The Japanese website mynavi.jp (translation) published an interview with Mr. Hiroyuki Ikegami (Nikon Imaging Business Development Department Director). Here is a recap sent by a reader (if you see any other interesting information in the interview, please add it in the comments section):
- Nikon is going to make great products both in DSLR and mirrorless. Nikon will keep releasing new products in DSLR.
- Nikon carefully examined from scratch and concluded that 55mm and 16mm are the best for an inner diameter and a flange focal distance, respectively, in terms of optical performance. That’s why a new mount was born.
- In development, Nikon focused on reliability, robustness, and ruggedness which pros and enthusiasts appreciate. It ended up being the Z which is more like the DSLR in design.
- Regarding the EVF, quality was a top priority so that pros see it as good as an optical viewfinder.
- Nikon first decided the size of a new body which Nikon thinks users are happy to accept. Then, everything else was put into that body.
- Ikegami didn’t mention clearly but said that the Z’s rival is what you think it is.
- The Z’s advantage is a high optical performance. The lens is designed for the highest image quality and its optical resolution surpasses that of DSLR’s lens. He says that the Z is superior to the DSLR in both still and video photography.
- He expects users to see the Z to be equivalent to the D850 in image quality.
- On whether Nikon releases a pro model like the D5 in the Z line, he said: “Count on it!”
- He anticipates that the third party will reverse-engineer the Z lens.
