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Nikon ZR: two-minute review
The new Nikon ZR is the first in a new line of Nikon / RED cinema cameras, and instantly makes Nikon a major new player in this space, capable of going to toe-to-toe with Sony, Canon, Blackmagic and Panasonic.
Nikon solely acquired RED Digital Cameras 18 months in the past, and it is made quick work of manufacturing the surprisingly polished and succesful ZR, adorned with Z Cinema Digicam and Nikon / RED branding, and out there for a tantalizing value that considerably undercuts rivals.
It packs a bunch of Nikon Z6 III tech, together with the identical 24MP partially stacked full-frame sensor, 5-axis picture stabilization, subject-detection monitoring autofocus and extra, into an especially compact, weather-sealed cinema digicam physique.
We get 6K 60fps video with inner RAW recording, with any considered one of 9 industry-favorite RED coloration profiles baked in – that is the Nikon / RED amalgamation really bearing fruit – plus 4K 120fps and Full HD 240fps slow-motion recording.
Handily, shutter angle might be set robotically to 180 levels, so there is not any must fiddle with guide publicity settings, plus the shutter angle might be set to any place between 5 and 360 levels manually, do you have to want.
We don’t get open gate video recording as in some rivals like the Canon EOS C50, however the ZR has one other trick up its sleeve: maintain the digicam vertically, and its UI robotically rotates, with the vertical orientation embedded within the video information and robotically detected in Nikon’s enhancing software program, delivering full-resolution vertical video.
The ZR is the primary digicam of its sort with inner 32-bit float audio seize, plus what Nikon says is the best-quality inner mics but – a triple mic combo with Ozo audio and a alternative of 5 directional pickup patterns, together with binaural.
Alongside the ZR, Nikon has launched the ME-D10 directional mic (you may see it slotted into the digicam’s hotshoe within the picture above), which is appropriate with the digicam’s 32-bit float capabilities.
That is additionally the smallest cinema digicam I’ve used, but it nonetheless squeezes in a big, brightest-in-class 4-inch vari-angle touchscreen. Naturally, there is not any viewfinder.
Given its tiny dimension, there are compromises. We don’t get a number of the professional connectivity present in different pricier compact cinema cameras – for instance there’s solely a micro HDMI port, not a full-size one. Nevertheless, in the event you nonetheless really feel the necessity to use an exterior monitor even with the big 4-inch built-in show, all you will want is a micro-to-full-size HMDI adaptor to get related.
Sadly, the ZR lacks mounting factors for video equipment and, with no grip, you’ll undoubtedly need to rig it up with a grip or a cage for a greater maintain. Which means forking out for ZR-dedicated gear – Nikon outsources to main accent maker SmallRig.
Nevertheless, at simply £2,199 (US and Australia pricing is TBC), no different cinema digicam comes near the ZR for video options – and this aggressive pricing will soften the blow of any further outlay on equipment.
I can see the Nikon ZR as a go-to b-cam for a lot of execs, particularly these already capturing with a RED digicam, for whom the colour profile matching will make for a seamless workflow. That stated, this can be a succesful video digicam in its personal proper too.
The Nikon ZR is an extremely succesful and polished compact cinema digicam with world-first options, and an thrilling first step into the filmmaking house for Nikon. Ought to video lenses quickly comply with (most Z lenses are designed primarily for images), together with a higher-end cinema digicam with professional connectivity to sit down above the ZR, then Nikon will really discover its footing on this house.
Nikon ZR: price and release date
- Costs £2,199.99 (US and Australia pricing TBC)
- There will be various accessory bundles, TBC
- Sales start in October
The Nikon ZR costs £2,199 (US and Australia pricing is TBC, but that coverts to roughly $2,980 or AU$4,500). At that price it significantly undercuts rivals – such a feature set is typically found in cameras that cost around 50% more, and more often in cameras closer to twice the price.
That said, there are no video accessories included, and you’ll want to fork out for some in order to enjoy the ZR’s handling and feature set to its full potential. These will likely include a grip and / or cage, plus Nikon’s new ME-D10 directional mic, which is compatible with the camera’s 32-bit float audio format.
Nikon doesn’t make its own accessories such as grips or rigs, relying on third parties such as SmallRig to supply those. At the time of writing I don’t have pricing for dedicated ZR accessories.
The Nikon ZR is due to go on sale in October 2025.
Nikon ZR: specs
|
Video |
6K up to 60fps, Raw internal |
|
Photo |
24MP full-frame |
|
Lens mount |
Nikon Z |
|
Autofocus |
Dual Pixel CMOS AF II |
|
Screen |
4-inch, 3.07m-dot, vari-angle |
|
Viewfinder |
N/A |
|
Weight |
19oz / 540g (body only) |
|
Battery |
EN-EL15 (same type as Nikon Z6 III / Z8) |
Nikon ZR: Design
- Smallest and lightest cinema camera of its kind; weather-resistant
- Large 4-inch, 3.07m-dot touch LCD with brightest in-class display, no viewfinder
- No mounting points for accessories
- 3x internal mics, Ozo audio with five directional pickup patterns
As far as I know, the Nikon ZR is the smallest and lightest camera of its kind, weighing just 19oz / 540g (body-only). It’s also weather-resistant, which is a rarity in the cinema camera world.
There are pros and cons resulting from the tiny dimensions. Drawbacks include enthusiast-level connectivity, like micro HMDI rather than full-size (though you only need an adaptor to remedy this), and the absence of a grip or mounting points for accessories. A camera like the Canon EOS C50 feels more high-end, given its pro-level connectivity.
It feels best to keep things simple with the ZR, making the most of its compact body and powerful features by minimizing the number of accessories in play. A grip is the one accessory I would absolutely look into buying, while if you want to rig up the ZR you’ll need a cage, which will in turn allow you to attach accessories such as lights and mics – Nikon has partnered with SmallRig to create grips and cages for the ZR (pricing TBC).
Image 1 of 4
Despite its tiny body, the ZR packs a large 4-inch touch display. As such, I don’t really see the need for attaching a bulky external 5-inch monitor. It certainly helps that the ZR’s 3.07m-dot display is wonderful bright and vivid – the brightest in its class, says Nikon. Mind you, I’ve only used the ZR in a studio; a truer test will be the bright outdoors.
Other cinema cameras, like the Sony FX3 and Canon EOS C50, solely have 3-inch shows, whereas the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K has a mega 5-inch unit. Within the case of the Sony and Canon fashions, I would completely need to add a monitor to my setup.
The digicam’s prime plate is fairly easy: there is a photograph / video swap (although sadly the UI stays the identical whichever setting you are in, slightly than there being devoted menus for photograph and video), report button with rocker, plus three buttons for accessing objects comparable to show settings.
The rear is dominated by the big contact show, which when folded away reveals the Nikon / RED branding. Beside it are a joystick for controls comparable to autofocus level choice, a menu button (a fast press brings up the primary menu and an extended press brings up the fast menu, which is a pleasant contact) and a playback button.
Picture 1 of 4
Battery life guarantees to be okay, provided that the ZR makes use of the identical EN-EL15 battery because the Nikon Z6 III and Nikon Z8. There aren’t any vents or cooling followers, although, which might usually counsel {that a} digicam of this sort can be susceptible to overheating throughout lengthy recording periods.
I have not recorded clips any longer than a couple of minutes, however I will remember to run the digicam for longer throughout my in-depth testing. Nevertheless, Nikon says the digicam’s magnesium alloy physique is a pure warmth sink, and guarantees that lengthy report instances are doable, and based mostly on my expertise with earlier Nikon cameras I’ve no motive to doubt it.
There’s thrilling tech underneath the hood, too, specifically a completely new Ozo audio setup, which includes three mics. Collectively, these provide 5 directional pickup patterns, together with entrance slender (like a shotgun mic), entrance huge, rear and binaural 3D stereo.
Nikon says this Ozo system is the perfect inner mic setup of any digicam, and it is supported by a world-first: in-camera 32-bit float audio seize. Nikon’s new ME-D10 shotgun mic, launched similtaneously the ZR, helps 32-bit float audio too.
These are spectacular audio options for any digicam, not to mention one at this value level, and I stay up for correctly testing them out.
Nikon ZR: Performance
- 6K up to 60fps, 4K up to 120fps, Full HD up to 240fps
- Internal RAW recording and RED color profiles (up to nine in-camera at any time)
- Subject-detection autofocus and 5-axis image stabilization
- 24MP stills, partially stacked full-frame sensor
For the most part, the Nikon ZR has the same photo and video specs as the Z6 III (which we awarded five stars out of five in our in-depth review), which means a full-frame partially stacked 24MP sensor equipped with 5-axis image stabilization.
Add in decent subject-detection tracking autofocus and the ZR is a capable stills shooter, although while this is useful for on-set stills, the main focus of my testing is of course the ZR’s video chops.
Like the Z6 III, the Nikon ZR shoots 6K up to 60fps, 4K up to 120fps and Full HD up to 240fps. There’s the option for shooting internal RAW with a 12-bit color depth, or keeping things simple and baking in the look at capture with 10-bit recording.
Given the array of creative styles and color profiles on board, which includes space for up to nine RED color profiles at any one time, you might just feel happy to skip shooting RAW, with its large file sizes and grading demands, and use one of the many baked-in color profiles instead to save editing time and space on your hard drives.
I shot a variety of video clips during a half-day session with a drummer in action inside a studio, including 6K RAW, a few of the RED profiles baked in, and 240fps slow-motion – see my sample video, above.
In this setting, the ZR delivered some superb-looking video. I’ll be expanding this first impressions review with more detail about its video and audio quality, once I’ve had an extended time with the ZR.
Nikon ZR: also consider
How I tested the Nikon ZR
- I had just half a day with the ZR
- I paired it with multiple Nikon Z lenses and tried out the new ME-D10 mic
- No third-party accessories were available, so I used the camera handheld
I had the opportunity to shoot with the Nikon ZR for half a day ahead of its launch, using it for an indoor stage-lit shoot of a drummer in action.
Nikon supplied an array of Z-mount lenses for the shoot, of which I used a few primes and zooms. The new ME-D10 directional mic was also available on the day.
Nikon doesn’t make its own rigs or cinema camera accessories, relying on third parties such as SmallRig instead. None of these accessories were available to me, so I shot with the ZR entirely handheld, without a grip or rig.
During my limited test time I made sure to shoot in 6K RAW, 240fps slow motion, and to try out various color profiles, focusing on the RED looks.
I have plenty of experience using rival cinema cameras such as the Sony FX3, so I’m well equipped to make an informed initial assessment of the ZR. That said, cinema cameras need to prove themselves as tools their users can rely on shoot after shoot, so check back soon for my in-depth verdict after I’ve spent more time with the camera.
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