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Nikon’s Z fc: A Smart, Stylish Showstopper Takes the Stage

Jide Alakija portrait of a model wearing clothing matching the background, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

Inspired by the work of the Malian photographer Malick Sidibé, Jide worked with the idea of a model dressed in the background’s colors. “Sidibé did this work in the ‘60s in black and white, so I thought we could do something with that idea. Hey, it’s a retro-look camera, right?” Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/500 second, f/7.1, ISO 400, manual exposure, Matrix metering.

Jide Alakija portrait of a model's reflection in a compact mirror, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

“Different mirrors, different image sizes, different reflection of light,” Jide says of this photo. “I had to find the right mirror to fit the idea, and the idea was born of creating something that a person with a cool camera would think of creating.” Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/250 second, f/8. ISO 640, manual exposure, Matrix metering. 

At one point in our talk with Jide Alakija about the style and substance of the Nikon Z fc, we got his take on the vlogging and video-making capability of the camera, and how cool it is that the flip-out Vari-angle LCD monitor puts you in command of practically instant sharing of what you’ve created. 

“Kind of makes you a producer/director, doesn’t it?” we said, and then added, “And maybe the star of the show, too.” 

Simply put, the Z fc is likely to get you noticed. 

The first thing anyone notices about the camera—the feature they can’t fail to notice—is what we call “heritage design” and you’ll likely call “retro.” Think Nikon FM2 from the early 1980s. 

Z fc camera with 16-50mm lens and Z fc camera with 28mm lens

(l.) Z fc with NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR lens in silver finish and (r.) Z fc with NIKKOR Z 28mm f/2.8 (SE) lens.

Jide Alakija portrait of a male model with a stylish hat, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

“Color is a huge part of my work,” Jide says, “and that’s evident in every aspect of this shot. I also wanted a certain mystery about him, and the best way to do that was not show his eyes. The rest is all about style, especially the attitude of placing the hat—that’s the absolutely perfect gesture. Cool camera for a cool subject, perfectly posed.” Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/250 second, f/7.1, ISO 3200, manual exposure, Matrix metering.

It might be easy to think of retro’s appeal as purely nostalgia, but we suspect that its allure is pretty much along the lines of photography itself: communication and expression. You take pictures to communicate and express, and the camera you carry communicates and expresses something about you, in the same way your photos and videos do.   

Which made Jide absolutely the right person to talk to about the Z fc. Style is the constant with him, and he brings it, seemingly effortlessly, to his work as he balances commercial, documentary and wedding photography with a passionate pursuit of street photography. There’s elegance and imagination in his work, and he intuitively makes the connection between style and substance, art and technology. 

The Z fc is first and foremost a superbly capable camera, but it's the retro design—from the serrated dials to the keyring strap lugs to the textured leather-look body panels—that makes it stand out. It is frankly intended to catch the eye of folks with a sense of personal style and an awareness of what effect style can have on substance. 

Jide caught on to that immediately. 

Jide Alakija portrait of a model framing the shot with her hands, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

“The idea was to set up a frame to shoot through while showing the ability of the zoom lens [at 16mm] to create a dramatic, attention-getting exaggerated effect.” The f/stop choice was a key factor, and with mirrorless, Jide could preview the result of different choices. He viewed the composition through the Vari-angle LCD, which helped him frame the frame idea. Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/1250 second, f/4.5, ISO 800, manual exposure, Matrix metering. 

The first thing anyone notices about the camera—the feature they can’t fail to notice—is what we call “heritage design” and you’ll likely call “retro.”
Jide Alakija portrait of a male model, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

Style often requires a commensurate setting, and the repetition of form at an art installation in Manhattan struck Jide as ideal for images. The rest was asking his subject “to just be himself and then catching the moments that ensued.” Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/200 second, f/6.3, ISO 600, manual exposure, Matrix metering.

Streetwise

“It looked like the FM2,” he says of the Z fc. “I’d had an FM2, and I’d always wished there’d be a [digital] camera like that because it fits the style and the esthetics of someone trying for the old-school-type approach to travel and street photography.” 

He could easily think of the camera as a transporter to another time and place and feeling. First, there’s a definite tactile sense of connection to the camera’s controls. Jide’s cameras for weddings and commercial assignments are the Z 7II and the D780, and for those cameras it’s tap and touch; for the Z fc, it’s press and turn, and those actions serve to emphasize that photography is being done here. Retro is a look and a feeling, and style can influence how you feel when you’re photographing. “There’s a connection here to video-makers, vloggers, street photographers—people who want all the cutting-edge tech, but in a package that indicates individualism and creativity, and want to carry those feelings with them.” For Jide it’s a feeling that’s familiar and welcome as it suggests a contemplative, thoughtful approach to what’s being created and shared. “When I walk the streets with a particular camera, I am very conscious of the look of that camera. I’m in a frame of mind that says, Okay I’m the artist now. I’m the one in control of making these images.” 

Jide Alakija portrait of a plant in B&W, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

Jide spotted this plant as he scouted outdoor locations “I chose monochrome from the camera’s Picture Controls menu and played with tones and highlights to create an infrared-looking, fine-art image. When you look through the viewfinder and see a black-and-white world, that capability brings black-and-white to reality.” Z fc, NIKKOR Z 28mm f/2.8 (SE), 1/500 second, f/5, ISO 1600, manual exposure, Matrix metering. 

Steps Ahead

While it shares features with the Z 50—including quick communication of Nikon’s SnapBridge app to transfer photos and videos to a smartphone or tablet and Eye AF for people and their pets—the Z fc offers its own advances in capability and convenience. A key plus for vloggers and videomakers is the swing-out Vari-angle screen for easy viewing and composing. 

The Z fc makes it possible to update the camera’s firmware directly through SnapBridge, doing away with computer-to-memory-card-to-camera steps. Which means that when future tech comes along, it’s only a quick step to updates and added functionality.    

Two lenses were introduced with the Z fc that have particular application for street photography: the NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR lens, which translates to about 24-75mm* and the NIKKOR Z 28mm f/2.8 (SE), an FX lens that’ll provide the equivalent of a 42mm* view. Both lenses are ideal complements to the ideal walking-around nature of the Z fc, especially when you want to communicate not only what you see, but who you are. 

Jide Alakija portrait of a model, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

The natural light on a Manhattan street was as important as tone and texture in this image “It was early in the morning, and the sun’s angle gave me long shadows. This photo’s all about the play of light and the gear’s ability to render exactly what I saw.” Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/1600 second, f/7.1, ISO 400, manual exposure, Matrix metering. 

Jide Alakija portrait of a model walking on a city street, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

“I wanted her to assume a persona, a situation. I directed it: ‘You’re here, in the Meatpacking District of New York City—you’ve just returned from shopping, you’re quite excited about something, you’re in the moment.’” At 100 percent on a monitor this is an amazing image for detail, sharpness, contrast and the capture of tone and texture subtleties. Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/500 second, f/6.3, ISO 400, manual exposure, Matrix metering.

When it comes to quality images, Jide found the camera kept pace with ideas and requirements. “What I loved so much about it was the quality of the images at very high ISOs. Shooting at 6400 I was getting images comparable to Z 6 or Z 7. There were times I’d be shooting late at night and catching highlights off the street, and there was never an instance where I’d have to push the [ISO beyond where i was comfortable]. Color reproduction was excellent; dynamic range, too. I’d say it gave me complete control to execute ideas.”

“And as far as the look—it’s timeless and special. You carry this camera if you want to say something about the kind of person, and photographer, you are. Someone with a viewpoint of your own. Given the choice, why not have your gear reflect your sensibility and style?”

Jide Alakija portrait of a model and her reflection in a mirror, taken with the Z fc mirrorless camera

© Jide Alakija

“Mirror images play around with expectations,” Jide says. “This was pretty cool when I got it, but a challenge up to then because of the composition and the lighting, and I was hand holding the camera.” Z fc, NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, 1/160 second, f/6.3, ISO 6400, manual exposure, Matrix metering.

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