Video was once an afterthought for Nikon, however because the firm bought RED final yr, content material creators are actually excessive on its precedence listing. An ideal instance of that’s Nikon’s new $2,200 ZR: a full-frame mirrorless mannequin that stands up in opposition to devoted cinema cameras for a fraction of the worth.
It’s the primary client digital camera to seize video utilizing RED’s 12-bit RAW format, however in contrast to RED’s Hollywood cameras, it has a quick and correct autofocus system. It additionally comes with an enormous show, professional video monitoring instruments, in-body stabilization and 32-bit float inside audio recording. After capturing a brief movie that examined its capabilities, I can verify that the Nikon ZR affords unimaginable video high quality at this value.
Nikon
Nikon’s ZR affords the very best RAW video high quality in any client digital camera, together with fashions costing rather more. On the identical time, it’s extra sensible than cinema cameras due to the wonderful autofocus and in-body stabilization. It does lack an EVF, although, and battery life isn’t nice.
$2,197 at Amazon
Physique and dealing with
Whereas a bit lighter than Nikon’s Z6 III, the 1.19-pound (540-gram) ZR feels stable. It has a boxy design like Sony’s FX2 however a a lot smaller grip as a result of it’s designed to be rigged up for cinema capturing with cages and handles. Nevertheless, in contrast to the FX2 which has a number of 1/4-inch mounting threads to do such rigging, the ZR sadly has solely a type of on the underside.
The ZR additionally lacks an digital viewfinder just like the FX2, nevertheless it greater than makes up for that with its enormous 4-inch show — the most important I’ve ever seen on a mirrorless digital camera. At 1,000 nits, it’s brilliant sufficient to shoot on sunny days, extraordinarily sharp (3.07 million dots) and flips out for vloggers. All of that makes it an ideal main show for checking the picture and controlling the digital camera.
Nikon has nailed the ZR’s dealing with, too. Whereas it’s not coated with buttons and dials like some fashions, it does have two capturing dials to manage publicity and a joystick for autofocus. There’s additionally a digital camera/video change, two document buttons, an influence change and 5 customizable buttons. A lot of Nikon’s lenses include management rings as effectively, so additional guide management is obtainable.
The menu button is uncommon: you press as soon as for the fast menu and maintain to see the total menu. Given the big variety of settings, I might advise anybody shopping for this digital camera to study all of the vital changes, then customise the controls to keep away from wading via dense menus whereas capturing.
One other distinctive function is within the battery compartment. There’s a single quick CFexpress slot to deal with RAW video, plus a microSD slot for proxies. The dearth of a second CFexpress slot or quick SD card slot for backup isn’t perfect for knowledgeable digital camera, although.
Lastly, the ZR runs on the identical N‑EL15c batteries as different Nikon mirrorless cameras. They permit 90 minutes of HD capturing on a cost, or 390 pictures per CIPA requirements. That’s mediocre, so should you’re planning lengthy shoots, top off on batteries.
Video
Steve Dent for Engadget
The Nikon ZR has the most important collection of RAW video settings I’ve seen. The centerpiece is RED’s RAW R3D NE mild codec (designed by RED for Nikon) with RED’s Log3G10 log format. It additionally helps Nikon’s N-RAW, ProRes/ProRes RAW and H.265 with decision that ranges from 6K at as much as 60 fps to 4K 120 fps and 1080p at 240 fps. Regardless of the smallish physique, it might probably seize 6K RAW video repeatedly for 125 minutes with out overheating.
The 24MP sensor makes use of a twin ISO system with native 800 and 6,400 ISOs, offering a pleasant vary for indoor and outside capturing. The corporate claims 15+ stops of dynamic vary, which is extra than simply about another mirrorless digital camera. Different key video options embrace five-axis in-body stabilization with seven stops of shake discount, waveform and vectorscope monitoring and a false coloration show for guide focus.
To check the digital camera’s options and video high quality, I shot a brief movie in a mixture of indoor low mild, outside daytime and a combination between the 2. I additionally shot handheld (together with working with it) to check the stabilization. I primarily captured in R3D RAW, in addition to Nikon’s N-RAW on the native 800 and 6,400 ISOs to maximise dynamic vary. (You possibly can take 24MP pictures with this digital camera, however I’m specializing in video because it’s primarily designed for that.)
With the intention to not see a flat log profile when capturing, you’ll want to use a look-up desk (LUT) designed for RED cameras, like “Achromic,” “Bleach” or “Caustic.” These are just for in-camera previews and never baked into the video, however you’ll be able to apply these LUTs later in Adobe Premiere or DaVinci Resolve to get the identical look.
Steve Dent for Engadget
With such a excessive native ISO, I used to be capable of shoot inside with a single studio mild. Video high quality was excellent with little noise in shadow areas, even after boosting black ranges in submit. In the meantime, the RED R3D codec and Log3G10 gave me additional latitude to disclose shadow element and dial down highlights after I shot the topic in opposition to a brilliant window.
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