Nikon Z6 III Review | Flagship Performance On A Prosumer Budget?

I’ve been waiting eagerly for the Nikon Z6 III to arrive, and it did not disappoint! 3-D Tracking, Blazing fast speed, and a fantastic price tag. This camera should give pause to serious professional photographers who might have been considering a camera that cost more than twice as much…

Even before the Z6 II was announced, we could have guessed what a successor to the Z6 II would offer: better autofocus, more speed, better video, and maybe more resolution? Honestly, considering the competition among “affordable high-speed action cameras”, I am okay with the 24-megapixel resolution in the Z6 III. 24 MP has been my “sweet spot” for wedding photography ever since I reviewed the Nikon D600, actually! So, for me, this camera could be perfect, at least on paper. 

Unfortunately, the new partially stacked 24-megapixel sensor does have some minor drawbacks, namely the dynamic range that is lost seemingly to favor the added burst of speed. However, this drawback is unlikely to hinder almost all photographers, unless you are used to being able to do some really serious digging into your shadows, especially at high ISOs.

But, I’m getting ahead of myself; let’s dive into this complete review of this excellent camera! For the price, it really is one of the best choices in its class.

Nikon Z6 III Specifications

• SENSOR: BSI CMOS, partially stacked, 24 megapixels
• LENS MOUNT: Nikon Z-mount mirrorless (Full-Frame)
• STILL IMAGES: 6048 x 4032 px stills
• VIDEO: 6K 60p N-RAW, 6K 30p ProRes, 4K 120p
• ISO: ISO 100-64000 (Native; 50-204800 extended)
• AUTOFOCUS: 273-point hybrid AF system, 3-D Tracking, Subject Detection
• SHOOTING SPEED (FPS): 20 FPS RAW stills, 60 FPS JPG stills @ full res, 120 FPS JPG stills @ DX crop resolution
• SHUTTER SPEEDS: 900 sec to 1/8000 sec mechanical shutter, 1/16000 e shutter
• STABILIZATION: Yes, rated 8 EVs stabilization
• VIEWFINDER: 5.76M dot, 0.8x magnification
• LCD: 3.1”, 2.1M-dot  touchscreen
• CONNECTIVITY: USB 3.2 (5Gbit/sec), Bluetooth & Wifi, full-size HDMI, headphone jack, microphone jack,
• STORAGE: 1 CFexpress Type B, one SD UHS-II
• BATTERY: Nikon EN-EL15c (USB-PD charging & direct power)
• BODY CONSTRUCTION: Magnesium alloy, rubberized grips, fully weather-sealed
• SIZE: 5.47 x 4.02 x 2.91 in ( 139 x 102 x 74 mm)
• WEIGHT: 1.68 lbs (760g) including batteries
• PRICE: $2,196 (if $300 holiday savings still applies!)
  (B&H | Adorama | Amazon)

Nikon Z6 III Review | Who Should Buy It?

With speed, autofocus power, and a robust professional camera body that houses a “modest” resolution sensor, the Nikon Z6 III is a contender for one of the best all-around pro or semi-flagship cameras on the market. It’s got serious “Jack of all trades” vibes, and in the best possible way. Actually, that’s not fair, because it qualifies as a “master” of at least a few photography subjects, too.

Specifically, any field where the resolution is enough, and either the speed and/or the autofocus prowess is used to its full potential. Quite honestly, however, if you’re really not pushing a camera to its limits, then you might be over-spending by getting the Z6 III, since its predecessor the Z6 II was already such an excellent camera. (Plus, there’s the issue with dynamic range on the Z6 III, which we’ll get to later.)

Suffice it to say, we’re recommending the Z6 III to many types of working pros, as well as any hobbyist whose interests are rather demanding and advanced.

The only genres where I might recommend a different camera are those where much higher resolutions are essential, such as landscape photography or high-end fashion & editorial photography. Yes, the Z6 III absolutely can rock those tasks, but I’d simply rather have a Z7 II instead. (Or, wait for a Z7 III?)

Wedding & Portrait Photography

For portrait and wedding photographers, the priorities are, in roughly this order of importance: image quality, autofocus reliability, camera durability, and then speed & resolution. The Z6 excels at all of these things, and it is priced such that you could either buy a 2nd one as your backup, or you could afford to not sell your Z6 II and keep it as a backup. (Every wedding photographer MUST have a backup camera!) 

Honestly, considering that Nikon now has added a complete set of affordable f/2.8 zooms and is actively adding affordable f/1.4 primes to their arsenal, I think Nikon is stealing the show for any portrait or wedding photographer who is looking to fill a complete lineup of lenses without breaking the bank!

(Recommendation for serious wedding & portrait pros hunting for maximum value: Nikon Z 70-180mm f/2.8, Nikon Z 28-75mm f/2.8, Nikon Z 17-28mm f/2.8, Nikon Z 35mm f/1.4, Nikon Z 50mm f/1.4, Nikon Z 85mm f/1.8 S.)

The only drawback we can think of is that slight hit that the Z6 III sensor takes to its dynamic range, specifically the shadow recovery. Wedding photographers in particular are the one genre of “people photography” where you almost need the dynamic range of a landscape photography camera, because of how often you find yourself photographing a white dress in dramatically lit scenes. 

For this one reason, I might instead consider making my 2nd camera something with both more dynamic range and higher resolution, such as a Z7 II. Especially if your portraits are going to be made into large prints relatively often; pairing a Z6 III with a Z7 II is an absolutely ultimate camera setup for all types of professional work.

Action Sports Photography

Obviously, this is where the Nikon Z6 III really excels. I’d almost call it a perfect choice, especially if you’re looking for value compared to the flagship options that cost more than twice as much. It’s got almost the same incredible autofocus reliability as the far more expensive Nikon Z8. In fact, I’d argue that if you could calculate a dollars-to-performance ratio, the Z6 III would give even the Nikon Z9, Sony A9 III (or A1) and the Canon EOS R1 a run for their money! 

I know that’s absolutely an apples-to-oranges comparison, but the point I want to drive home is that the Nikon Z6 III costs just $2,200-2,500, and yet it delivers 3-D autofocus tracking, 20 FPS, (or 60 FPS if you’re okay with JPG) …and almost all of the professional, durable build quality that a serious action sports pro would need.

Wildlife Photography

Here we have roughly the same scenario as action sports photography, but this time, there are a few additional challenges… Firstly, subject detection obviously goes beyond human faces, and starts demanding that the camera detect and lock onto all sorts of other subjects, from birds to bugs… 

Secondly, wildlife photographers often find themselves working in dawn or dusk twilight hours, when the ambient light is extremely low. Considering how wildlife subjects might still demand faster shutter speeds, this is doubly demanding of a camera’s high ISO performance.

This is where the Z6 III really pulls ahead of all its predecessors and siblings. Simply put, the autofocus performance combined with the image quality at “crazy” ISOs like 6400 or 12800 is a winning combination.

Candid & Everyday Photography, Vacations & Travels

While a lot less demanding compared to all of the above subjects, general candid photography can really benefit from features like reliable autofocus and a diverse array of subject detection options. I can’t say this is my top recommendation for “casual” types of photography. I also can’t deny that the Z6 III  would be a bit overkill for basic vacations and travels. 

However, as a working professional, even if I’m doing more casual things, I personally prefer to have a camera that just never lets me down in terms of nailing focus and being generally durable.

Nightscape & Astrophotography

The Z6 III’s sensor is optimized for speed, so that would be lost on any photographer who spends most of their time measuring their exposures in whole seconds. However, the performance at high ISO’s is quite good, in fact it’s roughly on par with competition, and even better than some of the far more expensive flagship cameras.

Having said that, here’s the thing: Since high ISO image quality hasn’t seen very drastic improvements in many years, if ALL you do is nightscape photography, you’re going to be just fine with a Nikon Z6 II, or even the original Z6, or, say, the Nikon Zf.

In other words, yes, this camera is great for nightscape & astrophotography, however, don’t get it purely for that purpose. Get it because you need the speed and/or autofocus performance.

Nikon Z6 III Review | Pros & Cons

Now that I’ve organized my recommendations by photographic subject, let’s dive deeper into the subtle nuances of how the camera actually performs, and dissect each of the technical reasons you might (or might not) buy the Nikon Z6 III.

If you want to skip this section, I’ll leave it at this: what we have here is a very professional camera that I find difficulty complaining about. The camera itself is really well-made, and I love Nikon’s ergonomics and user interface in general. The image quality and overall performance are superb, but roughly on par with many competitors. Lastly, the video results are also quite impressive, with a professional feature set including 6K 60p N-RAW, or 4K 120P.

Image Quality

At a glance, the images coming out of the Z6 III are gorgeous. Especially if you utilize the in-camera Picture Control settings, which apps like Adobe Lightroom recognize, you’ll often find that images barely need to be adjusted. A slight bump of your exposure, WB, and maybe a little shadow or highlight recovery, and you’re good!

The colors are beautiful; I especially like the “Landscape” Picture Control with the “Active D-Lighting” turned up a bit for almost all nature/outdoor photography scenes.

The high ISO image quality is excellent, too. Again, however, we haven’t seen much improvement in this regard in a while; the sensor is really all about speed improvements.

The dynamic range, unfortunately, does take a slight hit at its lower of the dual-gain ISO ranges. (Or whatever it’s called, you know what I mean!) This results in about a 1-EV loss of shadow recovery at ISO 100-400. Above that, when the higher range kicks in, you’re mostly on par with other cameras.

As you can see in the above example, we are approaching the territory of “doing horrible things to your raw files” in terms of the editing that must be applied in order to see any serious noise effects at ISO 100. (This “noise reveal” required setting Shadow and Blacks sliders to +100, and also dialing in some exposure brightening as well.)

In other words, the Nikon Z6 III’s dynamic range will be more than enough for you, unless you’re shooting “sloppy” exposures in extremely dynamic, demanding conditions, in which case, the problem is really user error.

Build Quality / Durability

Nikon’s very first Z-series camera was highly acclaimed for being built like a tank and yet not weighing too much, and the Z6 III is even more impressive. Nikon makes robust, rock-solid cameras that, in my experience, stand the test of time.

There seem to be three key areas where modern mirrorless cameras often fail: the stabilization unit, the shutter unit, and the weather sealing in general. In all three instances, Nikon’s designs are well-known to be incredibly robust. As a bonus, many wedding/portrait, action sports, and wildlife photographers will probably be opting to use the fully electronic shutter a lot, since it has virtually zero negative effect on image quality. (This was a huge issue on much older cameras, but it’s not so much nowadays.)

Autofocus Performance

This is where we must discuss the details of the Nikon Z6 III’s autofocus system, and compare it against alternatives. The key thing to know here is that, although the interface appears familiar to what you get with the flagship Z9 and Z8, it’s not truly identical all the way down to the exact CPU hardware. It simply can’t be, since AF is performed using the sensor itself too, and of course the Z6 III is a brand-new sensor design from Nikon.

WIth that in mind, the Z6 III is indeed very precise and reliable when it comes to nailing focus on various subjects. For my very high standards, it is qualified for work duty in even the worst lighting conditions such as a wedding reception dance floor, or photographing birds in the dim light of blue hour.

Having said that, it’s a ~$2.5K camera, and the cameras costing well over $4K are, in fact, better-performing. So if you demand the absolute best AF systems on the market, look at a Z8 or Z9.

Stabilization Performance

I want to add this new category to measure just how effective each camera body’s stabilization is, because the systems are getting quite advanced and different from each other. In the case of the Nikon Z6 III, we have a relatively new feature, focus-point centered corrections. This enhances not only the overall ability of the stabilization, but it hones in on your exact subject, which is especially useful for folks like portrait photographers who may be blurring out most of their image except for an in-focus face or two.

Suffice it to say, this IBIS (IBVR?) system is truly impressive. It’s CIPA rated to 8 EVs, but I never really trust that number in real life. All I can say is that this is one of the best stabilization systems I’ve ever used; it just works!

Features & Customizations

Finally, Nikon has offered a complete array of various features, such as focus stacking, pixel-shift modes, and one of the better built-in interval timers compared to other brands. (I love the 0.5 second interval when doing a time-lapse of faster subjects such as crashing waves or running water!)

In terms of advanced customization, though, Nikon can’t compete with the downright absurd level of button customization that Sony has offered. That will probably not matter to almost all photographers, however, for those who are absolutely obsessed with re-programming every single button on the camera, you might find one or two obscure functions that you can’t assign to this-or-that button. It’s not a problem if your brain is flexible; in fact I think it’s healthy for your neurons to be slightly re-wired once in a while!

Ergonomics & Comfort

Physically handling the camera is one reason why I have always loved Nikon cameras; they just feel effortless to operate, especially once you get familiar with the controls. The buttons are almost all in the right place, and when you get the camera fully customized to your shooting style, the Z6 III is a dream to operate.

I wouldn’t call it a “lightweight” camera, although it does feel noticeably more portable than a Nikon Z8. All in all, it’s compact and light enough that I’d gladly take it anywhere that I think a “serious” photo opportunity might arise.

Value

Here we have the icing on the cake. Just a few years ago, I would have expected nothing less than a $4,000 price tag for such a camera as this. In fact, the Nikon Z6 III’s blazing-fast speed is giving older cameras in the ~$6K price range a run for their money.

That alone is why Nikon’s “partially stacked” CMOS sensor gives this camera such a high value grade. It’s the biggest leap forward; that plus the autofocus make it one of the most affordable “flagship” level cameras on the market.

In other words, if you’re shopping for the most value in the ~$2K price range, pony up for the Z6 III. Alternatively, if you were/are shopping for a camera in the $4K+ price range, you should give the Z6 III a chance to impress you, too!

Nikon Z6 III Review | Compared To The Competition

The two most direct competitors to the Nikon Z6 III are the Canon EOS R6 II and the Sony A7 IV. We could also argue that considering the similar resolutions, Nikon is taking a swing at both the Canon EOS R1 and the Sony A9 III! Those two are rather bold claims, considering that both flagship cameras have a price tag nearly three times higher.

Therefore, it all comes down to this: If you’re a working pro, you could buy two Nikon Z6 III’s instead of just one of those other, more expensive cameras, and you’d still have money left over for lenses.

However, the Sony A7 IV and the Canon R6 II are both excellent values too, price at around $2K. Neither one is as cutting-edge as the Z6 III, but they each have a few subtle differences that might sway you in their favor. Having said that, I’d personally go with the Nikon, hands-down.

Nikon Z6 III Review | Conclusion

All in all, Nikon went beyond “a successor that did not disappoint”. This is a successor that basically takes a step up in its class, competing with the heavy-hitters in higher price ranges more than its predecessors and its same-priced competitors. For this reason, I highly recommend it.

The main caveat is the sensor itself, and all of the pros and cons it offers. If you want blazing fast speed, reliable autofocus, and a budget-friendly price tag, this is your top choice. However, if you want a more perfectly well-rounded camera that has incredible dynamic range for landscapes, (or more resolution for landscapes) and especially if you don’t really need 20 FPS, then it’s a bit tougher sell. This is especially true if you already have the excellent predecessor, the Nikon Z6 II. Having said that, for me personally, I would gladly step up to the Z6 III for almost every type of paid work that I do, and I would only reach for a Z7 II for my hobbies such as landscapes and 8K time-lapse / nightscape photography.

Check Pricing & Availability

The Nikon Z6 III is still on “Holiday Savings” at $2,196, although that might change soon, obviously. If so, it’ll be $2,496, at least for a while. I’d prefer to get (or wait for the reappearance of) the $300 savings, especially if I already have a Z6 II.

(B&H | Adorama | Amazon)