Camera Test | SLR and System Cameras
Very large, pro-grade SLR with 16-megapixel
full-frame sensor and 10-fps continuous
shooting. ISO sensitivity can be pushed up to
204 800. Full HD video with many user-
controllable settings.
Good: Extremely robust, weatherproof
magnesium body with built-in portrait mode
grip. Many dedicated controls, two joystick-style
selectors, four control dials. Some backlit
buttons on camera back. Sharp, high-resolution,
3.2-inch monitor with large angle of view. Two
backlit LCD info panels. Very bright 100%
viewfinder with eyepiece blind. Very fast, precise
51-area selective single point AF that works very
well in low light. Lens-dependent AF override.
Very fast (10 fps) continuous shooting. Shutter
certified for 400,000 exposures. Fast startup and
negligible shutter lag. Fast data saves. Extremely
configurable. Flexible self-timer, multiple
white balance presets. Powerful battery and
two-battery charger. Headphone and
microphone connectors.
Not so good:16-megapixel resolution. Monitor
fixed and without anti-glare coating and
protective cover. No AF assist lamp.
Compatibility problems with some CF cards.
Additional XQD card slot not particularly useful.
Drive mode selection ring locks and is difficult
to use. Small, imprecise 8-way multi-selector.
Too few direct settings via INFO screen.
Extremely long custom settings menu.Test results:High maximum contrast up to ISO
3200, satisfactory up to ISO 12 800 with good
white balance but reduced dynamic range.
Very good signal-to-noise ratio up to ISO 800,
drop-off thereafter. Visual noise behavior
similar and good up to ISO 3200. Consistently
high relative resolution up to ISO 3200, only
begins to deteriorate above ISO 12 800. Fast
continuous shooting with long sequences in
JPEG and RAW modes. Very fast startup and
autofocus. Contrast-based AF in live view mode
slow.Image quality:Excellent daylight color rendition,
with only the orange test sticker looking slightly
salmon-colored. Good, balanced sharpness and
great detail for a 16-megapixel sensor. Very slight
tendency to underexposure. Grayscale wedges
less convincing above level 17. Only slight
banding in our line chart, otherwise very few
moirés. Great noise characteristics, unchanging
between ISO 100 and ISO 400. Some noise
artifacts above ISO 800, increasing slightly above
ISO 1600, but with no visible edge deterioration.
Luminance noise begins to appear at ISO 3200,
but edges still sharp. Some loss of detail, edge
sharpness and texture above lSO 6400 (the limit
for usable full-screen views). Images begin to look
washed out thereafter with increasing incidence
of artifacts. No discernible fringing.Oudoor image quality very good, with excellent
color rendition, sharpness and detail rendition,
even at wide apertures. Balanced exposure.
Noise characteristics very good, as in our studio
test shots. No discernible fringing.Nikon D4
ISO 100 ISO 400 ISO 1600 ISO 6400