The Nikon Z5 is Nikon's affordable full-frame entry-level model. The camera is a bit simpler than the Z6 and Z7, but certainly surprisingly complete for photography. You can also film with the Z5, although the Z6 and Z7 are really better. If you're looking for a good photography camera and not really a hybrid device, then the Z5 is a good choice.
The Nikon Z5 is Nikon's new "entry-level" model, which is lower than the Z7 and Z6. Entry-level models are often heavily cropped cameras with fewer controls and lower build quality. That's not really the case with the Z5. The camera is surprisingly complete and also weatherproof.
The Nikon Z5 has everything you could want in a camera. Full-frame 24-Mp sensor? Yes. Image stabilization in the body? That also. Full frame phase detection autofocus? Touch screen, OLED viewfinder, microphone and headphone jack, two card slots, Full HD and 4K video, time lapse, WiFi and Bluetooth? Yes, it has it all. How is this camera smaller than existing models? Especially the details. A bit more plastic has been used on the body and the camera does not have an LCD display on top. The screen can only be tilted and not rotated. Speed is also slower, despite the Expeed 6 processor also used in the Z6. The camera also lacks some advanced features for video. For professionals, these may be reasons to look at the Z6 or Z7. For anyone who just wants to take beautiful photos, the Z5 offers practically everything you could wish for. And if you limit your videos to Full HD, then the Nikon Z5 is also a decent video camera.
The Nikon Z5 is about the same size as the Z6 and strangely weighs the same. This is notable because the Z5 has a body made of magnesium alloy and plastic, while the Z6 is made entirely of magnesium alloy. Both cameras also look very similar, which is good. This means you can easily use them together. There are of course differences. The Nikon Z5 does not have an LCD on the top cover, but a traditional shooting mode selector. The screen is also different. It doesn't rotate, but it can be tilted.
The Nikon Z5 has an OLED viewfinder with 3.69 million dots and a viewfinder magnification of 0.8x. This is a large viewfinder and the same as the Z6. It's really nice to have a really good viewfinder even on the base model. The TFT screen is 8 cm in size and has 1 million pixels. The dimensions are the same as the Z6's screen, but the resolution is half that. It can only tilt and not turn. It is sensitive to touch.
The hybrid AF system has 273 focus points that cover almost the entire image field. The camera can use eye recognition not only for humans, but also for cats and dogs. The AF system is the same as the more expensive Z6. The fact that the Z5 is identical to the Z6 in important components is what makes it so attractive. Autofocus works quickly and accurately, even when tracking moving subjects. It should be noted that the autofocus speed depends on the maximum aperture of the lens. Combined with the Z5's not-so-bright kit lens, the Nikon Z 24-50mm F4-6.3, you lose some low-light speed.
The Nikon Z5 has a 24Mp sensor, just like the Z6. However, it is not the same sensor. The Z6 has a BSI sensor; The Z5 doesn't. The Z5's sensor is more similar to that of the Nikon D750. The difference between the Z5 and Z6 is in the use of a silent electronic shutter. BSI sensors have a higher reading speed and thus a smaller rolling shutter. When using the Z5's silent shutter, the sensor reads a little slower, which can be a problem with fast-moving subjects.
Apart from the rolling shutter, the Z5's image quality is almost identical to the Z6's. Sharpness is high and the dynamic range of the sensor is good. This, by the way, is something that has been a strong point of Nikon cameras for several years. So the fact that the Z5 doesn't have the latest new sensor is nothing to worry about when it comes to things like dynamic range. Especially at the lowest sensitivity, you can significantly brighten the shadows without suffering from noise or banding. At high sensitivities you can see a fraction more noise than the Z6, but it's not too much.
Like the Z6 and Z7, the Z5 has built-in image stabilization. This makes the Z5 perhaps more interesting as an entry into the Z system than the APS-C model, the Z50. That camera doesn't have image stabilization (and has a limited range of lenses). This means you can also shoot and film handheld with the Z5 with non-VR (Vibration Reduction) lenses with slower shutter speeds. This applies to both Z and Nikon F lenses that you use with an on-camera adapter. Image stabilization should be good for 5 feet of gain, and in practice we get pretty close to that. That's pretty good for a full-frame camera, especially in this price range.
The Z5 can shoot in 4K and Full HD, as is actually inevitable these days. In 4K, you can shoot at 24, 25 and 30 frames per second. Full HD recording is also available at 60 frames per second. In Full HD, the camera uses the entire width of the sensor. In 4K you have to deal with 1.7 cropping. For vlogging, this means that you lose quite a bit with the standard zoom in 4K with the field of view. And even with 14mm, the largest wide-angle lens in the Z system, the field of view in 4K is still not very wide. Of course, the Z5 isn't an ideal camera for vlogging because you can't rotate the screen. Image quality in 4K is also decidedly less good than the Z6. Z5
In Full HD, the Z5 delivers excellent image quality that can compete with better models in this class. The sharpness is high, the rolling shutter is much smaller and by using the entire sensor you can optimally use the angle of view of your lenses in Full HD. The Z5 doesn't offer RAW video, which isn't really that surprising. But it offers good autofocus and image stabilization and has both a microphone connection and a headphone connection. You can also use overexposure and focus warning while shooting.
The camera has an input for a microphone and headphones. The camera is also "web cam" ready. This means you can connect it directly to your computer via the USB-C port and use it as a webcam. This saves buying a separate card for HDMI digitization.
