as it is only one screw and there is no need to use a screwdriver. Good grief, what a waste of 7 minutes!

Nnneehh, no biggie to me.

Omg seriously dude YOU ARE MASSIVELY OVERPLAYING how hard it is to get the regular SD card out. And news flash the Micro Sd card is ment to stay in the camera for back up storage. Quit acting like your hands are as big as Sahq’s.😂😂😂

hahahahahahahahahaha give me a break

Do not buy fat SD cards 😄