Nikon D610
More of a tweak than a major revamp, the D610 cleans up the spotty-sensored act of its predecessor, the D600
Predating the D610 by just over a year, the D600 was Nikon’s first consumer-level full-frame D-SLR. It was well received, apart from reports from some owners of oil contaminating the image sensor. The shutter mechanism was the prime suspect, and the D610 features a completely new shutter unit. Other upgrades include a faster maximum burst rate of six frames per second, a ‘Quiet continuous’ drive mode (three frames per second maximum), and a claimed increase in auto white balance accuracy.
Under the skin, the D610 is a generation older than all the other cameras on test, at least in terms of its image sensor. On the surface, it lacks a separate ‘i’ button, requiring a double-press of the Info button to access the on-screen shooting menu. It also lacks an ‘Effects’ position on the shooting mode dial.
Performance
The 39-point autofocus system is pretty accurate, but the spread of AF points covers only a fairly central part of the image frame. A bigger issue is that, while Nikon claims an increase in white balance accuracy over the D600, we found that auto white balance gave less consistency in colour rendition on a shotto-shot basis under identical lighting conditions than any other camera in the group. The same is true of exposure metering, and the D610 loses out to the D750 in its ability to deliver low-noise images at high ISO settings.
Feature s build quality image quality value for money
overall
We say… Keenly priced for an FX camera, but the D750 is superior.