Sky & Telescope - USA (2019-08)

72 AUGUST 2019 • SKY & TELESCOPE

cameras using just a hardware inter-

valometer. The Z6 uses the same DC-2

connector as the D750 for a shutter

release cable. As such, the Z6 will work

with any time-lapse controllers that

connect through just the shutter port.

Devices that control a camera through

its USB port to shift shutter, aperture,

and ISO might need their fi rmware

updated before they will run a Z6.

Battery Life

All the attractive features are for naught

if the camera draws so much power

its batteries don’t last long enough to

be practical. We need cameras to last

several hours at least to complete a

night-sky shoot without interruption

and battery swaps.

While the Z6 is rated as having

poorer battery life than the D750, I

found otherwise. It held out very well,

using its EN-EL15b battery, compatible

with the batteries in many other Nikon

DSLRs. At room temperature the battery

lasted for 1,500 photos, as good as the

D750 in a side-by-side endurance test.

At night in the cold, the Z6 lasted

nearly three hours at -10°C (14°F) on

its internal battery when shooting the

multi-minute deep-sky images shown

here, again matching the D750. On

another night at -15°C (5°F) the Z6

again lasted three hours, enough for

675 frames in a test time-lapse using its

built-in intervalometer.

The Z6 should be just as good as

most DSLRs for long time-lapses and

deep-sky shoots, provided the rear

screen and electronic viewfi nder are

turned off. The Z6 has a handy physical

button for doing just that.

Recommendations

If you are happy with your full-frame

Nikon DSLR now, switching to the Z6

to “go mirrorless” might not yield a

signifi cant improvement in still-image

quality. It will, however, provide excel-

lent 4K video, a feature only available

on Nikon’s high-end D850, as well as

the cropped-frame D500 and D7500

DSLR cameras.

If you’re using an APS-format Nikon

now and want to upgrade to a full-

frame camera,

then choosing a

Z6 rather than

a DSLR would

be an excellent

choice. It yields

lower noise than

your existing

camera, provides

full-frame 4K

video capability, a

large, convenient

touchscreen,

and brighter Live

View, all in a

more compact and

lighter body than

any of Nikon’s

full-frame DSLRs. Just be sure to fi gure

in the additional costs of its unique

XQD memory cards, a card reader for

them, a lens or two, and the FTZ lens

adapter. The latter allows you to use all

your existing Nikon F-mount lenses,

provided they will properly cover a full-

frame Nikon.

I was impressed with the Z6. If I were

shopping for a Nikon full-frame camera

now for astrophotography, it’s the

model I would defi nitely purchase.

■Contributing Editor ALAN DYER main-

tains his blog at amazingsky.net with

tales of image-taking, time-lapse videos,

tutorials, and test reports.

S&T Test Report

qLike Nikon’s high-end DSLRs, the Z6 offers options for shooting in smaller raw formats.

However, unlike CCD cameras, this only down-samples the image, it does not bin the pixels to

signifi cantly reduce noise. While the smaller images reduce resolution, the smaller fi le sizes might

be useful for some time-lapses intended only for HD or 4K-resolution fi nal movies.

tNikon’s optional FTZ lens

adapter is required to attach

“legacy” F-mount lenses, such

as this Sigma Art lens (far left), or

to attach the Z6 to fi eld fl atteners

(left) and telescope adapters

equipped with a standard Nikon

F-mount T-ring. The FTZ then

places the Z6 sensor at the

correct distance from the fi eld

fl attener for optimum correction.

pThe Z6 only ac-

cepts Sony’s new

XQD memory cards,

not the more com-

mon SD or CF cards.

While XQD cards

can be more expen-

sive, they are fast at

writing and reading

large 4K video fi les.

Nikon Z6 at ISO 3200

Large full-size RAW

6,048 × 4,024

Nikon Z6 at ISO 3200

Medium RAW

4,528 × 3,016