Nikon D500 field test

Taking the new Nikon flagship DX body, the D500 out on the field on a bright sunny day to put it through it's paces,  I tested 2 lenses on this particular trip.  The Tamron 150-600mm f/5.6 -f/6.3 VC USD zoom lens and also the Tamron 15-30mm f/2.8 VC wide angle lens.
Heading off to Hampton Court Palace and in particular, Home Park, situated just behind the Palace where there is an abundance of deer and other wildlife species, woodpeckers, rose ringed parakeets and the odd swan on the small pond near the golf course.

So what it it like?

The Nikon D500 is like a small scale, APS-C-sensor take on the high end Nikon D5. It shows Nikon's realignment of its range too, as the next and discontinued Nikon D300S.

Indeed it could be the most important camera that Nikon releases this year, or for a few of years. Of course the D5 has all the bells and whistles that you would expect for the price and some professionals will want, but its huge size and FX full-frame format aren't going to be for everyone. Neither will the £5,200 price tag.

Having grabbed the Nikon D500 from Grays of Westminster the appeal is immediate (the £1,729 body-only price tag making all the difference too). Its smaller fits nicely into your hands, a lot like the older D300 model, and D7000

The design incorporates some similar features found in the D5, such as the customisable function button (Fn2 in this case) to the rear lower left, which sees the info button prevalent in other Nikon DSLR cameras slide along the rear of the camera body.

I tested out the camera's continuous autofocus (AF-C) mode with 3D, 153- and 72-point arrangements on and it's lightning fast, slipping between subject depths at pace, while locking onto subjects with a subtle press of the AF ON button.

Beneath that weather-sealed body is a new 21-megapixel sensor, seeing resolution slide slightly compared to the Nikon D7200 for the sake of speed and larger pixels to aid with heightened sensitivity. 

How did I get on?

The Tamron lenses are a superb (cheaper) alternative to the glass that Nikon offer and although I have only tried out the massively expensive Nikon 300mm f/2.8 thanks to a local photographer for letting me borrow his for 20 minutes or so, it's way out of my price range.  The Tamron zoom lens is £4000 less expensive and far lighter so hand holding is made easy.

Tracking Movement with the 153 AF points is sublime when in AF-C mode set on the body, the camera is more than capable of keeping up with the erratic movement of wild birds etc making shooting them a sheer pleasure.

So without going on about how amazing this latest piece of kit is from Nikon and as they say, the proof is in the pudding.  I'm delighted to be able to share some of the cracking images this gorgeous DX body helped me to capture.  

See for yourself.

All of the images shown were shot with the Tamron 150-600mm

1/1250 sec;   f/6.3;   ISO 1400

1/1250 sec;   f/6.3;   ISO 1000

1/500 sec;   f/6.3;   ISO 1600

1/800 sec;   f/6.3;   ISO 320

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