Z6 II - Continuous High vs. Extended

adamhiram · Apr 27, 2021

I'm curious if someone can provide a good explanation of the difference between continuous shooting modes on the Z6 II (or other Z) cameras, particularly High (Extended)? When shooting in 14-bit Raw, these are the frame rates when shooting continuously.

Single Frame: Pretty self explanatory
Continuous Low: Select from 1-5 fps
Continuous High: Approximately 5.5 fps
Continuous High (Extended): Approximately 10 fps

But what is the difference between High and High (Extended), other than a higher frame rate? The reference manual states "Depending on camera settings, exposure may vary erratically during each burst" for Extended, but doesn't really give a good explanation why. In my own experience I haven't experienced this issue, but it does feel a little different.

Can anyone provide a better explanation, and whether or not High Extended is recommended for normal use?

adamhiram · May 15, 2021

My follow-up got lost with the forum update, so here it is again in case anyone has this same question.

With continuous high, I can see the shot in the EVF in realtime, but there is a short blackout period between shots, and I am limited to around 5fps. This is very usable, and in most cases high enough frame rate for anything I do.

With continuous extended, it shows a preview of the prior shot instead of a blackout period, so there is a slight lag. The good thing about this mode is that I can get up to 10fps, which is probably faster than I need for anything I do. The downside is the EVF lag; even if it's only 1/10 of a second (I assume, since it is 10 fps), that means I may have fired off 5-10 shots before I realize the subject is not where I want in the frame. This came up recently while taking portraits handheld with a longer lens, where letting the front of the lens dip just a tiny bit can change the framing enough to start cutting off the tops of heads. This is easy enough to correct for when the EVF shows what the sensor sees in realtime, but when there is lag introduced, I might fire off 10 shots and half of them will be framed poorly before I notice it.

Long story short - I don't really need 10fps for much, and if I do, putting the camera on a tripod might make it more usable. For fast action, I the slower frame rate might be preferable to EVF lag, but I guess I'll have to experiment when that opportunity arises.