Nikon Z50 Ergonomic evaluation and score 9 February 2020

This evaluation and score follows my usual schedulewhich you can read about here.

The Z50 is Nikon’s first Z mount model to use an APS-C (28mm diagonal) sensor. It delivers  an ergonomically coherent user experience with mostly well considered and implemented handling and controls. 

The camera is responsive to user inputs.  The lenses and sensor deliver very good picture output.

The Z50 menu system is coherent and easily navigated with a good graphical user interface.

I scored the Z50 a point lower than the Z6 because it lacks a few of the larger camera’s refinements and options.

Overall however the camera is one of the better models on the market in Setup Phase.

This is well managed with a Mode Dial, U1, U2 settings, ISO and (i) button and sufficient but not too many Fn buttons.

I scored the Z50 a point below the Z6 because the larger camera has a few more direct access points for instance the release mode button.

However I think it is a toss up which is the nicer model to use in Prepare Phase.

The Z50 has in fact got sufficient control points to get the job done efficiently.

I find this approach more user friendly than some camera models which have such a profusion of function buttons I don’t know how anyone could remember what each one does.  

With both the Z6/7 and the Z50 the designers at Nikon elected for reasons entirely unknown by me to lower the top plate of the body. This in turn lowers the height of the handle. The Z50 handle is even shorter than that of the Z6/7. This means the little finger of the right hand cannot get any purchase on the handle.

Fortunately the Z50 and the first two kit lenses are lightweight so the short handle is not much of an issue. But when users start mounting full frame long zooms onto the Z50 it will become one.

The Z50 has a very good EVF and a very good monitor panel. I scored the Z50 one point below the Z6 because although good the Z50 screens are not quite up to the stellar standard of the larger cameras.

Apart from that the Z50 has similar issues to the Z6/7. The monitor is not fully articulated. It can be flipped down 180 degrees supposedly for vlogging but this is a kludge of an arrangement which is unusable on a tripod.

Camera data is superimposed over the lower part of the monitor screen which is different from the EVF and interferes with both the preview image and the camera data readouts.

The Z50 is generally a pleasure to operate. It has enough well placed and configured controls to do the job in streamlined fashion without the camera or the user being overburdened with un-necessary dials, buttons. Levers etc.

I would like to see more cameras like the Z50  which I think actually expresses the Leica notion of  Das Wesentliche more convincingly than most of Leica’s models.

Compare the Z50 to the just announced Fuji X100V which is an ergonomic absurdity with seven dials. The Z50 gets the job done efficiently with just two dials. Much better.

I find the 8-way controller on the Z50 to be just as easy to use as the thumb stick on the larger Z6 when moving the active AF area.

All primary and secondary exposure, focus and framing adjustments can be made while looking continuously through the viewfinder and without having to substantially shift grip with either hand (but see below).

The only weakness in operation is the location, orientation and haptics of the front dial, called Sub-Command Dial by Nikon.

A few minutes use will reveal that this dial is awkwardly placed and not as easy to operate as front dials on many other cameras. In addition the third and fourth fingers of the right hand have to shift down slightly to enable the index finger to bear on the dial.

I would like to see Nikon re-design this part of the camera. I have posted my thoughts about this separately.

The Z50 does all the things I expect of a modern camera in Review Phase. A single press on the OK button brings up the in-focus part of the picture at 100%.

Navigation, scrolling and sizing of images in Review is easily done. The touch screen +/- keys work just fine.  

This is a good score for this type of camera.

It comes in a little below some current Lumix models for several reasons.

The handle is shorter than it could be given the overall height of the unit, the front dial is not as well implemented, the monitor screen is not fully articulated and camera data is superimposed over the lower part of the screen.

These are not huge issues and overall the Z50 is a pleasure to use.

There is room for improvement however.