The Nikon Z5 II’s launch worth is $1,699 / £1,599 / AU$2,699 for the physique solely. This can be a not-insignificant improve in comparison with the unique Z5’s launch worth of $1,399 / AU$2,399 (at launch within the UK it was solely out there bundled with a equipment lens, but it surely was later out there body-only for £1,359).
Until you are upgrading from one other Nikon Z-series digicam, you then’ll want a lens to go together with the Z5 II, and there are a bunch of enticing equipment lens bundles that may prevent a bit of money in comparison with shopping for them individually.
If you happen to’re within the UK, Australia or different territories the place it is out there (it is not a equipment choice within the USA), then I feel the extra upmarket Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S normal zoom equipment is the higher purchase at £2,129 / AU$3,649. Not solely do you get larger telephoto attain and a sooner, fixed f/4 aperture, but it surely’s completely top-notch optically, with the S-line moniker reserved for Nikon’s highest pro-standard Z-series lenses. Merely put, it is the very best ‘equipment’ lens there may be, for any digicam.
I would usually advise warning when contemplating a superzoom because of the lack of sharpness that such lenses are inclined to endure from as a consequence of shoehorning all that zoom vary right into a single optic, however this one bucks the development and presents spectacular sharpness all through that will probably be greater than adequate for many customers.
On the time of writing, it considerably undercuts its closest rivals that include a broadly comparable spec sheet: the 24.2MP Canon EOS R6 II (round $2,000 / £2,000 / AU$2,900) and 33MP Sony A7 IV ($2,000 / £2,150 / AU$3,500) have comparable topic detection autofocus, zippy taking pictures charges and 4K video capabilities.
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A Image Management button allows fast entry to vary the ‘look’ of photographs processed in-camera | Nikon Z5 II | Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S | 1/800 sec | f/8 | ISO180 (Picture credit score: Future)
Panorama Image Management
A Image Management button allows fast entry to vary the ‘look’ of photographs processed in-camera | Nikon Z5 II | Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S | 1/800 sec | f/8 | ISO180 (Picture credit score: Future)
Monochrome Image Management
A Image Management button allows fast entry to vary the ‘look’ of photographs processed in-camera | Nikon Z5 II | Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S | 1/800 sec | f/8 | ISO180 (Picture credit score: Future)
Dream Image Management
Nikon Z5 II: Design & Dealing with On the outside at the very least, the Nikon Z5 II appears virtually similar to its forebear, and that is no unhealthy factor. It is fairly compact contemplating it packs a full-frame sensor, has an excellent (if barely minimalist) management structure, and is snug to carry, with a decent-sized grip (the Z5 II’s is definitely barely deeper than the Z5’s, if solely by a few millimeters).
It is also very comparable in really feel and structure to the Z6 / Z7 line, though just like the Z5 it has no top-plate LCD to point out at-a-glance taking pictures data. Talking of, all of the top-plate controls sit beneath the correct hand, with a mode dial, shutter launch button inside a round on/off swap, and buttons for video document, ISO and publicity compensation.
It additionally positive aspects a brand new Image Management button that was launched with the Nikon Z50 II APS-C sensor digicam, and which by default allows easy accessibility to Image Controls – Nikon’s in-camera processing that determines the ‘look’ of JPEG photographs shot in-camera (this may be assigned different operate in the event you primarily shot RAW).
The entrance of the digicam has a conveniently positioned management dial primarily for setting the aperture, and a pair of programmable operate buttons which might be used along with the entrance / rear management dials and by default change the main target mode and space, and white stability settings.
Across the again is a rear management dial for dialing within the shutter pace amongst different features, there is a D-pad and joystick for shifting the AF choice space round and navigating by menus, and a complete rank of buttons that customers of Z-series cameras will probably be accustomed to.
That stated, the Playback and Launch Mode buttons have swapped locations from the place they had been on the Z5, according to Nikon’s more moderen cameras.
Many of the rear is taken up by a big 3.2-inch touchscreen LCD panel, – however that is now of the vari-angle kind that flips out to the facet and rotates up and down, to assist taking pictures at awkward angles. This display will be reversed in order that it is tucked away towards the physique of the digicam for cover in the event you primarily use the viewfinder for taking pictures.
Nonetheless, you would possibly wish to preserve it outward-facing even in the event you do primarily use the viewfinder; Nikon has added a Contact Fn mode, the place the touchscreen is used to rapidly choose between AF factors and the like utilizing a spare thumb.
You’ll be able to restrict the energetic space of the touchscreen to keep away from by chance deciding on issues along with your nostril – or preserve the entire display energetic and purposefully use your nostril to scroll round, with just a little apply.
The rear display is vari-angle, flipping out to the facet and rotating up and down for taking pictures at awkward angles, or to be forward-facing for selfies. It is way more versatile than the tilt-only design of previous-generation cameras, just like the Z6 II (on the left) (Picture credit score: Future)
Nikon Z5 II: Efficiency The Nikon Z5 II is surprisingly highly effective, contemplating its worth and positioning available in the market, having benefited from improvements pioneered by earlier cameras greater up the vary, and packs them right into a small, mild and easy-to-use digicam physique.
It makes use of the identical Expeed 7 processor as Nikon’s top-flight cameras and has the identical distinctive topic recognition that may lock onto a mess of human, wildlife and vehicular topics, leading to a superb hit price when capturing portraits, wildlife and sports activities photographs.
Whereas Nikon claims 9 distinct topic sorts are acknowledged, a number of are lumped collectively and you’ve got 5 choices to select from within the menu system, simplifying issues a bit: individuals, generic animals, generic automobiles, birds, and plane.
In testing I discovered it did certainly lock on to topics precisely and reliably, even once they had been fairly distant within the body. Certainly, Nikon says it may well monitor topics occupying as little as three % of the picture space.
The autofocus space relies on 299 AF factors unfold over the size and breadth of the sensor space, and whereas there are alternatives for choosing a single level, focusing is generally performed with teams of AF factors working collectively in varied dimension and form configurations, comparable to squares, rectangles, or a complete horizontal or vertical sliver of the sensor space.
Autofocus works hand-in-hand with the digicam’s in-body picture stabilization (IBIS) to supply the utmost quantity of stabilization across the energetic focus level, reasonably than throughout your entire sensor generally.
This focused stabilization, which Nikon calls Focus Level VR, yields much-improved outcomes than in cameras like the unique Z5, offering as a lot as 7.5 stops of stabilization on the heart of the sensor and 6 stops across the periphery.
The headline most burst price is a blistering 30fps, however there are caveats. This Excessive Velocity + mode captures JPEGs solely and employs each a primary and second curtain digital shutter, reasonably than the mechanical shutter, and thus photographs with fast-moving parts might exhibit a ‘rolling shutter’ impact.
The mechanical shutter solely operates at ‘regular’ taking pictures speeds of 14fps or slower, by which case the digicam can shoot 12-bit RAW recordsdata. To seize 14-bit RAWs, which have the best quantity of picture info for larger enhancing flexibility, the highest taking pictures price is restricted to 11fps – though that is hardly sluggish, and is significantly sooner than the Z5’s 4.5fps max pace.
An extra trick of Excessive Velocity + is that it may well seize photographs earlier than you are taking them; in Pre-release Seize mode, photographs are quietly recorded as quickly as you half-press the shutter button for as much as a second earlier than it’s totally depressed.
That is best for taking pictures motion sequences in situations the place you wish to be sure that you do not ‘miss the second’. Once more, photographs are JPEG-only on this mode.
The Nikon Z5 II joins the Z6 III, Z50 II and Zf (through a firmware replace) as one of many choose few Nikon cameras to assist the free Nikon Imaging Cloud service.
As soon as arrange, the digicam routinely connects to this cloud-based service every time it is in vary of a Wi-Fi community, importing new photographs from the digicam to Nikon’s servers.
They’re saved right here for 30 days, and will be additional forwarded to different cloud-based providers comparable to Adobe Lightroom , Dropbox, Google Drive, Google Images, Microsoft OneDrive and your Nikon Picture House account, which is free to enroll to.
I discovered it to be a lot much less of a faff than messing round with reminiscence card readers. The opposite advantages of the service are the flexibility to obtain picture ‘recipes’, designed by Nikon’s military of professional photographer Ambassadors and Creators, and the flexibility to routinely set up the newest firmware as it’s launched.
Nikon Z5 II: Pattern photographs
The digicam is a good low-light performer, locking onto topics’ eyes even within the dingiest of settings (Picture credit score: Future)
Animal AF works nicely, even with essentially the most uncooperative of topics | Nikon Z5 II | Nikon Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S | 1/400 sec | f/2.8 | ISO100 (Picture credit score: Future)
There is a separate setting for Chicken AF, which locks onto and retains up with our feathered associates | Nikon Z5 II | Nikon Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S | 1/200 sec | f/2.8 | ISO100 (Picture credit score: Future)
In-body picture stabilization allows the usage of slower-than-normal shutter speeds when taking pictures handheld | Nikon Z5 II | Nikon Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S | 1/30 sec | f/16 | ISO100 (Picture credit score: Future)
Nikon Z5 II: Video The Nikon Z5 II is a really succesful digicam on the subject of video, too, and might seize 4K 60p for a 2x slow-mo impact and FullHD 120p video for 4x slow-mo.
Video shot at 4K 60p is cropped to a 1.5x DX crop, however all different modes supply uncropped video, taking pictures on the native focal size of the hooked up lens (the Z5 had a way more limiting 1.7x crop when taking pictures 4K, which made wide-angle photographs all-but-impossible).
The standard of the video recordsdata presents way more enhancing flexibility, too, because the digicam can output N-Uncooked (Nikon’s video equal of a uncooked stills format) on to SD UHS-II playing cards for the primary time – beforehand this was restricted to cameras with sooner media, comparable to CFexpress .
It additionally has a 10-bit N-Log profile for capturing the best potential quantity of colour information, and might use free-to-download lookup tables (LUTs) developed Pink, the skilled cinema digicam firm that Nikon just lately acquired.
The digicam has a couple of extra video tips up its sleeve. The ‘Product assessment’ video mode, which debuted within the Z50 II, is designed for vloggers and routinely switches focus from the presenter to a product as it’s proven to the digicam for slick movies.
A high-res zoom operate allows a 2x digital zoom even when utilizing a fixed-focal-length lens, recording in 4K and outputting in FullHD, thereby avoiding any pixelation or lack of high quality because it zooms.
Equally, further digital stabilization enhances IBIS for ultra-smooth run-and-gun-style video when the digicam is about to document in 4K and output FullHD, routinely cropping and aligning video. It will also be used as a ‘plug and play’ webcam when plugged into a pc’s USB port, with out the necessity for extra software program.
Like different latest Nikons, textual content and on-screen data rotates to match the taking pictures orientation, which is a pleasant contact and helps keep away from craning your neck when taking pictures in portrait orientation (Picture credit score: Future)
Nikon Z5 II: Verdict When it was initially launched, the Z5 was seen as one thing of a poor cousin in comparison with the Z6, with its a lot slower taking pictures price, extra primary sensor, inferior video and lower-res rear LCD among the many cost-cutting measures, however issues are loads much less clear-cut on the subject of evaluating the Nikon Z5 II and Z6 III.
The cheaper digicam presents one thing like 95% of the performance at round 65% of the worth. A lot top-end tech has filtered right down to the Z5 II that most individuals will not want something extra. Its mixture of clever topic recognition and superior autofocus – mixed with its skill to ‘see’ in digital darkness – makes all of it however unattainable not to get the shot.
Whereas it does not have the Z6 III’s partially stacked shutter or match its frankly ludicrous 120fps prime price, in all honesty 30fps is greater than sufficient for many sensible functions. It may well’t fairly match the Z6 III’s video credentials both, however 40k 30p uncropped video or 120p FullHD is nice sufficient for everybody however high-end videographers.
The truth that it makes use of a pair of SDXC UHS-II playing cards, reasonably than having a extra unique CFexpress slot, is prone to be seen as a bonus reasonably than a disadvantage to its goal market, as these playing cards are far cheaper to purchase.
The Nikon Z5 II is a fully stellar digicam that’s able to very good outcomes when taking pictures just about something, be it portraiture, landscapes, sports activities or wildlife, because of its correct focusing, good low-light efficiency, and spectacular body price. It will not be the very finest digicam that Nikon makes, however to my thoughts, it’s the finest worth one.
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Options
Gives many of the good bits of the Z6 III for an excellent deal much less outlay, although some might miss a top-panel show
★★★★☆
Design
There’s little to distinguish it from its forebear, but it surely’s completely purposeful, comfortable within the hand, and the vari-angle display is tons higher than the Z5’s tilt-only effort
★★★★☆
Efficiency
It performs each bit in addition to even the flagship Z8 and Z9 when it comes to monitoring and focusing, and its low-light capabilities are second-to-none
★★★★★
Worth
There is a chunk of a worth hike over the unique Z5, but it surely however presents distinctive worth for the spec sheet
★★★★★
Nikon Z5 II: Options