09 Sep
Blog

Nikon Z 5 Review: Full-Frame but Too Slow

nikon z 5 review 7529

"The Nikon Z 5 would be a great entry-level full frame camera if it weren't for the unreliable auto focus in low light and slow burst speed."

  • Good picture quality

  • Compact

  • Affordable

  • Dual SD slots

  • Slow autofocus in low light

  • Inconsistent autofocus in mixed / low light

  • Slow burst mode at 4.5 fps

While the race for mirrorless full images develops from sprinting speed to marathon, camera setups are becoming more and more diverse – and cheaper. The Nikon Z 5 is currently the company's cheapest full-frame camera on the market and less expensive than the aging DSLR D610. The Nikon Z 5 with a kit lens costs $ 1,400 or $ 1,700 and combines size, ergonomics, stabilization, and even most of the image quality of the company's more expensive Z 6. In fact, the Z 5 even offers an upgrade that the Z 6 and Z 7 don't offer – two SD card slots.

However, the entry-level designation introduces some important cutting features of the more expensive models. The speed is reduced significantly, 4K videos can only be recorded with one trim and the design is not quite as robust. The question is, does the Nikon Z 5 offer enough to save $ 1,400? Called a camera for “more than just photographers”, who is the Z 5 best suited for?

I spent almost two weeks trying the Z 5 to see where the entry-level full screen mode stands. During this time, the Nikon Z 5 has proven to be a good full-frame camera for beginners in my opinion, which is unfortunately held back by below-average autofocus in poor lighting conditions and slow burst speeds.

Hillary K. Grigonis / Digital Trends

Simple design

While the design of the Z 6 is almost the same as the Z 7, the Z 5 deviates a little more from this family line in good and bad ways. On the positive side, the Z 5 offers two UHS-II SD card slots. This is ideal either to create backups in the camera so that a card failure doesn't mean a catastrophe, or to create an overflow for fewer card swaps. The Z 5 also doesn't use XQD cards, a good move for an entry-level camera considering the card type is available in three digits at retail outlets, much compared to the Affordability SD which was a lot of high capacity cards for only $ 20.

Despite the addition of an additional card slot, the Z5 is only an inch wider than the Z 6 and Z 7 and doesn't add any weight. At less than a pound and a half, the camera is light enough for all-day shooting. (I can't say that for the rough texture of the included neck strap, though.) Combined with the kit lens, the Z 5 didn't cause any major pain during a two mile hike.

The Z 5 uses a magnesium alloy frame, but combines it with a plastic housing that feels like an entry-level Nikon DSLR. The body is weatherproof, but not as sturdy as the Z 6 and Z 7. So I would still have an inexpensive rain poncho in my pocket for more than a drizzle.

Hillary K. Grigonis / Digital Trends

The camera's control scheme is a nice mix of access to controls and not overwhelming novice users. There is no additional LCD screen on top of the camera. I contend that an upward-facing LCD isn't particularly uncommon for mirrorless screens, but its absence here departs from Nikon's design choices in its entry-level full-screen DSLR, the D610, which kept the screen intact.

The camera's control scheme is a nice mix of access to controls and not overwhelming novice users.

Instead, the mode dial at the top is within easy reach of the shutter button, dual control dials, and keyboard shortcuts for recording videos, adjusting ISO, and tweaking exposure compensation. With practice, all of these controls can be accessed without pulling the camera away from your face, although it's difficult to blindly distinguish between the ISO and Exposure Compensation buttons, as opposed to the easily recognizable raised record button.

Although the Z 5 is an entry point into the full-screen category, it retains my favorite camera control: the joystick. This is a quick and ergonomic way to adjust the autofocus point. However, toggling between autofocus modes, as well as a number of other controls that Nikon's DSLRs leave plenty of room for, requires switching to the quick menu or assigning them to the two custom buttons on the front. Most beginners don't mind, however, as controlling the camera is less daunting. Shortcuts to customize burst mode and a focus option for the back button, as well as playback, menu, and display options take up a remainder of the camera's rear controls.

Hillary K. Grigonis / Digital Trends

Even for the low price, the connections were not removed – in contrast to the two SD card slots, the Z 5 still has connections for microphone, headphones, HDMI, USB and a cable release. As with many full-frame mirrorless cameras, the Z 5 lacks a pop-up flash.

The lower price tag doesn't fare terribly on the Z 5's viewfinder either. The electronic viewfinder shows enough details with 3.69 million points and is denser than the new Panasonic Lumix S5. The important thing is that the Z 5 shows a fairly accurate representation of your shot, unlike some budget cameras I've tried that don't give an accurate preview of the exposure or color balance. The 3.2-inch touchscreen is tilted for wide-angle shots, but doesn't fold forward for vlogging or selfies.

Hillary K. Grigonis / Digital Trends

Stuttering performance

Budget cameras are known to be slow, and the Z 5 is no exception. Despite the same processor as the 12 fps Z 6, the Z 5 offers less than half this speed. Some might argue that the Z 5 uses SD cards instead of the faster but more expensive XQD cards, but the transfer rates we're looking at here are well below the SD speed threshold. Curious.

With a maximum burst speed of 4.5 frames per second, I'm not even sure why there is both a low and high speed option as even high speed is pretty slow. Thankfully, the shutter speed is still a maximum of 1 / 8,000 (entry-level cameras used to be regularly limited to 1/4000), which is useful for bright situations.

The top speed of the Z 5 of 4.5 fps is switched off for about 21 pictures with RAW + JPEG. The official number of buffers on the back of the camera is 16, but the pace is slow enough for the camera to write some of these shots while it takes the rest. In JPEG mode, it will take a few more shots with the camera recording for more than 20 seconds before stopping.

However, what is a little more difficult to determine from a quick look at the camera's specifications is the auto focus. With a 273 point hybrid system, the Z 5's system looks almost identical to the Z 6's until you dig a little deeper into the details. And if you dig far enough, you'll find the camera's biggest flaw: an autofocus detection range of only -2 EV, or -3 when using autofocus in low-light camera's conditions. However, Nikon rated AF with a f / 2 lens in low light, so the kit lens and many other lenses available for the system don't work as well as what Nikon claims, a claim that is already not great. It's not outright lying, but it's misleading.

The autofocus of the Z 5 in limited light is consistently poor.

This is why the Z 5's autofocus struggled indoors. Even in a room with windows on three walls, the Z 5 was slow to focus. In low light, the camera often took two to five seconds to get involved in the subject and occasionally did not find the subject at all. While this is not a problem for still images, capturing motion in limited light with such a delay becomes problematic. However, the camera automatically activates the autofocus mode in poor lighting conditions – a plus when you consider that the mode must be activated in the menu for the original Z 6 and Z 7. Low-light autofocus is more accurate and allows you to focus in difficult scenarios, but it is slow.

Because of the way the autofocus system works, the camera can also find it difficult to focus on dark objects. As with any contrast detection system, however, this should be mitigated by the phase detection points of a hybrid system. The Z 5 made it much easier to focus on subjects with a lot of contrast, such as B. Lights or a bright object on a dark background, but it shouldn't be as hard as it is on dark objects. It's a hybrid autofocus system that only acts as a contrast agent in some cases, and that's disappointing.

Low-light autofocus was a complaint on the Z 6 and even the Z 7 with a tendency to get hit or miss, but the Z 5's autofocus in limited light is consistently poor. In comparison, the Z 6 is rated in such a way that it reaches -6 EV in poor lighting conditions, whereas the Z 5 is only -3.5.

Hillary K. Grigonis / Digital Trends

What makes autofocus really disappointing in low light is that the Z 5 would otherwise be an excellent camera in the dark. The five-axis stabilization in the body is solid. If I did everything in my power to help the camera stay close to a tripod – holding my breath and supporting the camera with my elbows – I could get close to one with the kit lens at 24mm Shoot down for half a second. This is an excellent system for the price of the camera, but the slow autofocus in low light makes it difficult to take pictures before the camera even has to go that low. Of course, stabilization isn't just for low light – stabilization comes in handy when you're working with telephoto lenses.

Continuous autofocus provides clear, slow-action photos most of the time, although roughly half of the shots where the subject came directly on the camera were soft. It is not intended for action, but in general use it will take some sharp shots, such as taking pictures of children or people moving at walking pace.

The focus system recognizes eyes pretty easily and quickly.

The Z 5's autofocus isn't bad, however. Eye AF worked well and even outperforms the more expensive Canon EOS R6 when it comes to focusing on the lashes when shooting from a high angle. The focus system recognizes eyes pretty easily and quickly. The system is not fast enough when doing sports, for example, but as already mentioned, the Z 5 is not an action camera. Pet Eye AF is included but I couldn't get it to work on my cat. (To be fair, I couldn't use the Canon version on my cat either.)

The Z 5 adds a new option for autofocus bracketing that automatically adjusts the focal length between shots in a series in order to later create a focus stack on a computer. The new function is easy to use for anyone who has previously worked with Nikon bracketing or time lapse. However, the recordings are activated by pressing Start in the menu. This means that you will see the menu in the viewfinder and not be able to perfect the composition before you hit start. It's a usability bug that we hope will be improved in later firmware updates.

Excellent pictures and videos

The Z 5 makes fewer sacrifices when it comes to image quality. With a 24.3 megapixel full-frame sensor, the Z 5 only has a slightly lower resolution than the more expensive Z 6. The larger sensor size makes it easier to create bokehs with the kit as well and offers a lot of flexibility in the post. The detail is good, and when it's perfectly focused, even the kit lens is pretty sharp.

ISO 12800 with noise reduction and harvest Hillary K. Grigonis / Digital Trends

A lower resolution is a good sign of ISO, and under perfect conditions I was able to bring out the noise of an ISO 12800 shot with little loss of detail. Photos are best kept under ISO 6400, which has noticeable color noise but can be easily corrected with software.

The color was what I would expect from a Nikon DSLR – broadly accurate, with the occasional tendency to skew the white balance a bit green for my tastes. Skin tones are rendered pretty well.

RAW files are also what I would expect from an entry-level full-screen Nikon DSLR. I was able to restore a good amount of detail and even texture from the shadows until I almost inverted a silhouette. As with almost any camera, it is harder to recreate blown highlights, and photographers should be best wrong on the too dark, not too bright side.

The Nikon Z 5 offers 4K video, but with a 1.7x crop and without all the frills of the Z 6 and Z 7, such as. B. N-Log. The 1.7x crop means both light loss and lenses aren't that great, but this isn't uncommon for an entry-level option. As with the pictures, colors and sharpness are consistently good, and the Z 5 searches less sharply than a Nikon DSLR while taking the picture.

Our opinion

The Nikon Z 5 is a good full-frame camera for entry-level users – but slow autofocus in low light, inconsistent accuracy in mixed lighting, and a sluggish burst mode prevent the camera from being a great full-screen option for entry-level users. The Nikon Z 5 is a great option for avid photographers, influencers, and other creative types who regularly take photos in good light.

Image quality and design are both superb, while slower performance is Nikon's clear differentiator when it comes to the extra $ 400 for the Z 6. If the Z 5 were $ 1,000 or even $ 1,200, this would be an easy recommendation. But at just $ 400 less than a significantly more powerful camera, it's a tough sell.

How long it will take?

Camera bodies typically last a few years, and the Z 5 is likely no exception. The weather seal and materials are not as high quality as the Z 6 and Z 7, but with the right care the camera housing should continue to serve you well in the future.

Is there a better alternative?

If you want a full-screen Nikon and you can't spend more than $ 1,400, no. Even the aging Nikon D610 only focuses on -1 EV and costs $ 200 more at list price. Waiting for an additional $ 400 for the Z 6, however, is a good idea for any photographer who regularly takes photos indoors or of moving subjects.

However, the full frame mirrorless market is crowded for photographers who have not yet invested in a lens system or are ready to make a switch. The Canon EOS RP has a better autofocus system thanks to the dual pixel technology and is designed for a focus of only -5 EV, but it lacks the stabilization in the body. Outside of these two models and older generations, it's hard to find another camera for $ 1,400. The Sony A7 III is a faster camera but costs $ 600 more. The very new Panasonic Lumix S5 offers better autofocus, advanced video modes, and faster bursts, but again is in the $ 2,000 range, not less than $ 1,500.

Moving to the Crop Sensor category fixes these performance issues, but it sacrifices the larger sensor. Nikon's own Z 50 is much faster with similar ergonomics and lens compatibility, but autofocus in low light is still not ideal. The Fujifilm X-T30 has a faster burst, more video capabilities and great autofocus, but it is not stabilized. The Sony a6600 offers fast burst and autofocus while maintaining stabilization, but it also has this smaller sensor.

Should you buy it?

Buy the Nikon Z 5 if you want a full-screen Nikon, take pictures outdoors in good light, and can't spend more than $ 1,400. However, if you're planning on taking a lot of shots in sub-ideal conditions, including low-light or fast-moving subjects, avoid the Z 5. Wait until you can save another $ 400 on the Z 6, or pull a crop sensor or the unstabilized EOS RP.

Editor's recommendations




01 May
Blog

Nikon Coolpix P950 Review: Epic Zoom That’s Easy to Use

nikon p950

"The Nikon P950's 83x zoom lens captures great detail, but performance is slow at times."

  • 83x zoom lens

  • Bright wide angle with an aperture of 1: 2.8

  • Macro mode

  • Exposure compensation wheel

  • Easy to use auto modes

  • Slow buffer

  • Occasional autofocus is missing

  • Annoying battery life indicator

As the announcements of point-and-shoot cameras are becoming scarcer, the Nikon P950 is in a remaining category that smartphones cannot touch: the super zoom. With an 83X, 24-2,000 mm equivalent lens, the P950 can capture subjects that you simply cannot see with the naked eye.

As an update to the P900, the P950 offers 4K video and RAW photos, two new features that more advanced photographers will appreciate. Despite these updates, the P950 is still well suited to less experienced shooters in automated modes. A new exposure correction control on the lens barrel enables fundamental brightness adjustments that anyone can use, even without understanding how the exposure works.

Not everyone needs an 83x zoom, but for those who do, the P950 offers an affordable, if incomplete, solution.

Burly design

Nikon coolpix p950 rating 9400

Nikon coolpix p950 rating 9399

Not surprisingly, the housing of the Nikon P950 is dominated by this 83x zoom lens. The lens is so big that you can feel the weight of the camera shifting forward in your hands as you extend it. At 35.5 ounces, the P950 is the weight of a DSLR (but with a much smaller lens). I still managed to carry the camera on a 5 mile hike without feeling terribly uncomfortable. Unlike a DSLR, I didn't have to lug around multiple lenses to take both wide-angle and telephoto shots.

The body style mimics a DSLR, which means the P950 has a large, comfortable grip, extensive physical controls, and a hot shoe slot on the top. The control scheme is similar to that of the P900, with a mode dial and a dial at the top right and a well-known set of menu controls at the back.

Hillary Grigonis / Digital Trends

There's plenty of room for controls, but advanced photographers will have to dig a little more in the menu. ISO, a fairly common adjustment in one of the manual modes, is not one of the link options.

The lens barrel is so large that it contains its own controls. A zoom switch provides a second way to zoom in with your left hand while a button retracts the zoom so you can redesign the subject. A new feature of the P950 is an exposure compensation wheel on the lens barrel. This was one of my favorite controls, resting exactly where my left hand is carrying the weight of the camera, and offering easy access to lighten or darken the photos.

The P950 also has an electronic viewfinder with 2.36 million points. A viewfinder is almost a necessity with so much zoom, because the support of the camera with your face keeps it much more stable than if you hold it at arm's length to use the LCD screen. This screen measures 3.2 inches diagonally, but is somewhat unusual for 2020 and is not a touchscreen. The resolution of both the viewfinder and the screen is not crazy high, but sufficient and expected for the price.

The battery is designed for 290 shots, which was sufficient for hiking and bird watching. You will definitely need a spare part if you want to take the camera with you on long trips. The battery indicator also has only two notches – full and half. This is annoying because you don't know whether you still have 135 or only 5 shots left.

Easy to use but sluggish performance

Hillary Grigonis / Digital Trends

The ability to take a RAW photo is new to the P950. Although photographers with some experience have more options to control the shot, the camera's built-in automatic modes have given surprisingly good results.

I spent a lot of time in bird watching mode. Combined with the exposure compensation wheel on the side of the lens barrel, almost everyone can take good photos of wildlife in 90 percent of the cases. I occasionally had to switch to shutter priority mode and control the settings so that the long zoom didn't cause blurring, and it's a little annoying that the camera didn't automatically know this. However, the P950 could easily be an effective tool for the bird watcher who has almost no photo expertise.

Edited RAW photo Hillary Grigonis / Digital Trends

Despite the addition of RAW files, the P950 remains a camera designed primarily for casual photographers. The manual settings are limited. If you want to work faster than 1/2000 seconds or slower than 1 second, you must set the lens to a certain position and the ISO value to a certain setting and must not be in burst mode.

The camera was good for slow or quiet wildlife, but photographing animals in action was more of a crapshoot. Between slow autofocus and trying to keep the subject in the picture (not easy at 2,000mm), more of my action shots were disposable than goalkeepers.

The P950 can shoot at 7 fps, which is respectable for the class, but it can only process ten shots at that speed before the buffer fills up. Even worse, the camera controls are frozen while these images are being written to the card. For example, you can only adjust the zoom once the photos have been processed. It takes about eight seconds to process a full JPEG burst before recording can resume, while RAW takes about 12 seconds. Despite the long zoom, this isn't the best camera to photograph your child's tee game.

Using auto focus with contrast detection, the P950 focused on most slow or stationary subjects, but auto focus performance was somewhat inconsistent at full zoom. The camera accessed some subjects that I thought were too difficult, while occasionally it was difficult to take a clear picture of something that I thought would have been easier. It grabbed a bird through a jumble of branches, which is impressive, but it wouldn't focus on a sandhill crane in a meadow with the lens fully extended – perhaps because the colors were less contrasting.

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As a budget-friendly superzoom, the slower performance of the P950 is not unexpected, but it can still be annoying.

Sharp, bright pictures

The Nikon P950 has a 16-megapixel 1 / 2.3-inch sensor, the basic size for point-and-shoot. However, this small sensor makes the 83x zoom possible. And zoom performance isn't the only thing the lens has to offer. It also offers a bright one Aperture 1: 2.8 at the widest angle – ideal for point-and-shoot shots with so much zoom.

The story changes as you enlarge it. At the telephoto end, the aperture drops to 1: 6.5. Given that you are likely to only use as much zoom outdoors in sunlight, this may not be too much of a problem. Macro mode also makes the lens more versatile by shooting the subject in the wide-angle position up to 0.4 inches from the front of the lens.

Images come out of the camera with a surprising level of detail: enough to see the texture in the animal's fur and water drops adhering to the whiskers.

This detail is supported by a solid sharpness in real tests. While the P950 can't keep up with image quality with a mirrorless camera or DSLR that uses much larger sensors, of course, these cameras don't offer anything near 83x zoom.

Subjectively, the image quality of the P950 will not be particularly pleasant. At full zoom, the blurred areas either look like a blotchy mess or a painterly impression, depending on how you look at it. Instead of smooth bokeh, the background looks more like oil paints.

For JPEGs, the color is largely accurate directly from the camera without being oversaturated or excessively subdued on the other side. Even the white balance didn't seem to be tending towards green like most Nikon cameras do. However, some of the pictures took on a magenta color indoors. One of the advantages of RAW shooting is that you can now correct the white balance afterwards, which would not have been possible on the P900.

Sample art filter

Image stabilization also plays a role in taking detailed photos with such a long lens. With 5.5 stabilization stops, I was able to use the 83x zoom handheld for most shots. Dim light, however, is still a problem. When I was shooting an hour before sunset, I had to use the full capabilities of the camera to get a sharp shot at full zoom, which resulted in an image that was just too dark. If you don't need to extend the zoom fully, its brighter aperture can give you better results at the wide end of the lens.

With the smaller sensor, the P950 has problems with high ISO values. The noise creeps in early and photos are best at or below ISO 800, while ISO 1,600 and 3,200 are fine. The maximum ISO 6,400 should be avoided. None of this is surprising for a point in a shoot, but remember, just because the P950 looks like a DSLR doesn't mean it works like one.

In video, 4K resolution is an improvement over the P900. Despite all of these extra pixels, the video is still not particularly detailed, although the colors match the quality of still images. If you want to record videos with 2,000 mm, be sure to bring a tripod. There's simply no way to keep the camera steady enough to get a smooth video recording with such a long zoom.

Our opinion

The Nikon P950's zoom is essentially telescopic, making the camera ideal for taking pictures of objects that are normally far away, such as birds, wildlife or the moon. Images are sharp, even though the background is mixed up at full zoom. RAW photos and 4K are nice enhancements to the P900, along with the new exposure compensation wheel on the side of the lens.

While the benefits of such a long zoom lens cannot be denied, the P950 offers slow performance and an auto focus that occasionally fails. And while adding RAW is a start, you still have to reach into the menu to change settings like ISO. Photos in low light conditions are not possible with full zoom, although the bright aperture offers a certain user-friendliness with large settings.

Is there a better alternative?

Since one of the few types of point-and-shoot cameras cannot compete with discounts for smartphones, the Superzoom category offers many competitors. Aside from spending $ 1,000 on the 125x Nikon P1000, the P950 gets you the closest thing to your subject. The Panasonic FZ3000 offers faster performance and a brighter lens, but only with 25x zoom. The Canon SX70 offers 20 megapixels, but the 65x zoom lens is not as bright at 1: 3.4 to 6.5. With its larger sensor, the Sony RX10 IV offers better image quality and faster performance with a 25x Zoom – but at twice the price, it doesn't really try to compete with those of the P950.

How long it will take?

Point-and-shoot cameras typically have a shorter lifespan before they're out of date – and the 16-megapixel sensor can overtake the P950 faster. However, the camera was only launched in early 2020 and should therefore be able to be used for a few years.

Should you buy it

Buy the P950 if you absolutely need an incredible zoom. If you want to photograph action, keep looking. The P950 is decent, but a niche camera for bird watchers and nature lovers, while its poor performance and limited usefulness in low light conditions prevent it from being a great all-round camera.

Editor's recommendations




03 Mar
Blog

Nikon D780 Review: A Great DSLR is Still a DSLR

"The Nikon D780 is the DSLR to buy."

  • Phase detection in live view

  • Eye AF works very well

  • 4K video with 10-bit output

  • Weatherproof design

  • 1 / 8000s to 15m shutter speed

  • Viewfinder AF feels out of date

  • More expensive than Nikon Z 6

  • Some advantages over mirrorless

If you want a DSLR, you should buy the full screen Nikon D780. The $ 2,300 D780 is a new Goldilocks camera and Nikon's first DSLR with built-in phase detection auto focus.

But do you want a DSLR?

Appearance. I like the D780. It is a balanced camera with strong performance and excellent picture quality. But in 2020 it will be difficult for me to find a reason why I would choose the smaller, lighter and cheaper Nikon Z 6, the mirrorless counterpart of the D780.

Instead of fueling my enthusiasm for DSLR, shooting the D780 tipped the scales in favor of mirrorless. It is a good camera. It is also part of a dying race.

Design and interface

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

The DSLR is the direct further development of the SLR camera or SLR camera from the film era. A SLR camera, which was revolutionary for its time, let photographers see directly through the lens with a reflective mirror and prism (which is old-fashioned for reflective).

DSLRs carried this design into the digital age and replaced silver with silicon, but left the mirror and the viewfinder alone.

However, digital cameras can feed a live feed directly from the sensor, providing another way to display an image through the lens without the need for a bulky mirror box. This is how the mirrorless camera was born.

The supposed advantage of a DSLR is the optical viewfinder, which offers a clear, excellent view. Since electronic viewfinders (EVFs) with OLED screens and resolutions of 6 million pixels have improved, optical viewfinders do not consider themselves necessary.

EVFs are also more powerful. You can view exposure and white balance previews, review images, and even call up exposure and focusing aids such as a histogram, zebra crossing, or focus peaking.

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

The D780 has numerous live view functions that do not work with the optical viewfinder. Where DSLRs used to be valued for their auto focus, Live View AF now offers many advantages, such as better image coverage and face recognition.

As a result, the DSLR is beginning to feel out of date. And yet Nikon believes that if the Nikon Z 6 – now over a year old – costs only $ 1,850 at the time of writing, it can sell a D780 for $ 2,300.

Why do photographers appreciate DSLR so much? I think there are a few small but important factors that matter. Old-school Nikon photographers have a large collection of F-mount lenses, the battery life of a DSLR is better thanks to the low power consumption of an optical viewfinder, and the DSLR feels familiar.

There is also less competition in the DSLR space since Canon is the only company that makes a competitive camera (and, to be honest, the EOS 6D Mark II doesn't really compete). Nikon can charge anything it wants for the D780. It owns this part of the DSLR market.

Nikon D780 vs. Nikon D750

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

Despite being half a decade old, following the D750 is difficult. In our 9 out of 10 reviews, Digital Trends called it "outstanding". It was the best camera for the money at the time, and remained class-leading among DSLRs for years.

The new functions of the D780 concentrate on processing and electronics. Thanks to a new 24 megapixel sensor and an Expeed 6 processor, this enables autofocus with phase detection in live view as well as face and eye tracking.

It's all great stuff, but nothing the mirrorless Nikon Z 6 doesn't have.

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

The data sheet is littered with minor but important upgrades. The shutter speed is now 1/8000 second, which is faster than the D750. It can also slow down and allow 15-minute exposures without a remote control. This is a huge increase over the 30 second limit of the D750. For continuous shooting, the speed increases slightly from 6.5 to 7 frames per second, but in live view, the D780 can achieve impressive 12 fps with the electronic shutter (if you drop down to 12-bit RAW).

The image sensor has essentially the same resolution, but is now backlit and helps bring the ISO to a new extended maximum of 204,800, 2 steps above the D750. The LCD resolution has increased by over 1 million pixels to a total of 2.36 million.

Video shows significant improvements from Full HD to 4K when expected. The flat N-Log color profile from Nikon and the 10-bit 4: 2: 2 output via HDMI are one of the best DSLRs for videos alongside the massive (and very expensive) EOS 1D X Mark III from Canon. However, this is no better than the mirrorless Nikon Z 6.

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

The battery life is significantly improved by a CIPA rating of 2,260 exposures with the optical viewfinder. It's impressive in every context, and it's about 1,000 more than the D750. Part of this increase, however, is due to the fact that the D780 no longer has a built-in flash, a feature of the D750 that would have had a negative impact on CIPA test results.

There is no question that the D780 is a worthy replacement for the D750. But whether the D780 as DSLR 2020 is the right camera for you … well, that's not so clear.

characteristics

While the D780 benefits from the mirrorless technology of the Z series, the DSLR-specific components of the D750 can hardly be updated. It recycles the same autofocus system with 51-point viewfinders, although it has been updated with the flagship D5 focusing algorithm.

I was impressed with how well the D780 could keep up with moving subjects with continuous autofocus in Nikon's 3D tracking mode, but when the Nikon D6 arrived this year and brought a brand new AF system, I'm not sure why Nikon did this did not give the D780 the entire 153-point AF module of the Nikon D5 instead of just the algorithm.

It is strange to hold back if the D780 is to survive another 5 to 6 years. The Multi-Cam 3500FX II focusing sensor has roots that go back to the 2007 Nikon D3.

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

The viewfinder is the same. It's a good viewfinder with a bright penta prism and 100% coverage, but its 0.7x magnification is significantly less than the 0.75x magnification of the D850. Yes, the D850 is bigger, but I'm not sure if Nikon will have to worry about keeping the D780 as small as possible because its mirrorless cameras offer a better solution for photographers who need a compact system.

I would have loved to see an AF joystick, something that Nikon has on its other high-end cameras, including the D500 crop sensor. It's a simple addition that increases usability more than you would expect. Choosing a focus point with the multi-selector pad is okay, but not so ergonomic.

None of these things make the D780 a bad camera. It just can't be anywhere near the revolutionary leap I hoped for on a DSLR.

picture quality

The viewfinder makes it difficult for you to distinguish the D780 from the D750. However, when you turn on live view, the difference becomes clear.

After generations have waited for Nikon to use Live View autofocus properly, the time has finally come. In combination with the touchscreen, the focus is quick, accurate and flexible. Eye detection turns on automatically and works well, even if the eyes of a subject are recognized with dark sunglasses.

Daven Mathies / Digital Trends

All of this is great and makes the D780 tilt screen more useful than the Nikon D750.

However, it is the same system as the Nikon Z 6, where things like eye AF can be used through the electronic viewfinder, which is not possible with the D780's optical viewfinder.

In addition, the Live View autofocus is simply more accurate because the focus is measured on the image sensor itself. Although this is usually not a problem for first-party lenses, I have tested three Sigma Art Primes. One of them focused frontally through the viewfinder and was sharp in live view. I used Nikon's AF fine-tuning feature to fix this. This is a great feature, but I wouldn't have had to do anything without a mirror.

nikon d780 evaluation example 18

Nikon D780 evaluation example 13

Thanks mainly to Eye AF, I used more live view than the viewfinder. But such shots make the D780 an overweight mirrorless camera.

That brings me to my biggest problem with DSLRs. They behave like two different cameras, depending on whether you are using the viewfinder or the LCD screen. This is certainly confusing for beginners and frustrating even as an experienced DSLR shooter.

This does not mean that the D780 does not offer clear advantages for certain applications. A DSLR is still better for wedding and event photographers thanks to the long battery life and compatibility with the AF auxiliary grille projected by an external flash. This helps enormously when taking pictures in dark reception halls, but is not compatible with autofocus with live view. The two SD card slots are ideal for a live event with high stakes and offer security with redundant memory.

In fact, I will be shooting a wedding with the D780 in about a week. Even as a fan of mirrorless cameras in general, I'm glad I have a DSLR for this job, and I'm happier that the Nikon D780 is the DSLR.

But for anything else? Just give me a Nikon Z 6.

Our opinion

Even if Nikon made the changes that I think are missing – with the D5's 153-point AF system and the addition of an AF joystick – the D780 would leave me heavily in the mirrorless camp. It's a good DSLR, but feels like a makeshift solution for Nikon D750 owners who aren't yet ready to go mirrorless.

Nikon nudges people to the Z series and I see no reason to complain about it. From EVF to image stabilization in the body, Nikon's Z-cameras offer decisive advantages. I also like the strategy Nikon is pursuing with the Z-series lenses, which focuses on high quality 1: 1.8 aperture glass to keep size and costs under control. That's the future.

The D780 is a thing of the past. A brilliant piece of it, no doubt, but still in the past.

Is there a better alternative?

Yes, the Nikon Z 6. For most people, a mirrorless camera makes more sense. The Z 6 is currently available with the F-mount lens adapter and a memory card for under $ 1,850.

Strictly speaking, the D780 is the best in its class within DSLRs and has no real competitor, although Canon's EOS 6D Mark II is cheaper at just $ 1,400 at the time of writing.

How long it will take?

The D780 is well built, weatherproof, and should withstand professional wear and tear. If the D750's lifespan in half a decade is an indication, we expect the D780 to last at least 5 years. If you haven't done so yet, you will be attracted to new mirrorless cameras during this time.

Should you buy it

If you are still convinced that you need a DSLR, then yes. This is the best in the $ 2,000 price range. Take a moment to consider whether you really need it.

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