Nikon Z50 Review

For their first APS-C mirrorless, Nikon created the Z50 as an intermediate-level model with core features between the D5xxx and D7xxx series of DSLRs, while also including many that are exclusive to mirrorless cameras. Of course, the most important feature of the Nikon Z50 is its compact-size and lightweight body. Its inclusion of advanced functionality and good number of controls makes it lean towards photographers that are ready to experiment with photography and the new Z-mount platform.

The heart of the Z50 is a 20 megapixels BSI-CMOS sensor with wide sensitivity range and a 209-Point Phase-Detect AF system built right in. The sensor omits a low-pass filter to maximize the amount of detail it captures. One omission though is the lack of a automatic sensor-cleaning system. This makes the Z50 quite prone to dust which can be cleaned manually but this fact could make beginners uncomfortable. In fact, the sensor does not move at all since the Z50 also omits image-stabilization. The industry is still split on its inclusion yet manufacturers are leaning towards in-body stabilization.

One clear advantage of mirrorless cameras is speed. The Nikon Z50 can shoot continuously at 11 FPS for 71 JPEG images or 30 RAW files. Among DSLRs, this level of performance is only available in high-end models because the mechanics of a reflex mirror are much more demanding. The hybrid shutter of the Z50 is capable of working mechanically at maximum speed, although the front-curtain is usually electronic to minimize vibrations. To further reduce shake, Nikon offers a customizable Shutter-Delay from 0.2 to 3 seconds. There is an option in the Configuration menu to force a completely mechanical shutter yet it always appeared disabled on our review unit. A completely silent electronic shutter is also available.

Exposure latitude on the Nikon Z50 is quite standard. The mechanical shutter operates from 1/4000 to 30s with a maximum 1/2000s when using EFCS. Longer Bulb and Time exposures are also possible to capture light trails. The standard sensitivity range of the 20 MP BSI-CMOS sensor in this mirrorless starts at ISO 100 and reaches 51,200. This is expandable 2 stops further until ISO 204,800. While this makes the Z50 more sensitive than most APS-C cameras, faster shutter-speeds are available on modern mirrorless which evens things out.

Nikon provides the most sophisticated Interval Timer modes, including in the new Z50. One can select and interval from ½s to a full day with up to 9999 intervals. Between 1 and 9 images can be captured at each interval and the process can start up to 1 week later! Allowing multiple frames per intervals makes it possible to create HDR Timelapse using AEB. The Interval Timer can be customized with:

• Exposure Smoothing - Dampens changes in exposure between shots. This reduces Automatic Exposure changes between shots to smooth transitions.
• Silent Photography - Forces the use of the electronic shutter to reduce noise from the camera. For some undocumented reason, one cannot combine Silent Shooting together with multiple frames per interval.
• Interval Priority - This decides whether the interval or the shutter-speed has priority. When Interval Priority is On, images are always taken at the given interval, even if more time is required for the exposure.
• Starting Storage Folder - Allows the sequence of images produced to be stored in a folder separately from other images and videos.

There is a separate Time Lapse feature that creates a 4K Ultra-HD or Full 1080p video from a automatically captured images, played back at 24-30 FPS for 4K and up to 60 FPS for Full-HD. It supports an interval from 1s to 10m for up to 8 hours. Intelligently, this digital camera warns in advance if sufficient memory is not available.

Four metering patterns are available on this mirrorless: Matrix, Highlight Weighed, Center-Weighed/Average and Spot. Highlight Weighed, combines multiple segment readings to preserve highlights. Average or Center-Weighed metering depends on an option in the Customization menu that selects between average or a 8mm central metering circle.

Auto-Exposure Bracketing can be enabled for 2 to 9 frames with steps up to ±3 EV when taking 5 frames or less. One can bracket exposure parameters, flash or both. Virtual Bracketing for WB or Adaptive D-Lighting can be performed instead with 3 step sizes for WB and 5 for ADL. In both cases, only one photo is taken but it is rendered multiple times. For obvious reasons, Virtual Bracketing only applies to JPEG.

Realizing the nuances and difficulties of Auto White-Balance, Nikon offers 4 variants on the Z50: Neutral White, Natural White, Warmth Preserving and Natural Light Balancing, although Nikon does not name them so distinctly. There are 6 presets With 7 sub-types for Fluorescent: Sodium-Vapor, Warm-White, White, Cool-White, Day-White, Daylight, High Temperature Mercury Vapor.. Custom WB now has 6 memories. Each nicely shows a thumbnail of the image from which it was recorded. A small selectable area can be sampled. Kelvin WB can be selected between 2500K and 10000K. WB Fine-Tuning offers two axis except for Kelvin which only supports the G-M axis. Regardless, there are always 49 steps along G-M and 25 along B-A. The temperature span along each axis is actually the same, only Nikon allows twice as fine increments along one axis.

This camera features Nikon's Active D-Lighting image processing technology which lightens up dark areas of images to bring out details. There are 5 levels of ADL which differ by how much shadows get boosted. ADL can be manually or automatically set to one of those levels or turned off entirely. Active D-Lighting indirectly affects RAW capture because exposure is adjusted according to the selected level.

Along with this APS-C mirrorless, Nikon launched two dedicated DX lenses that emphasize compactness above all else. These two lenses are dim variable aperture zooms with a collapsible design. Together these span a focal-range of 16-250mm which is equivalent to 24-375mm in a full-frame. The Z50 natively supports the handful of already existing Z-mount lenses plus most Nikon AF-S lenses via an optional adapter.