Nikon Z 5 | Mirrorless Camera Review

Now that Lightroom has released V10 and I can open third party lens raw files, I wanted to deep dive into my thoughts and review the Nikon Z 5 mirrorless camera. I am by no means a “professional reviewer” these are my thoughts as a real world photographer using this camera.

I’ve had this camera for about three weeks as of writing this and I have to say I love it. What drew me to the Z 5 is the pricing, retailing at $1,399.95 for the body and a $49.95 special to include the F to Z mount adapter. The price is very affordable and a great way to enter into mirrorless. I bought it to be my second body at weddings and specifically be my gif camera.

Getting into some pros and cons of the Z 5 as a portrait and wedding photographer. I love how lightweight it is, weighing in at 590 g VS. the D780 at 840 g. It’s amazing how that makes a difference when shooting, especially when I do macro photos, I’m not struggling as much trying to hold the camera up. I didn’t jump on the Z 6 or Z 7 due to not having two card slots, and the Z 5 has two SD card slots. Silent mode is a HUGE plus, especially when I’m photographing ceremonies, I want to be as quiet as possible. The adapter works great with all my lenses including third party, the auto focus works on all of them.

As far as cons go, the autofocus isn’t 100% there yet with the Z series cameras. It’s better than Nikon DSLRs that I’ve owned in the past, but specifically for weddings I want to make sure I have the correct person in focus. I haven’t had an issue with camera battery yet, but if you shoot mainly through the screen instead of the viewfinder the battery can drain quicker. I personally haven’t found a con that made me regret or want to return the camera.

Below are some photos that I’ve taken with the Nikon Z 5. I’ve included a few with crop to show the sharpness and detail that is in the images. I’ve also included a gif from a recent session. As someone who makes a LOT of gifs, the Z 5 made the process so much easier and the result is so much more fluid.

Overall the Z 5 is an amazing mirrorless camera, it’s a lot of bang for your buck.