Nikon Z6 III Camera Review
[SECTION]INTRODUCTION[/SECTION]
Quick Verdict
It’s perhaps expensive, but the handling soon reveals that this is a premium product that is yet another example of Nikon being at the top of their game. The images are great, the videos are smooth and even using the basic default
settings results in excellent results. With faster AF, a new partially stacked sensor, premium weather sealing and superb lenses, the Z6 III is a strong contender for being called the best in its class.
+ Pros
- New Partially Stacked 24.5MP CMOS Sensor
- New ultra bright 5.76M dot EVF
- Enhanced video specs
- Premium weather sealing
- AF and subject recognition to -10EV
- Significantly improved AF speed
- Superb high ISO performance
- 8 stops 5-axis VR
- Outstanding range of Nikkor Z lenses
- Nikon Imaging Cloud
– Cons
- High cost
The Nikon Z mirrorless range has been moving steadily onwards and upwards, with APS-C and Full Frame models, hybrid and high resolution alternatives and even modern and retro designs side by side. The new Z6 III reaches new heights for the hybrid design ethos, having both photographers and videographers firmly in its sights. It has clearly delivered a fantastic specification, so let’s have a close look and see how this translates into features and handling. Does the new camera achieve best in class status? Using the Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8S that has already earned itself the accolade of Editor’s Choice, let’s find out if the Z6 III can match its excellence.
Nikon Z6 III Features
The Z6 III weighs in at a solid 750g, including battery and SD card. It’s a moderately sized 138.5mm x 101.5mm x 74mm and balances well with the Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8S lens used for this review.
The camera is not cluttered with switches and dials, but has enough to make its operation intuitive and practical without having to constantly delve into the menus. Those items frequently used that are menu based can be easily accessed vis the i button, often called a Q button in other marques.
The 5.76M dot EVF is amazing, with a brightness of 4000 nits meaning that its visibility in bright light is not unduly impaired. It also boasts a wide DCI-P3 gamut for realistic colour rendition. The 3.2″ Vari-angle monitor is also very respectable with its 2.1MP dots. It delivers crsip images, albeit it not in the same class as the EVF.
The 24.5MP Full Frame CMOS sensor is described as Partially Stacked, less expensive to manufacture than a fully stacked sensor and yet almost as fast. It delivers stunning quality for both stills and video.
The EN-EL14c battery is housed in the baseplate. The EN-EL14b and EN-EL14a can also be used. The b version can charge in camera, the a version needs a separate charger, but both have reduced capacity compared to the current battery. The door on the right of the camera reveals the two card slots, one for CF Express Type B/XQD and the other for SD up to UHS-II. On the left side of the camera are the connectors, under two rubber flaps. It might have been good to have proper doors in terms of longevity. Connectors are USB-C, suitable for changing the camera, USB Type A and Ultrasynch Blue. Under a separate flap are the headphone jack and the external mike stereo jack.
A key feature is the low light capablilyty of the AF, down to -10EV, the same also being true of the subject tracking, now virtually at the same level as the Z8. At the other extreme, at high ISO values the quality is maintained to an extraordinary degree. Pre-release capture and 3D tracking are also provided.
Keeping things on an even keel is the 5-axis 8 stop VR, built into the body. IBIS also applies to video shooting and certainly the image in the viewfinder looks stable enough. The resulting videos are smooth and easy on the eye, no wavering about that can be fatiguing for an audience.
There are plenty of external buttons to access some useful and often used features directly, such as drive options, exposure compensation and ISO; there are various options for programming buttons to suit the individual. Some time spent setting up preferences will be well invested.
A unique first for the Z6 III is the new option of using Nikon Imaging Cloud. Once connected, this offers direct to camera firmware updates during charging. This can be automatic or selected manually as desired. When switched on, the camera can be automatically connected to the web service and any number of images uploaded for free for 30 days storage. Also offered are image recipes from Nikon and from other users. Once downloaded these will appear as new Picture Control profiles. There is no charge for NIC.
Nikon Z6 III Key Features
- Partially Stacked 24.5MP Full Frame CMOS sensor
- Exspeed 7 Processor
- Pre-release capture
- Mechanical shutter 30s – 1/8000s
- 14fps mechanical shutter
- Electronic shutter 30s – 1/16000s
- 20fps electronic shutter
- 5 axis VR 8 stops with focus point stabilisation
- Pixel Shift 96MP stills
- AF and subject detection to -10EV
- Metering from -4EV to +17EV
- ISO range 50-204800 (Extended)
- ISO range 100-64000 (Standard)
- SD UHS-II Card slot
- CF Express Type B/XQD Card slot
- Vari-angle 3.2” LCD Touch screen 2.1M dots
- EVF 1.27cm (0.5″) UXGA OLED 5.76M dots/4000 nits DCI-P3 wide colour gamut
- EVF 100% view, 0.8x magnification
- WiFi
- Bluetooth
- Nikon Imaging Cloud
- USB-C, Type A HDMI and timecode Ultrasynch Blue
- 138.5mm x 101.5mm x 74mm
- 750g with battery and SD card
- EN-EL 15c battery
- Premium weather sealing
- Operation down to -10C
- Optional vertical battery grip MB-N14
Nikon Z6 III Handling
There is little to complain about with Nikon cameras. They are robust, beautifully engineered and operate as slickly as their high end status demands. The initial menu settings can be a bit convoluted, and it still rankles slightly that instant image review has to be switched on, but of course once it’s done, it’s done, but I have seen it fox some new users.
Control placement falls to the right fingers and grips and the controls are resposive and smooth. There is plenty of customisation available, so whatever the photographer’s needs there will be a way to set things up as desired.
Ergonomically the design is well thought out, and for those who prefer a bigger camera there is always the new vertical battery grip.
In terms of video, the start/stop is smoother than many. To be kind to the audience a tripod will of course solve most problems, unless the video style pursued is the camera roaming free of constraints. The basic video setup delivers well, with some interesting effects from rotating car wheels and no doubt aircraft propellors as well.
All in all though, handling the Z6 II is a real pleasure, a fine camera well designed and well made and giving exceptional results.
[SECTION]PERFORMANCE[/SECTION]
Nikon Z6 III Performance
The performance section is where we look at the image quality performance of the camera. Additional sample photos and product shots are available in the Equipment Database, where you can add your own review, photos and product ratings.
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Nikon Z6 III Sample Photos
Lens Performance – The solidly built Z6 III balances very well with the Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8S lens provided for this review. The lens is a beauty and was duly awarded an Editor’s Choice in the ePHOTOzine review. The lens is a superb match for the Z6 III body.
Nikon Z6 III ISO test images
ISO Performance – At ISO values up to ISO 400 there is virtually no noise and an impressive amount of textural detail. The actual detail does slowly tail off, but we remain noise free up to ISO 1600. A trace of noise creeps in, and this is only a trace, at ISO 3200 and ISO 6400, but it is not until ISO 12800 that it becomes more obvious. At ISO 25600, the edges of the test target boxes show signs of feathering and this is more pronounced at ISO 51200. The plot is lost at ISO 102400, but in very low light conditions where any image is a bonus this does still produce a viable image. ISO 204800 reveals a noise pattern of unpleasant worm like structure and is a setting of last resort. Overall, the performance is very, very impressive and the versatility enabled by this should not be underestimated.
Nikon Z6 III White-balance test images
White Balance – There are various white balance presets available, these being Auto, Natural Light Auto, Direct Sunlight, Cloudy, Shade, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Flash, Choose Colour Temperature and Preset Manual. These options can all be fine tuned to taste. Most of the review samples were shot using Natural Light Auto, which serves well for general shooting with a slight emphasis towards a warmer image.
Nikon Z6 III Digital filters
Digital Filters – Digital Filters apply all sorts of styles and special effects to JPEG images and are well worth exploring in detail. We have Picture Controls: Auto, Standard, Neutral, Vivid, Monochrome, Flat Monochrome, Deep Tone Monochrome, Portrait, Rich Tone Portrait, Landscape and Flat. Then there are the 20 digital filters: 01 Dream, 02 Morning, 03 Pop, 04 Sunday, 05 Somber, 06 Dramatic, 07 Silence, 08 Bleached, 09 Melancholic, 10 Pure, 11 Denim, 12 Toy, 13 Sepia, 14 Blue, 15 Red, 16 Pink, 17 Charcoal, 18 Graphite, 19 Binary and 20 Carbon.
Probably any given photographer will look at some of these options and wonder why they would be there, but then another will latch on to the same and use it creatively. If we find just a few that appeal to us creatively then they are doing their job.
Video – Being a Hybrid design, the Z6 III has eyes on both photographers and videographers, and in terms of video does indeed produce clean, stable movies. The essentials are:
- 6K 60p RAW internal recording
- 5.4K 60p (YUV) recording
- 4K 60p UHD oversampled from 6K in-camera 240p (10x slow motion)
- N-RAW and ProRes compatibility
- 12-bit RAW
- 10-bit Log recording
- 10-bit H.265 option
- CFExpress/XQD/SD UHS-II cards supported
- External mic input for pro quality sound
[SECTION]VERDICT[/SECTION]
Value For Money
The [AMUK]Nikon Z6 III Body|Nikon+Z6+III+Body[/AMUK] is priced at £2699.00
Body plus Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/4, £3249
Body plus Nikkor Z 24-120mm f/4, £3539
Full frame alternatives include:
- [AMUK]Canon R6 II body|Canon+R6+II+body[/AMUK], £1999
- [AMUK]Panasonic Lumix S5 IIX body|Panasonic+Lumix+S5+IIX+body[/AMUK], £1899
- [AMUK]Sony A7 IV body|Sony+A7+IV+body[/AMUK], £2079
APS-C crop sensor alternatives include:
- [AMUK]Panasonic Lumix G9 II body|Panasonic+Lumix+G9+II+body[/AMUK], £1689
- [AMUK]Sony A6700 body|Sony+A6700+body[/AMUK], £1429
- [AMUK]Fujifilm X-S20 body|Fujifilm+X-S20+body[/AMUK], £1149
- [AMUK]Fujifilm X-T5 body|Fujifilm+X-T50+body[/AMUK], £1449
- [AMUK]Fujifilm X-H2 body|Fujifilm+X-H2+body[/AMUK], £1849
- [AMUK]Fujifilm X-H2S body|Fujifilm+X-H2S+body[/AMUK], £2499
The Nikon Z6 III looks expensive, but on the other hand is a very high performance camera that is extremely well built.
Nikon Z6 III Verdict
The Nikon Z6 III is a beauty, both in relation to its high quality of construction and to its highly intuitive and ergonomic design. At the top of the line of Z series cameras with 24MP sensors, it delivers in every respect, and is an obvious choice if the extra features of the higher resolution models are not required. For a Hybrid design, 24.5MP seems a good solid choice and the ease of use in both stills and video is exemplary.
There are plenty of outstanding Nikkor Z lenses to complement the Z6 III and Nikon’s description of it being a Powerhouse seems fair enough. It does seem the price is high when pitched against some very strong competition, so the final choice between marques is in terms of handling and whether or not the operational ethos of the camera fits well with the photographer or videographer.
A new innovation that broadens the possibilities is the introduction of Nikon Imaging Cloud. The concept of real time connectivity may have its applications, but perhaps the most useful is the direct firmware updating when the camera is being charged. No more unzipping and installing files, which seems a very useful convenience.
The Nikon Z6 III is, in any event, an obvious Editor’s Choice.
Nikon Z6 III Pros
- New Partially Stacked 24.5MP CMOS Sensor
- New ultra bright 5.76M dot EVF
- Enhanced video specs
- Premium weather sealing
- AF and subject recognition to -10EV
- Significantly improved AF speed
- Superb high ISO performance
- 8 stops 5-axis VR
- Outstanding range of Nikkor Z lenses
- Nikon Imaging Cloud
Nikon Z6 III Cons
- High cost
[REVIEW_FOOTER]R_features=5|R_handling=5|R_performance=5|R_value=4.5|R_overall=5|A_level=5|A_text=Editor’s Choice – A superbly made high level body that delivers on both handling and quality|E_id=8016[/REVIEW_FOOTER]
View the Nikon Z6 III specs in the equipment database.
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Source: Photography News
Nikon Z6 III Camera Review
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