Guest review: the 2018 Nikon Z6

MT: Today’s thoughts on the Z6 should be thought of as an accompaniment to my Z7 review and are courtesy of the man behind the scenes and one of the partners in my watch venture, Praneeth Rajsingh, who’s the one keeping me organised and pointing in the right direction these days. I tried to get him to buy the Z7, but he knows his sufficiency threshold…

Hello! While I’m usually involved behind the scenes, Ming thought it might be interesting to have me share my thoughts on the new Nikon Z6 – which I recently acquired. As an amateur photographer who only buys gear to meet his needs (and budget), my review will not be the comprehensive and in-depth coverage that MT excels at, but I hope some of you find it useful.

While I’ve shot a wide variety of content in the past, these days I primarily shoot watches (I’m also involved in MT’s horological venture) and casually document daily life. I also carry my camera all the time – in my daybag or briefcase. This is partly to get myself to shoot more and because you never know when you’ll find a great setting for some watch-related content. Given these conditions, my primary requirements in a camera are a) a small footprint, b) a good JPEG engine, c) good in-camera stabilization or good high ISO performance and d) a compact(ish), Swiss-knife lens solution that could double up as a documentary lens and also focus fairly close-up (to shoot watches). Of course, other factors like high ISO performance, AF speed and accuracy, reliability, haptics etc. affect the final decision but I need a tool that can get the job done.

My previous solution was the Olympus E-M1 Mark II which definitely had a small footprint and a decent JPEG engine (though not as good as the PEN-F), but I didn’t have a single lens solution – the 12-100/4 was simply too bulky and expensive. While I did eventually find a lens that works, the Panasonic 12-60/2.8-4, it turned out to cost the same as trading in my Micro Four Thirds gear for the Nikon Z6. The Olympus’ IBIS, particularly as found in the E-M1.2, is exceptional and is unparalleled in my experience. I’ve been able to shoot smooth video handheld at 360mm effective focal length! In addition, the new 20MP sensor has much better high-ISO performance than the previous 16MP one and AF performance on the camera was never an issue.

However, there were a few things that I didn’t like and annoyed me enough to keep looking at alternatives. Firstly, I’ve found that the red channel clips far too quickly and warm tones are rendered strangely. Not sure if this is an Olympus colour profile issue, a Micro Four Thirds sensor issue or a me issue but I spent way too much time on the HSL tool trying to make skin tones look natural. We are also lucky to enjoy some really fantastic sunsets at the office, but the Olympus never had enough dynamic range and often left me wanting more. While the high ISO performance is better than in the E-M5 Mark II, colour is only useable up to ISO3200 (6400 if you don’t have weird lighting, have fairly subdued colours and really really need to take the shot).

Ergonomically, the E-M1.2 didn’t work for me either. There were too many buttons, and they always seemed to be in the wrong position. The right-hand side D-ring for the camera strap also had a tendency to dig into your hand. Haptics are a personal preference and possibly heavily influenced by my exclusive use of Nikon bodies before this – but it was a constant itch that affected camera usage. I’m sure this will attract some criticism, but I’ve found that there is some correlation between how often I pick up a camera and how much I like it as a tactile object. It’s a luxury I can afford to indulge in as an amateur.

After looking at MT’s experience with the Nikon Z7 and trying it out for myself, I bit the bullet and ordered the Z6 (the full kit with 24-70/4Z and FTZ converter), which I’ve been using for a couple weeks now. Unfortunately, there is still no ACR support (as of 5 December 2018) for the Z6’s RAW files, so all the images in this review were processed as JPEGs. Luckily, the Z6 has a great JPEG engine but I’ll get to that a bit later.

For those of you wondering why I didn’t get a Z7 instead: a) I didn’t need the increased resolution and b) I couldn’t justify the difference in cost.

Overall system footprint (body, lenses, batteries, cables and ancillaries) is smaller for the Z6 than it was for the EM1.2. This was my first surprise. Thanks to the ability to transfer files and charge the camera over USB-C, the fantastic battery life on the new EN-EL15b and downsizing to a single lens – I’ve saved a lot of room in my daybag/briefcase.

Note: This may not be the case depending on what lenses and other ancillaries you use. What isn’t subjective however, is that the dimensions of both camera bodies are nearly identical (134 x 91 x 67 mm for the E-M1.2 vs 134 x 101 x 68 mm for the Z6). I’m still quite surprised by this given that the Z6 has a FX sensor and in-camera stabilization.

If you line the Z6 and Z7 next to each other, the only thing that gives away their individual identities is the little plaque to the bottom right of the lens mount. That tiny detail aside, the design and build quality are completely identical as far as I can tell. Therefore, for a more detailed overview of the construction quality, weather sealing and other ergonomic or physical attributes, allow me to direct you to MT’s Z7 review here.

Ergonomically, the camera works for me, and my only real complaint is with the placement of the exposure compensation button and the sensitivity of the AF joystick on the back. I would prefer to have the video recording and exposure compensation buttons swapped. While I don’t find the position of the joystick to be an issue, the centre button to function is very position/angle sensitive so I often end up moving AF point selection instead of returning it to centre. Admittedly, they’re small issues in the grand scheme of things and is an improvement over the Olympus. What I do miss from the Olympus is the ability to select AF points using the rear LCD. Given the sheer number of AF points available, the joystick or buttons are too slow and using only half the AF points (which the camera can be set up for) feels like leaving a lot on the table. I hope that Nikon implements this in a future firmware update.

There is one small detail of the Z6 that stood out to me and I feel is worth pointing out. When turned off, the Z6 seems to lock the sensor in place, so that it doesn’t rattle and move freely. In my experience, both the Leica Q and Olympus E-M1.2 have this rattle and while I have no way to know for sure, I suspect that the lack of this might help with the longevity of the stabilization components.

Speaking of in-camera stabilization, I never expected the Z6 to match the Olympus in the numbers of stops of stabilization available. I don’t see how it’s possible when you have a bigger sensor in a similar sized package. In practice, this has proved to be correct. Though the advantage of the E-M1.2 is not as high as I had expected. I wonder if part of this has to do with pixel density – a 24MP FX sensor has much bigger pixels than a 20MP Micro Four Thirds sensor and more margin before shake is noticeable.

Where the Z6 does pull ahead of the E-M1.2 (or even the Z7 for that matter, it seems) is high ISO performance. I have no concerns shooting colour up to ISO25600, which is comfortably ahead of the Olympus’ ISO3200 limit. Once I factor in the gains in high ISO performance against the less effective stabilization, I’ve found that the Z6 has a larger shooting envelope than the E-M1.2.

All of this brings us to the question of image quality. As mentioned earlier, ACR support for Z6 RAW files is still not available so I’ve been editing and using the JPEG files. The JPEG engine and ability to fine tune profiles is on par with my E-M1.2 (though not as good as the PEN-F). In a pinch, I find that I’m able to use SOOC JPEGs for both colour and monochrome but given the time, I still end up making local adjustments by dodge & burn or a small curve. Colour profile will be familiar to Nikon users, and I’m glad I don’t have to spend so much time messing about with the red channel anymore.

With proper initial setup and careful exposure, the JPEGs will get you most of the way there and cut down the amount of time spent in Photoshop (or Lightroom) significantly. All my JPEG’s are recorded in Nikon JPEG Fine * (star) setting which seems to have very little compression over the RAW files. This might explain the latitude I’ve had in editing the JPEGs and why I rarely find myself missing the RAW files.

For those of you still reading, you’ll recall that in addition to a small form factor, good JPEG engine and stabilization or high ISO performance, I was also looking for a compact single lens solution. The 24-70/4Z is the ideal candidate – it covers most of the focal lengths I use for social documentary and the long end can focus close enough to shoot wristshots and other watch-related content. I no longer have to carry a dedicated macro lens and a couple of primes with me anymore.

Being limited to f4 may have been a hinder in the past, but with in-body stabilization plus the high-ISO performance of the Z6, I have yet to find myself in need of a faster lens. I do have other glass for the camera – specifically a modified Contax 85/2.8, the Voigtlander 180/4 APO, the Nikon 50/1.8G and the Nikon 105/2.8 Micro but these are used only when I’m shooting seriously and have need of them.

The 24-70/4Z is a good lens with minimal CA, well controlled flare, quiet and smooth bokeh. What impressed me most, was how compact the entire thing is and how ergonomically balanced and matched it is to the Z6. However, the lens does have two issues that I’ve noticed (both in mine and MT’s samples) – the first is distortion at the wide end, which is not entirely surprising and can be corrected once you know what to look for. The second is field curvature at long distances, which MT noted on his Z7 review. The second issue is something I would not have noticed for a long time if not for MT pointing it out and wanting to test my sample to check for sample variance.

AF with the 24-70/4Z and 105/2.8 Micro (via FTZ adaptor) has been reasonably quick and accurate. I haven’t felt like the AF speed of the Z6 was ever a bottleneck, but most of my applications aren’t as sensitive or reliant on AF speed. Accuracy is great since the camera focuses on the sensor plane. I have a higher hit rate with the 50/1.8G (via adaptor) on the Z6 than I did on the D610 for example.

MF on legacy or exotic glass is also much better. The Z6 has the best EVF I’ve ever used and Nikon thankfully has included focus peaking (though they, frustratingly, left out highlight peaking). While manual focus is better than with traditional dSLRs, I still find that I have to focus rack to nail exposure – especially when using something like the 55 Otus or the 180/4 APO. When peaking sensitivity is set to High or Normal, the camera tends to give you false positives and when set to Low, it sometimes doesn’t peak even when in focus.

This is an added bonus and not one that I set out looking for in the first place, but the Z6 is better suited (than the E-M1.2) to adapt non-native glass – thanks to the slightly taller and deeper grip. I’m excited at the prospect of experimenting with some exotic, non-native glass. Based on the few lenses I’ve tested with MT so far, I would also recommend the Z6 over the Z7 if you intend to use a lot of older lenses; the 24.5MP sensor is more forgiving of optical flaws than the 45.7MP one.

To try and wrap things up, what I found in the Z6 and enjoy is how well-rounded it is as a camera. I retain most of the advantages from the Olympus (smaller size, IBIS, EVF and focus peaking) and gain the advantage from the latest generation FX sensors (high ISO performance, dynamic range) in a familiar package (Nikon UI, button layout and colour profile). It seems that Nikon has been studying the competition and, while it may have been late to the playing field, it’s definitely not ill-equipped.

I can’t make a blanket recommendation on whether one should upgrade to the Z6 from a D750, D610, Olympus E-M5 Mark II or E-M1 Mark II (or any other camera). If your camera use and requirements are similar to mine, then it’s an easy yes. But if you have other considerations – I hope you find the information here useful in making a decision.

The Nikon Z6 in various combinations is available here from B&H or Amazon. As usual, referral purchases cost you nothing extra but do help support the costs of running the site.

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Images and content copyright Praneeth Rajsingh 2018 onwards. All rights reserved