Review

フィルムカメラの魂を宿した、現代最高峰のフルサイズミラーレス

フィルム時代の美しさと、最新デジタル技術の両立——それを見事に実現したのが、ニコンのフルサイズミラーレスカメラだ。1980年代のFM2を彷彿とさせるクラシックなデザインに、最先端のオートフォーカスと高解像センサーを搭載。「見た目だけのレトロ」ではなく、本物の撮影体験を追求するプレイヤーたちへ贈る、唯一無二の一台を徹底レビューする。

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Solid Brass Dials and IP52 Weather Sealing: A Body That Commands Respect From the First Touch

The first time you hold the Zf, the weight tells you everything. This is not a camera body that feels like a compromise. Machined from a magnesium alloy chassis wrapped in premium synthetic leather, every control surface has been engineered with deliberate intent. The three signature brass dials — shutter speed, exposure compensation, and ISO — sit flush against the top plate with precisely calibrated detents. Each click is firm and deeply satisfying, the kind of tactile feedback that makes you want to keep reaching for the camera.

Physically, the Zf traces its lineage directly to the Nikon FM and FM2 bodies of the 1970s and 1980s. The dimensions are strikingly close: the Zf measures 144.5 × 103.5 × 49.5 mm and weighs approximately 760g with battery, sitting remarkably near the FM2’s 149.5 × 97 × 69.5 mm footprint. Hold them side by side and the family resemblance is unmistakable — the flat top plate, the centered pentaprism hump replaced here by a clean electronic viewfinder housing, and the deliberate front grip notch that keeps the camera planted securely in one hand during extended shoots.

Weather sealing is rated at IP52, protecting against dust ingress and directional splashes. For street photographers navigating unpredictable urban conditions or travel shooters who refuse to pack up when clouds roll in, this level of protection is meaningful and practical. The grip profile is notably narrower than what sports or wildlife photographers typically demand, but for deliberate, considered shooting — precisely the style this camera is designed to encourage — the ergonomics reward patience rather than punish it. Every button placement, every dial position reflects a coherent philosophy: slow down, feel the camera, and shoot with full intention.

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Retro Shell, Modern Heart: Subject-Tracking AF That Punches Above Its Class

At the core of this vintage-styled body lies hardware that is anything but dated. The 24.5-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor paired with the Expeed 7 image processor — the same silicon powering Nikon’s flagship Z9 — delivers a performance profile that routinely surprises shooters who expect compromise from a lifestyle-forward camera. Pixel-peepers will find nuanced tonal transitions, excellent dynamic range, and commendable high-ISO handling that holds clean, low-noise files well into the ISO 12,800 range before luminance noise becomes a genuine concern rather than a stylistic choice.

Continuous Shooting: Real-World Speed That Matters

The burst capabilities are genuinely impressive for a camera positioned at this tier. Shooting in uncompressed RAW, you are looking at a sustained 11 fps — more than enough for candid street moments, environmental portraits, and even moderately paced action. Switch to JPEG and that ceiling rises to 15 fps, which opens the door to sequences most photographers will never fully exhaust in typical shooting scenarios. Buffer depth in RAW mode is adequate for bursts of around 40 frames, after which the camera slows noticeably while writing to the card — something worth factoring into your workflow if you shoot extended action sequences regularly.

Subject-Tracking Autofocus: Unexpected Competence

Where the performance story becomes genuinely compelling is the subject-detection autofocus system inherited from Nikon’s professional Z lineup. Human, animal, and vehicle detection operate in a unified framework, and the camera switches between subjects fluidly without requiring manual mode changes. In practical use, face and eye detection lock on quickly in good light — typically within a fraction of a second — and tracking stays remarkably sticky even as subjects move laterally across the frame or partially exit before re-entering.

Animal eye-detection deserves particular praise. Testing with both cats and dogs in moderate indoor lighting, the system maintained subject lock through turns, obstructions, and unpredictable movement with a reliability rate that rivals cameras priced significantly higher. It is not infallible — fast, erratic subjects in low contrast environments will cause momentary hunting — but for the portrait, lifestyle, and travel photographer this camera targets, the AF system is a genuine asset rather than a spec-sheet checkbox.

Sensor Output: More Than Just Megapixels

The 24.5-megapixel count sits in a productive middle ground. It provides sufficient resolution for large-print output and meaningful post-crop flexibility without inflating file sizes to the point where storage management becomes burdensome. Color science leans warm and flattering in JPEG straight-out-of-camera, a tuning choice that complements the camera’s photographic aesthetic. RAW files offer broad latitude for correction in post, particularly in highlight recovery and shadow lifting — both areas where the Expeed 7 pipeline demonstrably outperforms older-generation Nikon sensors.

Low-light performance, aided by the sensor’s backside illuminated architecture, holds detail and color fidelity at higher ISOs more reliably than competing 24-megapixel APS-C options in adjacent price brackets. ISO 6400 is a comfortable working sensitivity; ISO 12,800 remains usable depending on final output size and intended application.

Key Performance Takeaways

• Sensor: 24.5 MP BSI CMOS with broad dynamic range and strong high-ISO handling
• Processor: Expeed 7 — flagship-tier processing in a compact, retro body
• Continuous shooting: 11 fps RAW / 15 fps JPEG with approximately 40-frame RAW buffer
• AF: Human, animal, and vehicle subject detection; eye-tracking that holds under real-world conditions
• Low light: Reliable to ISO 12,800; usable to ISO 25,600 for print-sized output

The performance package is, in short, the strongest argument for taking this camera seriously beyond its aesthetic appeal. What the engineering team has delivered is a shooting experience that justifies confidence — not just nostalgia.

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The Dedicated Monochrome Switch Nobody Expected: B&W Shooting and 4K/60 Output Raise the Bar

When a camera manufacturer commits hard enough to a concept that they physically wire a dedicated switch to it, you sit up and take notice. That is exactly what happened here — and it turns out to be one of the most genuinely enjoyable shooting experiences available in a modern full-frame mirrorless body.

The Black-and-White Switch: More Than a Gimmick

Mounted on the left shoulder of the body, the monochrome selector is a single, satisfying toggle. Flip it up, and the camera instantly locks into black-and-white shooting mode, converting your entire live-view feed, the electronic viewfinder, and every JPEG output to monochrome. What makes this far more than a novelty is the depth of the system sitting behind that switch.

The camera ships with a remarkably generous array of monochrome picture profiles:

• Standard — a balanced, neutral grayscale rendering ideal for street and portrait work
• Red Filter — darkens blue skies dramatically, increases contrast between clouds and atmosphere
• Yellow Filter — a classic choice for landscape work, offering gentle contrast lift with natural tonal transitions
• Orange Filter — a middle ground between Yellow and Red, favored by documentary shooters
• Green Filter — opens up foliage tones and adds luminosity to skin, particularly useful for outdoor portraiture
• Iron — pushes contrast hard into a near-cinematic range with deep blacks
• Flat — a low-contrast base profile designed for post-processing latitude

Each profile delivers a genuinely distinct rendering, not the superficial one-stop-apart differences you sometimes find in competing implementations. Shooting JPEG in monochrome with the Red Filter active on a partly cloudy afternoon produces results that historically required a physical screw-on filter and careful darkroom work. The real-time preview in the EVF is responsive and accurate enough to be trusted compositionally — you are not guessing at a final look; you are seeing it.

Critically, RAW files are always recorded in full color regardless of the switch position. Photographers who prefer post-processing freedom lose nothing. The monochrome system is an additive layer, not a limitation.

For street photographers, this workflow represents a genuine quality-of-life improvement. Switching between color and monochrome on a conventional mirrorless camera typically requires diving into menu systems or assigning a custom function button. Here, a single physical gesture changes your entire creative intent. Over a long day of shooting in an urban environment, that immediacy matters more than you might expect before using it.

4K/60: The Specification That Catches Reviewers Off Guard

Given the body’s overt emphasis on photographic heritage — the dials, the styling, the monochrome toggle — it would be forgivable to assume video capabilities were treated as an afterthought. They were not.

The camera outputs 4K at up to 60 frames per second using 6K oversampling, which means the full width of the sensor is read out and downscaled to 4K, rather than simply cropping a 4K window from the center. The practical result is excellent detail retention, natural-looking motion, and an absence of the moiré artifacts that plagued earlier oversampled implementations from competitors. Rolling shutter, a common criticism of mirrorless video, is well-controlled in most real-world scenarios at standard frame rates.

For those working in a professional or hybrid shooting context, N-Log is supported for flat color science that provides meaningful dynamic range headroom in post. HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma) output is also available for workflows that feed directly to HDR-capable monitors without a dedicated grade.

The 4K/60 specification places this body in direct conversation with cameras positioned aggressively toward the video market — a genuine surprise given how little the marketing materials foreground it. Content creators, travel filmmakers, and hybrid shooters who need reliable high-frame-rate 4K without reaching for a second dedicated video body will find the output thoroughly respectable.

Subject tracking through the phase-detect autofocus system performs adequately during video capture for moving subjects in controlled environments, though sustained tracking under chaotic or low-contrast conditions remains more reliable in photography mode — a distinction worth understanding before committing to demanding production work.

Why These Two Features Define the Camera’s Character

Taken together, the monochrome system and the 4K/60 output communicate something important about the design philosophy. This is a camera built for photographers who think seriously about the image, not just the specification sheet. The B&W switch rewards deliberate, slowed-down shooting. The video capability rewards versatility without demanding a separate investment. Neither feature is merely checkbox-driven — both deliver meaningful, usable results that hold up in professional contexts.

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The $2,000 Paradox: Premium Aesthetics, Puzzling Omissions

At over $2,000 body-only, this camera places itself firmly in the enthusiast tier — which makes certain design and packaging decisions genuinely baffling to anyone who’s spent time with it in the real world.

The microSD Slot Problem

The Zf uses a UHS-I microSD card slot tucked behind a small hinged door. On a camera at this price point, in a market where competitors offer full-size SD or CFexpress slots as standard, this feels less like a thoughtful design compromise and more like a cost-cutting measure quietly smuggled past reviewers. Swapping cards in the field — especially in cold weather or with gloves on — becomes a genuine frustration. Photographers who shoot tethered sessions or need rapid card transfers between locations will feel this friction on a near-daily basis. It’s the kind of spec that doesn’t show up in marketing materials but absolutely shows up in your workflow.

No Charger in the Box — At This Price?

The omission that will have buyers double-checking the packaging: the Zf ships without a dedicated battery charger. You receive a USB-C cable and are expected to charge the EN-EL15c in-camera. The practical consequence is straightforward — you cannot charge a spare battery while actively shooting. For anyone running back-to-back shoots or traveling without reliable power access, this is a meaningful workflow gap. Sony and Canon ship standalone chargers with competing full-frame bodies at similar or lower price points. This decision reads as a misreading of who actually buys a $2,000 camera.

Not Built for Action

The 11 fps RAW burst and subject-tracking AF handle everyday portraits and street shooting with genuine competence. But point this camera at birds in flight or athletes in motion and the ceiling appears quickly. The buffer fills under sustained RAW bursts, and the sensor readout speed cannot match dedicated action-oriented bodies in the same ecosystem. For wildlife and sports photographers, the Zf will consistently leave you a half-second behind the moment.

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総評：フィルムへの郷愁と現代技術が完璧に融合した、8点満点の傑作

カメラ選びはスペックシートだけでは完結しない。レビュアーとして数多くのフルサイズミラーレス機をテストし続けてきた筆者が断言できることがある――ニコン Zf は「触れて、撮って、初めてその真価が伝わる」タイプのカメラだ。本レビューを通じて感じた感動と冷静な分析を踏まえ、総合評価として10点満点中8点を付ける。この点数の意味を、最後に丁寧に整理しておきたい。

Zf が最も輝く場所と、ふさわしいユーザー像

まず明確にしておきたいのは、Zf はすべてのフォトグラファーを満足させる万能型カメラではないということだ。その代わり、特定のユーザー層に対しては他の競合機が決して代替できない圧倒的な体験を提供する。強くおすすめできる層は大きく3つに絞られる。

ひとつ目はフィルム写真の経験を持つデジタル移行組だ。かつてニコンFシリーズやFMシリーズを愛用し、あのシャッターフィールと操作感を現代の解像度・AFで再体験したいと願うユーザーにとって、これほど理想的な選択肢はない。マニュアルダイヤルを指先で操作する感触は、単なる撮影作業を「儀式」へと昇華させてくれる特別な体験だ。

ふたつ目はポートレート・ストリートスナップを主戦場とするフォトグラファーだ。被写体との心理的な距離を縮めるクラシックな外観は、現場で確実に機能する。人を撮る場面では、機材が醸し出す空気感が想像以上に重要な役割を果たすことを、多くの経験から実感している。

みっつ目は写真と映像を兼業するハイブリッドクリエイターだ。4K/60p出力を備えながら持ち運びやすいコンパクトなボディは、多様なシーンに幅広く対応する。ただし、野鳥や競技スポーツなど高速被写体を頻繁に追うユーザーには、より特化した機体の選択を率直に勧める。Zf はそうした用途向けに設計されたカメラではない。

理想のペアリング：小さな巨人との黄金コンビ

ボディとの組み合わせとして、ニッコール Z 40mm f/2 スペシャルエディションを筆者が最も強く推薦する。シルバー×ブラックの2トーンデザインが Zf のボディと視覚的に完璧に調和し、40mmという画角が街撮りから日常スナップ、テーブルフォトまで幅広い場面をカバーする。重量は約170gと驚くほど軽く、シャープネスと柔らかいボケが絶妙なバランスを保つ描写力は申し分ない。このコンビを肩にかけて街へ出た瞬間、「もっと撮りたい」という純粋な衝動が自然と湧き上がった。

最終評価

ニコン Zf は、写真という行為そのものを深く愛する人のために存在するカメラだ。2,000ドルを超える価格帯への批判があることは承知しているが、フルサイズの確かな実力・精緻なビルドクオリティ・他に代えのきかない感性的な満足感を総合すれば、8/10という結論は揺るぎない。カメラを単なる道具ではなく、共に時を刻む相棒として向き合えるかどうか――その答えがYESなら、Zf はまさにあなたのために生まれた一台だ。