Nikon Z fc + NIKKOR Z 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR

Very nice camera. Of course you buy this partly for the looks, but you pay a small additional price for that. I am very satisfied, it is nice to shoot manually if you have the time, but you can also use the modern functions. A downside is that if you adjust the ISO you always have to press an unlock button .. Very nice in appearance that button but it is annoying because you can not hold the camera well against your eye while you turn the ISO, you can of course in the settings select auto ISO and that is also solved. The USB C is also great, so you shouldn't buy an SD card reader if your PC doesn't have one, just plug it in directly. If you go on holiday and you don't want to take the bulky battery charger with you, you can simply charge it with your mobile phone charger. The 16-50mm lens in the kit is very compact and light, but the quality is also a bit off. Buying a better lens after a year seems to me to be good for your development as a photographer.

For a novice photographer who likes retro equipment this is very good, you can learn manually and if you need to be fast you can shoot automatically.

We don't really need to talk about the appearance, because this camera just looks great with its retro looks. So I'm mainly going to talk about the use of the camera, the possibilities and the results. I normally shoot with a Nikon D850 or a Nikon D500. So I am very spoiled with the quality of these 2 cameras. Well, I don't always want to have to carry around a heavy camera, but I do want to always have a camera with me, one that can do more than my smartphone, with a large sensor that captures a lot of light and with which I can really focus on the subject , which separates nicely from the background. That works fine with this fairly bright 28 mm lens and this Nikon Z fc camera. It takes some getting used to the buttons, but that is really a matter of getting used to. The menu is the same as on all Nikon cameras. Every function is therefore easy to find. You can also see this menu in the viewfinder, so you don't have to open the screen for that. This can be useful if, for example, you want to quickly adjust specific functions in the menu while shooting. You can add it to 'My Menu', or 'My Menu'. You can also customize button functions. For example, the record button has no function during photography mode. For example, you can assign this button to 'My Menu', which allows you to quickly turn your favorite functions on and off. (think auto iso). If you want to film, you put the camera in video mode and then the record button works as expected and filming starts. You can also set 'back button focus' on the AE-L/AF-L button. This allows you to focus first before taking the photo with the shutter button. (Normally you press the shutter button lightly.). The camera has focus peaking. You choose a color in the menu once, for example red, and turn on focus peaking. If you focus manually, all sharp parts in the photo will get that red color, so you can see exactly what you focused on. Usually, however, you will use the auto focus of this camera. The camera automatically detects the eyes of people or animals. (there is a special mode for animals and one for humans, but both detect the eyes of both) This also works well with people who want to take a picture with their pet. I also tested whether I can easily photograph from a moving car (as a co-driver of course). You choose your subject in the distance, and the camera continues to follow this subject and focus on it. That actually worked almost perfectly, even on the highway. Not a single photo was a miss. Even when filming moving subjects, the camera handles the autofocus well and follows the subjects. If it is a bit darker, I do see some noise at the higher ISO values, but that is negligible. The camera performs much better than expected in these situations.

The cons: I find the camera strap a bit stiff. That will probably get smoother with time. The camera does not have a built-in flash. That's a shame, but I usually don't use it. You can also take a roll of leukopor plaster tape with you and stick a piece of it on the flashlight of your mobile phone and thereby illuminate your subject. Furthermore, I wouldn't put a heavy telephoto lens on this camera, but that's not what the camera is for. It is possible, but it seems less comfortable to photograph.

This camera actually surprised me so much that in more situations than I thought I would leave my big cameras at home and only take this little thing with me. I am really very happy with it.

Appearance

To be fair, this is a beauty of a device. I love that retro look! The camera feels light, especially if I compare it with the D7100 that I own and use a lot. Furthermore, the camera feels solid, robust. The buttons are all easy to use (setting the ISO takes some getting used to). The touchscreen, which moves nicely in all directions, also feels very solid. I myself still have to get used to 'touching' the touchscreen (but that is mainly up to me: from the D7100 I am used to working with arrows and the OK button). Opening the screen may be a bit difficult for people with thicker fingers.

I was afraid that I would miss the grip of the camera, but that is not so bad for me. Although I often hold my own camera there, I don't miss it very much here. The only downside that I can discover about this camera is the cover of the battery/SD card. The plastic finish makes it feel a bit fragile. And I actually miss a cover for the hot shoe

Ease of use

In terms of ease of use, this is very intuitive, of course, because I already shoot with Nikon. I had a lot more trouble with the Sigma fp, for example. One of the advantages of the Z fc is that the ISO can be set via a rotary wheel. Something that was of course not necessary with an analog device, but Nikon has given it a nice analog touch. Setting the shutter speed is also very pleasant. You can set the shutter speed in the old-fashioned way via 1/3 step and the rotary wheel on the back, but also in the even more old-fashioned way via the rotary wheel on the device. Really great!

The camera is also easy to carry due to its compact size. The kit lens is so compact that this camera is actually very suitable for street photography, but also for portrait photography: your model does not immediately have a huge camera in his/her face. What also strikes me is that the camera is very quiet. Of course this is because it is a mirrorless system, but so was my Sony A7II, and it made significantly more noise. Definitely a plus for the camera!

Quality photos

I was allowed to test with a number of lenses during a workshop. The standard kit lens is 16-50mm 3.5/6.3, the 40mm 2.0, the 50mm 1.8, the 28mm 2.8 and the 35mm 1.8. The photos from the kit lens in particular did not disappoint me at all. Even at 50mm with a max. aperture of 6.3, a very sharp photo came out with 400 iso, without too much significant noise. But here too: I'm used to a D7100, so this is a big improvement.

Conclusion

In principle I can be very short: I have already exchanged one of my cameras for the Z fc! The camera just looks fantastic, and works as you would expect from a Nikon. I will be working a lot with this camera in the coming period and I will certainly have a lot of fun with it!