The Z5IIC is small on price, not on image quality

It’s been a busy few weeks since Nikon introduced the Z5IIC, a 24.5MP full-frame camera that serves as a less expensive way to get into the company’s Z-mount system. But while the camera asks you to compromise in some areas – most notably, with its lack of an EVF – compared to the standard Z5II, our tests show that you’re not giving anything up when it comes to image quality.

Our test scene is designed to simulate a variety of textures, colors and detail types you’ll encounter in the real world. It also has two illumination modes to see the effect of different lighting conditions.

In terms of detail captured, the Z5IIC is on par with its other 24MP peers, such as the Panasonic S9, Canon EOS R8 II and, of course, the regular Z5II, which uses the same sensor. The only camera that really stands out is the similarly-sized Sony a7C II, as it has a 33MP sensor (as well as a decidedly premium price, compared to the rest of the cameras in this lineup).

The Z5IIC’s JPEG noise reduction doesn’t do the best job at retaining detail at higher ISOs, but its Raws look as good as anyone else’s, so you can side-step that with your own processing if you wish. In good light its JPEG colors are characteristically pleasing, and you have some room to change the camera’s output using “Color Control” recipes downloaded from the internet. Like many of Nikon’s cameras aimed towards beginners, there’s a dedicated button for changing your JPEG color mode.

Mitchell Clark

The Z5IIC also includes Nikon’s “pixel shift” mode to produce multi-shot high-resolution images, which let you get more better tonal quality and noise performance when shooting a static subjects. However, as is the case for most vendors, you’ll have to merge them using desktop software, rather than the camera being able to do it automatically. Still, it gives you an option to get more image quality when shooting specific kinds of subjects.

One area where we’ve seen cameras struggle is shutter shock, where the opening of the mechanical shutter causes a bit of shake, blurring the image sightly, especially at lower shutter speed settings. While it’s possible to get the Z5IIC to exhibit shutter shock, most users won’t run into it, as Nikon has wisely set the camera’s shutter mode to “Auto” by default. This means it’ll use the electronic front curtain shutter at shutter speeds where shock is most likely to happen, and switch to the full mechanical shutter once you’re out of that range. We feel this is a great choice for a camera that will mainly be used by beginners, who may not know to watch out for shutter shock or how to avoid it.

This image was shot at ISO 100 to preserve the highlight of the neon sign and floodlights. In the JPEG, those are essentially all that’s visible, but by exploiting this sensor’s relatively high level of ISO invariance, I was able to brighten the rest of the image in post, without losing the details in the lights.
Nikon Z5IIC | Nikon Z 26mm F2.8 | F2.8 | 1/15 sec | ISO 100 | Processed in Adobe Camera RawMitchell Clark

Finally, there’s dynamic range. The sensor used in the Z5IIC has historically provided a lot of latitude, and it continues to do so here, letting you shoot to preserve highlights and pull up shadows in post without being limited by the camera’s read noise.

Overall, our image quality tests revealed very few surprises, which is a good thing. It means the decision between the Z5II and Z5IIC, or any of the other cameras you’re comparing it to, can come down to price, features and form factor, without you having to worry about whether you’re giving up something when it comes to your final image.