Nikon D610 vs Canon 6D

Introduction

The Nikon D610 and Canon EOS 6D are excellent semi-pro, full-frame DSLR cameras that were launched in the market in October 2013 and September 2012 respectively, and throughout their existence, they have become an essential shooting arsenal for a variety of different photographers which definitely has to mean something.

Their performance is very similar though, and that’s the main reason why are they being compared to each other most of the time, however, each camera has an own, different story and offers advantages that could fulfill the needs of the photographers.

Now, I’d suggest getting into business right away in order to reveal their potential, and find out the capabilities of both cameras, so that you would have a better observation, which in the end may prove as decisive in choosing the right camera.

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Head To Head Comparison

Nikon D610

Design-wise, the D610 features a sleek, black-finished, part-magnesium alloy body that is accompanied by a moisture-sealing which comes handy especially if you’re encountered by a bad weather during your shooting sessions. For your information, the D610 measures 4.4 x 5.6 x 3.2″, weighs approximately 1.7 pounds without a lens and if you take a closer look at these dimensions, you can find out that we are definitely talking about a lightweight camera that is exceptionally easy to hold.

Nikon did yet another superb job during the crafting process of the camera, and that’s the use of a rubber-like coating on the front part, at the finger which adds a higher level of security and comfort to the camera when you have it in your hands.

Moreover, the controls are well-organized and that’s one of the most important things for the photographers who want to have quick access to the menus while they are shooting. For instance, on the top, you can find a a monochrome Information LCD screen which on each side, is surrounded by a hot shoe, control dial, and mode dial, while on the rear, on the left side, there is an array of buttons as well as a directional pad along with 3 other buttons.

Between the controls, there is a 3.2″, 921k-dot LCD screen that sits in the center, and personally, I really like it mainly because of the fact that it will distribute you sharp and bright sight while you’re capturing photos, however, what I don’t like is the lack of sensitivity and the fact that it is fixed.. I really think that Nikon should have done a better job here.

Slightly above, there is the viewfinder that has a magnification of 0.7x and offers up to 100% of coverage which is really cool, but what’s even cooler is the presence of the small wheel that occupies the upper-right part. Those who wear glasses can adjust the diopter according to their preferences and surely, their user experience will be greatly improved!

Before we move to the next section, I’d like to inform you that the connections options include a USB 2.0 port, HDMI-out port, microphone and headphone jack, as well as two SD cards. Unfortunately, this camera lacks Wi-Fi and GPS, but, you can fix this issue by purchasing additional WU-1b adapter plugs to use the benefits of the Wi-Fi, of course, for a price. Yet again, Nikon could have done a better job in implementing more connections, but considering the launch date, this should not surprise you!

When it comes to the performance, the D610 merges a 24.3MP full-frame CMOS sensor, 39-point AF system with 9 cross-type, built-in flash, continuous shooting rate of 6 fps, and a native ISO range of 100-6400 that can be expanded up to 25,600!

First of all, I have to mention that the D610 does an extremely good job in handling the noise throughout the ISO ranges, especially if you’re shooting in RAW format because all of the imagery you’ve captured will be usable up to ISO 12,800, and when we add the fact that this camera has a fairly strong dynamic range that lets you get nearly HDR-like photos without sacrificing the image quality, without a doubt, Nikon deserves our applaud here!

Furthermore, if you shoot between ISO 100 and ISO 800, you won’t notice noise at all, while at ISO 1600-6400, the noise becomes a bit more noticeable but nothing scary, however, once you reach ISO 12,800-25,600, although the noise is more pronounced, the details are there and as I’ve stated previously, images are still usable!

Thanks to its built-in components, feel free to use this camera for sports photography, and even for portrait photography, but, if you prefer shooting landscape photography, keep in mind that the result will be pretty average.

Finally, speaking of the video, the D610 records 1080p videos at 30/25/24 fps, 720p videos at 25/30/50/60fps and the overall results are impressive, because the footage has plenty of details, and the color accuracy is set on the highest levels, but let’s not forget the built-in mono microphone which adds even more convenience for both, the photographers who want to experiment and the videographers who are keen on recording a quality footage!

Nikon D610 Sample Images:

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Canon 6D

To begin with, the Canon EOS 6D shares a similar look as the Nikon D610 because of the part-magnesium alloy that is resent on the front and back plates of the body, whereas, on te top and the bottom, the plates are plastic.

In addition, as was the case with its opponent, the D610, this camera is weather-sealed as well, hence, it is capable enough to withstand use under various weather conditions including heat, cold, light moisture or rain!

When it comes to the dimensions, this model measures 4.4 x 5.7 x 2.8″, weighs approximately 1.7 pounds without a lens, and it is more compact than the D610 whose dimensions are measures 4.4 x 5.6 x 3.2, but as you can see, they are incredibly similar!

The control layout is intuitively designed, hence, photographers will always have easy access to the numerous settings and presets, which is the same case as the D610.

Namely, on the top-left, there is a mode dial and an On/Off lever, while on the right, next to the viewfinder, you will find multiple buttons for adjusting the Drive Mode, ISO, Metering Mode, AF Mode along with a monochrome information LCD.

On the rear, you can find an integrated four-way controller, a Menu button, Control Switch, an Info button, etc, and what’s interesting is that they won’t distract you while capturing photos through the viewfinder and the screen because they completely blend with the camera’s design.

For your information, the optical viewfinder is quite large, and although it offers about 97% of coverage which is less than the D610 that offers 100%, you will still have a generous sight and will unlikely notice a difference at all.

On the other hand, the EOS 6D has a 3″ 1,040,000-dot screen which isn’t touch-sensitive and it is fixed as the D610, however, it packs more dots (1,040,000 vs 921,600 respectively), hence, the screen is sharper and I have to mention that you will see plenty of details along with vibrant colors!

Moreover, connection-wise, the EOS 6D wins the race here thanks to its WI-Fi and GPS capabilities, something that the D610 lacks, hence, you will have a quick and effective transfer of all the content you’ve captured!

Speaking of the performance, the D610 incorporates a 20.2-MP full-frame CMOS sensor, 11-point AF system, burst shooting rate of 4.5fps, and a native ISO sensitivity that stretches from 100-25,600 which is expandable up to 51,200-102,400!

This unit performs exceptionally good under low light conditions, and this is something that I’ve expected considering the presence of its full-frame sensor, and what’s also cool is that noise is set to the minimum throughout the ISO sensitivity range. Namely, at ISO 800, the imagery is filled with details and the noise is there, however, it is so low that you will definitely have to put a lot of effort to recognize it. The same thing happens at ISO 1600, and even at ISO 3200 where the noise is doubled, but still, the images are extremely usable.

Once you push to ISO 6400, the noise is pronounced significantly, whereas, at ISO 12,800, both the quality of the colors and details decrease and reach the highest peak at ISO 25,600 which is normal though, due to the fact that this level of ISO is exclusively used for extreme situations.

In comparison to the D610, this camera outputs strong, but not as strong performance for landscape photography as the D610, and the result is the same for shooting sports photography because the D610 has more autofocus points and better continuous shooting rate.

However, keep in mind that both cameras aren’t the best for capturing moving objects, but either way, the D610 is better.

For portrait photography, both are nearly the same since they lack image stabilization, and the result is the same with landscape photography, although the D610 performs a bit better.

Last but not least, the Canon 6D records 1080p videos at 30/25/24fps, 720p videos at 60/50fps and the overall quality of the video is impressive in nearly the same way as the D610, however, I will give more points to the D610 because it integrates an audio out socket for monitoring the sound you intend to record.

Canon 6D Sample Images:

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Nikon D610 vs Canon 6D Feature Comparison

	Nikon D610	Canon 6D
Camera Type	DSLR	DSLR
Megapixels	24.3	20.2
ISO Range	100-6400; up to 25,600	100 – 25600; 51,200-102,400
Flip-Out Screen	No	No
AF Points	39 AF points	11 AF Points
Viewfinder	Yes	Yes
Touchscreen	No	No
Video Recording	Yes	Yes
Sensor Size	Full-Frame CMOS	Full-Frame CMOS

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Conclusion

Since we reached this far, clearly, you have a better insight regarding the qualities of both cameras, as well as you know that both of them share multiple similarities.

If we make a head to head comparison of the key aspects of the cameras, you may notice that one of them offers more advantages.

Namely, the D610 and the EOS 6D, both employ anti-aliasing filters, however, the D610 packs more MP than the 6D (24.3 vs 20MP), has 39-AF which is more than the 6D, however, Canon wins the race with its impressive ISO range, with the screen ( 1,040,000-dots vs 921,600 respectively) and with the inclusion of WI-Fi and GPS.

Finally, D610 proves as better by including a built-in pop-up flash which is something that the Canon lacks, while if we take a look at their build, both of them are weather-sealed and are made of plastic and metal.

In the end, I think that the winner is Nikon D610 although it lacks some features such as Wi-Fi and GPS.

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