A friend of mine received his Nikon Z50 kit from Amazon a few weeks ago, and hasn't had a chance to play with it. He asked me if I would go through it and make sure everything was good. Of course, I will. This is a great chance to check part of Nikon's Mirrorless line. I also wanted to write this short blog about its features, how it feels and performs for me.
Part of the Nikon Z series, the Z50 sits right at the bottom. It's the budget version of the Mirrorless line by Nikon. Mirrorless cameras like it's name implies; does not have a mirror that reflects images up into the viewfinder prism, like a DSLR (Digital Single Lens reflex) does. Mirrorless Cameras use only the sensor and digitally display the image on a tiny display in the viewfinder or rear display. In general MCs have really nice high tech features with incredible performance that can leave most DSLRs in the dust. Does the Z50? While the Z50 will still set you back roughly 1300 buckaroos. Is it worth it? Read on and find out if I think so lol.
Digging into the shipping box past the telescope mount and silicone cover; I found the Z50 kit, opened it and pulled out the manual, battery and the charger. I then plugged the charger in, then the battery to the charger. Got comfy and read the manual. Always read the manual especially these days as some settings and options or operations may damage the camera or lens if done improperly. It was late so the next day I unboxed it and took all the quick snapshots of the Z50 in this post. Once done with that, keeping the very light weight 50 to 250 kit lens mounted, I began to check out this high tech tool.
Well the first thing I notice is the lens. And Like most, I believe the lens makes a huge difference in your composition, the way you shoot and quality of your art. So I pick up the kit lens...It feels very light which is good. And it feels really cheap which is not so good. Probably one of the cheapest plasticy feeling kit lenses I've handled. I understand that this lens is designed to be very cost efficient to be offered in the kit at a budget price so you can shoot right out of the box. While appearing and feeling cheap, it performed admirably. It focused quickly, smoothly, and was really sharp at every setting and distance I tried. I'll let you decide on the images below. Technically the images look great. The only gigs I could realistically apply is it's cheap plastic feel, I don't think it would last over time if it's well used. And last I personally don't like the bokeh (background blur) on wider shots. It has a swirl look that I don't think looks appealing.
I have to admit this lens surprised me. For anyone just starting out, or for someone who can only afford the kit lenses, I believe these lenses will do just fine until you can afford an upgraded lens. All of the images shot with the Z50 are NOT edited they may be cropped to enlarge the view.
Now for the main course. After unwrapping the foam envelope the Z50 body was tucked away inside. I grabbed it by the grip to take the sensor / lensmount cover off and immediately noticed the light weight but solid feel to it. Un-twisting the sensor cover while holding the camera facing down I then attached the 50 to 250mm and began to evaluate the Z. First I noticed that the grip Is not comfortable in my hands. I have average large hands and this body is small compared to Nikons DSLRs. The grip is similar to Sony on feel. It just doesn't feel like I'm joined with the tool because I can't fully fit the grip. I want something that FITS my hand ergonomically and allows my hand to feel like it's part of the camera. With the Z It didn't feel comfy like the D7500 I shoot with. With time I COULD get used to it though. But on the other hand literally. Persons with small to medium sized hands may find that this camera perfectly fits them. You can see in the pics above how the grip is streamlined and a little smaller.
Next I decided to set up manual mode the way I like and see how the menu operates. If you have a Nikon, it's pretty much the same menu with a few extra options. I think canon menus work similar. After dialing "M" and setting it up, I lifted the camera to my eye and I didn't see anything. The viewfinder was black. I checked for lens cap, and I had removed it. I looked through the viewfinder again. Hmm still black? OOHHH, I realized this was mirrorless. I then flipped the shutter speed and then the ISO, and as I did the viewfinder filled with an image of my composition. Since the viewfinder is digital, you see what you shoot. As you adjust your exposure, you see it get darker or lighter in real time. This is a double edged sword for me. Because for me it seemed more cumbersome to compose my shot. For example: When I look through the viewfinder and it's not set at the correct exposure it may take me longer to find my target, and it slowed down tracking. For me, I'm used to seeing what I'm looking at and then using the meter to help adjust the exposure if needed. It would take a bit, but I think I could get used to it. Because the advantage is really realy nice. You See What you Shoot! It's very easy to get a great exposure once your used to it. Adjusting the exposure is quick and easy to my visual preference right in front of my eyes on the tiny display/viewfinder. It almost feels like cheating. And sort of is lol.
Now that I've got that down, I begin a few test shots over the next two days to develop my opinion.
All of the buttons were easy to reach and operate. Although a little closer (more compact) over all. While you can mute the shutter sound, I prefer not, I love the sound of a shutter and this one was almost too quiet. As for speed, while on continuous high it didn't seem faster than my D7500. But I wasn't very concerned because I don't really know the camera yet. And I kept over exposing things. Realizing I didn't adjust the diopter to my blind eyes I quickly adjusted it. It was a little stiff. lol. That helped alot and I tuned down the ISO. So don't forget to adjust your diopter to your eye so it's not blury.
The Z50 produced some great images. And after a very short and easy learning curve for this little camera, It became very easy to operate and get usable exposures almost every shot. It's really really easy to get great photos especially if your just starting out.
Something that surprised me was how well it performed in low light photography. I took the pic of Vader below and it was really dark inside. I bumped the ISO way up to 51200 the SS to 1/250th @ f6.3 and this is the image I got. Surprisingly little noise or if your old-school..."It's not very grainy ". This is straight out of the camera. Not denoised. My D7500 has alot of noise at these settings. So if you shoot alot of low light then this camera is great for that as well.
It has some new tracking, focusing and eye tracking features that are remarkably cool but on the Z50 just don't seem to work reliably as it often lost tracking or eye focus. I have read that these features work much better in the higher Z line. There are also updates that have and may come available addressing these features. But they are still really cool to use and can be super helpful in many shooting conditions.
I think the Z50 is pretty on par with the Sony Alpha 6000 that I shot with four years ago. As a newer camera it has a few more advanced features like the tracking and in my opinion may be a slight improvement over the Sony of four years ago. The eye tracking etc. As for the comparison between my D7500 and the Z50...... it is really a toss up. I love some of the new toys in the Z, and the new tech. But I am very comfortable with my D7500. I already have lenses for it, and would have to get the f to z adapter if I switched, adding additional weight and changing the frame slightly. The Z camera and lenses are also more expensive than there DSLR counterparts. In addition the Z mount lenses are larger which is good because they let in more light, but you must have the adapter to mount all the prior nikon f mount lenses. I would without a doubt trade up to a Z7 or Z9 if I could afford one. If you can, I would recommend that because they are the near future of camera gear. As for me..... Well it's much more realistic for my budget, to upgrade to a D750 which is basically just the full frame version of my D7500.
In conclusion, I believe the Z50 is an excellent camera with some of the newest technical features available on higher end cameras. If your looking to buy a new entry level to hobbyist camera, I believe you would be very happy with it. If you are currently a hobbyist or pro, it would be better to shoot for the higher models in the Z line. That is if you got the $$$$.
I want to thank you guys for reading this review. Also, Thank you Steve for letting me play with your new toy. ya'll take care and I'll see yall next blog.
Shot with the Nikon Z50 <-check it out
Using the links below will help me out.
Capture One offers a great editor and a free trial to test it all out here:
Please use the link below to check out a great denoise app:
Lightroom offers a built in slideshow creator if you need to render a slideshow.
Now get out there and experiment, have allot of fun and I hope this helped you out a little. Take care and have a Snaptastic day. See ya in the next blog.
More to come! let me know if there is a subject you would like me touch on.
Comentários