In the "nothing" release of the year, Nikon today announced that the Zfc will now do what all the women in New York City seem to do, and dress up in all black (left, above). You may recall that the original Zfc was Panda fashion—silver over grip color (right, above)—with your choice of the fake leather grip material in black, white, pink, green, gray, orange, or brown. Today you can go non-panda. As long as you want all black. Apparently Nikon found a supply of black paint to make up for the shortage of silver.
But wait, there's (not) more! Along with the all black body, a kit comes with a new 40mm f/2 (SE) lens. The SE, of course, means that the ribs on the focus ring are now bumps and you get a fake silver metal ring in the middle. Note that at current prices, Nikon sells the 28mm f/2.8 (SE) for more money than the 28mm f/2.8, and ditto for the new 40mm f/2 twins. Apparently bumps and plastic rings cost a lot.
Still, be ready for the mad rush that puts this new camera out of stock quickly. I understand lines are already forming at all the local dealers (Allen's, Art's, Dan's, Gene's, George's, Jack's, Mike's, Paul's, Silvio's, Stewart's, Van's, and a whole bunch of other first names). Oh, wait: "exclusively through the Nikon Store." Allen, Art, Dan, Gene, George, Jack, Mike, Paul, Silvio, Stewart, Van, and many other dealers are unhappy.
So let me get this straight: the body loses silver, the lens gains it? How many salarymen did it take to come up with that brilliant maneuver? Seems like a Thanksgiving turkey to me, but Japan doesn't typically celebrate that. Perhaps Nikon was just afraid if they didn't announce something soon we'd think they were ghosting us.
The real engineers at Nikon Imaging must be tearing their hair out (if they have any left). Changes in parts suppliers, Chinese lockdowns, and slow and late delivery of key parts has the new model announcements on hold for the moment (though that hasn't stopped competitors from announcing products they won't be able to deliver in demanded quantities).
The only products that might sneak out between now and CP+ next year are the very overdue 85mm f/1.2 and 200-600mm f/5-6.3. Even that seems a bit unlikely in the middle of the holiday buying season. Dealer moneys are already committed.
/NOW RETURNING TONGUE TO CORRECT POSITION IN MOUTH
