Description
Defined by its ultra-high resolution 45.7MP sensor and brilliant dynamic range, the Z 7II full frame mirrorless camera has light gathering capabilities only possible with the largest full frame mount in the industry — so you can capture Every. Last. Detail. Dual processors, precision Eye Detect AF modes, two card slots, vertical battery grip ready, 4K UHD video at 60p and flexible power options give you all you need to create what you imagine.
Every little detail matters. 45.7MP. Powerful AF performance. NIKKOR Z lenses. Intuitive functionality. The most sophisticated tool for high resolution imaging.
Subject acquisition with speed and precision. 3.3x more buffer capacity than the original Z 7. Faster continuous shooting. Improved AF performance and functionality.
Dual card slots (CFexpress/XQD and UHS-II SD). Flexibility and peace of mind when shooting important moments or on assignment, such as wedding and event photography. Comfortable. Durable. Intuitive. Z 7II’s exterior and interior have been thoughtfully designed to be handled and used with max comfort and ease of operation.
Vertical Grip Ready. Now compatible with the new vertical battery grip for those in need of more power and easier shutter operation when shooting vertically. 4K UHD 60p video. Smoother action, smoother camera motion and the ability to slow down 4K UHD footage in post. USB-C constant power and charging. Never run low on power during livestreams, video shoots and timelapses.
One mount accepts them all. Compatible with a growing line of NIKKOR Z lenses as well as approx. 360 F-mount NIKKOR lenses with FTZ mount adapter (sold separately).
Max focal length : 0.95 Millimeters
Optical Zoom : 1.0 Multiplier x
Video Capture Resolution : 2160p
Dennis –
Remember back in film days, when you would see a photo that you just knew was made on a medium format camera because it had that lookThis is better.Probably the single best feature on the camera aside from the insane pixel density is the small joystick that your thumb will find with great ease used to steer the focus area around with very little effort. This is worth the price of admission right there.Outstanding camera
LarryO64 –
At this price point 3100.00 you cant buy a better allpurpose camera. Skin tones are beautiful. Landscapes are colorful easily capturing the rich beauty of the scene. Nine frames per second and great tracking capability allows you to capture the moment regarding action shots. Most importantly the huge, beautiful files allow for tremendous post processing. Both shadows and highlights can easily be refined in Photoshop. Most of the time the files are spot on and you dont need much post processing. For the past seventeen years I have owned many high end Canon, Sony, Olympus, Fugi and Nikon cameras and, by far, the Nikon D850 with the new 2470 VR lens, has given me the best image quality ever. If you can afford the price, in my opinion, this camera is the best model out there
ROBERT –
The PC bundle that comes with the Nikon D850 is well worth it. The super fast SD card, screen protector and cleaning supplies are very nice. The blow bottle and bristle brush do a good job removing lint and dust in places that the stuff gets into. The card reader and traveling case are of better quality than I would have thought of. All in all, a good addition to my camera purchase.
Ross –
What Nikon doesnt tell anyone is that, if you plan to use a PCE lens as I do for architectural photography, you need to have a camera body that doesnt include the builtin flash as it protrudes out far enough to make using the adjustment knobs difficult at best and usually impossible when you rotate the lens as the knobs wind up under the flash overhang and in some cases the lens cant be rotated the full 90 degrees. Okay, run on sentence but you get the drift. Fortunately, Nikon decided that most users of the D800 series bodies are professionals who would rarely, if ever, use a builtin flash and, so, they got rid of it for the D850. Now I can use my 24mm PCE lens as it was meant to be used. That was my primary reason for upgrading from my D810, which I will keep as a second shooter. However, there are so many new and improved features in the 850 that many people should find it very worthwhile to step up to this marvelous body. Adding one more programmable button and expanding the customizations available for those buttons has made it faster and easier to change certain settings on the fly. As an architectural photographer, Im not usually concerned about 9 fps vs. 7 fps as most buildings dont move very quickly other than during earthquakes, but adding the grip, with the extra battery, gives me a lot more shoot time. The grip also creates a more balanced feel to the overall cameralens package, especially when you mount a 2470, 70200 or longer lens and you dont have your handarm arched over your head to push the shutter release when shooting in portrait orientation. I could go on but then this would turn into a book. Leave it to say that I doubt I will need to be upgrading this camera body for many years to come.
Melissa –
I have been wanting this camera from the beginning but since Im the type of person who likes to sit back and wait to see how everyone responds about the camera and then I purchase it. I also rented it for a week when I went on vacation to Aruba two years ago and loved the camera I then waited another two years to see if the price goes down a little and then I finally purchased it a few months ago. I have a Nikon D2X and the Nikon D3s. I was going to sell the D2X but decided to wait a while longer. Those two cameras probably have around 2000 or 3000 clicks on each one of them so they are in mint condition. I use them for a few weddings as a back up to the wedding photographer. One for free because I wanted to get experience and the other one the brides mother paid me I think a 100.00 which is fine because I was there to get some experience and the main photographer said I did a good job so I was happy. Experience if more important right now than making money.What I love about this camera is super fast focusing. Much better than the other two. I was floored when I saw how fast it focused. Darn near fell over with excitement. Im anxious to use the Focus Stacking option. I have to say I havent used it in low lighting to see how the noise is and Im anxious to try it out. I will write more about it at a later date after I get to use it more. I highly recommend this camera at this point.
Jeff –
Still early, but I have used this on a dozen shoots. I am a Proshooter, high volume, mostly portraits, events and action not landscape, but I think any issues I am seeing versus other Nikons would go away with landscape. I wont review the specs as those are easily found elsewhere those. I also shoot with D800E, D810, D5 and older models so will also offer some comparisons with these frame rate works as advertised great LOVE the ability to dial up and down the raw file size based on what I am shooting HUGE benefit versus other Nikons yes D5 has this, but only two sizes and the small size not useful to me Image quality Wow. Detail is amazing and the colors are rich. Dynamic rage is great in post I am finding lots of hidden details and rarely does an image get blown out that cant be fixed later. Extra care required with shooting technique and this many pixels. LCD screen works great, lots of detail. Does not have the vibrant color of the D800E, so showing clients on the back of the camera does not have the same wow impact. LCD is better than the D810 as well. FOCUS VASTLY improved focus versus the D800E Thank you Nikon. Focus is faster and more accurate than the D810 but I found that camera to already be very solid. Not as good focus as the D5 its supposedly the same system, but the D5 tracks moving subjects better and is more accurate more often. The D5 is like shooting with training wheels it just doesnt miss. With the D850 you have to be much more conscious of good shooting technique not only to make sure focus is solid, but also because of the high pixel count it is more susceptible to slight misses. Exposure Jury is out on this My D5 doesnt miss. D800E and D810 work great. I am finding that the exposure will sometimes miss when I am shooting a single person with bright background even with spot focus and spot metering so I need to double check the images just captured and occasionally will force a brighter image with either a manually set shutter speed or dialing up the exposure. Similar problems with matrix exposure where there is a bright background and subjects are darker. BTW, these are exposure issues, NOT focus issues NOTE for early purchasers Lightroom does NOT yet support the D850 raw files and it is killing my process and I am not happy with the conversion. DNG conversion is spotty, takes too much time, and reduces the size and resolution unless I imbed the original raw file and then the file size is 7080MB. I dont have the time, nor do I want to spend the time, to figure out how to fix this, I want Adobe and Nikon to be more timely and work this out. BTW, Photo mechanic reads the D850 files very well…. I am not sure if it is fair to compare the focus and exposure of a D850 to a 6500 D5….. I will likely update this to 5 stars once lightroom can read the files it may not be fair to Nikon, but the truth of the camera is that it isnt useful to me until it works throughout my entire workflow they need to get the raw file structure to Adobe sooner for integration. I will update the review as I learn more
Patrick –
Having shot with this camera, the D810, and several other Nikon DSLRs, I have to say this camera was a joy to use. Using the Auto ISO feature limited for an indoor family reunion the results without additional lighting were incredible. I was concerned about the noise and I chose to use some D lenses like my 80200 f2.8, 60 f2.8, and 180 f2.8 and the results were clean, sharp and beautiful. I also took some shots with the 60 f2.8D and Adoramas Godox V1 flash and my cats have never looked as sharp, or as beautiful. I am by no means a professional photographer. I am an amateur at best and the results I get with the D850 are incredible
Daryl –
I recently purchased a Nikon D850 which Adorama packaged with an SD card and this FotoPro XGo Max tripod as free addons, and I must say, I am impressed In contrast to one of Adoramas biggest competitors where I admit probably the bulk of my past photo equipment purchases have been made, Adoramas package offerings are sweet with highquality addons and they have won me over as a customer for certain Adorama purchases are also free of sales tax without need for some special program that refunds the sales tax otherwise applied I like that a LOT…no gimmicks, just doing things right, with no other hassles.The FotoPro tripod seems of excellent build quality and although Im not certain how much Ill like the twist collar for securing the column, it still seems very effective and apparently is backed up by an additional screw on the side which can also lock the column…something not covered by the English instructions, but that seems to be the purpose of the thumbscrew. I also dont forsee taking advantage of the monopod feature, but for how the tripod is designed, that is simply another feature available to the user without any apparent compromise to the tripod design, so just an added value. The monopod option isnt something quick to switch over to, but rather is a reconfiguration that involves removing the tripod head and platform, and moving one or both over to a leg that unscrews to provide the monopod. The center column can also be added as an extension. So, a little unusual to me, but still a very interesting builtin feature that eliminates the need for packing a monopod if the use of one is anticipated.The FotoPro tripod head feels a little on the stiff side, but I expect to see that loosen up a bit with use, so no real complaint there. It seems identical to a Desmond ball head I have bought in the past and like quite a lot. Ive got a Really Right Stuff BH40 ball head with lever clamp that remains my premium tripod head, and I may move it over from my old, trusty Bogen 3020 that Ive had since 1979. What a difference this FotoPro is, compared the Bogen…maybe 56 inches less reach, but Ill give that up in a heartbeat for what actually feels like a more stable tripod at 23 the size and nearly half the weight 3 lb. 9 oz vs. 6 lb. 15 oz., not to mention the CF legs are more weatherfriendly.A few extras with the tripod, inclusive of a quality zipper case, center post hook, monopod belt pouch, and Arcacompatible QR plate wrap this tripod up as one heck of a wonderful free addon. Thanks Adorama
Evan –
Let me just say that anyone buying this product is not expecting what will actually come in the box. This product came with the serial number etched off the bottom of the base of the camera. No warranty information, manual, or any paperwork for that matter was provided. It also came in a box designed to hold the camera, the parts that it comes with AND a kit lens, but was sold to me in the same box just without the kit lens as if someone took the lenses out of the box already. The camera also is supposed to be packaged with a protective film over the touch screen which it did not have. The entire unboxing experience seemed extremely fishy and just overall like something was wrong. I do not recommend buying this product FROM 6ave electronics. Look up other reviews about this company for some similar experiences like mine.
Cody –
This camera is Nikons culmination of decades of product development and digital SLRs. It takes ultra high resolution and combines it with high speed, and does so in a truly polished manner. This is a digital SLR, not a mirrorless camera, so it may not have all the tech of a new mirrorless camera, but its one of the best digital SLRs ever made. Anyone with full frame Nikon lenses who wants resolution and speed in one body will be absolutely pleased. Over the D810 which can be found used for half the price it has more resolution, a tilting screen, enhancements to JPEG processing, 4k video although if youre serious about video, get a mirrorless camera, silent time lapse modes that dont wear out the shutter, much faster continuous shooting, and a more sophisticated focusing system.Dont let XQD sway you away by the high prices of the cards. They are so fast that even 45 megapixel raw files get written almost instantly.The resolution is truly incredible. The amount of cropping available to you is game changing if youve never shot on this kind of resolution before. One can shoot far off wildlife and not worry about getting perfectly centered framing, crop to the equivalent of APSCDX mode, and still have 19.4 megapixels. That turns my 200500 lens into a 750mm equivalent still retaining almost 20 megapixels of detail. And it has the focusing system to keep up.This camera will suit all kinds of photography. This is not a first camera. Its a camera for a Nikon enthusiast or pro who can look at the benefits over cheaper bodies and see a real advantage in their kind of shooting. Its for people who absolutely know what shutter priority, aperture priority, etc mean. Paying 3000 dollars for a camera wont make you a better photographer, but having 45 megapixels and a killer autofocus system might help you crop for better framing and give you more keepers or more reach with your lenses. These are the things that must be weighed when determining if you should buy this camera. For many types of shooting, a D750 or D7500 makes more sense. I believe that for me, this is the last digital SLR I will ever need due to the emergence of mirrorless. Mirrorless offers promise of more technology to help make pictures easier since DSLRs have reached a bit of a plateau, inherent to their design. I also own a Nikon Z6, and for casual shooting without action, its a great camera and the Z cameras will continue to get better. But right now, the D850 is simply unbeatable for all uses except video, where the Z cameras have an inherent mirrorless advantage.Great camera, well done Nikon.
CHARLES –
I have owned the Nikon 800, 810, and now the 850. the latest one just is so much better.First the grip doesnt look much different but it makes holding the camera with a heavy lens Nikon 2470 f2.8 seem much lighter.At ISO 64 the dynamic range is unbelievable. It is the same base ISO on the D810 but getting info from shadows without noise is much better. Shooting at ISO 6400 and even 12800 is usable, much better than D810.I bought it mainly for use in dark settings without flash. The D800 was better than the 810 on grabbing focus in the dark but the 850 is far better. It can get focus in almost complete darkness.The 850 focus speed is rapid, not noticeably different than the 810.All of my high end lens are very sharp on both the 810 and 850, both much better that the D800A very useful feature is total quiet mode in L.V.The 850 can activate the Electronic Front Shutter in Quiet mode, not just Mirror Up as on the D810. Combining this with Exposure Delay makes shooting a slow shutter speeds much easier.Whats not to like 1. No Flash. Not that the flash was that useful but a built in flash could be used to activate Commander mode. Now only 2 supported flashes can be used for Commander flash. I have a Nikon 910 and SB 400 neither will work for the Commander mode. 2. The Blue tooth wireless connection is a real pain to use. Most of the time I cannot get it to connect to my Apple phone. When it does work it is very nice.
ROBERT –
The D850 is a responsive, quick and a fun camera to use. I thought my Nikon D810 was a great camera. Not so fast….the 850 is much better. The shutter lag is nonexistent like in other lower end DSLR cameras there is a lag. The focus area on the camera ls larger than my previous camera and so are the number of pixels per image. The focusing options are much better. I upgraded mainly because I am now into wild life photography at a local dam. The frames you may get in a second vary from 9 to almost 30 when you lower the resolution in the camera. The animal tracking feature is also nice as well as the 3D mode. if you are into still photography the point mode in live focus really makes the small objects in a picture stand out. Example, the center of a flower.
RetiredMarine303 –
This is the best Nikon camera ever made and I have been shooting with Nikon for over 30 years since the 35mm film camera like N70s and N90S. I have over several of Nikon film and now digital cameras and this will most likely be that last digital DSLR I will buy for several years if not the last camera period. Whether youre shooting weddings, landscapes, portraits, action or wildlife, the D850 wont leave you wanting. This is a much more versatile proposition than the D810 and its closest rivals for that matter, or the D800E the D850 is a brilliant DSLR, and perhaps the most wellrounded camera weve ever built by Nikon.ProsPotential for large and detailed imagesSophisticated and proven AF systemLarge and bright viewfinder19.4MP DX crop modeEpic long battery lifeConsMore expensive than D810Live View focusing speed behind rivalsSnapBridge still clunky, however it does work great and no complaintsWhen researching all of the reviewers and seem like they could not say anything but amazing things about this camera. It took a while to research more and then I tried to find the camera and it was on backorder everywhere. Well I placed my order on Bestbuy.com and waited and I finally received my Nikon D85 and now I firmly believe that this camera is the best DSLR camera available today in the market. It is heavy, however it also has a feeling of sturdiness that comes with a wellbuilt camera. The pictures are truly amazing even shooting at high ISO.Fullframe CMOS sensor, 45.7MPLarge and bright optical viewfinder4K video captureLens mount Nikon FScreen 3.2inch tiltangle touchscreen, 2,359,000 dotsBurst shooting 7fpsAutofocus 153point AFConnectivity WiFi and BluetoothBattery life 1,840 shotsWeight 1,005gthe D850 drops the CompactFlash card slot that was on the D810 in favor of an XQD slot and the performance advantages that brings although at the moment Nikon is the only manufacturer to take up this storage format on its cameras, while the SD card slot supports cards up to UHSII.The D850 gets Nikons SnapBridge connectivity for wireless transfer of images, which establishes a lowenergy Bluetooth connection between the camera and your smart device. Images can then be transferred from camera to device via as you shoot at either 2MP or full resolution though wed avoid this with 45.4MP files, or individually if you select images on the camera. For speedier WiFi transfers you can use the app to browse and select the images you desire.I have waited a very long time to purchase a new camera because my Nikon D700 is still working great along with my Nikon D800E Upon seeing the specs for the D850, I was really amazed with the ISO range and working in very low light which has been somewhat troublesome for me with my current cameras. I am very happy purchasing this amazing camera and believe its Nikons best camera ever made so far The ISO range is phenomenal. Working in low light is no longer a problem Shots are very crystal clear, tact sharp, and not at all grainy with no noise. My pictures straight out of the camera do not need any corrections when I transfer to Lightroom….I really had no idea how much work I had been doing with color correction, tonal curves, etc until I uploaded my first batch from the D850 The shutter release is much quieter, and I have used video mode with much success and I am not a videographer Great camera and Im excited to use it everyday in my wifes Real Estate business Doing Real Estate Photography is now what I do since I have been semiretired from event photography. iI highly recommend this camera to anyone who has a passion for photography as I do.
peak –
I have used Nikon cameras for over 40years and enjoy the quality. I purchased this 850 at the Best Buy in San Bernardino which in my opinion has the best selection and the people working the camera section really know photography. This is a FX full frame body and the quality of the photos are amazing. I had been using the Nikon 7500 which is a crop sensor body and thought the photos were outstanding until I got this 850 for my Birthday I am very pleased with this camera and Best Buy for carrying all the accessories to make a great combination
robert –
5 months in and this is camera is everything I need or want. Focus, exposure, dynamic range, and handling are superb. It is amazing and I will have to up my game to really get the most out of it. It is a little heavy, though. My father had a Roliflex back in the day that we used to call the candid cobblestone and this one with the 2470 2.8 E tips in a little heavier. But Im willing to man up to get these results. All new equipment will have a learning curve associated with it so I recommend getting the By Thom manual to supplement the Nikon issued one to help you get the most with your investment.
Julie –
I have used a Nikon D800 for studio photography and have shot over 135,000 images. I use Canon gear for my own personal use and have been able to actively compare both brands. I purchased this camera to replace the studio camera after noticing new reviews talking about the dynamic range of this new camera.Boy, was I impressed. The whole package has been upgraded obviously, a 45 year gap between releases does wonders. Image quality is phenomenal, Nikon finally fixed the camera grip and now feels like Canons best grip. Being able to pull shadows like I can with this camera with 45 megapixels is amazing. The rear articulating screen is a plus.Ive also use this outside from time to time and the quality outside is just as amazing. Great dynamic range, colors are spot on, tons of detail in the images. And one of my favorite options is being able to shoot Small, Medium and Large in RAW when I dont need full resolution for some projects to save space.To sum up, absolutely worth the money to upgrade if youre using a D800 or D810. It has even made me question my Canon affiliation due to Canons recent lacking of performance with their new stuff coming out. Nikon really hit it out of the park with this camera. You wont be disappointed
Lee –
Sorry not a camera buff that loves to press camera setting buttons.Am a birder, the camera on auto settings takes amazing photos, the color is amazing. When the sun is setting and its getting dark, the camera can still take great photos, brighter photos than what my eye can see at the time. Bought the camera to do video also.My main equipment, the Nikon 850 camera and Nikon 200500mm zoom lens, also use a Nikon AFS teleconverter TC14E iii. I buy all my camera equipment at BH, which is a wonderful company,
Robert –
While this camera takes wonderful images it is a vast sampling of plasticstechnology. Plastic, plastic, and still more plastic.Then we buy the lenses and guess what More plastic. Then I buy the battery grip and yes, more plastic.Starting to see a pattern here.A great consumer grade camera
Schwad –
Nikon created the most powerful and most creative DSLR ever The new chip is truly revolutionary. I tested it on an elaborate stilllife setup in my studio at 30,000 40,000 50,000, and 102,000 ISO. Even at the highest speeds, the color splotchingcrossover was minimal. And the graininess was more neutral and natural looking than any other super high speed setting I have ever seen. In auto white balance, the colors are more neutral than my older D810.For action photography…and especially for sports shooters this camera is a MUST. I was shooting action outside on a sunny day andbecause of this brilliant chip I could shoot at ISO 10,000 F11 and at 2500 shutter speed. The action was frozen crystal clear and at incredible resolution.It is time to praise the brilliance of Nikons software engineers now,too. Their rendering algorithms for this camera are the best in the world.And is very obvious when you take your first shot.
Dr Jon –
This camera is toprated everywhere you read, and for a reason it is OUTSTANDING. I have owned Nikon cameras for over 50 years, so I am obviously a fan and a bit biased. But their quality is always topnotch, the and the optics of the lenses firstrate. If you are considering purchase of the D850 be aware that there is a lot to learn with regards to its features and capabilities. You can set the camera to be essentially pointandshoot quick snapshots while traveling in a group or at a family gathering, or you can control and adjust nearly every aspect of the photographic process. Be prepared to shell out some money for storage cards theres a lot of pixels to store I got this a few months ahead of a big vacation trip, and Im glad I left the time to get used to it so it becomes second nature while traveling. Glad I made the purchase great camera sweepstakes
Ed –
This camera is everything that the known reviewers have said, basically the best DSLR on the market at this time. Nikon is producing some excellent products and this is clearly one of them. The color rendition is excellent and true to the subject, which reduces the back side work for many photographers who do not want to spend time processing their photos. I dont need to mention the resolution this camera produces, its well known, but I will say its everything you would expect for a 45megapixel sensor. I can see why so many of my fellow professionals have switched to the D850. The continuios shooting rate is down from cameras like the D4s or D5, but if that isnt a factor theres nothing to stop you from using this camera. The additional base accessory which ups the shooting rate a bit is a nice addition and give you the convienent shutter release when shooting vertically. I truly enjoy shooting with this beautiful piece of equipment.
ed308 –
This is an incredible camera However, because of the high price tag and the lack of a lot of auto settings that most consumer grade cameras have these days, I would not recommend it for a beginner just interesting in casual vacation photography. The body is very heavy for a DSLR due to the fact that it is built to withstand the heavy workload of a professional photographer. The pictures that you can take with this camera are simply amazing and the clarity of the photos rival any camera I have seen. If you are looking for a professional camera, this is a great choice.
Barry –
Im probably not the best reviewer for professional photographers, and most pros already know this is an awesome machine. This is probably more for those who own an older camera and cant afford to keep up with technology. Im a creative director, so I do some photography and video for the projects Im working on, but I dont sell photography services. Ive spent hundreds of hours behind a camera, and with pro photographers, and editing and retouching photos, so I like to think I have a good idea of whats acceptable for a professional. I have also used a reasonable range of brands and equipment, so Im not a Nikon disciple. Ive been renting equipment for some years now, since its so expensive to keep up with technology. My goto rental is the Canon 5D because it does great still and video. Unquestionable a totally awesome camera, and you cannot go wrong with it. I needed to own a camera because you cant always rent, and I own a couple of Nikon lenses. Im a hard sell because tech is outdated so fast. So, after reading the reviews I went with the 850, as it is similar in cost to the 5D, plus i own some glass. Got the package from BH almost a month sooner than they said for back order thank you charged the bat, snapped on an 80200, walked out on to my porch, and fired off maybe 10 shots at hummingbirds, using the single point focus and the full pixel FX format 8256 x 5504 or 36 x 24 if that helps. The image ive uploaded is one of those shots, cropped incamera to 4480 x 2984, so basically zoomed 200 Its also downsampled to meet the 5mb requirement. I was blown away by the resolution, the focus the ease of getting a shot. Im not a sports photographer. I like stuff to stand still while I focus on it. And Im not sending this photo to NatGeo, but i didnt even try. Ive owned this lens for years, I could not get that photo with my old cameras. This is NOT an ordinary camera. Next I had a gig that required indoor event video. Most of the time really dark areas where I could not use lights. I started with ISO 800 aperture wide open. Too much light Unbelievable, this thing sees in the dark. I used both wide and long lenses. At one point of really low light i went to 2000 ISO with no grain detected in 1080 video. COOL FEATURE set the min and max ISO and let the camera decideNot so great stuff The battery life is short, especially for video, so get some extra 3rd party batteries. I recommend the Vello BGN192 Battery Grip for Nikon D850, BH has it for 99.95, and it works flawlessly. So add a couple hundred for batteries and grip.Bottom line, if you have an old camera, some decent skills and the cash, this one is the first Ive seen in a while thats worth upgrading for. You will not be disappointed.
Todd –
Ive been shooting a D300 for the last nine years or so and its a good camera not a great camera but a good one. I finally broke down and cried like a baby so my wife let me buy a D850. WOW, OMG, other three letter expletives, what a nice camera. Ive been out and shot about 1800 pictures so far. The detail on the pictures is simply awesome and, if you know Nikon cameras, the menu is easy to navigate to get it set up for how you like to shoot. The trackingauto focus is really nice. I shoot mainly wildlife and landscapes. I really like birds in flight and this is pretty awesome for that. I may get the batter grip and the battery to take it to 9FPS but Ill probably have to work up a scheme to get that by the wife. Nikon did a very good job with this one. I very much recommend it if you have some shooting experience behind you.
Scott –
I wanted to provide you prospective from a user that has 1.5 years of experience with the D850. I wrote a previous review with 2 months use back in early 2018, and now have significant hours in the field to further comment.Nikon simply pulled out all the stops with this technology. As a semiprofessional landscape photographer the product pushes the envelope in 1 Low light performance low noise 2 Recouping shadow detail 3 Best in class picture quality 4 Great functional customization and 5 Exceptional Live View capabilities. I have married the body performance with Prime Sigma Art lens and FX Pro Nikon lens, and could not be happier with the detail and edgeto edge picture performance. You will need to be prepared however, specially as a landscape photographer, to carry significant weight with this camera coupled with Sigma Art glass. A small price to pay for exceptional performance.Like you, I research and read user reviews. You can stop reading now it has excelled in multiple National Park venues and winters in Chicago. Buy it…it will renew your love in photography
Scott –
I ordered a D850 on January 3rd of this year, waited over a month to get it, and anded up sending it in for warranty repair a couple of weeks later because the autofocus sensors were off and the camera refused to get sharp focus on anything with any of my lenses, both Nikkor and Tamron. It took about 10 days to get the camera back, and autofocus was better, but it is still off using the dottune method for Autofocus FT adjustment, Im at the end of the range for two Tamron lenses I use the most 2470 f2.8 70200 f2.8. Both of these lenses are dead on zero with a D750. So then yesterday, I was using the camera for horse portraits in the morning, and even with AFFT adjustments, focus with the viewfinder was still slightly off. So OK, its not terrible and close enough nobody will notice unless they pixel peep at high resolution. So I charged up my batteries, packed up my gear, and went off to do a junior prom photoshoot and after hauling my gear through a park and being a time limit, the D850 locked up and wouldnt power up, only showing a flashing low battery icon only. I changed batteries, I checked the charge level in the batteries with my D750 all batteries were fine and then thought it might be a lens issue. So I tried three different lenses, including a manual lens, and then with no lens at all such as for sensor cleaning and the camera will not power on. Thank goodness I have the D750 as a backup so the shoot went off OK. The D850 is in a box now and will be shipping off to Nikon in the morning for the second time in less than two months. I cant help but wonder if they are rushing production to meet demand and quality is taking a back seat. Ive asked for a replacement camera, I doubt theyll do that though. Im very disappointed in Nikon and the D850 after I apparently dropped 3300 on a lemon. Im only giving it two stars instead of one, because if it ever works, the added features and improvements over the D750 should be great.
JOHN M –
I have owned a lot of Nikon bodies and I rely so heavily on my D850 for studio work that I purchased this one as a backup body. What is so important is the speed of the autofocus, the consistancy of light and color, and the ease to switch between the settings going between shutter, aperture, and manual preferred. For example. I picked up another brand and for the life of me could not figure out how to change the aperture while in aperture preferred mode. Not so with the Nikon, as I have yet to be stumped by a menu setting during a shoot, even under pressure. I live for my 24 to 70 f2.8 in the studio backed up by the huge 105 f1.4. These consistently provide sharp, fast, point focus with little autufocus runaway. I believe there is no better camera on the market. I also own or have owned the D610, D750, D800, D800e, D810, and D850. I also own a Z6 and Z7 and and currently doing comparisons between them with their respective 24 to 70 lenses. So far the D850 is King.
Joseph A –
I have owned the D 850 for almost 2 years I can say it truly is the best of the best, I have used this camera in low light, landscapes, seascapes, wild life, grandkids, sports, portraits, birds of prey in action even took a selfie which I wont show to anyoneI even took shots through my cars windshield not to lose the moment the camera was great by the time it would have taken me to get outside the vehicle the eagle would have been long goneSince I have been a nikon guy since 1979 have many years experience using their lens cameras, I can tell you that the D 850 80200 mm f2.8 zoom lens is only matched by the 2470 mm f2.8 lens I will post photos to prove, I have also used my 28300 mm f3.5 with good results, my D 810 has become my backup camera has also done an excellent job The D 850 is as close to perfect for me as possible
Vasile –
Well, I must say without any doubts that this camera its definitely impressive. Theres a huge difference comparing it with my old Nikon D800.I have this lens, Nikon AFS NIKKOR 2470mm f2.8G ED that I always wanted to sell it because most of the pictures taken with it arent sharp only in rare occasions I succeeded to take really sharp pictures with it the only situation for pictures to be sharp is to use it at 24mm which is kind of frustrating for such an expensive lens, isnt it. So I tried it on the new D850 body and surprise Regardless the focal lens I used, I discovered that all pictures are suddenly crispy sharp I have also to mention that I cleaned the mirror of my old D800 body, the lens its always perfectly clean and well maintained including the camera.Coming back to D850 the colors are really neat straight in the RAW files, auto WB mode is very accurate, brilliant dynamic range, really easy to focus, way better than D800. I am still adjusting with the buttons layout especially the ISO setting
Gina –
I have been looking at this camera for nearly a year finally decided to go for it I have not been disappointed in that decision, and feel this camera is taking my photography to a whole new level. Photos are so clear, and the color is spectacular. As I eagerly awaited its delivery, it was held up in the Texas snow blizzard. Was worried about the condition the camera would be in with temps down to 1 degree, but so far the camera condition appears to be fine. If you are in the fence about buying this camera, highly recommend you go for it as well
Jon –
I regularly use a D800, D3S, D4S and now the D850 and I can confidently say that the D850 is the best so far in terms of photo and video quality. The features also make it absolutely amazing to work with as a professional who shoots more than 30,000 photos per year for a quarterly magazine, brochures, web, social media, etc. for a giant corporation. We also use these cameras for video production releasing short documentaries on YouTube and elsewhere. The Nikons have been fantastic for that and this camera is a definite step up. I did have an issue with Custom Setting G1 where I set a button on the back to be used with a command dial to switch from FX to DX in the movie controls menu. Once I did this, it locked grayed out settings in the i button menu when in Movie Live View. It took about 2 weeks for NikonUSA to figure out the problem. This function is no where in the manual that it causes this problem. My only other issue is just the halfbody format of the camera compared to a D3S or a D4S or D5. Those full body cameras have such an advantage for pros. I did purchase the grip and am waiting for that, but even with the grip I know it wont be as solid as those cameras and wont have that lower mini screen thats so useful. Thats just a personal gripe thats easy to overlook though and Im glad the grip will be available soon. Of course, getting another charger for the ENEL18 batteries along with another ENEL18b battery and the grip altogether is another thousand dollars. I really wish Nikon would release an adapter for the MV22 charger to charge the 18 series batteries. Or I wish they would release a single sided charger so help reduce the cost by a few hundred. The WifiBluetoothSnapbridge works pretty well for what it is an electronic cable release. You cant change camera settings via your phone. It definitely needs more features. Right now, its only useful for transferring a jpg to your phone or tablet but you have to shoot with RawJpeg or you have to process a .nef in camera to produce a jpeg to transfer. The small print always gets ya. Overall, Im just blown away by the camera. I knew it would be good, but its better than that. The focusing alone is worth it. You can shoot in the dark. In the words of Abe Froman, Its so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.
Norman –
I love the D850 and it has been my goto camera for almost everything since I got it. The image quality when paired with a topquality lens is unmatched. I have a D5, a D500, and just got a Z7 II. The D850 is still the camera Im most comfortable with. TZ7 II will match it for image quality but it doesnt fit my hands like the D850 does. Read all the reviews. The D850 still is at the top of the list
Rodney –
My last Nikon was a D800. This one seems to do everything faster and with less noise. I have also added a new most recent lens. Together, they focus precisely. Smaller focus areas make me feel like I can can really pinpoint what I want to focus on. However when the smaller area lights up it is a lintel harder to see but my eyes arent as good as they used to be either. Older lenses even ones with a pin drive do quite well. Images are stunning. Auto color seems to be more accurate. By comparison, a few switches have been relocated so there is a bit of a learning curve but nothing too far off. Thought the camera seems quite heavy, since its build is so superior to less expensive models, it is a price I am willing to pay. One reason I wanted this was for the negative digitizer. Now I discover that you need a constant light source. I wanted to use electronic flash as the light source. Now I will have to add an artificial constant light source. I am annoyed by this. I have yet to have anything printed, but given the file size I expect beautiful prints.
Daniel –
Im a 30 year veteran of Nikon products and I have to say that this is by far one of the best cameras I have bought. My background is travel and documentary photography and I have used DSLRs, Leica, Minox, and Fujifilm for a number of projects. Moving up to FF was done with the D750 which worked pretty well, but I felt that it was a bit clunky in different ways, plus I have been cursed with a model that doesnt fire on the first release after turning on. Moving up to the D850 was easy as it resembles the other Nikons used. Still, I have been pretty impressed with the quality of the images that come out of this camera, very little need for postprocessing. Above all, it is nice to have optional size choices for RAW or JPEG. Overall, in my two weeks use of this camera I would easily recommend to anyone who needs a high quality DSLR and doesnt want to pay the price for cameras that ultimately are sports photographers or pros who arent paying for their equipment.Is it for everyone No, its a bit heavy compared to mirrorless and other cameras, but for a serious photographer who either wants to control everything or hands control over to the camera, it works like a charm and the images are sharp, rich, and true to life.
Mel –
Thought my D800 was wonderful, which it is, but there is a very noticeable difference between that camera and the D850. Love the tilt screen, using touch screen in Live View. I am finding it easy to use because in many respects its like the D800. Still learning how to use, however the 850 manual is great plain and simple explanations and descriptions. Results so far are stunning looking at results random photos I initially took resulted in a whoa reaction. I was amazed As well, I did not find D850 difficult or uncomfortable to use for vertical shots. Also purchased with the D850 a Nikkor VR 105mm, f2.8 micro and a Sigma 15mm diagonal fisheye. Very happy with performance of both lenses and D850. The Sigma 15mm gives you some wacky perspectives and just plain fun to use you just need to get used to it and what its capable of rendering. I highly recommend the D850 and the aforementioned lenses I purchased with it results have been sharp corner to corner. I expect using my other lenses with D850 will produce great images. Love working with BH great customer service and prices. Whenever I need camera stuff, I just choose BH.
Jess –
I just returned from snowy Yosemite, rainy Big Sur, and coldwindy Astoria, OR. Of course when it began raining at Big Sur I got out my rain cover but the camera and my 702004 still got wet. Im a bit paranoid about this and wiped off all water as soon as I returned to my car. Regardless of the bad weather, my D850 performed flawlessly. The D850s controls are logically located, but there is one feature few mention, the Nikon solid feel. This is indeed a heavy, substantial camera and perhaps the best Nikon has made. I date back to the completely manual Nikon FM. I have no hesitation in recommending this camera, but its not for everyone. The D850 is designed for someone serious about photography and has the patience to study the entire instruction book. Final recommendation, dont buy bargain lenses and expect great performance from this camera. The D850s image quality is nothing short of stunning. Each time I look at my images on my monitor, its with disbelief. AWESOME
Kenneth –
I have been using a D500. I really like the D500., but the D850 takes my photos to the next level. I am a nonproenthusiast, and it could be argued that the D850 is more than I need, but so far and I have only had it for a few weeks I am really impressed with the quality of my shots. I shoot a variety of subject matter, but I really like to shoot birds in flight. The D500 is a great camera for that, with its 10fps and almost unlimited buffer. I use the Nikkor 200500mm 5.6 lens. The D850 is not as fast, and the buffer can fill if you really push the high speed continuous, but I think the trade offs are worth it. The level of detail and the sharpness of the D850 45 MP BSI sensor is very obvious in comparison to the D500. Dont misunderstand, I have gotten some truly amazing shots of birds in flight with the D500, but the D850 takes it to the next level. Whether taking it to the next level is worth the price difference is only something you and your wallet can decide, but in making that decision be aware that in my opinion there is a definite and very noticeable quality difference. I shoot in RAW 14bit lossless compressed, so the files are quite large, but I think it is worth it. Memory is relatively cheap. If you have been using a D500, the layout of the D850 is very similar, so other then learning about the new features of the D850 i.e. in camera focus stackingshifting among others it is a pretty seamless transition.
Miguel –
I use D810 and D750 on a variety of projects, with a D500 as a backup. I traded in the D750 to help fund the D850, and after two weeks of use in the field, I have a new problem. The D850 can do so much, I havent picked up the other two cameras again.There are improvements to many aspects of performance from those familiar with the other Nikons listed, and there are new features previously unavailable that are changing the way I approach jobs.Improvements Focus acquisition and accuracy Frame speed and buffer Video simplicity, quality and feature setFavorite new features so far Auto AF Fine Tuning Silent Shutter Live View Touch Screen Shooting, Review, screen quality Focus ShiftStacking New Auto White Balance Sun Square image areaLots more could be said, but you will read it in the pro reviewer blogs when they publish. Bottom line, with more images in perfect focus, with accurate color, and amazing multimedia capability in one device, my postediting time is cut in half, with better results for client work. Love the D850, the pricevalue is sensational. And the Auto AF Fine Tune will let you get even more out of your legacy lenses. Highly recommended.
Ron –
I was on the fence for a while. I love Nikon. Do I buy the D850 or the newer D780 Im a researcher and I went with the D850. I knew I would second guess myself if I didnt go with the highly acclaimed D850. I was not disappointed. The D850 sporting my first lens,the Tamron 70200 2.8 di vc usd g2has captured incredibly sharp and impressive images. With this high resolution camera, your lens reach is really more than stated focal length with image cropping. I love this camera and lens I made the right decision for me. As always, BH is a highly reliable supplier that quickly delivered. I love their NYC store and their fast shipping to NC. They are the best and I trust them.
Carleton –
I waited months to receive this camera. When I opened the box I was dismayed at everything you dont get from Nikon. The packaging was cheaply done. The accessories seemed cheaply made. I noticed that this camera did not include a hot shoe cover. I called both BH and Nikon, and was informed that one did not come with the camera. Really This is the flagship camera body for Nikon. Retail paid value is 3300. Every Nikon, and all other DSLR cameras I have purchased from 3502000 have included a hot shoe cover. BH sent me a cheapy for my troubles, Nikon made me purchase one. Nikon keeps manufacturing its cameras farther farther away from its origin, Japan. This camera is made in Thailand.I realize that this camera isnt the tank that my D700 is. It seems to be solid enough though.I realize the packaging the accessories are not the essence of what makes this camera tick. However, I did expect more from Nikon upon opening the box.After a few months of use, Ill let you know how I like the camera.
SprocketTracker –
Have been shooting Nikon gear for a lot of years. 13 years with a Nikon D50 APSC and then stepped up to the D7500. When I was presented with an opportunity to buy the D850 I jumped on it and have not been disappointed. The transistion from APSC sensors to a full frame sensor took a bit to get used to especially with the resolution being 8 times the D50 and over 2 times the D7500, but was quickly overcome by changing some of my shooting habits. The resolution is great and the color is awesome straight out of the camera. I already had a collection of full frame lenses so I did not need to buy a a bunch of new gear to transition to full frame, so keep that in mind if youre moving into a full frame for the first time from a crop sensor camera, because full frame lenses work great on crop sensor bodies. BUT crop sensor lenses do not work well with a full frame body unless you switch the capture mode to DX cropAPSC format, in which case its a waste of a great sensor and you should look at the D500 or D7500. I have taken low light, night time, long exposure, and full sun pictures and have had no problems and love the quality of low light and night photos that can be taken with this camera. The menus are natural and intuitive for me since I am a previous Nikon DSLR shooter. I can say this camera is not for everybody due to its size and weight body alone and then add in high end all glass lenses and the weight can be a bit much for long day shots for some. I have weighed one of my combinations of the D850 body and Tamron 150600 and it comes in at just about 7 pounds. So if weight and big size is an issue be warned this is a bigger camera but not unmanageable even for my girlfriend who has small hands.
joe –
I scoured the internet trying to find someone that could give me first hand experience of how the D850 compares to the D3s in Auto Focus performance. Years ago I remember using a D700 which also had the same focus system as my D3 and let me tell you, it didnt even come close. Eventually I sold one of my D3 cameras and got a D3s which served me extremely well for over 10 years and clocked 469,000 actuations. The AF of that camera never let me down and during indoor ballroom dance comps in available light, I literally no longer had to review through 10,000 images to pull the ones out of focus. The D3s was that good.Since the D850 shares the AF system of the D5, I was again concerned there would be noticeable difference in some way. I knew the D700 had one focus processor and the D3s had twin.Well for those of you considering upgrading from a similar pro body to the D850, let me tell you you are in for a shock. The D850 AF system literally blew me away. For starters, it can focus in low light without assistance thats leagues ahead of what Im used to. Focus is very snappy with my Sigma art lenses and the auto lens calibration feature is priceless.ErgonomicsI love pro bodies. This camera feels wonderful in my hands despite having a vastly different arrangement of controls. I love the little joystick that lets me move the auto focus point around much more than the lower thumb pad. The camera is super configurable to your tastes like nothing Ive ever seen.Image quality.Recently I shot a wedding with my D3s and a D810 which was lent to me. Throughout the evening I noticed that I was reaching more for the D810 than I expected. In the end, 95 of the wedding was on the D810. Back home reviewing the images I noticed that there were a handful of critical shots that were not useable. I checked my settings and was shocked to see that shutterspeeds I routinely shoot with on the D3s were not producing sharp images on the D810. The D810 mirror slap is pretty string and the resolution magnified it.The rule of using a shutterspeed equivalent to the focal length like 1200 sec for 200mm lens really doesnt apply to these higher resolution sensors. Prepared for the same with the D850, I was pleasantly surprised to see this wasnt as bad. In fact, the D850 feels like its halfway between the 810 and the D3s with regards to this mirror slap. With the D850 in the quiet shutter mode, the slap issue is eliminated entirely.Also, initially I wasnt terribly impressed with the image quality. Using my Nikon 70200 vr II, the files definitely had more detail and dynamic range but having shot the Sony A7R II, I was expecting to be as stunned by the resolution compared to my 12MP D3s.In fact, the Sony was so crazy I actually said to the owner, I would never need that kind of detailAfter a lot of research, I decided to look into the Sigma Art lenses. I settled on the 135 because I live long focal lengths for bridal portraits and always shot them at 200mm with either the 70200 vr II or with my 200 f2 which I no longer have.The Art 135 lens arrived with USB dock and after calibrations were performed, I started using the lens for product photography I needed and some basic head shots. After reviewing the images, doing some raw conversions and comparing the dynamic range I sat back on the couch in disbelief. MY D3s and 70200 will always take beautiful pictures but they are no match for the D850. I listed and sold my D3s and my 70200 vr II a week later.A few gripes are in order. The battery life is pathetic. I ordered some 3rd party ones and a charger and they work perfectly. Also ordered the 3rd party grip to get the 9fps with D5 battery but just love the camera without it. When I need 4000 shots on a charge Ill simply screw it on.Snap bridge app is weird. It either wont connect or is so relentless at transferring images to my phone that at times it seems to do it even when Im not expecting it.Biggest complaint is no wireless support to laptop but an open source free program exists that gets me around that limitation.Bar none the best camera Ive ever owned. I considered the A7R III but have no regrets. For the limited video I shoot the D850 will fully provide. In fact, I also sold my GH4 which I only used for video.Lastly, I absolutely love the new sensor technology. I never thought a sensor could be this clean at higher ISO and have this much resolution. Add the AF speed and rediculous buffer and its simply a no brainer. Absolutely head and shoulders above anything else Ive used in 25 years.
Wayne –
Ive been using the D850 for 3 months now and I am really loving its capabilities. Even though it is an expensive camera, you certainly do get value for the money. I use it mostly for landscape photography so I really appreciate its 45 megapixel resolution and ISO down to 64. If you plan to use it handheld as opposed to on a tripod, I really advise that you get lenses that have Vibration Reduction since, due to the large number of pixels, any shake shows as a blur when the image is blown up to 100.Due to the large image size I was wondering how many images I could fit on a memory card. It turns out that, for me, a 64GB card will hold about 1000 images plus or minus 50. I think that 32GB cards would have been more useful and cheaper since I never get close to 1000 images without downloading them.The weight is what you would expect of a quality fullframe camera which also means you end up with quality ie heavy lenses. I would suggest getting a more comfortable strap than the standard one that comes with the camera.ProsResolution of 45mp ISO64Solid Build qualityTouch ScreenHDR CapabilitiesEase of use of various menusConsWeightHIgh Cost along with high value though
Troy –
This is known as the very best DSLR ever made to date . It has a phenomenal sensor with huge dynamic range . For its high megapixel count it is also has great high iso . Its focusing is super fast and it will focus in super low light . Color from this sensor is some of Nikons best ever in my opinion. The cameras build is a full magnesium and super tough . Weather sealing is fantastic Ive shot in the very cold to super hot and humid to full rain . Video is also great . I have a video production company shooting live music shows mostly. We have aired our own tv music series on public broadcast using this and other Nikon DSLRs. This is an advanced professional camera and some of the finest photos in the world have been made with it. It is especially well know for high resolution landscape photography.This has huge RAW files so take note of that but also has settings for smaller RAW files like RAW medium or small . Raw medium is a nice 24mp then there is always the JEPG files .I had seen this had only a two star rating on this site which is crazy. This camera is renowned around the world as one of the best cameras ever made . I just had to leave a review letting people know how great it is . Ive had mine almost two years and used it hard weekly. Its not been babied at all but quite the opposite so I can attest to its durability and its image quality.
Anonymous –
For professional sports and wildlife photography. I would recommend this product to anyone who is serious about their photography and does not want to spend hours editing their images. If you want to do that, buy a cheaper camera. The results you get with the D850 will highlight any weaknesses you may have as a photographer and you need good quality lenses with such a high pixel processor but after just a few hours of use I like it. Its a great step up from my Nikon D810 which is also a great sports and wildlife camera. Great value.
digconsult68 –
This is one of 4 Nikons I have for business and my favorite. The file size and clarity of this camera are amazing. It really requires use of an XQD over a SD card bc of file sizes. Favorite features edge to edge focus selection, touch to focus and shoot on screen, color profile of the chip, sharpness of the files, ergonomics. Beware it eats batteries especially if you have auto review on. The files are sharper than from my Z7 but the Z7 does has less noise at the highest ISO settings. Highly recommend this camera.
Phil –
The 850 is my 4th Nikon, I began with a 200, followed by a 7000 and then a 750. The 750 was great and Im expecting the 850 to be better. At this point Im still getting acquainted with the 850. The camera was backordered for weeks so I had time to read David Buschs D850 book and found it very helpful and I know it let me work though the setup faster. These are the pros and cons so far.Weight its slightly heavier and larger but that isnt a problem.I really like the viewfinder, the way it can be focused and the view.Low light slightly better than the 750.Video Im primarily a still photographer so I havent tested the video yet.Arrangement of the controls much better, e.g., the ISO, Mode, Quality and White Bal.No Auto Mode I dont miss it and was never sure why it was on the previous cameras because the Program mode did about the same things.45 MP Those 45 megapixels make the files double size from the 750, thats OK but the larger pixel files sometimes exaggerate any camera shake so VR is important. You dont have to shoot at 45MP.QXD card I wish the camera used two QXD cards.Wireless remote the wireless remote Ive used on the previous two cameras doesnt work with the 850 but there are other solutions for remote shuttering.No Illuminator light Im glad to see it gone.Touch Screen very convenient and I like it.No Internal Flash I miss that a little but the SB800 I have seems to work OK.Multiple picture sizes I like that as it saves cropping, i.e., 1.25411Button Illumination that is very convenient.
robert –
Images are great.However this is not your fathers or grand fathers Nikon. Logically laid out and well balanced with an ergonomic grip.Lots of great features.Just not built like my older Nikon equipment. Feels more like a consumer grade camera.Did get it on sale so that makes it a better value.New Nikon lens and battery grip purchased at the same time seem mostly plastic…..Expensive plastic.
Tim –
I am retiring this year, so this will probably be my last camera. It was a tough choice to upgrade from a d750. The d750 is an impressive camera that just keeps producing great photos over and over. I am keeping the d750 for sure. I have had d70s, d200, d300, d600, d750, and now d850. I have plenty of good Nikon FX glass so I was not interested in the adapter mirror less setup because I am not buying new glass.Is it worth more than double the price of a d750 right now Probably not, but I am glad I bought the d850. Photos are flat out exceptional. I like to just keep looking at all the pixels and dynamic range that just keeps coming. I have only taken about 500 photos so far weather has been quite bad where I live since I received this camera so I have not really got to see what this unit will do. I like landscape, structure, and car show photography.I shoot full raw 14 bit compressed and in flat control. Files are huge 5060 meg each and put a load on computer. Might want to think about buying external hard drive because the gigs fill up fast.Proper camera technique is imperative, if you make a mistake it will show. I dont mess with the video, so I really cant say anything. Weight does not really seem to be an issue, but I dont hike for miles either. This camera was expensive to me, but the photos are worth every penny. Very good camera.
Spencer R. –
First, a shout out to Nick. I spoke to him the day before I headed to NYC and told him I would really appreciate being able to take a new D850 with me. I was on the list, but hadnt been notified there was one for me. Within the hour, Nick phoned and said he had one for me. The camera is powerful and takes great images. It has great dynamic range and offers low noise at high ISO. The high megapixel count allows one to shoot a bit wider with the assurance that cropping will not impact image quality for most print sizes. Two things prevent a five star rating. Shooting in low light at high ISO has produced consecutive images with different white balance. One is has a yellow hue, one shot immediately after has the proper white balance. Second, the highly touted auto focus system has not always worked as I hoped it would. It certain situations it has hunted, then has prevented a shutter release. Pictureline has asked I bring it in so they can check it out.
MICHAEL –
Ive had a D500 for a number of years. The D850 is sufficiently similar that I could just pick it up and use it, so its very familiar in operation. The camera feels comfortable to hold, with a grip that falls into my hand just right. Its heavy, but that adds to the feeling of solidity and ability to hold it steady at slow shutter speeds. The picture quality of the D850 is stellar, especially at high ISO. While it doesnt go as high in ISO as the D500 does, a onetoone comparison shows that the D850 is cleaner all the way up to ISO 51,200 and comparable to the D500 at its highest ISO of 102,400. The D500 will go all the way up to a crazy ISO of 1,638,400, but the image quality is so poor above 102,400, that as a practical matter the two cameras are the same in terms of maximum ISO. I have a mix of DX and fullframe lenses, and the camera works well with both, with no need to do anything other than just switch lenses with DX lenses, the cropsensor area of view is masked off in the viewfinder, fullframe lenses get the full viewfinder. My only negative comment is that the system of custom setup and shooting banks can be confusing each of the four available banks AD saves the current state of settings, but its not clear which settings are saved to what, and if you make any changes while using the camera they overwrite what was there before so its easy to get things mixed up. In that way, the selectable U1U2 user modes on the D7200 are easier to use, since once you save settings to the user mode they stay there. If theres anything someone new to the line should know, its that you will need to do a significant amount of setup before you can get maximum use from the camera the default settings arent necessarily the best for you, and youll want to review every setting on every menu. Start by downloading Ken Rockwells setup file, upload them to the camera and change things from there dont forget to change the copyright information and comment to your name. When youre done, save the settings to a memory card and upload them to your computer for backup youll thank me for that, someday.
Gregory –
Operator manual has traditional spine which makes it very difficult as you cannot keep the page open and manipulate the controls on the camera. You have to put the manual down. Needs a sprial binding. Manual does not cover some items at all. Two parts included with camera with no explanation. No explanation of the USB cable.Camera has a lot of options which makes it very adaptable to different shooting situations. Appears to be well made.A cover for the LCD display was not included and is unavailable. At very least one is needed when the camera is not being used. For this price range one should not have to go OEM.
JAVIER –
Best digital camera I have ever owned. Files are beautiful. Fast enough for sport and high enough res for products and portraits. Excellent autofocus. Solid body long lasting battery life. Perfect for photos. I dont shoot video, but if that is something you need, it may be the only downside I see on the cameras. Batterie life is not the best on live view and the aotufocus in video is far behind Sony and Canon.
willembez –
This camera has exceeded all my expectations. Im still keeping my trusty old D700 as a second body, but the D850 opens up a whole new world for me. Its perfect for landscape, wildlife and macro photography, The 46 megapixels deliver astounding resolution and clarity. I can crop extensively much more so than I can crop with my 12 megapixel D700. But the best thing about the D850 is its dynamic range. Its in a class of ots own outstripping all competition old and new. The only criticism I have is that the AF mode button is too small and difficult to reach quickly. I use it a lot to switch between AF options and its a brilliant little tool. Maybe on newer models, Nikon would realise the importance of this button and make it bigger and easier to access.
Kelwyn –
I have been using this tool for 2 years now and it keeps impressing me to this day.Nature, wildlife photography being done about 2 to 3 times a week and during every possible element. The lens set is the entire N glass line from 18 all the way to 500, including the 105 prime for macro, and the SB700 flash all strapped to my hip.The camera has endured accidental bangs on rocks and many other things, Snow, Rain, Strong thunderstorms, getting dipped in the water while getting to rocks to perch on, Sand the camera mortal enemy, and much more and this camera has never hesitated. Does not even really have any scratches on it. It is built like a tank and can be beaten hard without flinching. Very strong.The camera takes both SD and XQD cards. Either can be set as the primary, secondary, or mirror. When the primary becomes full it will seamlessly switch to the secondary. I highly recommend using the XQD as the primary as it will give you much less time at the computer when the card is cleared. On a USB 3.1 Gen 2 setup a 64 Gig XQD will clear in about 4 minutes.A word of caution to those still deciding on this Camera. Do not use third party equipment when it comes to anything related to camera power Batteries, chargers, grips, and so on. The third party equipment will look similar to the Nikon equipment and that is where similarities end. You will be taking a serious risk if you do not heed this caution.The ENEL 18 battery can be used with this camera if you have the MBD18 grip. This combination will give you up to 9FPS, other wise you will have 7 FPS.The camera does not come with a charger for the ENEL 18 ABC battery. Only use the Nikon MH26A to charge the ENEL 18battery, do not use a third party charger as they will not calibrate and eventually will quit charging the battery. Of course, the camera does comes with the charger for the battery that comes with the camera.The only downside to this camera is Snap bridge. The app that lets you move pictures from the camera Bluetooth and Wifi usually Bluetooth to your phone and also allows the phone to act as the view finder to take pictures The app will connect to the camera by Wifi and the camera will go into a live view mode where the phone is the view. You can then place the camera where you need it and walk away. Looking through the phone you will see what the camera sees and will be able to change SA, WB, ISO settings as well as take a picture.Snap bridge does have its problems and it can become frustrating at times. This app still needs a lot of work from Nikon. The problems do have me constantly searching to see if a third party app ever shows up. Snap bridge is more of a problem on other Nikon cameras.Warning All third party hand grips are not weather sealed, Do not ever use one, or you risk serious electrical damage to the camera should you end up in the rain or the grip becomes wet.D
Dan –
All the hype you have heard about this camera is true. Im a semipro who shoots a mix of models in the studio and outdoor along with nature and wildlife I love my birds. This is an upgrade from my D800 which has served me well. The day after it arrived I took it to shoot my stepsons high school football game to see what the high ISO can really do. While I would never shoot at 25,600 ISO professionally you just have to test it to see if all the hype about it is true. It is. The D850 at 25,600 ISO looks about the same or slightly better than 6400 ISO on the D800. The new focusing system is great. I tried out the 3D tracking for sports and found it a little slow for the fast moving action but Im sure it works great for shooting other moving objects. My only complaints which are really just inconveniences are Im still waiting for the vertical battery grip to ship, needed to buy the new XQD flash cards and reader and one of my five Sigma lenses needs to be sent in for service to have the firmware upgraded to work with the D850. Im not one who normally praises and recommends any camera but if given the option of giving this six stars I would. So we will call this 5 stars. Great job Nikon.
Astrid –
I am stunned by the high quality of images shot during low light situations. So far I have hardly seen any noise. The new subselector is a great feature to move focus points around. This allows a quicker selection and setting of what you want to the focus on while still looking through the viewfinder. The pinpoint AF is an additional new feature which become very handy when shooting in Live View during video shots. The pinpoint AF feature makes it possible to focus on a much smaller of your images. Its a great improvement. The only issue I had so far is the battery that comes with the camera. It doesnt nearly last as long as the batteries for other Nikon cameras I am using.
Mike –
I recently purchased a Nikon D850 body only and I have put about 500 images through the camera so far. Either I do not know how to properly set up or use the Auto Focus AF. Of the images so far put through the body I had about 20 images out of focus. The AF sesames to search for the correct focus and sometimes locks on an image that is out of focus. The subjects are not moving. I am using a Nikon 24120mm zoom and a Nikon 105mm Macro. I like the over all size and weight and balance of the D850 and the number on Mega Pixels.
Robert –
After using the camera for five jobs Im thoroughly underwhelmed. The AF is not as good as everything that I read, in fact I dont think could say its much better than the 750. Auto AF fine tuning is useless and the processing of images is too different from my 750. The grip is decent but after several hours it becomes too uncomfortable. Its too bad the 750 is cheaply built and breaks easy or else that would be a perfect dslr.I have own the d700, d610, d800 and the d750 and after reading all the hype I was expecting to love this camera the way I did the 700 and 800 but I just dont think it measures up.Ive been using Nikon cameras and lenses professionally for close to thirty years but I think its time I moved on.
Stash –
Horrendous purchase. Within 3 months camera broke down in live view mode, when I change shutter speedapertureiso exposure changes cannot be seen. We spend 50 to mail the camera to NY to get it fixed in March and in May the same issue propped up. We need to spend another 50 to mail this lemon to NY again to get it fixed. For such an expensive camera, I am disappointed with the quality.
RANDALL –
Outstanding camera I just wish the xQd cards would come down in price. The only things I would change would be having a GPS built in and a fully articulating screen. If I did not already have one and was in the market for a another full frame camera I already have the D750 as well, I would still purchase the D850 over the Z7 and Z7II as there are not enough native glass for the Z series, yet and I do not want to have to buy more lenses.I do a lot of very long exposures as I am a light painter. The back lit buttons are a godsend.
Kevin –
I will refrain from reviewing this camera in all the ways that can be easily found on this very page, or in any number of other online review sites Im sure by now that you have read them all anyway. What I would like to add that I have not yet found online anywhere, is how wonderful this camera and especially the sensor and processor is for long exposure captures. Im talking about the 58 minute long exposures captured in midday using 16stop ND filters. For us LE photographers it has always been a problem dealing with hot pixels in post production. Yes, we deal with them in post rather than using the incamera LE NR because that would add yet another 58 minutes to the capture time while the camera captures a black frame that is then used to map out the hot pixels. This is also NOT the same issue that the D810 had in its early days. These are simply pixels that get aggravated due to the sensor heating up for 5 minutes or longer. This is a simple matter of electronics and there really is no way around it. With that said, I am fully amazed at how FEW hot pixels are on my images. I work in temps around 7585 degrees ambient also, so its not like Im doing this in arctic outside temperatures. The D810 had thousands that I would have to tackle in post, but this camera only has a handful, and that is no joke. I was initially concerned because usually when more pixels are crammed onto the same size sensor, those pixels get more aggravated…. not so with this camera. Im not sure if it is the quality of the sensor itself, the EXPEED 5 processor, or a combination of both. Regardless, I am 100 impressed There are many other things that are to love about this camera too all the buttons are where they should be, the tilt screen is a joy for those low shots, the weather sealing is wonderful mine has already been in a downpour of rain and it just feels very comfortable to hold. But like I said, you can read all those reviews elsewhere I just wanted to speak about its long exposure power… it is grand Cheers
MICHAEL –
I used the D850 to photograph a difficult wedding that was shot outdoors in low light within a half hour of sunset. All of the shots taken with moving wedding party members were perfectly focused. The detail was excellent. Shooting at ISO 6400 showed little to no noise unless you zoom in to a level that would not be visible in a print. I was amazed at the face detail on a panorama shot taken with a wide angle lens of over 100 people in a shot. I shoot raw on my primary card and backup with large fine jpg. The color, contrast and detail were so good on the jpg fine that I will not need to use the raw shots except for a couple during the sparkler exit. I also shot some wildlowers the following weekend and loved the color and contrast that came out of the camera without editing. Ive been shooting with a D800 since 2012 and the D850 is a significant upgradeimprovement.
Fred –
Yes, it is. And Ive owned Hasselblads back in the days of using film for taking wedding and sports team photos. The photos from the D850 are beyond amazing, and the features are so many. Ive just scratched the surface since Ive had the camera, but plan on learning all there is to learn. I absolutely love the silky smoothness of the photos I feel as if Im actually there when I look at them on my 65 screen. Im awed by the quality I see even in high ISO pictures, something Ive always been reluctant to use in the past, rarely going beyond ISO 400, and even that was pushing it. I look at ISO 3200 shots with the D850 and ask myself How can these pictures look so great The technical advances in the camera are amazing, absolutely amazing. Im shooting with the Sigma 24105 and it took some time to fine tune the lens, but the combination is simply amazing. I love the heft and solid feeling I get with my system, and although the system IS a bit on the heavy side, its a very comfortable weight for me, and it gives me confidence.There are lots of great cameras out there now for you to choose from, but I couldnt be happier than I am now with the D850. I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone and everyone whos looking for the highest in quality and precision. You will NOT be sorry once you can see for yourself what it can do for you.
Daniel –
My rating is based on ordering this camera from WalMart, and not the camera itself, because the camera is excellent. Ive ordered two D850s from Walmart in the past two months. One was shipped from 6th AVE Electronics and one was shipped from Pixibytes. Both cameras had hardware issues with the ONOFF button. When I would turn the camera on and release the ONOFF switch, the ONOFF switch didnt lock into the ON position. Instead, it continued past that point and back to the OFF position. This shouldnt happen.
Ronny L –
My previous camera was a Nikon D800. It would take a very special camera to better the D800 and the D850 does that. By every measurement, the D850 is vastly improved.I bought the D800 for its dynamic range and resolution. Ill leave it to you to Google the exact figures but the D850 captures larger files with better dynamic range.The Expeed 5 processor that is used in the top of the line Nikon D5 focuses quicker.The ISO native range of the D800 was 100 to 6,400 the ISO native range of the D850 is 64 to 25,600, two stops better than the D800.The D850 loses the anti aliasing filter for sharper images and the D810 before it.Frames per second have improved and are even higher with the addon battery pack.The out of the box color is better. Auto white balance is spot on.Ergonomically, some things have changed that may take a moment to get used to. They will frustrate photographers who shoot the D850 and the D800.However, I think the changes are improvements. The most changed settings are at your fingertips in buttons and wheels. There is less need to go to the menu in the middle of a shoot.There is no builtin flash. In 4 years with my D800, I probably shot two images with the builtin flash.Photographers who like CLS now renamed Advance Lighting System will have to use a SU800 to trigger the system. Or, like me, use the PocketWizard TTL system.My biggest concern about the D850 was the addition of the articulated screen. I thought it was too consumer oriented and might be flimsy. Im happy to say the construction isnt flimsy at all. Im sure I will use the articulated screen at some point but, so far, Ive only checked it out.The camera uses the new XQD and SD memory cards. I know some photographers who were reluctant to move to XQD cards but their favored Compact Flash cards are an aging design and are being used less on newer cameras. The XQD cards are blindingly fast at about 400 MB, read and write. They were designed to handle massive video files but are equally welcome for the huge NEF files. It will be hard to fill up your buffer.With my 128 GB XQD card, I can shoot about 1,200 14 bit files. That should cover most weddings.There are many more great D850 improvements but too many to mention in a short review. I find something new in every area.This is a great camera. Nikon hit it out of the park.
MARK –
The most important criteria for me are viewing and image quality. The D850 is better at both of those than any preceding Nikon camera, The camera has a lot of capabilities, some of which I will not use. I love the square format,The RAW images are closer to what you imagine in your minds eye than the 800 810 and require less manipulation in photoshop to attain optimum results. BW rendition is the best yet out of a DSLRBlacks and shadows are better, highlights do not block up …even the crunchy highlights on someones nose when lit by a hard light source have fewer, almost no blown pixels. Throw a soft box or an indirect on and even those disappear.Nikons out of camera skin rendition is still a little briite and needs work but it is much better and easily dealt with in post. Saturation is also better than other 800 series cameras….could be better ….depends on the lens as well.The viewfinder is great…..easy to compose in, beautiful to look at and read in low light in.The last non Nikon DSLR I used seriously was a Mamita RZ…so I cannot tell anyone who shoots Canon or Sony that this is better or worse. It is head and shoulders better than any prior Nikon.
Matthew –
While I am not a professional, I have been fortunate enough to own a D8000, D810 and D850. I can say that the the D850 adds so much to what the the D800 started several years ago, and truly is a big step forward in image capture . Yes, the buttons have moved in each iteration, but i feel this last move is the most logical layout and should not impact user functionality too much. The addition of the articulating touch screen is a welcome feature, and it is quicker to make adjustments than using the buttons on the camera.Regarding the refurbished version, the camera comes in a plain white box to distinguish it from the original version. It does contain all of the other pieces that an original version comes with. I have not noticed any issues with a refurbished version versus original version.
David –
Wow After reading all the rave reviews and seeing this beautiful camera listed as Back Ordered for well over a year I was very pleasantly surprised when BH sent me an email within a couple of hours after placing my order, saying that my D850 has been shipped. It is, without a doubt, in a class by itself.But make no mistake. Unless you are a hard working, high demand professional or a serious amateur photo technogeek, save your money. It will not instantly make you a world class photographer. You will have to work hard to do justice to the claimed 45.7 megapixels. There are so many wonderful features built into this camera that it will take you quite a while to learn everything. That said, Im having a blast with my new D850.I have long been a fan of Focus Stacking, especially with flowers. I was excited to learn that that feature was built into the D850 and it has proven to be a wonderful tool. The stackable images are generated very quickly, and silently, if elected so. The tilttouch monitor screen proved to be such a fantastic feature that I wonder how I got along without it for all these years. The stacked shifted images, once assembled in post processing, were spectacular.I had the opportunity to photograph some very fast radio controlled model jets. My D850 did not let me down. After shooting over 100 images my sharp focus success rate was about 98. Seven frames per second burst rate didnt hurt either. I was impressed.I had been a bit concerned about the warnings of the 100 Mb image file sizes. I have, however, learned that you do not have to generated files that large, if you dont want to. There are three different variables built into the camera that affect file size megapixel size small, medium or large, color bit depth 12 or 14 and file compression type. You do not need the maximum data size on all photographs. You dont need 45 megapixels for your kids birthday party. In my tests so far I am unable to see the difference in images taken at 12 or 14bit color, nor with any of the different compression types. There is, however, a noticeable difference is the different image sizes. The beauty of the D850 is that you can easily adjust the level of detail, and thus file size, as needed.One of the lenses that I have used for years has always needed some AF fine tuning calibration. There is an Auto AF Fine Tuning function built in to the D850 but you have to do some digging to learn how to work it. It is acknowledged in the owners manual but actual operating instructions are not given. It is, however, fully described in the downloadable Menu Guide. Use with caution.I have used a very simple but efficient wireless remote shutter control with my D610. The connection to the camera body is by a 2.5mm jack into the Nikon DC2 plug. The D850 has no DC2 socket, only a 10pin socket. Vello to the rescue They have a simple cable adapter from 2.5mm to 10pin, Works like a charm. I have some other older accessories that use the same connection that should now work with my D850.The list of other exciting features that are in the D850 is quite extensive but I have yet to try them out. The learning curve is still ahead of me and very exciting. Great fun. Im glad I took the plunge.
michael p. –
Im a dad with a camera and have loved Nikon since getting my D750. Now thats a perfect sensor. Capable AF to keep up with fast moving kids. And as long as you write to just one card its buffer is tolerable. With the D850 that buffer irritation is gone thanks to the advanced cards. I think its 51 RAW and I can tell you thats its awesome for let the trigger rip. At 7fps, its not as fast as its little brother, the D500, but its acceptable I am not a fan of big cameras so I probably would not get the battery grip for 9fps. Images look wonderful and require little work. Great shadow detail, so finally Nikon has a camera sensor that can keep up with the D750 in this regard. Im not geeky enough to know the why but I am also glad to say that it is much improved over D5D500 in regards to the handling of specular highlights. I left it on matrix and did not fuss with exposure comp while moving runngun through alternating shadow and bright conditions. I left AF predominantly in dynamic as its become my goto for instant acquisition of erratically moving children. In my short time with the camera I was impressed. Its not D5 level but as long as I was working hard and paying attention it performed admirably. No complaints here. This camera did not evoke soliloquy of game changer but is simply a perfect tool that does nothing to get in your way of capturing that perfect image.
Bill –
I am what people consider to be a lucky photographer. I show up and there is a beautiful sunrise or sunset. Then I take out my Nikon D 850 and place it on a tripod. I have 3 lucky lenses too…2470mm 2.8 70200mm 2.8 and a 105mm 1.4. I either shoot with a polarizer filter or 10stop Neutral Density filter. I manual focus and as luck would have it I push down the shutter and get lucky image thanks to the D850. Buy the camera as its good for night images too.
Chuck –
Ive owned a bunch of Nikon DSLRs over the years, D on up, the D850 is my second after the D610. I was concerned about the learning curve when first purchasing the D850, Im up and running quickly with much nuance to learn of course. The D850 is a fast, well engineered camera, with many options for the prosumer to professional. Fantastic autofocus and the color capture is great. At USD 3k you get a LOT of camera for your money. Great in the studio, the extra detail of the resolution is welcome, especially in post for touchups. Mated with Sigmas new 70200 ART Sport, Im having fun in the street too. great sharpness and clarity all around. Im sure many are on the fence between this and mirrorless bodies, all I can say is youll be happy with this choice. Great value from Nikon.
William D –
Quite happy with initial results. I am coming from a Nikon D800E so handling and resolution wise its not a huge leap….but a leap none the less. Looking forward into using the focus peaking and focus stacking functions. The illuminated buttons are a simple but wonderful upgrade for night photography. The touch screen…about time. I currently own a D750 and D800E and the D850 incorporates great aspects of both plus more functionality. I see this as being the camera to own. Very happy with my purchase from BH and Nikon.
ed –
After 5 years and 167252 snaps it was time to replace my aging D810. I was going to purchase another new D810 after the price drop. After reviewing and researching the D850 it became the clear choice. I will not reiteriate what everyone else has said that is positive, other that it is all true. After shooting 500 images with it I am amazed at what it produces everytime, consistantly. If you are on the fence like I was, for what it is worth go, for the D850 and never look back. I havent.BH service is excellent as always, wont buy anywhere else.
Christopher –
Its clear and a bit sad that DSLRs are on their last legs, although whether those legs last another few years or another decade is debatable. The D850 is without compare the last great cry of the DSLR era. Equally at home in any environment, you wont be disappointed by any aspect of its performance, beyond of course live view video AF.The incredible dynamic range still catches me by surprise, allowing you to take one image and mask it to recover highlights and pull up shadows instead of bracketing and blending separate exposures. The hotel room shot attached is just that a single masked image where I could pull the highlights down to see a little of what was going on outside and the shadows in the foreground way up, all with minimal impact on image quality. But the D850 is without a doubt greater than the sum of its parts.But lets be honest, a camera can only do part of the work for you. If you are looking to no longer be held back by your equipment and instead only by the limits of your own creativity, the D850 is your path there.
John –
Ive had the camera for almost three weeks. I spent a few hours going through settings to suit my style of shooting and getting familiar with the camera. I shoot mainly wildlife, mostly birds. I mounted my Tamron 150 t0 600 mm G2 lens. My first picture was a goldfinch siting on my birdfeeder. The autofocus was incredibly fast. No hunting just immediate sharp focus. I was amazed by the resolution. Im so pleased. It does well in relative low light. Ergonomically it well designed. It fits in my hand like it was made especially for me. The AFon button is positioned perfectly. I dont have to hunt for it. It is set up perfectly for backbutton focusing.I miss fewer shots. I was concerned about the weight, but actually I dont mind the heft. It works fine for handheld shots. I love this camera. I will provide updates when appropriate, but so far so good.
ShowPhoto2002 –
I having been debating for many years what camera to upgrade up to from my Nikon d300s. After watching and reading hundreds of reviews, there was no doubt that the D850 was the answer. I shot my first wedding with it within days of receiving it, and I was ecstatic at the quality of the images, the amazing colors, and the ability with low light. Theres still so much more to learn and explore, but Im very happy with my purchase. The only issue I had was when I went to download my raw files to Lightroom it wasnt compatible. I had to uninstall and reinstall Lightroom, and that did the trick.
Anonymous –
Improved sharpness and detail over D810. Better low light ISO as well with dynamic range slightly better than D810. Far superior Auto focus than D810 but not as good as D5 for sports but very capable for sportswildlife shooting Buffer fills up Fast at 45.7MP. The MBD18 grip for me with 9 framessec plus longer battery life for my video work is a must but pricey adds extra . Thats still lower priced than a D5 body. Love XQD cards would like to see option for 2 XQD cards. Using a tripod a must with slow shutter speed to reduce camera movement soft focus shake. With the Larger sharper files from D850 you will see all the flaws in your weakerless sharp lenses and any bad camera technique of camera shake or photographer movement for critical focus needs. 4K video is decent but no game changer. You Cant use FocusExp peeking in 4K video recording which is bad for my needs. For Majority of my client Video work this is a BCRoll 2nd or 3rd camera angle or youtube quality but more very capable especially using AudioLightingOff Camera Recording tools along with good editing in post you can produce quality Videos.
Ralph –
I am a professional photographer. I ordered this Nikon D850 camera last week from WalMart their 3rd party vendor DealExpo. I have two older D850s but wanted a new one at a discounted price. The camera worked perfectly but the seller did not ship the camera in the original box in fact the boxs Nikon serial number corresponded to a European model whereas the cameras serial number corresponded to a Middle East version. This should never happen to a new camera, particularly a 3K Nikon professional camera whether the camera is a USA or international version. Incredibly, DealExpo attempted to blame me for switching boxes like I had a European serial numbered box handy and inferred I was dishonest. I have returned the camera Beware of this issue with DealExpo.
mad2dmax2010 –
I upgraded from the Nikon D610 to the D850 and the difference is like night and day Resolution is superb. One of the most advanced full frame cameras yet produced by Nikon. I will not outgrow this camera for quite some time. Its got all the features I could possibly want
Pete –
With 326 five star reviews, it is tough to go against the grain. I am happy for those that have found this camera to work well for their needs, but I am not one of them.I am a Nikon Professional Services member. I sent the Nikon D850 back to BH the same day I received it. I do not consider it a professional camera.I owned a number of Nikon D3x cameras, and they were truly professional grade in all aspects. Too bad Nikon didnt continue its development and went to the D800 series.I owned a D800E, but immediately found it to be a disappointment in terms of build quality and feel. After about nine months, I sold it and went back to the D3x.After all the glowing reviews of the D850 by every camera magazine and online review, I finally decided to give it a try. I figured that it must be good given all the talk and it being a third generation refinement of the product.The viewfinder is a total disappointment. Compare it with the D3x, the F5, the F3 or even the FM2n, and the D850 has a plastic look to it. The focusing screen is really NOT a focusing screen, but a viewing device. Manual focus results in a glitchy blinking of the focus lock light, without it ever locking. I have never had a camera body with such poor manual focus habits. I am not even going to get into how far the focus was off in the final shots, but truly focus calibration was way off. That can be fixed, but why is there a problem at all If the camera were built in Japan, it would have worked out of the box.The body feels like a potato chip, not a solid brick camera.I walked away from my experience having a few fundamental questions. First, is it any wonder that the entire photo industry is tanking in terms of sales when the flagship cameras are built so poorly Nikon knows how to build brick shouse cameras, so why are we getting second rate Second, why didnt Nikon provide a D4x, D5x, pending D6x quality camera for professional use Have they decided that there is NO professional market The D3x was a jewel, but needed a normal upgrade path like sensor cleaning, but got burnt for the D800 series.Now, the company is chasing mirrorless. Never mind the PD Banding issues. Will that take a decade to work outI challenge someone in Nikon Corporate to take a look through an F5 viewfinder, then an D3x, then a D850 or Z 7. Notice anything missing Like the quality of the entire visual experienceSomething is wrong. We related to our subject matter through the lens. That experience has to be endearing, not an after thought.Pete
Andrew –
Seriously. There has been nothing Ive wanted for with this camera. Fast and accurate AF, beautiful rendering, fantastic response, solid build. I create artistic dance photos and it can lock on a moving dancer with amazing accuracy. It is my main and backup camera.
Ixwasxthinking –
This Nikon DLSR model is now a couple years old and is still holding its own for picture quality. Paired with a solid prime lens it sets a standard that is hard to beat. Ive owned perhaps 5 or 6 previous models of Nikon SLR and DSLR cameras. This was a purchase im not likely to regret and will keep for several years to come. I would highly recommend it for an advanced hobbyist or professional if you have good glass to take advantage of the image quality. I also would point out the ability to take multiple focal point images of a subject and combine them to yield a substantial depth of field macro photo simply awesome results.
Wade –
Went back and forth between purchase of D850 or D5. Shoot mostly sports but doing more portraits, general family photos. Decided on 850 and after about 2 mos of use have been very pleased. Only major sports shortfall to D5 I believe is 9 vs 12 FPS but on the plus side I have found that the cropping ability with the higher resolution lends itself to amazing photos. Much more of a benefit than I anticipated. Do recommend shooting off a monopod for best results. Low lightISO capabilityAF, with quality glass, has been everything I hoped for. As expected portrait quality is great. Bottom line for me, even with the additional 1K for gripbat, the 850 was the best choice. Certainly doesnt hurt that it is still 2K less than D5
Robert –
A significant improvement over the D800, the D850 has one disadvantage no builtin flash. Adding a flash with its batteries increases weight and bulk, so its something that may not be done just in case a flash is needed but only when a flash will be needed. Fortunately, at least one camera bag, the Lowepro Toploader Pro 75 AW II will hold a fullsized flash in a front pocket.The camera can do so many things the operating manual is longer and there is much more to learn. If this is your first highlevel camera, you will have a high learning curve to take advantage of all the features. Fortunately, the manual is available as a PDF that can be loaded on mobile devices that you are likely to take with you when you are using the camera. The index should be more comprehensive.Only Sony makes the new XQD memory card the price is high and there are few places off the internet to buy the cards at this time. Probably not a problem for professional photographers and wealthy amateurs. However, there is the option of just using the SD card. Note no memory cards come with the camera. The file for the D850s very highresolution photo, whether raw or JPG is larger than most other cameras, meaning the memory cards should be larger and more memory will be needed for storage in your computer, cloud or storage drives. Apparently, this is why Nikon uses the faster and higher capacity XQD cards.The camera with a high quality zoom lens attached is a heavy combination more so if a battery pack and flash are added. Arm exercises are in order. Gifts of the camera should include membership in a gym. A camera bag with wide, wellpadded straps will help carry the load if you are walking some distance with the Nikon.
John –
I upgraded from a D750 and have been very happy with the camera. My usual style is landscape photography and the focus stacking feature really caught my attention. To date, Ive used it only in a studio setting, but I can say without hesitation this feature will definitely get lots of use from me.I was able to take the camera to a local airshow to try out the dynamic autofocus and frame rate. With a Sony G series XQD card and the secondary card set for overflow, I can get a series of 35 frames usually a few more before the buffer is full. This is a great deal better than my D750 using SanDisk Extreme Pro SD cards.I also took the camera to a local botanical garden to try out the LiveView and its touchscreen features. Highly useful for landscapes And the silent shutter is now my default mode for LiveView shooting. Im usually using this for landscapes where visual elements are not moving at high rates of speed, so the rolling shutter is unlikely to be an issue for just about all the shooting I do. With this resolution, removing the variable of vibration from the mechanical shutter is very much appreciated. Add this to the focus shiftstacking feature, and we have a recipe for incredibly sharp landscapes or macros.Touchscreen… Im still teaching myself that I dont have to use the toggle pad to navigate menus and panning around photo reviews. Years worth of habit is hard to break but Im coming around quickly. This is a longawaited addition and I am finding it useful.SnapBridge is another feature Im finding useful. This is the first Nikon model Ive owned with the feature and it is far beyond the WMU feature set. Allowing the use of the phone to synchronize the clock as well as GPS coordinates is very welcome for me. No more separate GPX files and fiddling with synchronizing timings I very rarely feel the need to share photos immediately, but the browsing and downloading features are better than the WMU option on my D750.This is a fantastic option for anybody looking for professional features including 8256×5504 resolution at a very competitive price point. In the couple weeks Ive had the camera, Ive found no disappointments.
RCameron –
And I had high expectationsThe low light performance is off the charts. Much less ISO noise.The images are huge and full of beautiful detail.It is FAST.Be prepared to step up to the XQD memory card it still makes no sense to have 2 memory slots that ARE DIFFERENT FORMATS.DO get an external USB XQD card reader, due to the size of the images uploading from the camera is excruciatingly slow.At 48MP it also requires significantly more storage per image. Your pics are going to take longer to get off the camera and your drives are going to fill up significantly faster. Storage is cheap so its not a big deal but something to be aware of.Read up on the battery grip before you purchase one. Aside from longer battery life using stock batteries there is really no benefit unless you spring for another, different battery and charger. If you are after 9fps those couple extra frames per second are close to 1,000.It automagically detects when you mount a DX format lens and resizes the frame for you Pretty cool as I have a couple lenses that I dont have the FX version of yet.All in all, happy with my purchase and I would buy it again. Its been a pleasure to use so far.
Edward –
As a photography enthusiast, I have owned Nikon cameras for over 30 years. This is by far the finest, best engineered camera I have ever owned. Having previously owned a D7000 the adjustments to the setting and menus on the D850 were pretty seamless. I still have much to learn. I have been impressed with the array of new features, the touch screen and its overall ease of use. I agree with all the other online reviews, this camera is fairly heavy. If you are planning on hanging it around your neck all day, I would invest in a professional grade harness or strap.Great camera.
ipad7gen –
I have to admit I am not a professional photographer so Im still learning the ropes of the camera. However, the little that I have learned and seen the results of the photography, this camera is the best I have ever owned. I love the seven FPS shooting speed. The auto focus is amazing and accurate.And the colors are breathtaking. I love the dynamic reach that I get in the photograph and I can recover a lot using the raw photographs that I take. Plus full frame gives me a really good coverage. And the optical viewfinder is the biggest that Ive ever seen. Finally, but not the least, the camera is very ergonomically designed and Im able to access most of the options from the device body itself without going through menu. All in all. Superb camera.
Tom –
Im primarily a sports photographer and ISO, frames per second and MPs were my main consideration in that order. Since my first Nikon, the FM2, I have used the F100, D200, D700 and D500 to get my work done. As a part time pro, I never could talk myself into paying the price for the D3s, 4s and 5s of the world. Aside from a few more fps, the D850 has given me all I need to get the shots. This cameras resolution is astounding even when shooting with long glass, borderline light conditions and fast shutter speeds. For the money and I got a heck of a rebate, this camera cant be beat.
Philip –
My sequence of being a Nikon user, besides other Medium and Large format cameras, is F4S D70S D5300 D850. I liked all my cameras, most by only slightly different reasons. All quality in their own right.I was interested in getting into the FX size as my interests are Fine Art, Landscape, Panoramic, Portrait, Architecture and Astronomy and could use the better capture file. The D850, after I recd it and became more intimate, really reminded me of my F4s, the hybrid electricalmechanical workhorse. It is built, like the D850, so robust that there was a joke that one could pound a seven penny nail into a board with no damage to the camera. The D850 is certainly as well built with an eye piece shutter and batteryvertical handle, again reminiscent of the F4s.The FX chip is outstanding and supported by a full software network, which was fuller, but similar to that of the D5300. The latter which I lovingly referred to as my instamatic, because it was small, light and had really good lenses and easy to haul around. But the FX chip is so outstanding, I cannot imagine ever going back to good ole DX, no matter the convenience.So the D850 is larger and heavier, but so what I can always downsize a superb file in Photoshop, but no one can make one artificially larger without a lot of pixel manipulation. To be fair, I once hauled a Mamiya RB67 medium format camera with multiple lenses all over Egypt and Israel to the tune of about 500 negatives. So Im geared for it.The laugh is now I have FX camera capable of 9 FPS with the battery handle, and Ill probably use it only for stills. That is of course unless Im driving by a major mishap and record it for our local news rag.Just like the F4s, this is a workhorse and reasonable for adhoc video as well. If youre serious about the Craft, you cannot go wrong with the D850. It certainly has captured my heart.
Lyle –
The quality and features of the Nikon D850 absolutely blow me away. Coming from a fantastic camera in its own right D750, something that initially, and still does, amaze me is the quality of the photos this monster D850 takes. Ive only had the camera for a few weeks and am still learning it. I know it is the photographer, not the camera, than makes the great pictures but Im telling you that I just cant believe the beautiful photos Ive taken with the D850. Yes, lots of it is due to good glass which is no cheap investment, a good solid strong tripod the brown truck will be arriving shortly with my RRS TVC34 tripod, and good shooting skills but having all of those goodies plus skill which one develops over time, my hobby yes, Im retired and do NOT make any money from photography just jumped a bunch. Bottom line If you dont earn money from photography, you dont need this camera but if you can rationalize the purchase and if you do it, you will NOT regret it. While my D850 was still on backorder at BH, one of the videos BH sponsored had a professional photographer fielding a question about the high megapixel count, how to store all of those big pictures, etc. and he said something that really resonated with me. He said something like Once you start shooting with this camera and see how gorgeous the pictures are, all of those concerns will evaporate immediately…..or something like that. Well, thats what happened to me. Oh, BTW, dont forget the 4k video plus so many of the other features Im not going to get into e.g. AF.Finally, so many benefits of the almost 46 megapixels but one that really jumped out at me from the beginning is that you can take a picture of an object or person that is NOT close and then zoom in or crop and the detail you see is unbelievable. Yes, Ill do a fair amount of cropping of my finished shots and still come up with amazing clarity and detail. Whew…….dont get me started on this fantastic camera
Gary –
The D850 is so capable in so many ways. The 45 megapixel resolution is allowing me to get acceptable images from severely cropped images taken at very long distances. It focuses rapidly and accurately. It allows use of a mechanical shutter with normal or mirror up modes. It also has a front electronic shutter that can be used normally in live view or silent mode, no sound at all. I have taken images at the HI 2 ISO setting 102,400 that were colorful and useable. The camera has a beefy, solid feel and the controls and buttons are well placed. To say I am completely satisfied would be an understatement. I purchased from BH and the camera arrived the next day. I cannot say enough good things about doing business with BH, their website is full of useful information to research potential purchases and its easy to use to complete the transaction. I have made several purchases from them over the past two years and give them a 100 rating.
SrDesigner –
As a 40 year pro starting with the Nikon F, its always great to see Nikon maintains the quality in each evolution, especially in the D850. This camera is everything a professional or aspiring pro could want in a DSLR. From astounding still photo quality to the full frame video that compliments a multicamera video shoot for seamless post production. The features the D850 has are almost overwhelming. The only downside is the time it takes to get up to speed on everything it does. Great bullet proof camera.
George –
After several months of use, I Know enough now to say, Im truly impressed with the D 850. In low light, without a flash, the image color, tone, saturation, and proper exposure are outstanding. After going through the minus many times, I finally made some changes in the set up that allowed me to start getting constantly impressive results. Continuous use and trying different setups, for me did the trick. I thought for months, I had gotten a defective body. I knew enough to assume, most likely, it was not properly set up. Excellent glass and good technique do bring out impressive looking files. Even at 81 years of age, I would love to experience the use of the new Nikkor 800mm f4 lens on the D850. I am thinking of renting the lens for a week just to photograph raptors in the wild. What a fun experience that would be. I thought of downsizing before talking to other photographers about this issue. They convinced me that for them, the D850 would be their choice over any of the mirrorless cameras coming out. I must say that I am very pleased with my choice.This fall, in Big Bend National Park, I will be packing the D850 with a Nikkor 1024mm attached and a D500 with a Nikkor 200500mm attached plus a gallon of water along with all of the other necessary items. This trip will let me know for sure if I am sane or just hallucinating. Wish me well Thanks to Nikon for making great products and thanks to BH for marketing great products. BH has been my go to on line store since the Nikon F4 camera.
Christopher –
So I finally got this camera body and I have had some time to try it out. I have also a D750. I have been shooting with the old 2470 f 2.8 non VR lens and a 9 yr old early version of the 70200 f2.8 VR, and an old 1735 f 2.8 D lens. The results have been good, but I had to deal with a few things.For one thing the darn XQD cards are very expensive and I bought a 64 GB Sony and it works well but takes quite a while to load into my iMac. I think it holds a bit over 550 pictures or so at full resolution.I was noting my images were not as sharp as I would like sometimes. I figured out it was me. I needed to pay more attention to the shutter speeds, depth of field, and ISO and camera shake. When I did that I got some great shots under challenging conditions look at the image of the Matt Jalbert from fusionrock band Tauk that I attached here.I just picked up the new 2470 VR f 2.8. I can tell it is big improvement and well worth the money I am glad I waited on the new camera and lens until the recent price drops. I will attach a quick pic I took with the combo tonight and a flash.I filmed some video not really my thing and when I did it right it looked great. I need to work on that and I understand my new 2070 VR lens will help a lot with that.I have also learned to cull my photos early and efficiently. I have terabytes of external storage, but that should not be wasted with the shots that have no potential.This is a great camera. I am not going to go everything about it because others have done that well, but I will say it is not going to make anyone a great photographer. It is for serious, advanced people who are willing to invest time, money, and practice into perfecting their craft.I have amazing shots i did years ago with my 12 MP D90 one of which I blew up 4 feet after processing it. That is how I learned this art form, and then got a D610, a D750 and now the D850 and the new 2470 f 2.8 VR. I have done this over several years, learning to use these tools before going up the ladder.
kymon –
The Nikon D850 is a great as advertised, considered by many as the best DSLR ever made. I upgraded to this camera from the D5100 and D3300 as my last camera because of all the possiblities it offered in terms of photo quality and versaililty. There is a learning curve so I purchased David Buschs Nikon D850 book to get the most from this camera. I also shoot stock images so I wanted a camera that would deliver on many levels. My purchase also included a 24120 VR lens, of which Im very pleased with its performance.
Joseph A –
Bought the Nikon D850 to replace a well used Nikon D90. What a difference. The D850 is a superb camera. I have a lot to learn but well on my way to taking outstanding Full Frame photos. Like the feel of the camera. Like the capabilities with all the AF possibilities. Especially appreciate the 46 Megapixel sensor. This allows one to enlarge phots to wall size without loosing all the sharpness. Bought the camera body only package from Adorama. Shipped as promised.
Steve –
Among my lenses I have a Nikkor 2035 F 2.8 and a Nikkor 80200 f 2.8 that I purchased in the 90s. While both have served me well Ive never been 100 happy with the clarity and sharpness.I rented a D850 for an interior shoot recently. The images compared to what I was used to were astoundingly better. I couldnt believe they were shot with those two zooms. Post work was a breeze. The client was very pleased and hired me for another shoot. Again I rented the D850 and once again the images were stellar.Saw the D850 at BH for 500 off Black Friday sale. Plus Payboo saved me over 200 tax. It was a no brainer.The camera is robust. I dont shoot video so I cannot comment on that side. Stills however are so much better that it has reignited my love of photography. I can capture what I see so much easier and not spend an enormous amount of time in post.I highly recommend the D850 and purchasing through BH. Very fast delivery and the website is easy to navigate.
Clyde –
Having stepped up from the D750 heres what I really like. I love the touch screen and the added joystick. I use a tripod a lot so I like being able to activate mirror up on the dial instead of going through the menu system. I heard the stories about blurry or unsharp pictures if you have less than perfect technique. Well, I handheld a few shots at 1360 on a 150 to 600 zoom lens with vibration control and nailed it So, no worries. Just maybe have to move your shutter speed up one or two notches more than what you are used to if hand held. I also found the Auto Fine Tune feature very helpful on one of my lenses. It was very easy to correct the focus. So happy with this camera that I sold my D500.
Robert –
I was primarily using a D750 and was extremely happy. I wanted to upgrade to something that was a little more… more resolution, faster frame rate, better autofocus, etc. The D850 fit the bill and then some. Ive only had it about 2 weeks, but WOW There is a little learning curve in setting up the controls since there are a lot more options than on the D750, but definitely worth it. I cant wait to give it a work out at an upcoming air show.
Timothy –
I just returned from a month long trip to Chobe National Park and the Okavanga Delta in Botswana followed up with trips to Victoria Falls, Kruger National Park in South Africa and Pilanesberg Park in South Africa. I bought the D850 the day I boarded the plane for my trip. The purpose of my trip was to photograph birds but I also photographed nearly animal that moved and landscape as well. I purchased the Nikon 600mm F4 lens before the trip and switched it between the D850 and a D500 a couple of times during the trip. I probably hand held for over 80 of my shots but I strongly suggest a wrist brace even if you have strong arms now. I will take the slightly slower focus speed of the D850 over the super fast of the D500 because the keepers with the D850 were much more even though I sometimes missed something with the D850. The misses were minimal. No, I did not purchase the optional battery pack and kept the 7 frames per second max option. That is not issue. The biggest mistake I made on my trip was using my old Nikon 28mm to 300mm lens to use on either the D500 or the D850. Either there is some secret to calibrating that lens or better not to use it at all since most of the pictures I took with that combo looked fuzzy after I enlarged them some. I have since ordered the 70200mm F2.8 lens and will put that on the D500 and keep the 600mm f4 on the Nikon D850. I also dropped the D850 on the floor of a safari vehicle once and it took that with no issues. Since that incident, I keep my hands around the strap. I do not believe you can go wrong with the D850. Sure it focuses slightly slower than the D500 or the D5 for that matter, but if you know how to take photos to start with, that is not a big issue. I even have several clear photos of birds in flight with the D850. I never used manual mode and kept everything on fully automatic. That means when you have a backlit subject, your photo will be lousy unless you are looking for that shadow effect. I choose not to fool around with the settings and instead focus totally on the animals. Yes, I know I can compensate for that issue with Aperture priority mode. If you plan your walk or ride correctly, you can avoid taking pictures into the sunlight and always keep it behind or to the side of you and then just leave all to auto settings. The biggest thing I did for this trip was set my ISO to automatic. I had never done that before. I highly recommend that even if you do some of the other functions manually. Botswana by the way had more birds than any place I have ever been in my lifejust never turn your back on mother nature there. The animals roam free even beyond the parks since there are generally no fences. That is another reason not to be tinkering with your camera too much in the middle of the bush or on the Chobe river with the crocs hippos. Yes, I talked about more than the D850 but you cannot just take pictures with the D850. You need a lens and a place to go. If you can afford it or even if you cannot, buy a better lens to go with the D850 and the expenditure of all that money will be offset by the joy of the great photos. I will probably add photos later since I intend to try to sell some this go round before I post any of them for free somewhere first. To give you an example of how good the D850 is with a long lens, I took a photo from over 1,000 meters away of a hyena while bracing the 600mm lens against a rail. I could see the eyes and came out with a decent photo even at that range. I read a lot of the reviews written here about the D850. For the folks complaining, I say everyone has the right to their opinion and we who like the D850 have a right to disagree with their opinion. I will gladly put many of my mostly unretouched photos against anyone who says they are a pro and beat them at their game. If you use the D850 correctly, you will find that you may need to adjust exposure but nothing else. I never touch the color settings for wildlife photos because I find that cheating what real nature really is. With the D850, you should not have to.
Michael –
Everything said about the allaround excellence of this camera is true. Instead of repeating those points, this review comments on a lesser known benefit of the D850 its compatibility with screw drive lenses. As a D750 user, I bought the D850 for two principal reasons the 45 megapixel resolution and the improved autofocus. I am very pleased with both. It is worth noting though that the D750s high ISO image quality is at least as good as and perhaps slightly better than the D850s.For one of my projects, I had been using the Nikkor 180mm 2.8 afd on a D750 to take candid street portraits and was frustrated by the autofocus often missing moving subjects. I thought of upgrading my lens and getting a 70200 nikkor, but was very happy with the 180mms output when it hit focus and did not want to use a larger lens for street photography. I upgraded the camera instead and found that my hit rate improved dramatically. The autofocus is so much better that my screw drive 180mm is like a new lens. The same can be said of my 135mm f2 DC nikkor, which I also use for the same project.I have also been using the D850 with my 35mm f2 afd. It renders beautifully. To be sure, the D850 shows the weakness of the lenss corners when pixel peeping, but unless you are printing very large it is not noticeable. For example, I recently showed a 13 by 19 inch cityscape print shot with this combo to a fellow photographer who ordinarily shoots with a 2470 2.8 and D810, and he was amazed by the prints detail. So, in short, this camera works very well with the old screw drive lenses. To be sure, those lenses have their limitations, but their rendering is quite beautiful and they can give you amazing photos when used properly on a D850.Note that you cant autofocus screw drive lenses on the Nikons new Z series mirrorless cameras.
Larry –
I am upgrading from a D7000 to the D850. Just received it before a recent trip. The D850 is a big resolution increase over my D7000 with many new features. Love the articulating rear screen. The feel and Control placement is excellent. Using the electronic shutter, shutter delay features, the NISI CP, 3 stop ND filter and a 70200mmf2.8 Nikon lens I took the photo below. Great camera.
Clark –
The D850 is the absolute best Prolevel camera made for nature and wildlife photography. Its full frame sensor, fast autofocus, great frame rate, and high mp, among many other features make it ideal for advanced amateurs and professional wildlife photographers. In fact, I like it so much I bought twoEqually impressive is BH they not only provide great products at competitive prices, they have the very best customer service in the business. Ive sourced equipment from other vendors in the past, and none of them came close to BH in service. All of my current and future purchases have been and will be from BH.
Momofsix –
Absolutely awesome camera I made the jump from using my iPhone 11 Pro and at first it was a little intimidating but there are plenty of useful tips and training out there. I wanted to take a giant leap from 2 megapixels in a great phone camera and wanted to be able to use the kind of lenses that would capture wildlife in fine detail for work and hobby. I am so pleased with this camera
Ronniebonnie69 –
I absolutely love this camera The quality of the images produced is outstanding Low light capability is great The images up to around ISO 4000 arent too noisy. ISO 6400 is ok. I personally dont shoot above ISO 8000 because of the deterioration of the quality of the detail in the images. But that is my personal preference.
Olivia –
I just upgraded from a Nikon D7200 to the D850. Im blown away with how much better this camera is. The pictures are crisp, and have so much more depth than before. Its easy to use, and I love the tilting touchscreen rear screen. I bought 2 Sigma art series lenses to use with this camera, and I could not be more happy with everything. The camera is larger and more heavy than before, but its very sturdy. Its truly a prolevel camera. As always, BH had the best price, and were very quick to get my camera shipped.
Clyde –
It took me a while to purchase this camera. I had a Nikon D750 and was kind of satisfied but couldnt justify a new camera. Finally, I took the risk and purchased the D850. Its the best Nikon camera Ive ever used. I sold the D750. There was no comparison. Also, it has been on sale recently so I saved by waiting. I like the controls, the deep hand hold feel with the Nikon MDD18 Multi Power Battery Pack attached. I have a Nikkor 200500 lens and it is taking the most dynamic photographs I have ever taken. Im loving the camera.
Challenging –
At first, I was kinda disappointed in the camera having no flip up flash. But after realizing the exceptional abilities of the advanced iso improvements, it didnt really matter. Its awesome. My last purchase was a Nikon 800, so I was expecting controls and menu selections to be mostly the same. However, the new focusing system and the extent of its capabilities create so many menu differences that it was like it required a whole new study to fully understand and utilize the capabilities of what it can do. I am still in the process of learning a lot of this stuff, but as I am learning I find out more and more how this camera is steps above what I have been used to. Now I just gotta put my nose to the grindstone and enter this new world. I am anxious, but confident, to see just how much my photography will improve.
Joseph A –
I have been using the D 850 for a few years. I have used it low light situations where it is unbeatable when connected to a 2470 mm f 2.8 zoom lens or the venerable 80200 f 2.8 lens. Also when connected to the 50mm f1.4 it works its magic. Using those lenses in every possible shooting scenario the D 850 was the best I have ever seen. Portraits, birds, children, landscapes, football the list goes on on. The only mistake I made was not getting it sooner.I would definitely get a second one use my current camera as back up.I am not a video guy yet so I wont be able to give any details on that, but the D 850 is a great dream maker so dont wait
David –
The latest model in Nikons professional DSLR lineup is brilliant. The D850 camera is capable of producing top quality stunning images, and probably the best youve ever taken. If you are using this for landscapes, then you will also need a decent tripod, as well as good quality lenses. If you dont plan to shoot using a tripod, or you have the cheapest glass, then you simply will not achieve the best quality the D850 has to offer. If you are a previous Nikon DSLR user, then you will appreciate all the great things you are used to while operating the D850, but with more features, as described above. Shooting with this camera, I did experience one drawback. Even with the fastest top quality cards, read processing times are the longest I have ever experienced. Especially if you shoot long exposure, you could be waiting around for quite lengthy times before the camera is ready to make the next exposure. If you want to see the image displayed faster and move on, simply turn the power button off and on again, then press the play button for image playback. Then, you are ready to go. As a landscape photographer with a good tripod and lenses, I absolutely recommend this camera.
Jamie –
I have the D810 and the D800 as a back up for my professional photography business. I went to the NY photo expo, shot the D850 and knew it had to be in my arsenal sold the D800. So heres the dealThe ISO range is insane. The ability to shoot in super low light is amazing. I am a wedding photographer so that is super important since sometimes flash photography isnt allowed.I like the tilted screen it is great when I need to set the camera down on the ground for that angle. It also has an option to silence the shutter on live mode. Love that too.The buttons on this one are a little different than the 810, but it seems more initiative to me now the touch screen is super easy and is a great feature.I have done the Bluetooth to my phone through the snap bridge app. You can only transfer .jpeg photos not rawIve tried to do WiFi transfer to my computer so I can just transfer to my laptop as I shoot, but that hasnt worked out for me as easily yet. Still trying to figure it out.I havent used the videography part of the camera yet, but its not really my thing. Just being honest.I would upload pics to show you but its not giving me the option so youre going to just have to take my word for it
Anonymous –
Ive owned N8008s, F3, D100, D300, D800, D810, and for some crazy stupid reason, around 18 months ago, decided to sell ALL my Nikon equipment, and jumped into the Canon bandwagon Canon 5DMk3, just so I could use Canons beastly 1124 Im a wideangle sucker. Big mistake The lens was a marvel of engineering but the Canon DSLR, although certainly capable, lacked in two very important aspects general image temperaturequality, and Dynamic Range. Additionally, the controls were very different from what I knew already. Now, this new D850, which I already pared with the sweet 1424 2.8, not only brings back what I missed from Canon, but excels in Dynamic Range, and resolution, plus the controls interface is so much intuitive… PS Picture quality is on par with any medium format. PS2 The ability to automatically download pictures from the camera to the iphone is an unexpected marvel.
troy –
I spent some amount of time reading reviews as well as listening to the talking heads on the internet about the virtues of the D850. I did not doubt that it was a very good camera, which it is, but I was trying to figure out if it would make a noticeable difference in the pictures that I take since I do not use much of the functionality. I shoot all manual, use group AF for birds in flight and single point focus for everything else. I rarely shoot above ISO 2000 and do not tweak the light metering just under or over expose based on experience, and do not use the video functions. The D850 was intriguing for birds as the pixel density in the DX cropped portion of the sensor is similar to the D500 that I have shot over 150000 pictures with. I took both the D850 and D500 out twice for 56 hours and photographed primarily dark feathered birds white faced Ibiss and white feathered birds primarily Snowy Egrets using the Nikon 600 mm lens. Since I am not interested in engineering data I will provide some subjective observations. I was more pleased with the D850 on the darker feathered birds. In general it seems that the D500 images on dark birds in general tend to be on the soft side for me, and they were more crisp with the D850 although the differences were slight. Conversely, I found the images of the white feathered birds more appealing with the D500 than the D850 it seemed to me that the D850 images with the white feathered birds were slightly softer. This may be a function of the specific cameras that I have or just a figment of my imagination, but it was an observation. I found that the focus of the D850 seemed to be slightly quicker when viewed against a bland background than the D500, but the D500 was noticeably quicker focusing with birds in clutter amongst branches etc.. While I did not anticipate the difference between 7 and 10 fps to be a big deal, I was much more comfortable with the 10fps some will say of course it is a big deal, but practically speaking I was not convinced. I am not sure that I want to spend another 1000 for the grip. The D850 shutter activation is noticeably louder than the D500 and the D810 which I will address next. It was nice to have the full frame to locate and get on incoming birds that the D850 provided, and since pixel density is similar, cropping the images did not introduce objectionable noise.My next comparison was with the trusty D810 that I will carry along with the D500. The goto lens on the D810 that captures 60 percent of the images I take is a Ziess Otus 55mm lens which is outstanding. I took the D850 out with the Zeiss lens and took pictures of cactus flowers, butterflies, and sunsets. My observations relative to comparison to the D810 are as follows the D850 pictures get much less attention in light room than do the D810 pictures, which at first blush is a good thing. I was very happy with the pictures taken off the camera with the D850. I use the standard filter in both the D810 and the D850. When I compared the pictures taken with the D850 and the D810 post processing though, there is not to my eye, a strong noticeable difference. I keep a top 50 picture book for flowers, butterflies, etc I am old so I actually get 8×10 prints made, and I can not tell based on picture quality which ones were taken with the D850 and which ones were taken with the D810. The difference in on camera picture quality could be just where the different filters are set on a vivid scale I suppose.When taking pictures of sunsets, the D850 again did a very good job, but one observation is that the white balance setting was very different 3000 degK when looking into the sun versus normal to the sun at clouds reflecting the light. This is not something that I have observed on the D810.What is the bottom line for me. Of course the D850 is a great camera, but I also think that the D500 and D810 are also very good. If you are looking for a single camera that can handle the fast autofocus for birds in flight as well as do excellent landscapenature photography, the D850 is a a great choice. If you are expecting a quantum difference in image quality for simple photography as I use them and described them, I am not sure that you will see it perhaps I just need better glasses. If I were looking to get a noticeable difference in picture quality and had the D810 but did not have the Zeiss lens I would spend the money there. We recently went on a trip out of the country where we were going to get some very good photo opportunities I took the D500 and the D810 the D850 stayed home. I still give the D850 a 5 star rating it is a very good camera, and it is a lot more capable than I am at using it, but I do not think that it lives up to the hype of the talking heads not that any camera actually could.
Asel –
I have waited a long time to purchase a new camera because my Nikon D700 was working great Upon seeing the specs for the D850, I was really intrigued with the ISO range and working in low light has been somewhat troublesome for me with my current camera. I have NO REGRETS purchasing this amazing camera The ISO range is phenomenal. Working in low light is no longer a problem Shots are clear, sharp, and not at all grainy. My shots straight out of the camera do not need any corrections when I transfer to Lightroom….I really had no idea how much work I had been doing with color correction, tonal curves, etc until I uploaded my first batch from the D850 The shutter release is much quieter, and I have used video mode with great success and I am NOT a videographer Great cameraIm excited to use it everyday I highly recommend
Carl –
As a long time Nikon user going back to the film days, I can unequivocally say that the D850 is the best Nikon Ive ever used for wildlife and nature photography. Having used the D800E extensively in the past e.g., I captured 25,000 photos over two weeks in the Galapagos, the D850 is just an incredible upgrade where focusing is concerned. While the D800E produced stunning images, it was difficult to capture tack sharp images when tracking fast moving subjects like blue footed boobys diving into the water, or even birds flying at normal speed in low contrast situations. In addition, the D800E was pretty horrible when focusing using the monitor during Live View shooting, even with back button focusing think eclipse. The D850 remedies all of these shortcomings while providing so many additional features. In my opinion, it also obviates the need for a mirrorless camera in those situations where you need to be silent. I look forward to exploiting all the features the D850 has to offer, especially once the grip is finally available for uninterrupted allday shooting and 9 fps. I highly recommend the D850 to anyone looking for a highend camera that pretty much does it all regardless of your area of interest, but especially to those who are using an older body which has legacy focusing technology. FYI, while I have several lenses, my goto lens when shooting handheld in the field is the AFS NIKKOR 80400mm f4.55.6G ED VR, which naturally, was purchased right here at BH Lastly, I have not used the video features yet, but Im sure there are other reviews which speak to that.
Mark –
I bought the D850 a year ago from BH. It replaced my Nikon D800 which I was very happy with. I figured the listed gains was worth the investment and the D850 exceeded my expectations. I am happy with the additional megapixels since on occasion, I do make larger prints. The tonal range on the works I have created with this camera are spectacular. The added bonus that I was excited about was that this camera allows me to set it so that I can shoot square 11 ration which my D800 could not do.I use this camera with a 2470mm f2.8 Tamron. The camera is not light weight but has a great grip and it with the 2470mm in a somewhat compact bag is not too bad to carry around which I am sometimes doing for my street photography.I know mirrorless is becoming the norm, but if you want a great camera that will provide you great image quality then you should seriously consider this as an option. I added 2 images from my travel to Asia last summer.
EDMUND –
I love the camera, but I should have just bought the camera body and didnt need the kit. The kit has a lot of stuff that really is not needed. In the most part if you are buying the D850, the probability is that you would have what you need in terms of flash, tripod, brackets, etc.I will not use the other stuff, but I will enjoy the camera. Since the camera is new I would like to reserve my thought about the camera until I have taken it on assignment.
michael –
I started out in film many years ago, and in that time til now I have shot with easily a dozen Nikon cameras. The D850 is simply an awesome camera for what I shoot. Nature, landscape and the odd wedding and portraits.I make HUGE prints and sell them. The 47MP is incredible and allows for eye popping detail on large prints.Is it for everyone No. Its big and heavy but for my photography its perfectBest.
Ray –
Just recently upgraded from the D750 to this new D850. I liked the fact that Nikon has made some nice intuitive features for this camera. ISO is easily changed on the body along with several features I have done in camera previously. The first thing that blew me away was the clarity of the images You catch it right off the bat that this camera is letting you really use your lenses to their fullest. The highlights also are better. Just impressed me with how easily I could see the difference. Get an XQD card though You are going to be pushing some really big size images with this I use Adobe Lightroom 6. No problems with these large files. The new processor is really doing nice images.
Wade –
Great camera and a significant step up from my 810s which still love and use. Use the 850s primarily for video and the 4K is amazing. Easy controls with lots of flexibility and manual control. Reliable and dependable. Adding more 850s to the lineup.
SRIDIP –
Ive been using Nikon gear since 1997, at that time with the N70 film camera. It did the job, and although it had a lot of negative reviews over the years, I found it to be a capable camera. Produced great results. Im a photographer, not a photosnob. Next was the Nikon F5 body. Stellar. The NASA camera body. Then came the first digital body, the D90. And then the D800E some focusing issues, and hangups, and then finally, the D850. AllinAll, all, it is the best YET Everything from resolution which is for the most part more than I need the D800E at 36MP wasis enough to this day. Focusing issues are gone from the D800E series. Just a spectacular DSLR camera body.
Ronald –
I ordered in September when first announced and then cancelled my order a week later because I had a perfectly good D800 which I had been using for years. Then I started reading glowing reviews from people like Ken Rockwell and watched YouTube vids about the camera and the more I learned the more I decided I had to have this camera. I replaced an order and was on the back order list from late Dec to early Feb when my D850 shipped while I was on a ski vacation. With BHs help we were able to reroute the camera to my office where someone would sign for it.Since then I have taken about 2700 shots including many AF adjustment shots to fine tune my lenses to this new body. I also took many shots of family and pets and what stands out to me is the incredible sharpness and detail of my early shots with this camera. Full raw files are very large and I may have to replace my 5 year old iMac to improve my LR photo workflow and FCPX video workflow with the 4K video output of this camera.WHAT I LIKEAmazing detail and sharpness with my good Nikkor glassIncredible dynamic rangeBest AF system I have ever usedLove the tilt screen especially that it is a touch screen, very detailedLive View focus by touch on screen and silent shootingBuilt in focus stacking, only used a couple times but amazingly easy4K and HD video quality is impressiveHave not used the time lapse movie feature but I will, used many times on my D800Ability to shoot Lg, Med, Sm raw files, something I always wished for with my D8006 frames per second is more than adequate for meAbility to customize most of the buttons to suit my shootingWHAT I DO NOT LIKEI miss the pop up flash I had on the D800, handy for quick fill flashBig and heavy like the D800 but I knew that going inLack of easily retrievable settings C1, C2 etc like some other camerasLack of flat dlog color profiles in 4K video for color gradingCost of battery grip, 27186 battery and charger, accessories, nearly 1000
Ninjabin –
I brought the Nikon D850 and I would have to say its the best camera I have ever used. I brought it online, it was so easy and turned up 3 days later. I did a fashion shoot in a studio and the photos are so sharp. I used the raw and jpeg feature as i shot in black and white and seriously my photos only need a small amount of retouching, removing a couple of pimples, so my post processing time has been cut in half. Im super happy with my purchase and cannot express how good this camera is. If you are a serious photographer, you need to purchase this camera and enjoy the experience. The advance features on this camera are nothing like any camera. The interactive screen, the focusing is 2nd to none. I could go on about this camera, it truly is amazing.
Toni –
I purchased my D850 in May, upgrading from my D3200, D5200 and D7200. I love almost everything about this camera. The images are absolutely stunning, all of the features are amazing and the battery life is great My biggest issue, which happens to be a huge one for me, is the amount of moire that Im experiencing. I had never even heard of this term until I used the D850. I hadnt seen it mentioned in D850 reviews so I spoke with Nikon and they informed me that without the low pass filter, moire is completely normal. I was told to try to step backforward from my subjects, zoom inout and constantly check my images at 100 for moire. Thats not always possible at weddings. Or change my aperture to f16 or so. Thats 100 not going to work at most weddings Lightroom, Photoshop and Capture NXD have ways to fix it in post but they do not always work, which Nikon also informed me is completely normal. Do some SERIOUS research on moire before purchasing Plaid, tight fabric designs and a lot of suits will be your enemy The attached photos of the gray pants shows you the before and after. Capture NXD did a pretty good job on this one. However the maternity photo is after using Capture NXD and it didnt fix it at all I tried LR PS with no luck.
Davide –
I prefer DSLRs vs Mirrorless cameras and i dont do much video. If youre the same, look no further than this camera. Lots of WOWs from the images i get from it and my f2.8 lenses. Its physically well made. Menus are easy to understand and you can quickly make adjustments. Viewfinder is big and bright. Ergonomically perfect.
Antonio –
Ive been using the D810 for a couple of years now and have been hesitant to make the move to the D850. On top of that the Z7 and Z6 came out making decision all more difficult. After my decision to go with the D850 was made and after test in it right away under my usual conditions outside and studio, I can assure it was a great decision.Everything about this camera is better and bigger. From the obvious almost 50 mega pixels to the less obvious better performance on high ISO than the D810. The tilting back screen, more than welcome And you get to use all your lenses without any adapter.Im working with XQD memory and I feel the difference in speed. Which this baby has plenty Havent used yet in high speed burst shooting but the regular images have unbelievable detail Go ahead and move on You will be very happy
TeacherMom –
Best camera I have ever owned is this one The quality is amazing and I love the video feature. It took the best pictures during the snowstorm and Im going on a photo shoot tomorrow. Ive also shot a wedding with it and the photos were amazing I cant believe I waited more than 10 years to replace my Nikon d300…. Im so happy with Nikon products… the salesman was also great I only shared a few pics, I have so many more I absolutely love shooting with this for my business and for pleasure
David –
Simply put, the best camera there is. I shoot a lot of indoor sports and I cannot seem to take a bad picture. Flawless in low light, flexibility to take the challenging shots at night, razor clear videos, this camera does it all. Over the last 20 years Ive worked my way up the Nikon line of cameras always fighting in marginal conditions, never satisfied with the final product and Finally I can shoot with confidence in any situation. I should have bought this camera Right Away and saved myself years of frustration.
Dogpilot –
I have had my D850 for a couple of weeks now and found the camera to be a significant leap, vice an incremental change. First off, software in the camera is much easier to use with the touchscreen, especially when accessing the pages of menus and entering data. The tilting screen makes so many things easier in tripod usage and when doing low level work. The increase in ISO was welcome along with an overall loss of noise. My long exposures at night are altogether more pleasing due to less prevalent noise across the range. Personally I do not miss the built in flash, which was only useful to me as a commander, but was rather a pain to use in that mode, vs just plopping on the SU800. I welcome the additional programmable button on the rear along with the joystick. All in all I think Nikon got it right in this one. Downsides, well I suppose Snapbridge is a work in progress. Also, I like the nighttime lighting of the buttons, but somehow, they inexplicably left the info button out of the lighting suite.
Ralph –
I am a professional photograher. We ordered this camera from WalMart DealExpo last week. The Nikon D850 was delivered expediently. The issue was the camera did not come in the original box furthermore the serial number on the box corresponds to a European Nikon model and the D850 corresponded to a Middle Eastern model. This should never happen for a new high end camera whether it is a U.S.A. model or International model. Such discordant serial numbers prohibit reselling or trading the camera, should that be the case in the future, at a fair market price for used cameras. DealExpo implied that we were dishonest in bringing this issue up. The camera checked out fine but the new camera serial numberoriginal box issue should deter serious photographers.
PhotosByFry –
I have owned 3 Nikon HiRes dslrs the D800, D810 and now the D850. Every model has been a leap in tech but what Nikon has done now is truly stunning. I just love this camera and battery grip And it shoots 4k views and 8k time lapse.Key Specifications45.7MP BSI CMOS sensor7 fps continuous shooting with AEAF 9 with battery grip and ENEL18b battery153point AF system linked to 180,000pixel metering systemUHD 4K video capture at up to 30p from full sensor width1080 video at up to 120p, recorded as roughly 14 or 15th speed slowmo422 8bit UHD uncompressed output while recording to card1 XQD slot and 1 UHS IIcompliant SD slotBattery life rated at 1840 shots3.2 tilting touchscreen with 2.36Mdot 1024768 pixel LCDIlluminated controls19.4MP DX crop or 8.6MP at 30fps for up to 3 secSnapBridge fulltime Bluetooth LE connection system with WiFiAdvanced timelapse options including incamera 4K video creationHigh resolutionThe use of a backside illuminated BSI sensor means that the light collecting elements of the sensor are closer to the surface of the chip. This should not only increase the efficiency of the sensor improving low light performance but should also be expected to make the pixels near the edges of the sensor better able to accept light approaching with high angles of incidence, improving peripheral image quality.Like the D810 before it, the D850 continues to offer an ISO 64 mode, that allows it to tolerate more light in bright conditions. The D850 promises the same dynamic range advantage as the D810, meaning it should be able to compete with the medium format sensors used in the likes of the Fujifilm GFX 50S and Pentax 645Z.High SpeedIn addition to the increased speed, the D850 also gains the full AF capabilities of the companys flagship sports camera the D5. This includes all the hardware AF module, metering sensor and dedicated AF processor, as well as the full range of AF modes and configuration options, which should translate to comparable focus performance combined with high resolution.Given the D5 possessed one of the best AF systems weve ever seen and could continue to offer that performance in a wide range of conditions and shooting scenarios with minimal need for configuration, this is an exciting prospect.As part of this system, the D850 gains the automated system for setting an AF Fine Tune value. It only calibrates the lens based on the central AF point and for a single distance, but its a simple way to ensure youre getting closer to your lenses full capabilities, which is handy given youll now be able to scrutinize their performance with 46MP of detail.It just blows me away every time I use it.
Anna –
I recently purchased the Nikon D850 as I am a photographer and it was time for a camera upgrade. I could not be more pleased with this camera. Not only is the quality of the photos beautiful, but it is very easy to use and similar to my old Nikon D800. I am glad I took the leap for my business and purchased this wonderful product. My photos and the quality of this product is unmatched. Extremely happy with my purchase
Frank –
I upgraded to the 850 after many years with my D800 as my workhorse camera. I briefly considered the D750 another great camera because I just wasnt sure I needed the huge file sizes of the 850s 46mp. But then I saw that you can set RAW files to three sizes Max 46mp, 24mp or 11mp. That allows you to use different RAW sizes to fit your needs for a shoot and that put me over the fence.The D850 is rugged, and feature packed. I love having the flip up screen would have loved it to swivel to the side, also even more. It will require you to invest in the QXD card system, but I have been using the since I got my D4 and find them to be faster and more robust than the CF and SD cards, though they are much more expensive at the moment,But this is a beautiful camera with amazing resolution and great dynamic range. Images I shoot with the 850 along with my Zeiss Milvus 85mm lens look almost 3D. Just incredible. And of course, you can crop very aggressivley into the frame thanks to all those megapixels.To me, this is the best camera Nikon has ever made.
Kimberly –
The D850 is the best camera I have ever owned… and perhaps the best Nikon has made. The bundle however, is not up to par with the professional standing of the D850. The two extra Green Extreme batteries do perform well in the D850. The D850 does not recognize when they get low and you start getting error messages, with the mirror stuck in the up position… NOT Good The Green Extreme charger only comes with 1 adapter plate to allow ENEL15 batteries to be charged. Why sell a dual charger and only provide one adapter plate. The camera bag is only the size of a lunch box. You really cant put much in there. It is designed more a a point and shoot camera with just a few accessories. The multicard reader is NOT USB 3.0 compatible. It would take many hours to transfer hundreds of high resolution photos from the D850. Thankfully the camera has USB 3.0 connectivity. The Paintshop Software package is the basic version. It doesnt have the file management option included. I had to uninstall it and reinstall my older version. Also, the AfterShot Pro program cant read the D850 RAW files and unfortunately, there are no updates available. A nut on the flashbracket hits the front of the camera. I actually had to shorten the stud that holds the nut and then use a lower profile nut to keep this from happening. It also blocks easy access to your focus mode button. The remote shutter trigger is a nice addition but it does not include a cable for the D850. You would think it would include the cable as part of the bundle but it does not. Plan on ordering that separately and paying a ridiculous shipping charge. The light panel is nice but does not include the option for AC power nor does it include a battery adapter for the Nikon ENEL15 batteries. It does include an adapter for another camera… but I bought a NIKON, so why include a light panel that cant use Nikon batteries. Plan on loading it up with short lived AA batteries. The tripod is for beginners. It does not have Tilt and Pan in all 3 directions. If you mount your camera on the plate adapter one way, you can flip your camera from landscape to portrait easily but, you can NOT tilt it up and down. I tried replacing the head with a 3 axis head that I already had but it is fixed onto the tripod with no easy way to remove it. The Flashpoint flash is a Great addition to the bundle with its R2 technology. I use many Flashpoint products with the R2 technology for my additional lighting. The 128 GB SD card is sufficient to hold more than 1000 pics in the RAW lossless compression mode. I havent tried the Microphone as I dont do many videos.
Angela Joseph –
I needed a new camera, more like needed to put current gear, in my studio, onto the backup and get a new primary body. 850 was an obvious choice for few reasons 1 my staff are all to familiar with Nikon and changing brand would be unnecessary headache 2 all of my lighting and lenses are geared towards Nikon and 3 wanted to see the fuss of super high res.After a month, camera definitely lives up to its reputation colors, image quality, noise control are all Ive been expecting from Nikon. super high resolution is kicking my bc it forces me control my technique, slow down and pay more attention while photographing darn thing picks up tooooo much details. but its good, it forces me to become better.
JAMES –
After a year of shooting wildlife photography with a Nikon D7500, I decided to upgrade to the Nikon D850. I knew the jump to a full frame sensor would be a change in the closeness of my subjects in the photos. However, that has not been an issue because the 45.7 megapixel images of the D850 allows me to crop when editing without losing quality.Now, as for performance, this camera locks on in AFC remarkably fast and stays locked on to the wildlife. I primarily photograph songbirds and the detail in the eyes and feathers is incredible. Because Im photographing in low light conditions much of the time, using high ISO is standard when trying to isolate moving birds with high shutter speeds. The noise is reduced significantly over lesser megapixel cameras and Im able to yield far higher keepers than in the past.While the photography world is moving toward mirrorless, I chose to stay with DSLR and do not regret it.
Chase –
Where should I startI love how fast this camera arrived 2 days from the day I placed it. Paid for the VIP360 membership as it was the same price for 2 day air shipping and you receive drop and spill protection for a year Whaaaaat. Not to mention the other benefits of the membership.I also really enjoy the rewards program Adorama offers. I earned a 100 reward just for purchasing my dream camera. I plan on putting that towards a couple of good sd cards soon.Overall, I dont have any complaints in regards to this purchase or my experience. I love this camera and feel great about buying from a company that I can trust.
KEVIN –
In 40 years of professional shooting, the D850 is the most impressive camera I have ever experienced. The unretouched out of camera images are the best I have ever seen.The color accuracy at high ISO is remarkable, negligible color shift at 6400 puts it miles above the my D5, D500 or the D810. Switching into DX mode makes D850 into a D500 with better dynamic range better Image quality and lower noise.The ergonomics are incredible, the new deep grip feels incredibly comfortable and all the controls fall perfectly under my fingers.As soon as I can get a hold of more D850 bodies, I will be replacing my two D5s and two D810s. As I said above my D500 is now superfluous because the D850 can do everything it can do and more at the touch of a button.Not to mention the features that only exist on the D850, like Silent shooting in live mode, or full frame for 4K, or automated focus stacking, or time lapse in 8K.The images are simply sumptuous, and it makes me feel like a kid at Christmas with just how amazing this camera really is. As hyped as the camera was, it easily and clearly exceeded my very high expectations. Not to mention at 3300 it is half the price of the D5 and 10 times the camera.
Robert –
The very first time I read about the D850, I got excited. But it was way out of my price range until I got a new job raise. Just before the annual Carnaval SF weekend and the 75th Anniversary of DDay in France, I knew it was the right time to buy the camera.It has performed flawlessly ever since I got it, feeding the images video into a 128GB Sony XQD card, with 64GB secondary SD card.The initial configuration Im using is to have my versatile 28300mm Nikon zoom lens and SB700 Speedlight on the D850 and my 85mmf1.8 prime on the D600. This combination seems to function well, with the D850 serving as my workhorse camera. When I can afford it in the future, I envision getting the Nikon 2470f2.8 lens for the D850 too.I shoot entirely in RAW and am beyond pleased with the clarity of images the D850 is capturing. It was indeed expensive but Im so pleased to have this camera
Edward –
Pretty much super stoked on everything about this camera. AF system is great, controls identical to D500 and shape feel right in my hands, and most importantly the files this camera produces are simply outstanding. Detail, color accuracy, and white balance and ISO performance are just so darn good.Things to consider are your technique as a photographer because the detail it captures will reveal shaky hands or poor focus by the user. You can shoot old Nikon glass on it, but the camera will be under served unless using premium newer glass that has been optimized for newer more powerful sensors. No matter which lenses are in your bag, Id highly recommend spending time to get the AF finetune set for any lens you intend to shoot for optimal focus accuracy. Your computer system will also be heavily taxed by the massive files this camera produces, and Im already planning to build up a new computer thats even faster and more powerful.Final word, this D850 is amazing, and combined with a D500 or D5 all the bases for any type of photography are now covered.
Kathy –
Absolutely amazing camera. Coming from the already great D750, the D850 exceeded my expectations even in low light.I primarily photograph my daughters indoor volleyball games in usually poorly lit gyms, so I was a little concerned about how the pictures would look at the higher ISO needed to keep the shutter at 8001250, but everything looks fantastic. I jumped on the deal where the battery grip is included for free, which enables 9fps and couldnt be more pleased.
Fon –
Ive had it for only a little over a week, but so far this camera is everything Nikon said it was. My first official use was for a rodeo. One of the toughest shooting assignments, due to fast unpredictable action, and challenging light. The D850 grabs focus quickly in almost any light. This camera is excellent at higher ISO, but so is my D750. Time will tell if it is better. The standout for me, was the improved focus tracking Though still not quite as good as the D5, it is close. Shooting bursts of fast moving barrel racers or bull riders, the percentage of usable shots was impressive. The only downside I have experienced is that my work flow has slowed a bit due to the substantially larger file sizes. But it is a trade worth making Very happy with my purchase, and with the ease of making it Adorama As you probably know availability has been an issue with the D850. I requested notification when available. I received an email, went to the site and placed the order, and had it in my hands, two days later Cant get better than that
Glenn –
one word amazing. two words its Nikon. let me make sense of that. I have been a lifelong Nikon user and the new D850, while having a ton of upgraded features, is still a Nikon. The feel, the look, the menu, the performance is everything you have come to love about Nikon cameras. An easy to use menu, and excellent and ergonomic button locations make using this camera simple for anyone. With the full frame sensor and the number of megapixels, this camera delivers super sharp, crisp images at the highest level. The autofocus options are so good for different situations, and work like magic. i used to have a D7100 and this blows it out of the water fast to focus and lock in. Oh and the video….4k….helloooooo again the autofocus shines in video mode, delivering crisp, clear, amazing footage. With the XQD card speed, the video records flawless and fast and also the XQD provides an amazing photossecond burst thanks to the super fast readwrite time.
Michelle –
Been wanting a D850 ever since they came out 4 years ago. But Nikon, back then, tempted me with a deal I couldnt resist. A D810 and Battery Grip combination for a mere 2500. So thats what I ended up with back then. And after 40,000 shutter actuations, I am still happy with that purchase. But I still wanted the D850 for my collection. And again, they were having another sale I couldnt resist…I am so happy with this model. The images it produces are superb. But now comes the BUT Like the D810, the D850 has two memory card slots. Thats great. But why are they still opting to use two different types of memory cards Why didnt they go with two SDXC slots, or two XQDCFexpress slots Although I do have an issue with the XQDCFexpress not being recognized as a Removable Memory Card with the MAC OS. In my chosen workflow, the photo downloader doesnt recognize the XQDCFexpress memory card. My only other issue is with the battery. None of my third party batteries, that work perfectly in my two D810s and my D7100, are recognized by the D850. Its a battery for goodness sake.Other than those minor issues, Im expecting the D850 to give me years of satisfaction
Edward –
Ive just had my D850 a month. I needed to step up from my D7000 and, at my age 70, I wanted to buy one last camera that I could use for all aspects of my dental work and allow for my love of macro photography. I am not a professional by any stretch but I will at least have the tool best suited to get me there. It is a superb still image camera and reasonable at movies there will always be better I have always had Nikons so the menu interface is not so challenging to learn. I look forward to next spring and see what I can accomplish. I have always been limited by the specs on my previous cameras, not so anymore. I am the ogbvious limiting factor I will report back after a year of use.
LEE –
Got the D850 just in time for a vacation in Maui. Coupled with a Tamron 2470 2.8 lens, it was the perfect travel camera. Aside from some different locations for buttons on my D800, the learning curve was not difficult. This camera should last me far into the foreseeable furture.
Peter –
The D850 is a phenomenal camera with many sensible features that make it possible to shoot the best possible pictures every time. It handles well, the viewfinder is the best I have ever seen on a DSLR and the sensor and electronics take care of focus and exposure better than I ever could. This is my second fullframe Nikon DSLR. A Zoo is always fun for photography, so I shot my first roll at the Bronx Zoo in NYC where I have been many times. The shots came out better than ever. No need to praise all the cameras qualities the professional reviewers have already done that. While this camera deserves the best Nikon glass, it works well with my older Nikon lenses. Since I print a lot, I welcome the extra resolution to print 13×19.
Mark –
Previously I owned a Nikon D800 and was very happy with it. I even questioned if I should make a move to the D850, but I did see a few listed gains that I liked. The extra megapixels is nice but for me the fact that the D850 would allow me the option to shoot in the 11 square ratio was a big bonus. The image I uploaded was shot at 800 ISO with a Tamron 2470 f2.8 zoom lens. This camera is remarkable. I exhibit my work and I have enlarged print up to 20 x 30 inches that are flawless. It is not the lightest camera but portable enough for me and have a great grip on it. The battery life is fantastic. For sheer quality, I think this camera can produce the highest quality of the full frame cameras. I have been at this for more years than I care to list but this is may be the best camera I have ever owned hint I have owned a few.
Chris –
So obviously its a pretty new camera and Ive not had tons of time to shoot and test it, but at first glance, its a very solid machine. The focus seems very solid and definitely feels like an improvement over the D810 which is critical I always felt like the 810 was a bit soft and this feels better for sure. Its quick and capable in both shooting and focusing. The resolution is obviously very high and Im looking forward to making some prints once I get the chance. Not much to say about that, everyone can read resolution specs. I do feel like the images are a bit harsh and have narrower exposure latitude than I would have expected and Im wondering if Im missing a setting or something. I have adjusted the picture mode and even in the neutral or flat settings the images appear very saturated and contrasty. Ill have to keep playing and perhaps even stop to RTM… SnapBridge and the bluetoothwifi connection was described by another reviewer as a bit finicky which I would say is an understatement. Im hoping a software update will get that working better as it doesnt work for me currently. I wish they had the option to control RAW file size topside instead of going through the menu to change that. Nikon, if youre listening, please allow one of my custom control buttons to be programmed to control that
Vesh –
I bought my D850 on Feb 13th and received it on March 2nd 2018. This camera is nothing short of remarkable. Ive used it for a few jobs, from birthday parties to night photography and even a car shoot and this camera performs like a beast in every single one of those described scenarios. I bought the Nikon 2470mm F2.8E VR lens as well and I think that is a couple made for each other It outperforms everything in its class by miles. Ive been seeing some incredible shots with the D850 prior to buying my one and thinking, I wonder if thats in post processing or out of the camera. I can tell you its straight out of the camera the colours are bright and true and it makes photography so much more enjoyable. The AF speed on the lens paired with the camera is worth a mention. Its super fast and clean When I first paired the lens with the camera I did the Auto AF fine tune and its fast and easy to perform. The battery lasts about 1500 raw photos. Sometimes more depending how you shoot and your settings. Snapbridge is beautiful and works well with my smartphone. However everyone should note, youre only able to transfer jpg files, not raw like I do on my D7200. Overall I am deeply impressed with this camera and the work it does I would recommend to use the XQD slot as primary vs. the SD as the speed of the XQD is unrealistically fast and almost no buffering time. This camera is expensive yes, but its worth every penny.
Matthew –
Not much to add that hasnt already been said about this camera. If you shoot Nikon andor you are not ready to move to a mirrorless system, this is probably the best all around DSLR. Full compliment of features focus stacking, intervalometer, liveview focus peaking, etc., great ergonomics, fantastic metering and white balance. Plenty of resolution for landscape and macros, respectable FPS especially with the ENEL18 battery, and generous buffer for a highresolution camera. Its hard to imagine what itll take to get me to upgrade from D850.
Steven –
Formerly using a Nikon 7000 series camera, I am impressed with the D 850 and am very satisfied with the purchase. Two things you should be prepared for if you purchase one. There is no built in flash. This required a purchase of either a command unit or hot shoe flash to allow me to use my remote flashes. Also be prepared for processing and storing the large RAW picture size should you choose that option.
Scott –
Coming from a D7200 to a D850 I expected a lot. Early review shows tremendous detail in the pictures. The touchscreen is a pleasure, especially with the live view histogram. Shooting landscapes semiprofessional, I find the camera to have significant customization placed at your fingertips and through live view, as well as the ability to recapture shadow detail without noise in post processing. Those considering the leap from DX to FX format… please read on1 Those that have an introductory DX camera from Nikon I would not recommend this camera, as the Set up menus, Photo shooting menus, and Custom menus are very technical. Its a beast However those coming from a D7100 or D7200 80 of the menus are similar on the D850 and therefore not a tremendous learning curve.2 Its a significant investment. For those that made an investment in DX lens will need to purchase pro FX lens to maximize the resolution of this camera. I made the decision to invest in 3 primes from SIGMA ART 24mm, 35mm, 50mm. Incidentally, they complement the camera extremely well with excellent contrast, color richness, and are tact sharp I recommend selling your DX camera and lens on Amazon to recoup a portion of your initial investment. NOTE The camera and the SIGMA ART lens make for a heavy package to carry as a landscape photographer.The camera is exceptional and NIKON should get all the accolades they are receiving for this 100th Anniversary camera. I do suggest the following accessories a 2 extra batteries if you use LIVE VIEW extensively min 1 extra. Eliminate the D850 advertising strap attracts unsavory types that you have a high end camerainvest in a strap from Peak Designs. Get the Lamar Glass screen protector for the D850 eliminate scratches on the touch screen. Finally, buy David Buschs NIKON D850 book cant say enough how important and time saving this book will be featuring stepbystep set up screens and professional recommendations on how to maximize this camera. The D850 is not just a step forward in technology, but a leap, and has reinvigorated my love for photography
Ju Hun –
As expected, I like photo and have a good hobby.When I take a picture, I liked the sound of the surter and the picture.But BH doesnt keep thire promises. I paid 2,724.89 in total.I got a camera and a shutter release, but why didnt you send me a screen protector I didnt send the battery charging connection code.Thank you.
rniederman –
This is a very sophisticated and advanced camera capable of making pictures in modes ranging from pointandshoot to images with highly customized settings. Its important to know this is a big and heavy camera but the features make it a worthwhile companion for what I want to do.Enthusiastic reviews on the Internet pretty much some up the camera, so I wont take up space repeating what is already written. Anyhow, I am an advanced photographer shooting art i.e. street photography, landscape, and table top work. There comes a point in which very high resolution is warranted because you can crop as needed with minimal loss of image quality. Somehow Nikon engineers managed to cram all the good stuff into a single camera. As with any camera, there are limits. However, these limits do not impact my style of work. Another aspect of the camera I wanted was the feature to produce images for focus stacking. Its tricky and needs a lot of thought.At this point there are many fine cameras available today and lots of arguments about which is better. I pretty much ignore these discussions arguments because my choice is based on my style of photography. FWIW, this camera is paired with a Nikon D750 which is now my backup camera. As background, Ive been shooting since the 70s up to 11 x 14 inch large format.
Redline485 –
A little late to the game, but I finally got this camera about a month ago. I mostly photography landscapes, and have traditionally shot with Nikon. I debated on the 850 or the new Nikon mirrorless system, but decided to go forward with the 850 based on trustedproven performance and known battery life. Overall Im extremely happy with the camera. The only real con is the weight. You can certainly feel it when hiking and that would have been the main pro to the mirrorless camera in my opinion. Otherwise, the image quality is incredible and the newer features make the camera easy to use. For example, I love the focus shift feature. This is something that can be done manually, but the automated process of the camera makes it much easier and faster. I also love having the touchscreen very easy to navigate to key settings and review images. And a simple feature but very nice when doing landscapes is the tilting screen.
cspagano –
I just received my Nikon D850 refurbed by Nikon. I swear this is a brand new, never been used camera. It looks that good, inside and out. Absolutely no sign of wear or use anywhere. Even the ImageNumber shutter count was zero when I got it, so whether or not the camera has ever been used, the shutter inside it is brand new. I took one shot with it after I unpacked it, charged the battery, and put a lens on it. I opened up the NEF file in Adobe Bridge and looked at file info to get the ImageNumber. To my surprise it was 1. I thought it would have a few shots on it just from testing the shutter. I got my D810 direct from Nikon as a Nikon factory refurb and it had about 635 initial shutter activations. After 5 years, my D810 is still running strong so I felt very confident ordering the D850 refurb from Adorama. The price was right. Anyway, it is a lot like my D810 D800 cameras, although one of the top buttons moved. The camera feels good and I cant wait to start using it for real. The only minor annoyance is that no owners manual was in the box. Minor because the manuals are available on line at the Nikon website as pdf files. I found a manual on fleabay and ordered it just to have one handy in case I need to look up something and I dont have access to the pdf. Very pleased so far.
Edgar –
Ive owned pretty much every generation of digital SLR. In general, they have been incremental improvements in technology, some were great for stills and some for sports. Finally, the camera that does it all in spectacular fashion has arrived. Focusing speed and acuracy put my D4s to shame, dynamic range color and white balance are extraordinary. What amazes me the most is how slick and perfectly everything just works every time, all the time macro, landscape sports, flash, if you can frame it, the camera will nail it I own all the Nikon prime zooms 1424, 2470, 70200, 200400, the 105 macro, the 85 1.4 they all seem to have grown in IQ. The sharpness of the 105 is such that it seems the images will cut you if you touch them It works so well with the 910 flash you will never need to use any setting other than auto It truly makes me wonder the purpose of the D5 at all, in fact if you are a generalist the D5 is a worse camera since the ability to crop and and still get an amazing photo is lost.Bravo Nikon you have finally delivered the camera that can do it all
Douglas –
Excellent dynamic range, shadow recovery, built like a tank, beautiful design. Used a D800 for years and this is a worthy upgrade, with a very familiar feel. Had considered many mirrorless options across all brands, but the lack of new native tiltshift lenses for any mirrorless mount helped convince me to go with the 850 for a solid, dependable and high value option. Purchased when Nikon was offering promotional pricing, this is one of the best value cameras in 2021 for my uses.
JAMES –
First I am a photographer and not a Videographer so no Video review information.Although in general a Nikon User due to Glass purchased in the film days I have owned many manufactures SLR, DSLR, and Medium Format, each one for a specific job or its special adaptation to the need. I had been looking to upgrade my Mamiya RZ67 to Digital but the cost had held me back. Reading the prerelease information and then the actual reviews from the photographers I trust, the cost for what you were to receive was better than expected.I shoot Racing Motorsports, Wild Life, Portraits, Landscape, and Astrophotography. The greater light gathering and low light autofocus can make this camera a dream for those working in that area. The 47mp is great for my customers wanting Wall Sizes Canvas for their offices. And the high speed shooting with the additional Battery Grip is unbelievable at 47mp.Nikon removing the antialias filter has also raised the sharpness as I have verified with and Airy Disk Test and shot a Hawk with 600mm Glass at 430 to then do a center crop a 750×1000 pixel that the feather lines can still be seen.Astrophotography I have not attempted yet due to bad weather but I see the camera performing well. I do wish Nikon would put in the option of the greater than 30 second exposure like the D810a and remove the external trigger intervalometer requirement.
Valeria –
Just…WOWI am still working through learning about everything that came with my purchase, but so far, so wonderful I am impressed with the expensive feel of the camera, while a bit heavy, it lends itself to garnering the respect that an expenditure of this magnitude deserves. I elected to go with the heavier DSLR because I was afraid that I would not give the lightweight, small mirrorless camera the respect and care it needs. So far, Im proving myself right. Nikon makes an awesome product.
steinbeck99 –
An absolutely stunning and remarkable piece of equipment. Everything I had hoped for, and far beyond. A camera for life I had used an F4S, FE2 and then when it came to digital I went for the Df. All amazing, all more than capable of doing that for which they were designed, but the D850 is worlds apart. The 45 mp sensor and resultant image quality is breathtaking. Build quality is just what I need for the amount of punishment I put my equipment through, and the machine is superbly userfriendly, very easy to get used to. A camera is a tool, not an ornament. It works, and it keeps on working, even beyond the temperature and pressure parameters defined by the manufacturer. I would not hesitate in recommending this to anyone who really needs a workhorse of a camera.
chinsurah –
Do NOT buy from 6ave, as they are considered Grey market by Nikon. Nikon will not repair anything that you buy here. I have 2 Nikon D850 cameras which developed fine autofocus issues back focusing. Nikon refused to repair it even if it a product fault, and 6ave will not do anything after 1 year. I am struck with 2 expensive paper weights
Donald E. –
Purchased from pictureline via their waiting list. I think I was in the second shipment, thanks picturline Having owned the D800 and D810 which are great cameras Ill say the D850 is a big step forward. Not in MP as much as ergonomics. I decided to purchase based on the tilting touch screen and new buttoncontrols layout. It fits into my camera lineup as I have the D5 and D500. Now carrying two cameras with the same controls makes shooting so much easier. Things I like. Again the tilting screen. For landscapes its invaluable when shooting either high or low. No more laying on the ground to compose. For shooting events I can hold the camera overhead to compose and know I have the subject in frame. The touch screen is great for thumbing through images and also in zooming with a tap to zoom in and tap to zoom out. The menus are also touch sensitive making changes quick and easy. Resolution is fantastic and all my glass seems fine with the new body.
Richard –
I have been a amateur Nikon photographer for 45 years, starting with the venerable Photomic F2 film camera, progressing through a succession of Dx and Fx format DSLRs to my most recent D5 and D300E. Though the D5 is a superior camera for action and lowlight photography, I was surprised how disappointed I have been with my landscape images taken at low ISO. They just appear flat compared to images from the D700 and D4 it replaced. The D300E is an excellent landscape camera which produces outstanding images when taken with my Nikkor Holy Trinity F2.8 lenses using a tripod. However the dynamic range, low light performance, and autofocus could not match my D4.Now comes the D850, with specifications promising everything I was looking for nearmedium format resolution, outstanding dynamic range at a wide range of ISOs, the unmatched D5 autofocus system, and the ability to shoot at up to 9 frames per second for action photos. After a few days with the D850, photography is exciting again Comparing my first D850 landscape photos to those taken with my D5, the difference in resolution and dynamic range is extraordinary. The photos just look alive. I have attached a photo of my log home in low sunlight to illustrate the subtleties of shading and exceptional details of logs, rocks, trees, grass and sky. These photos were taken with a Nikkor AFS2470mm E ED VR lens at f14, 130160, ISO 64 on a tripod with radio remote trigger. All of the Nikon Pro FX lenses seem to hold up well to the high resolution of the D850.I have used the D4, D5, and D800E for video, but recently shifted to a Sony FS5 with a Metabones adapter to use my Nikkor lenses on a true video camera. I still plan to try 4K video as well as high speed stills with the D850 when I want to carry a single camera to shoot waterfalls and wildlife in remote areas. Unfortunately, Nikons implementation of autofocus and focus peaking in live view will limit the D850s usefulness for video.Just as many reviewers have said, the D850 can do it all landscape, portraits, action, lowlight, architecture and productstill life. A great investment
Zenetta –
I recently took the leap from crop sensor to full frame with this awesome model from Nikon. I was looking to buy the D750 for an upcoming event I had scheduled, but was unsure that it would arrive in time. The D850 is a quite more expensive than the aforementioned model, but it is well worth it. The touchscreen is also a nice bonus for ease of use with the menu functions.
Gregory –
Im a disabled vet and have a lot of physical problems. Ive been shooting with a D300 for many years and it has served me well. When the D850 came out i wanted one so bad so I started saving my money up to get one. I thought Id never get there but after several years I got it and it has changed my photos more than I could have ever imagined. The colors are amazing and the sharpness is unrivaled. I like to shoot wildlife and this camera brings them to life on the photo. BH I thank you for your great service also.
Michael –
I have been fortunate to own many of Nikons prolevel cameras over the years, including the F5, D4s and now the D810. Each has exceeded expectations and enabled me to take better pictures. The D850 does this exponentially. The features of this body, from the lightningfast and accurate autofocus to the high fps rate to the enormous files it creates, help me take better pictures. And thats what a good camera is all about. I recommend the D850 highly and without reservation
Camperjoe –
… the D850 isnt meant to be a trophy camera. It is a powerful workhorse that will be limited only by your technique and skill set. Oh, and the quality of glass you mount to it.As a working photographer now retired I have had the opportunity to use a variety of Nikon cameras over the years. If you dont mind the weight you may well be using your D850 until you dont want to anymore. Not because it is no longer able to perform whatever task you set before it.I cant speak to the video aspect as I use it very sparingly. But for photos, in FX or DX mode the images are about as great as youre going to get limited only, as I mentioned before, by your skill set, technique and lenses used.Dont break your budget to get a D850. It is no small purchase. Plus what can come after adds up quickly. Batteries, battery grip XQD and SD memory cards, a really good tripod and the kind of lenses that hardly ever go on sale. Oh and the extra storage space for those super sized RAW and JPG files.Consider a D750, D780 or D500 if you would like to use the glass you have and be very pleased with the images. That way you make your photography budget go farther and avoid the added expense of expensive glass to compliment a D850.It is a great camera. But dont buy one just because you want one for bragging rights. It is a workhouse and is happiest working for hours all day long and into the night.
Michael –
This is the 7th Nikon DSLR body I have owned starting with the D70 many years ago. I have numerous friends with high end bodies by other manufacturers but without a doubt this is the best one I have ever seen. The performance is staggeringly good This is actually the second D850 I now own since I got tired of changing lenses all the time and the resulting sensor cleaning that that caused.There are several minor things I wish Nikon would change but none of them are deal breakers. All the good features and performance far outweigh the minor irritating design choices.
Matthew –
I upgraded to the D850 from a D810. Initial observations confirm significant improvements in focusing, auto white balance, overall detail, what appears to be the claimed one stop improvement in high ISO performance, and an increased speed that seems considerably greater than the specs would suggest. The fact that the buffer is so much deeper really makes the most of the increased speed, allowing the user to capture far more frames in a few seconds than was possible with the smaller buffer and slower write speeds of the D810. Im ecstatic about fullframe 4k video, which I expect to use a fair bit, but Ive not touched it yetin part because I dont have a tripod plate yet for the new camera or the vertical grip thats been on order since the camera. Full auto focusing mode is vastly more accurate than on the D810. For instance, when shooting with my 70200 f2.8 wide open in auto mode on the D810, the camera would frequently choose the wrong target focus point and the fast lens would be very unforgiving. The D850 nails it most of the time. Auto white balance definitely looks more accurate more of the time. This has been saving noticeable time in postprocessing. Exposure is a bit different. The D850 has an option to optimize focus for the subjects face when it recognizes a face as the subject. I chose this option in my initial setup. At first, I thought the exposure was overexposing until I realized that in natural light shots with no flash lighting up the face, the camera was often slightly overexposing the background to achieve exactly what I had set it to do nail the exposure for the face of the subject. The viewfinder is great. It adds some additional information, such as a flicker warning when shooting under fluorescent lighting. I have literally never once used the popup flash on my D810, and it would occasionally pop up if I accidentally pressed or bumped the flash button. On the D850 NOT having the flash is entirely positive, since its one less moving part, one less annoyance, one less opening to the elements, and its absence helps make possible the slightly larger viewfinder. The tilting screen is a huge improvementboth because of the new tilt functionality and because of the addition of touch functionality and higher resolution. Touch focusing in live view and video shooting is a much more significant improvement than I would have guessed. But the focusing technology itself is still pretty primitive compared to shooting through the viewfinder with the mirror slapping. The single biggest breakthrough advancement is the addition of high bitrate fullframe 4k shooting which Ive not even gotten to play with yet. But it also includes a pretty spectacular array of evolutionary improvements to focusing, exposure, white balance, high ISO performance, resolution, viewfinder, and screen. Oh, and the illuminated buttons have already come in handy when shooting at night
Marc –
To be honest, I have not used this camera yet. I have read glowing reviews and salivated over it for years and finally made my move and purchased it. All I can say right now is that its built like a tank and exudes quality. Im excited to jump in and learn and create wonderful memories and photos. I expect a lifetime of practice and use with this magnificent beast.
Murray –
Nikon sure seems to have taken the lead in camera bodies with the D850. I was a little behind in making this update, and i see that I made a big mistake waiting.. it really is that much better than the D800.Amazing Highish ISO vs Sharpnessnoise is off the chartsFramerate is OK, and if you need more frames for the fast action, with a DX crop it is ridiculously fast, although i find focus a little suspect for small subjects birds in DX crop.All those Pixels is really great for me as a bird photographer, if i need it i can DX crop with the new 300 f4 and i have a 450mm f4 that weighs 750g delivering 24MP Havent used it on the 600mm as the 900mm range tends to be a little dicey in the low light of the rainforest.AF that much better, great screen, new focus point toggle buttons are a plus, 4K video… the list goes onIf its within your budget, dont even think about it Best body out thereAnd dont even think about which store.. BH are simply the best
KingKracker –
Where does one start It does so many things incredibly well. This isnt an upgrade to the D810 which I own, but a completely different beast. Nikon has had builtin timelapse for a long time. In the D850 it has brought it to new heights. It shoots 8k and 4k video. This camera sees like the eyes of a cat. It sees in the dark. Focus speed is incredible. Nikon removed the pop up flash on this camera. I actually dont miss it and like the fact the camera is better sealed against the elements because of this change. It has a pop outtilting LCD screen which is mighty handy. It allows me to shoot low and still see what I am doing. Handy too when holding the camera overhead. Perhaps my favorite feature is the silent capture in live view. I shoot timelapse and nothing beats the shutter up like timelapse. Nikon added the ability to shoot without triggering the mechanical shutter. Great for wildlife photography when the click of a shutter and startle an animal. It has backlit rear buttons, great for shooting in the dark Another awesome feature is that it can scan a film negative or a slide with a kit soon to be released. It can take the negative an create a positive image. WOW Bottom line, it is an amazing AMAZING camera. I can see why DXO gave it a perfect score of 100.
Erin –
This is my 2nd D850. Im a volume portrait photographer and the D850 is a reliable workhorse. Fast, sharp, great color. My only complaint is that they did away with the focus light so when shooting in low light conditions you have to use a flashlight to light the area youre trying to focus on. This is a big takeaway from the previous full frame Nikon models Ive owned.
Gary –
This camera is amazing for landscape and night time photography. My small nit, but a feature others think is great, is the placement of he mode and iso buttons. Having used a D300 and D800 for years, having these two buttons reversed is still driving me crazy. I think Im changing one thing but am actually changing another. Pretty bad when the Mode goes to jpeg when all I use is RAW.The large nit is Live View during the day. I simply cannot see the screen. Not good when shooting movies. Lost a possible great movie the other day of helicopters refilling water at a major wildfire. Had no idea of what was being recorded.Focus stepping is a great feature for both landscapes and macro shooting.Overall I love this camera. I very rarely shoot video so the still camera features are amazing.
Stephen –
I have had Nikons D80, D800 and D5, the D850 is a dream come true. Got the camera December 24 and left for a week of shooting the next day. The D800 helped as many of the menu items are the same. Still learning some of the difference settings. Did night shoots and sunrise and sunset with very high quality results. Used Nikon 1624mm on landscape shots. Used Tamron 150600 on tripod for shots of kiteboarder. Photos attached. If I had to have just one camera it would be the D850.
mikealbin –
I purchased a D 800 67 years ago and really like it. I was wanting something newer so I purchased the 850. The only thing the 800 has the 850 does not is the level inside the viewfinder. I shoot almost all hand held and found the level super handy. This is an awesome camera, would definitely recommend.
Daniel –
Im very pleased with the 850. Image Quality compared to the 810 is not visibly better to me, but I do have the impression that it captures greater detail in the shadows, and you have loads of pixels for cropping. Focus peaking has proven more useful than I anticipated while the focus shift feature has been a disappointment, though that may be a user problem It does not work with Dtype lenses and I cant make it work with a Sigma Art lens.The tilt screen LCD is almost worth the entire cost of the camera to me. I recently spent half a day photographing ice formations on a river. With my 810, I would have been on my stomach in 2 feet of snow. The tilt screen allowed me to stay upright.There are lots of small features on this camera, like the Silent mode in Live view and the joystick, that are very nice to have. Im still learning about most of them.Lately, a lot of my activity has taken place in temperatures ranging from 10 to 10. The camera has functioned perfectly, though you chew through batteries in minutes not hours, especially in Live view.3300 is a chunk of change, but I have no buyer remorse
Richard –
This is by far the most versatile, and powerful Nikon body, for general photography. Unless you are shooting high speed action, the D850, is the go to choice. One of my favorite features is the ability to lock auto exposure, with a half press of the shutter release. This allows me to capture the correct exposure, and then recompose, use back button focus and shoot. The image sensor is a low light beast, and blew the doors off of the D500 I was using. With automatic focus stacking, and live view focus peaking waiting in wings, youll never miss the focus on your macros and stills.
Earl –
Im coming from a D800 the learning curve on the D850 is not that steep. Amazed at how improved the feel of the camera is. Not the grip per say but the actual functional mechanics feel so much smoother, quicker and quieter. The bells and whistles such as focus stacking, in camera image processing and wifi are not what led me to this camera. The images are what Im all about and this camera delivers big time. Its a bit heavy on mountain backpacking trips but I appreciate the solid build and am not concerned about throwing it in my pack for a couple of days in the woods. Hi ISO grain is excellent however some web reviews of 1600 being acceptable may be overstated for my taste. To say Im ecstatic with this purchase is an understatement.
Stephen –
Being a Fine Art Photographer Ive used Medium Format 6×7 film cameras for 20 years. Then four years ago I decided to add the Nikon D750 camera. I started using a digitalhybrid workflow. Recently, I purchased the Nikon D850 camera and Ive been Blown Away by the images. The Monochrome images are equal to or surpass images that I get from my 6×7 cameras. The Nikon D850 is more than capable of capturing anything I want to create. I know a lot of people are going mirrorless, but Im more than happy that I purchased the Nikon D850. Its a pure dream to own. Its built to last a long time.
DansPhotoArt –
I have been using Nikon cameras for more than 20 years and this is the best I have ever owned. An amazing FX camera. Superb image quality. Focusing is fast and accurate and I have used all of the focusing modes. Great implementation of AF. When using the XQD card the buffer almost never fills even when I mash on the shutter release for an extended period. I have shots from this camera that I could not have gotten with my old Nikon. Battery life is great and I am glad that I can still use my old batteries ENEL 15. I should have bought this sooner.
Brian –
The one month wait for the D850 to come in from back order was worth it. The 850 is a joy to use, images on the rear diisplay make you say wow. Looking at the images on the computer make you say WOW, love this camera is it perfect, maybe. It is the closest to any I have used in the digital world. Everyone commnets or the size of the viewfinder, yes it is noticeably larger than that of other Nikon DSLRs, it is another, WOW. Not miisng the builtmin flash, yes there were times kn the 810 and other cameras where it did come in handy to have, but not a deal breaker. Battery life with wifi turned off has been very goodI have the D300, great camera and still use for slelect things., the D810, love thwt camera too but the 850 is differnt enough that it shines. The 810 and 850 though will make a nice cobmination on events where you need two cameras,Some of the features on the 850 that made it an easy choice, being able to chose differnt crops in camera. The Squre crop in particular was a deciding factor. It is like the days of shooting with a Hasselblad 500cm. The view finder mask for the differnt formats makes it easy to see where the crop occurs. For an experiment grabbed a DX lens , 18200, and phtographed a small event , viewfiner mask made it very clear where the DX crop was, photos worked out very well.The shutter is slightly louder than the D810 but not objectionable. At this point I have not tried the silent shooting mode.JPEGS out of camera look very good,In my opinion San Disk Extream Pro SD cards work fine for everyday photos or whenyou do not need to shoot contiunsly at 7 FPS. Short bursts work fine. Imhave on,y ried short 1080 p video but it rcorded a short video without a glitch. Have not dome side by side comaprion to the 810 yet, but the 850 apears to have an edge on video quality. Now if you are going to be doing lots of 7FPS photos or 4K video you will probabky need the higher zpeed cards.
John –
I use only about 20 of the features of the technology in the camera. This is clearly the best camera I have used in over 50 years of photography. It is not the end all, though. I still use my D 500s for high frame rate sports photography. For what it excels at high resolution and zonal range old Ansel Adams taught photographer it is unmatched. It is also tough. Mine gets hare work in the field and I push the weather sealing and tough body. I have dents and dings and it keeps on ticking
None –
I have used two D800s for six years and have been consistently impressed by them. I recently traded one in for a D850, and it is genuinely a step ahead of the D800. I would highlight its higher resolution, colour depth and richness, astonishing focussing ability, and also its focus stepping feature. I have used Helicon Focus focusstacking for some years and the D850s feature makes this even better and quicker to use. It is particularly effective for close ups of flowers with the Nikkor 105 macro lens. I regret the loss of the D800s built in flash as that gave easy access to Nikons very effective and straightforward Creative Lighting System without any additional accessories, other than the Nikon Speedlights. The D850s ability to focus quickly and accurately on a moving subject, eg wildlife, is very impressive. The image quality at the new native ISO of 64 is wonderful. I have not yet used the very highest ISOs but up to 1000 is impressive.
tippytoesuk –
I havent given 5 stars as have not yet fully tested out the D850 but my research of reviews and tests suggest that it should easily have 5. This camera replaces my D810 so Im familar with basic layout and performance etc and early indications are good if not very goodexcellant. Handling is marginally better, focusing is quick and spot on, though Ive yet to try out all my lenses in the field Im looking forward to putting the improved autofocus system same as the D5 through its paces. I particularly like the improved viewfinder as I wear glasses, the silent mode feature and the fact that it can use the older EL15 batteries which I have a stack off from my D810 and other Nikon camera. The two new things Im not sure on are the removal of the flash mount and one of the card slots being XQD. Though I didnt use the inbuilt flash much it was useful when some infil was required and saved the hassle of setting up a seperate flash. The XQD slot is useful for those who do multiple fast shooting, which isnt me, but the cost of XQD cards is eyewatering.
Aaron –
Pros As a wedding photographer, I cant imagine a better camera. The silent touch focus and capture during the wedding ceremony is a game changer. The ISO performance is outstanding. Weight, grip and overall ergonomics are spot on. Now having 7 fps without the grip is awesome at full 14bit RAW files. Yes, you can get a grip and shoot 9fps but for a wedding photographer 7fps is plenty. The only reason for the grip would be extended battery life in my opinion on long days shooting weddings but I think the smaller lighter package will work fine for me. This is going to compliment my D4s on long wedding days fantastically well. Well done Nikon, you have made the best DSLR on the market for a long time to comeCons None It is the perfect camera for what I will use it for. It really does do everything
Carlos –
I am a very long time Nikon shooter who has stepped up from the D800, which I loved. I have only had the camera for a few days, but I instantly fell in love with my new toy. The first thing I noticed upon preparing to snap was the focus speed and tracking. WOW I had to get new lenses sooner than planned just to keep up with this beauty. The FPS is a nice improvement, and I predominantly bought it for the extra ISO range I have for night and internal shooting. It has not disappointed. A really nice benefit that I did not consider until I experienced it is the touch sensitive, swivel LCD. Makes navigating the menus so much easier not mention how the lower angle that I can now shoot at without having to lay on the ground. I could go on, but Ill stop here and just say that I cant believe how quickly I am ready to get rid of the D800. Still love it, but I am just not going back. The D850 is all that its cracked up to be, and more.
Gerhard –
While Im not a professional photographer, I have been shooting with Nikon cameras since 1985. I moved to the D850 from a D750 which in its own right is a very capable camera While I cannot throw out a bunch of stats about the D850 I can tell you that there is something very special about this camera, I have mine paired with a 70200mm2.8e FL ED VR lens and my photography has gone to new level. I guarantee you will not regret the move to the D850
PWPhoto –
I waited 7 years for this camera. It replaced a D800. Talk about a difference. This camera is the real deal. For me, the best things about this camera are1. It very much improved autofocus system. It is so much faster and accurate than the D800.2. The much improved low light ability.It allows me to shoot lower ISO in situations where I had to shoot higher ISO on the F800 causing me to have a lot more noise to deal with.3. The much wider and better dynamic range. This translates into a much smoother image with less artifacts and noise.4. The almost double the frame rate over my D800 on still photography. Since I do have the battery grip and ENEL18 batteries, I ca nmaximize the speed and get the full 9fps from it.5. The true silent shooting. This is a big thing for me. I shoot in some situations, where the smallest sound can create a missed and lost shot. Being able to shoot true silent allows me to get images if certain things i could not get before. It is also a dream to shoot in very quiet events where you shooting images of it should not be what holds the attention.If you have been on the fence about this cameras do yourself a favor and buy it. I chose not to buy the D810 because, for me, it wasnt enough of an upgrade over the D800. Others disagree on that, but it wasnt enough for me and thats why I patiently waited for the D810 replacement. It was worth the wait.
Kevin –
Have had my 850 now for 7 Months plus and still seeing what a highMP camera will do and how it effects my photos. As you may see I dooutdoor photography. Times of the year and lack of sunlight effectsa lot. Still getting GREAT photos despite less sunlight but its greatAlso using my 60 MM macro with attachments to duplicate slidesover to digital, thanks to all its working WELL and the time toscan slides and be able to print directly onto an SD card is GREATAs when I started trying to do Great photos slides offered. Now thesevery good photos can go onto SD cards and then printed digitallyis great and most important the quality……wonderful Keep up thequest to make even older photos that can be duplicated intothe quality images on slide photos and plus….again..Thanks very much
BRIAN –
The camera is rock solid and works like a champ. I have one major complaint. I tried to use the Photo Shooting Menu Bank in order to program some user settings and the camera wont store the settings. Other than this issue, this camera and I will be together a long time. Generally speaking, I recommend the Nikon D850.
JARSF –
An amazing upgrade from my D700. Great detail captured and super focusing capabilities. I cant believe that I stuck with my old camera so long. 500 savings helped me overcome my resistance to upgrade. Im so glad I bought this camera. It makes me want to shoot all the time.
PeterG –
Moved from a D4. Most pics are wildlife. Very impressive sharpnessdetail improvement due to more pixels and no antialias filter. Makes dedicated sharpening computer apps not needed. Normal shutter is quieter than D4s seems similar to Canons shutter noise. Looking forward to D850s Silent Shutter when doing wildlife closeups. New features like Focus Shift and TimeLapse are easy to learn, but will take experimenting to fine tune. Battery life is significantly shorter than the D4s. Battery capacity is about 23 of D4s. Also, D850s Live View, which is more usable than the D4s, uses lots of battery juice. Autofocus has some changes, which will require study and test for the best settings for birds inflight. Bottom line It was worth the wait for a great camera.
Douglas –
This camera is unbelievable. The service I received over the phone was first class. They help me with everything I needed. The camera was on back order but received it within a few weeks after purchase.I have purchased several things from BH and to this day I have never had a problem with anything . BH is one of the best camera shops Ive ever dealt with.Thanks again for everything
David –
I had become a Nikon fan since around 2010, so I got me a D810 shortly after it was released and was happy with it, but thought it should have been made with a touch screen for the amount it cost. I heard with the D810 they had fixed the auto focus problems of the D800, but in studio it was still a struggled to get it to focus on my subject, which slowed me down considerably. I was reluctant to invest in the new D850 until my D810 started to swap shutter speeds with each frame I shot set in Manual. Which is the only way I shoot, so I had to send it in for repairs, but I wanted to get this new camera body in before I could afford to loose my D810 for a while.I will say I am impressed with the new auto focus system in the D850, but form what I understand it is still crappy for shooting video. I miss having a built in flash for when I do not want to carry a speedlight with me for just easy quick snapshots. I also got a new Nikkor 24mm 120mm FX lens for this and do see the difference in sharpness from my 28mm 300mm Nikkor zoom lens I had been using.I still have not gotten use to the touch screen, but I an sure I will in time. One feature I had not read about on this camera was the many more low ISO options this has over the D810 64, 80, 100, 125, 160, 200, 250, 320, 400, 500, 640, 800, and so on. This was a nice surprise and allows a lot more subtle options to work with. I love that this came out with the new faster memory card slots. Unlike the latest Canon DSLRs.I also got an SB 5000 speedlite to try the wireless remote aspect, but I was VERY frustrated to find out I still had to order a separate remote and adapter to use that feature, so I should have just stuck with a hotshoe trigger. Even after getting that in it took me over an hour to figure out how to pair it. The instruction were useless, and it took watching several videos to sort this out after dozens of tries. Hardly simple or intuitive as I had expected.Here is my first attempt using the wireless remote feature behind a Westcott 26 RapidBox. So far so good.
Robert –
Coming from a D800 and D500 it was a super fast learning curve. Controls and menus are pretty much seamless from the d800 and D500. Love the deeper grip over the D800. I didnt realize how much I would be using the electronic shutter. The mechanical shutter is very loud due to more alloy construction inside. This level of resolution is even more unforgiving than I imagined. Shutter shake, and camerasubject movement is magnified more than I expected. If you dont nail the focus, its much more apparent. The D850 is a huge waste of money if you dont have really really good glass to put on it. Although its somewhat subjective, Im coming to the conclusion that this sensor outresolves any glass I put on it. Focus peaking is a welcome addition. The file size will probably be the straw that breaks my computers back. This is a perfectionists camera and will challenge your skills. But when everything comes together…WOW