Nikon D500 – Bridging The Gap Between Crop Sensor and Full Frame Cameras

Nikon calls the D500 its top-of-the-line DX camera with FX features. The D500 has technology advances that include the EXPEED 5 processor engine, allowing up to 10 frames per second of continuous shooting and also 4K
UHD video recording capabilities at 30, 25, and 24 fps frame rates and Full HD/HD recording at up to 60 fps. Movie files can also be saved to the in-camera memory cards or as uncompressed files to an optional external recorder.

Combine the D500’s sensor with the EXPEED 5 processor and you have the ability to shoot at extremely high ISOs such as 51,200, which can be further expanded to ISO 1,640,000. This is a great benefit when shooting in difficult and low lighting situations, which you may encounter in wedding, portrait, street and sports photography.

Along with its amazing ability for low light and fast shooting performance, the D500 also has the same AF system as the Nikon D5, the Multi-CAM 20K AF sensor module. The number of AF points includes 25, 72 and 153 (3D-tracking).

The Nikon D500 comes with the latest innovation of connectivity with built-in SnapBridge Wi-Fi to enable seamless transfer of imagery and remote shooting capabilities. BLE – Bluetooth Low Energy technology enables the camera to communicate with a smart device. The mobile device can also trigger the shutter remotely and display a live view image from the camera that allows working from a distance. NFC (Near Field Communication) is also supported to provide a quick and simple tap-to-connect method for linking your mobile devices with the camera.

For serious movie makers, besides accepting SD media, the D500 is also the first Nikon DX camera to utilize the new XQD memory card technology, which gives faster read/write and transfer speeds to take full advantage of its speed. XQD memory cards are designed to enhance the workflow of those working with 4K video content and RAW images. Data read speeds go up to 400 MB/s and write speeds of up to 350 MB/s allowing you to transfer your various media files quickly and efficiently.

I really like the fact that the D500 comes with a 3.2″, 2.36m-dot, tilting LCD touchscreen, which allows high and low angle shooting, something I find quite useful and wish the D7200 had.

Nikon calls it the smaller sibling of the D5, the D500 features the same durable, rugged build quality you’ve come to associate with Nikon DSLRs. Features include magnesium alloy and carbon fiber materials, and dust and water-drop resistance that make shooting in extreme conditions a little more worry free. The durable body is a monocoque structure composed of magnesium alloy for the top and rear, with the front reinforced with lightweight carbon fiber. The shutter mechanism has been tested for 200K actuations.

Three types of auto white balance are available: Auto 0, which maintains natural white values under any lighting condition; Auto 1, which maintains a balances of color between the subject and ambient light conditions; and Auto 2, which renders colors in a natural warmth and retains the colors of various types of lighting.

Three different sizes of raw files can be used; raw size medium and small are 12-bit lossless compressed NEF files while the large file size is a 14-bit lossless uncompressed or compressed NEF file.

Picture Control modes let you set predefined looks to imagery in-camera and include Landscape, Monochrome, Neutral, Portrait, Standard, Vivid, Flat, and user-customizable settings.

It is just slightly larger and heavier at 26.9 oz. (760 g) vs 23.9 oz. (675 g) for the D7200. A built-in flash is not included, which is something I rarely, if ever use anyway.

Although I have owned and really love using my Nikon D7200 with its advanced features, I may take a look at the D500 as Nikon continues its remarkable advancement in technology.