Moving from DSLR to Mirrorless, for an Equine Photographer, by Hugo Ferreira

04/Aug/2025

Last update, 23/Mar/2026


Well, I have been using digital cameras since 2000 (maybe 2001). My first digital camera was a FujiFilm A100, with 0.4MP, which is basically a VGA resolution of 640x480.

But with time, I moved into a few compact cameras, like the Nikon Coolpix, etc, and in the past 7 years, I've progressed from my first DSLR, a Sony A200, into Nikon, from a D3100 to D3300, followed by D5300 and then into the full frame range with a D610, 2x D750, a D850 and very recently a D5..

The Nikon D750 is an excellent DSLR, probably one of the best "value for money" cameras in the DSLR market. But the D850, wow, the dynamic range and those 45.7MPx, delivers fantastic images without forgetting that a single charge on a battery EN-EL18d, usually allows me to capture from 4,500 to 6,000 shots. And by adding a grip, you get 9 fps, instead of the usual 7 fps. Oh yeah.

The Nikon D5 is another beast but on other fronts. Amazing AF system, low light performance (meaning, high ISOs), etc. Those who have or had one, know what I am talking about.


However, while progressing through "the gears" of these amazing DSLRs, I've kept an eye on the new market of cameras: Mirrorless Cameras.

No, initially they did not attracted me at all. I was put-off by reported issues, by many websites, with the Auto-Focus system (AF) with the earlier Nikon Z models, batteries only lasting 300/350 shots (as per the official rating), high price, etc, etc, etc. So, for the past 7 years, I've been loyal to the DSLRs.

But the time has come and I've decided to invest in my very first mirrorless, the newly released Nikon Z5 ii (released in Apr 2025).

First impressions? Well, several positives and also several negatives, I must say.


I had the chance to take it to Perth Show, for show jumping, to try it out (but I had the D850 alongside me, just in case). My conclusions:

  • Weight.... OMG, I carried the camera all day, for 9h, with no issues whatsoever. No discomfort, no back pain, nothing. My D850 with my 70-200 f4 must weight around 1.5 to 1.8kg (I use a grip, with the EN-EL18d battery). However, the Z5 ii with this same lens, must weight around 1kg, if so. What a difference!
  • Image Quality: for a 25Mp, it does deliver some fantastic and crisp images. It is not a D850 but sometimes, most of the time, we don't need 45.7MP. The 25MP that this Z5 ii delivers, is more than enough, trust me (as long as you zoom closer to your subject).
  • Frames per Second (FPS): camera delivers, as per the written specs, around 12 fps (as I shoot in RAW). Mechanical shutter is very quiet, indeed and the electronic shutter does not issue any noise/sound unless, on the camera settings, you setup the electronica shutter to make some sort of a bip/click. For those 100% used to a DSLRs, the electronic shutter will sound like a very frustrating noise but you can get used to it. I did.
  • Shutter button sensitivity: well, here is where I need some work, to adjust, to adapt and find that sweet spot between "half pressing to focus", then "pressing to capture a photo" or "multiple shots". I often use burst mode for SJ and I like the control, like I have on the D850 to control how many shots I take, while at burst mode. My muscle memory on the D850 and D5 work perfectly, giving me this control to press for a single shot or multiple shots, while, still on burst mode. The shutter button on the Z5 ii is "softer", probably too soft, for my big hands and fingers. I will get use to it.
  • Battery: writen specs say that a EN-EL15c battery, delivers around 410 shots. Well, not really. I managed to take 2,500 shots (using the EVL but not the rear display) or only 1,200 shots (if display is used to review and filter the good images from the bad ones.... .something I like to do during shows). So, on this show, which went for 9/9..5h, I took around 8,000 images. Filtered some during my first battery, which led me to 1,200 shots. With the batteries that follow, no review or filtering was done, which led me to 2,500 shots, ending up using 4 batteries, for the whole day. So, if you decide to go on the Mirrorless journey, best to get a few batteries with you and invest on a grip. The "low battery" alert appears when you reach 20%. In one occasion I tried my luck to see how low it would go and when it reached 17/18% the camera just stops operating. Yep, that's what happened, therefore, when the "low battery" shows, best to replace it asap, unless you have a grip.
  • AF (Auto-Focus): the AF system did not let me down, at first. I say "at first", because outdoors, with a lot of light around you, more space between jumps and for you to move about, the AF did a good job. To be honest, I might have had a handful of out of focus images but that was it. I use a group of point in the centre, as my AF location but you can increase the number of points, select 3D tracking, etc. However, when photographing indoors, in smaller arenas where the jumps are closed together and you need to capture some action jumping at close-up, with the interference of one of the wings of the jump, then, the Z5 ii did let me down a lot. The D5 is superb to latch one and focus and snap. The Z5 ii not really. After a few weekends of SJ and Arena Eventing and so many out of focus images, I decided to return the camera. Not what I expected..
  • ISO performance: have not tested the Z5 ii yet in High ISO values but its native ISO goes from 100 to 64,000, therefore, I am very curious to check its performance (and to be honest, it was one of the main reasons why I bought it).


Any comments or questions, please fire away. Thank you.


Update 23/Mar/2026:

Well, how do I put it.... the Z5 ii had a great potential, at first but after returning it, I kept looking into other options. Many other photographers talk about the Z8 and Z9 but they are costly; so, I kept an eye on the Z6 iii. Conclusion: yes, I got myself a Z6 iii.


I have used it several times in both Dressage and SJ (incl. Arena Eventing) and I am very pleased with the results. AF is clearly much better and faster to latch on to your subject and snap!

However, maybe it is just me, but I feel that I need to go up by 1/3 or 2/3 on my usual shutter settings, to get the same results, when compared with the DSLR. But this is not a great reason for concern.


Differences between the Z5 ii and the Z6 iii? Several, as such:

In terms of ISO performance, specs say native ISO until 64.000 but when capturing horses at a SJ or Medium Canter speed, I would not recommend going past 25.600 (assuming you use PureRAW or Topaz afterwards to denoise the image). I use PureRAW 3 which works fine for the Z6iii and even the D5.

In regard to the AF system, there is a very obvious improvement from the Z5 ii but nowhere close to a D5 but I am very pleased with the results.

And about Battery, well, same as the Z5 ii. I easily get between 1,600 and 2,000 shots on a EN-EL15c battery. 3rd party ones, like in any other camera, tend to last a little bit less but you still need to have a few back-up ones. I have 6, spread across EN-EL15 and EN-EL15c, some are 3rd party. I now use a grip that costs £54 in Amazon and it is great. I really don't understand why the branded one is so expensive.


In conclusion: yes, there is big difference between the Z5 ii and Z6 iii, around £300. The Z5 ii might do the job for you but for me, with the difficult angles I sometimes shoot SJ, I do need a fast AF system. The Z6 iii works for me. Of course that, Z8 and Z9 are much better but that comes at a cost.

For me, in parallel, I will continue to use my D5 whenever I can, as I build rapport and trust on the AF system of the Nikon Z6 iii. Does it worth taking this step? Yes, in my view and based on the inputs above.

Pros:

  • Weight. If you struggle to carry your DSLR all day with a f2.8 lens or even, a f4, you will see the difference. My D5 body is 1.4kg vs the Z6 iii body which is half of it. 700g difference, all day, does make a difference, trust me.
  • As I shoot in RAW, I truly love the functionality of RAW+JPEG, where you separate the RAW and JPEG, to card 1 and card 2, which a D5 already does. The issue here is that, during filtering, as I do during any event, to delete the "bad" ones, the Z6 iii deletes both RAW and jPEG from both cards. The D5 does not do that. It only deletes the JPEG.

Cons:

  • AF is not yet up to the level of a D5 but the Z8 or Z9 might be. I cannot confirm has I have not tried them. However, it is pretty good, I can say.
  • Batteries: you really need to have a few spares, when shooting the whole day. My suggestion: get a 3rd party grip, like the DSTE one for £54 in Amazon. Works fine and gives you that peace of mind. As I mentioned above, true to the Z5 and Z6, when battery reaches "low battery", which is 20%, you have only 2% to swap batteries, before the camera becomes unresponsive.
  • Mechanical Shutter's expected lifetime is 200.000 shots which is low, when compared with the D5 which is 400.000. But if your Mechanical Shutter goes, you can always switch to the electronic one.


Hope this post helps my fellow equine photographers to take the next step.

Any questions, please just drop me a message.