Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsD610 vs D3,D4,D810,D750 and a few Canons
Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2016
Started off taking pictures about four years ago, in that time I've had a Canon 60d, 70d, 5DIII, very briefly a 1DX, and then I moved to Nikon with a D3, a D4 and now the Nikon D610, I also experimented with the sony A6000 which I think is a great camera by the way but for me it was just to small and fragile. My most recent camera was a Nikon D3 which is probably why the sony a6000 felt like a toy. I sold my D3 as I felt it was just too big and getting a bit long in the tooth, slow focus, low megapixels. I was on a trip to St Louis I felt kind of awkward walking around with that monster but at least I felt safe as I could probably withstand an assault by defending myself with my D3. Ok so I sold the D3 tried mirrorless but decided they just weren't sturdy enough for me yet, plus their lenses cost a ton. So I wound up buying the Nikon D610, first thing I noticed was the uncomfortable ergonomics of the camera, the buttons are crammed in together and I can feel the top of the grip bearing down into my hand. Second thing I noticed is that the metering is not as good as it was on my D3 I pointed the D610 straight at a light and the picture was dim on my D3 it exposed correctly. Third the D610 has a pop up flash, which novices will tell you that they won't buy a camera that doesn't have a flash and thats how I felt when I first started shooting with my Canon 70d but after shooting with the Nikon D3 I learned that Camera that have a pop-up flash tend to either overexpose or underexpose and screw up the metering, my 70d did fine as long as I kept it in auto, with my D3 I always shot in Program auto with center weighted metering I tried every metering setting available on the D610 and the metering is still not exposing correctly when shooting in a difficult lighting situation. I took a few test shots inside and out and the images look comparable to other camera I have used, so needless to say since I don't make my living with my camera I will be keeping the D610 for now as I paid under $900 for it. Also another thing about the D610 is the information in the viewfinder is not very bright and not as sharp as what I was used to in my Nikon D3, some of these things my seem trivial but when you enjoy taking pictures, its not about just capturing beautiful images it's also about the user experience, the sound the shutter makes, how bright the viewfinder is, and what you see when is the information bright and easy to read is it amber as the D610 or is it a pleasant soft green color as in the D7200, D810 and the new D500. At the end of the day I don't feel like the D610 is a true shooter's camera, ergonomics are not great buttons are cramped and you will often need two hands to change settings, metering is unreliable, focus is not snappy, info in viewfinder is not as bright or sharp as I would like. The price of the D610 is what initially brought me in about the same price as a good used D3 but with video and twice the MP at 24, you can get a D4 for about $2200 on a popular auction site but it is not enough of an improvement over the D3 to justify the price tag, autofocus is snappy on the D4 but a measly 4 extra megapixels and buttons that light up on the rear of the camera are just not enough for that price, plus the D4 feels cheap in comparison to the D3, it really does. You have the D750 which many people swear by but I owned one and it was ok but not groundbreaking, the D810 is a really sweet camera but the frame rate is slow and you will need a 64gb memory card and a huge hard drive to feed that megapixel monster. So that leaves the nikon D700 only 12 megapixels and a super loud shutter, the D600 dust and oil problems, the D800 autofocus problem and oil. I tossed around the idea of a D800e but couldn't find one reasonably priced, so I can't attest to its performance or handling. So for now I will hold on to the D610, I ordered a grip to see if that will improve ergonomics, I'm not worried as Nikon hold thier value very well should I decide to sell it later, it will be no problem. Oh if you noticed I didn't mention any crop sensor camera's its because crops just can't compete color wise to full-frames they just can't, I'm not a professional who can afford to own two camera, if i could I would have a crop camera for the extra reach, but since I can only afford to have one camera it must be a full frame as i feel handicapped if I only have a crop as I shoot in museums, and tall buildings and wide scenes which are better served with a wide zoom with a decent reach. I hoped this review helps someone to make an informed decision and feel free to leave comments, p.s the 1DX is out there and prices are starting to drop but not enough plus the Nikon's professional bodies look appealing and interesting and Canon's pro bodies look boring and stuffy, remember its the total experience for me not just the shot.
