The Buyers guide to...Best Nikon cameras in 2023

The Nikon Z30 is Nikon’s best mirrorless option for beginners. The APS-C, or DX-format, camera boasts a 20.88MP sensor. This is paired with Nikon’s Expeed 6 processor, which enables a sensitivity range that starts at ISO 100 and goes up to ISO 25,600 for video or 51,200 for stills (with expansion settings of ISO 102,400 and 204,800).

Stills shooters can capture images at up to 11fps with full autofocus and metering capability, and you can shoot video at up to 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution at up to 30p or Full HD (1920 x 1080) at up to 120p.

Paired with an impressive AF system, the Nikon Z30 is a capable little camera that produces nice-quality images and video.

Read our Nikon Z30 Review

For years, Nikon’s D3XXX series of cameras has been our recommendation for anyone looking for their first DSLR. Having replaced the D3400 in August 2018, the Nikon D3500 is the most recent model in the line8. While it has a very similar specification as the camera it replaced, the D3500’s APS-C format 24.2Mp sensor is newer (although it has the same effective pixel count as the previous chip). In addition, it’s a little lighter than the D3400 and its battery lasts for a few more shots. Nikon has also tweaked its design a bit in comparison with the D3400.

Thanks to its 24Mp APS-C format sensor and Expeed 4 processing engine, the D3500 is capable of capturing detail-rich images. What makes especially suited to novice photographers, however, is its Guide Mode that explains how to take control of the camera in simple language.

SnapBridge is also integrated to simplify sharing images direct from the camera.

Read our Nikon D3500 Review

If you’re a professional photographer and you need a solid, dependable camera that has fast responses, can cope with low light and delivers sharp images in a wide range of conditions, then the Nikon D6 is a great choice.

Read our Nikon D6 Review

Read our Nikon Z9 Review

The Nikon D850 is arguably the best DSLR that has ever been made. It combines a 45.7Mp full-frame sensor with continuous shooting at up to 9fps with the optional MB-D18 Multi-Power Battery Pack. Even without the battery pack, it can shoot at 7fps and both rates can be maintained for up to 51 14-bit lossless compressed raw files or 170 12-bit lossless compressed raw files.

When the viewfinder is in action there’s also a superb 153-point AF system with 99 cross-type sensors and 15 sensors that support f/8).

As the D850 has a backside-illuminated sensor and the microlenses are gapless the pixels have the maximum opportunity to gather light. This and the Expeed 5 processing engine has enabled Nikon to give the camera a standard sensitivity range of ISO 64-25,600. There are also expansion settings that extend the range to the equivalent of ISO 32-102,400, but we recommend staying with the native range.

It’s proved an incredibly popular DSLR with photographers who appreciate its ability to combine a high pixel count with speed and excellent low-light performance.

Read our Nikon D850 review

The Nikon Z50 has some great advantages as a result of its mirrorless design. The 2.36-million-dot electronic viewfinder, for example, can show the image as it will be captured, complete with any exposure, white balance and Picture Control settings applied. And you can switch seamlessly from shooting using the viewfinder to using the 3.2-inch screen.

Further good news is that the 209-point autofocus system, which uses phase detection, is excellent even in low light. You’ll have no problem shooting sport or action with it.

But if you’re getting into video, or thinking about it, you can also shoot 4K video at up to 30fps, and there’s a mic port to connect an external microphone. You can also shoot Full HD footage at up to 120fps, which means you can really slow down action if you want to add a bit of drama.

Nikon’s SnapBridge technology is also built in and it does a great job of firing low-resolution copies of your images to a paired phone. It’s amazing how useful that is.

What’s more, Nikon now sells a Vlogger Kit for the Z50, which includes the the Z50 and 16-50mm lens, a SmallRig Vlogging Mounting Plate for Nikon Z50 Camera LCN2525, a Rode VideoMicro microphone and a Manfrotto Pixi mini tripod.

Read our Nikon Z50 Review: updated for Vlogging

Although the Z6 and Z7 were Nikon’s first full-frame mirrorless cameras, and some might argue the company’s first serious mirrorless cameras, they avoided that ‘first generation’ feel. They are both excellent cameras. However, there’s one aspect that many photographers feel is a mistake for a high-end digital camera, they each only have one card slot. Happily, the mark II cameras correct this and the Nikon Z7II has two memory card slots, one that can accept CFexpress or XQD cards and the other that’s designed for SD-type UHS-II media.

By adding a second card slot, the Nikon Z7II corrects the main concern that photographers have about the original Z7. Adding a second Expeed 6 processing engine also boosts the continuous shooting rate, takes 4K shooting to 60P, deepens the burst depth and enhances the low-light capability of the autofocus system. It’s a solid update.

Inside the Nikon Z7II is the same full-frame 45.7MP backside-illuminated (BSI) sensor as is in the original Z7. This is a similar, but not identical sensor to the one that’s in the Nikon D850.

Nikon has paired the Z7II’s sensor with two Expeed 6 processing engines. That’s a first for Nikon, even its flagship DSLR, the Nikon D6, has a single Expeed 6 engine.

The Nikon Z7 II has a high dynamic range which means it can capture a wide range of tones in a single image. That’s good news for images straight from the camera, but it also translates into greater scope for adjusting images post-capture. On those occasions when you might need to reduce the exposure to preserve the brightest highlights, you can do so in the knowledge that the shadows and mid-tones can be brightened in processing.

The Z7 II’s raw files withstand substantial brightening well. In fact, low-ISO images can cope with being brightened by 4 or even 5EV with only a slight increase in the noise level.

Read our Nikon Z7 II Review

Read our Nikon Z6 II Review