The Nikon D6, is Nikons flagship model which was announced in September 2019 and released in February 2020.
Please note that this is not a detailed technical review of D6, I am sharing my experience after using this beast. So, how many of you have used Nikon’s D5 that was launched in 2016? Short and sweet -D6 is an upgraded version of the D5 with numerous new features incorporated.
Nikon introduced the new autofocus system using the new Multi-CAM 37K AF sensor module. The new D6 uses the same LCD, image sensor and battery charger of D5 and the body looks mostly the same . They have really improved on their ISO performance. Over everything what I liked most is the addition of 2 more frames per second, yes, the continuous shooting is now 12FPS.
From my experience as a wildlife photographer, the critical action takes place in split-seconds. So, each click counts. Yes, it is a fact that you might fill your memory card but trust me one day you will find that was worth the compromise. One small funny action of an animal or that scary moment and one passionate scene might prove to be the big break of your photography journey. So never take a chance. Try to click as much as possible once you spot a subject.
I have tried the high-speed continuous shoot on a Common Kestrel while it was hovering. Considering the fact that the kestrel was hovering makes it is pretty difficult to photograph, I was surprised to see 100% focus on all the frames I clicked.
Using the live view allows you to capture 10.5fps in silent mode which is especially useful while photographing some of the very sensitive birds like owls.
The D6 also has an effective pixel count of 20.8 megapixels where you can blow up your photos to print even a big hoarding.
Nikon D6 has completely reworked the autofocus from its predecessor. And Nikon claims that this is the most powerful AF in Nikon’s history. The AF engine that drives the system is faster than ever before. When you have a lot of distraction in the background or foreground shooting a subject in flight is always difficult. The total AF points in the D6 is 105 points and are now cross-type, with 1.6x greater density coverage. I found it incredibly significant that Nikon introduced the custom Group Area AF choices
This camera has 3D tracking modes and it can do face detection AF and importantly, subject tracking AF.
The next is the dual card slots that supports CFExpress and XQD, which means you can use either 2 CFExpress (Type B) cards or 2 XQD memory type cards. I do not have to mention about the swiftness of these cards to those who have used these.
On the video side, the D6 will of course shoot 4K UHD with 3840 x 2160 at 30/25/24p. The video recording has both option of saving your file as .MOV and .MP4. The display monitor is designed with a beautiful 2360k-dot high-resolution, fully touch-operable 3.2-inch LCD
The last and foremost thing that we wildlife photographers require is the high ISO performance. The ISO sensitivity has been increased both natively and for the extended-ISO settings. The D6 ISO range goes from 100 – 102,400.
I would say this camera gets a high score for the speed, performance and durability.
After having a hands-on experience, I can suggest this as one the finest camera from Nikon for wildlife photography.
