It seems to be the more consumer-friendly of the two full-frame mirrorless cameras that Nikon has launched, the Z6 and Z7, but then both have a separate market and target audience in our opinion. Nikon Z6 may just be the best all-rounder camera at this price point in the market at the moment.
While both the mirrorless cameras from Nikon, Z6 and the Z7 come with a number of identical features like body design, viewfinder, screen and controls, they’re quite different in their offering. Nikon Z6 has a lower-resolution sensor – it is a 24.5-megapixel device. The Z series cameras come with an interesting brand-new mount – the Nikon Z mount.
Design And Handling
Designing it to be so compact and ergonomic, Nikon has really prioritized the needs of new-age photographers with the Z6. It comes with a perfectly-sized handgrip that makes it quite comfortable to use for long periods of time. The controls on the device have been spread across in a sensible manner, allowing for more breathing room for the buttons than the Sony mirrorless models
On the top of the camera, there’s a useful LCD screen displaying all the essential shooting settings like shutter speed, aperture and space remaining on the memory card, in one go. Other nifty handling options include a quick menu which can be accessed via an “i” button, and other specific buttons for special features like drive mode, for example.
Nikon Z6 also comes with the same quality and standard of weather-sealing as the Nikon D850, which means it can perform well in a variety of shooting conditions, and survive extended usage, as well.
Features
The Z6 has a lower resolution, 24.5-megapixel sensor, compared to that of the Z7 (45.7 megapixels), but that makes it better equipped for low-light photography and videography. This also gives users the advantage of smaller file sizes. Another benefit that comes with the lower pixel count is the frame rate. Nikon Z6 gives you 12fps, which is better for capturing fast-moving subjects.
Nikon’s latest mirrorless device, Z6 offers a 273-point hybrid AF system that’s well-suited for a majority of shooting situations. When it comes to the viewfinder and screen, there’s a tilting touch-sensitive 2.1-million dot screen that becomes useful during shooting at some awkward angles – it is certainly better than being static.
Delivering 4K video recording at 3840 x 2160, in frame rates of 30p, 25p and 24p, Nikon Z6 also allows you to shoot at Full HD (1080) at up to 120fps and even record in slow-motion at up to 5x speed. The device is equipped with headphones as well as microphone sockets.
The only issue can be the requirement of a single XQD card to store pictures and videos on – XQD cards are more expensive than SD cards and a task to find as well.
Performance
The Z6 is a great camera designed especially for new entrants into the world of photography. It’s probably the most impressive and ergonomic professional imaging solution in its segment and even outperforms some devices belonging to better segments. It captures vibrant images with sharp colours and offers an impressive dynamic range. The Nikon Z6 delivers particularly impressive photography with native S-series lenses.
As mentioned previously, Z6 performs incredibly in low light, even better than the Z7. With matrix (all-purpose) metering enabled on the device, one can see that exposures are well balanced in a majority of situations. The automatic white balance also does a great job at producing accurate colours in a number of lighting conditions.
Focusing is super smooth with the Nikon Z6 and we found that it’s better at following moving subjects, especially when the subject is moving in a fairly predictable pattern. Nikon Z6’s best feature for us is the inbuilt image stabilisation that helps ensure sharp shots in handheld settings and can also help enables slow shutter speeds.
Verdict
In conclusion, the long-awaited mirrorless camera from Nikon is every bit proving to be worth the wait. The Z6 is a great camera for videography and low-light photography, making it ideal for filmmakers and vloggers. It is also quite reasonably priced, for all that it offers, making it all the more preferable. In other words, it’s hard to find an all-rounder camera matching the Z6 in the current market.
