First look: Nikon Z 30 in practical test

The Nikon Z 30 is primarily aimed at young people, i.e.: video bloggers, playful creative people and beginners who no longer just want to take photos or films with their smartphones. The camera is accordingly uncomplicated to handle, compact enough for the handbag and, thanks to its APS-C sensor, also has strong images.

As an entry-level camera, it serves a segment that has received little or hardly any attention from manufacturers lately, since they have focused on high-quality, heavy-duty and expensive (full-frame) cameras.

Without a lot of frills

At first glance, the Z 30 has a lot to offer. With the flat pancake lens, the compact camera also fits into smaller handbags without a lot of frills. The housing of the Z 30 is made of plastic, but it is of high quality and solidly built. Thanks to the ergonomically shaped handle, it sits comfortably and securely in the hand, so that even action-packed situations can be mastered.

The control buttons are pleasantly large and concisely labeled as well as intuitively arranged. In addition to the mode dial (keyword: green fully automatic), there are two dials for aperture and shutter speed. ISO sensitivity, exposure compensation and drive mode have their own direct buttons. This makes handling the mirrorless camera so easy that even less experienced users can quickly find their way around.

For vloggers and video enthusiasts, switching between photo and video mode is quick and easy with a slider. A touchscreen is also part of the operating concept: You can also control aperture and co. with tapping and swiping gestures

practice shots

In our practice shots, the camera shows a very clear image at the lowest sensitivity, which impresses with high contrast and increased color saturation. The Z 30 only sharpens it hesitantly, but there are photos with rich colors and high contrast. The resolution isn’t as high compared to other models in this class, so the pixels can be larger than most of the competition. This should give the Z30 an advantage in unfavorable lighting conditions. However, this cannot be proven in practice. At higher sensitivities, for example, the JPEG images show a rather softened look.

In most light and photo situations, the Z 30’s autofocus works quite well. The camera is fast and reliable, especially with optimal lighting (keyword: video blogging).

Little new

The Nikon Z 30 offers little that is new. It’s largely based on the Nikon Z 50 from 2019 – just with a USB-C connector. Both cameras have the same non-stabilized APS-C sensor with the same 21-megapixel resolution, identical battery and video specs. From a photographic perspective, therefore, there are no particular innovations.

The built-in stereo microphone – the Z 30 vlogger kit includes two windscreens for the microphones, which give the camera an animal-like look – is only good in exceptional cases. As the distance from the mic increases, the sound becomes thin. For more professional demands, an additional microphone is necessary.

Last but not least, the price of the Z 30 is quite high for an entry-level camera at €800. If you look at the cameras and prices in this segment, it was different just a few years ago and older models offer similar features.

Conclusion

The Nikon Z 30 arouses mixed emotions: on the one hand, it’s a solid “reday-to-go” camera that can do more than a smartphone, on the other hand, the need for such a camera seems questionable.

The performance of the Z 30 is respectable – compact, easy to use, with good image quality. However, it lacks a powerful argument that justifies the price of 800 euros in particular. There are cheaper alternatives in the entry-level segment, such as Canon’s EOS-M system or Panasonic’s Lumix-G.

The Nikon Z 30 certainly offers a good start into video blogging. But there are also other interesting alternatives, such as those we have presented and tested in c’t photography 03/22. You can read a detailed laboratory test of the Z 30 in our next issue of c’t Fotografie 5/22.

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