Let's take a look at the differences between two camera lens pairs.
First one is the Nikon Z5 with the Nikkor 50 millimeter F/1.8 s.
And the second one is the Canon EOS M50 with the EF-M 32 millimeter F/1.4 STM lens.
The goal isn't to talk or get into equivalence, and all of that, however you will get a similar
field of view with these two combinations. I'm going to be focusing on the
same settings for each one. Highlight differences such as the
larger aperture on the 32 millimeter lens. This should help people interested in full
frame or APS-C. Different lenses,
different camera manufacturers... If you want something smaller,
larger, higher quality... We're going to get on to that.
The Z5 is a full frame camera. That means a larger sensor inside.
The Canon EOS M50 is a 1.6x aps-c crop size sensor camera.
Focal length differences, 50 millimeters versus 32 millimeters.
The field of view on both are around 46 to 47 degrees.
The maximum apertures of F/1.8 and F/1.4, course with F/1.4 you will be getting a
higher exposure at that maximum. Basically aperture is aperture,
it doesn't matter what the sensor format is. The 32 millimeter F/1.4 lens reproduction
closed focusing 0.76 foot or 0.23 meters, which is 0.25x reproduction.
The Nikon lens is 1.32 foot or 0.4 meters, which is 0.15x reproduction.
So you can get significantly closer. That is a unique aspect of the 32 millimeter lens.
Physical size differences, obviously the M50 combo is much smaller.
If you want a smaller lens.. smaller camera.. sometimes you have to make trade-offs.
Not all the time, but in this specific case there are differences that are important.
The Nikon Z5 has sensor based stabilization. The Canon EOS M50 does not have that.
Sensor-based stabilization can help quote a bit in some situations.
However, if your subject is the thing that is moving in the frame it won't help you out there.
The Nikon Z5 has dual SD card slots, the M50 has a single card slot.
So if you want instant backup in the camera you have to consider that.
Memory card slot location on the Z5 is significantly better than the M50.
Usually cheaper lower cost cameras.. smaller cameras.. have the memory card slot on the bottom.
So you have to open the battery door to access the memory card.
If you're using a tripod that could potentially be an issue,
so when it's on the side of the camera I think that's much more ideal.
Ergonomics, I think both cameras have a decent grip on them however the Z5 is a little bit better
in my hands personally because it is larger. The M50 relies a lot on the touch screen
especially with focusing. The Z5 has a touch screen as
well but it also has a joystick nub that you can use to move your focus point.
Both cameras do have the d-pad area to move the focus point.
The Z5 has double control dials. The M50 as a single one, so when you're changing
settings especially in full manual mode (it would) be a little bit easier with something like the Z5
compared to the lower cost cheaper smaller M50. The M50 has a fully articulating
vari-angle touch screen. That's the most versatile around.
It works for video, photos.. whatever you want. There is some personal preference involved.
The Z5 touch screen only has the vertical tilt. And self-filming is significantly
easier with the M50. The Nikon Z5 can save settings
into custom areas the, U1 and U2... The M50 does not have that option.
Both cameras do have a "my settings" save area in the menus.
You can put features or functions that you use often.
However the M50 does not have any way to save a group of settings.
Using these cameras for different tasks... Both cameras are nice for portrait photography,
however with the M50 if you do use the LCD screen that's a better option how it works.
Autofocus on both cameras and the consistency of them with these lenses is pretty similar.
However I would say the Z5 is a little bit above the M50.
In continuous autofocus situations I do think the Z5 is slightly better than M50.
However there is the M50 Mark II, which I have not personally used... I would
assume that's a nice step above the original M50. The M6 Mark II is very consistent as I've found.
I used Z5 in the M6 Mark II, both cameras at the same time, and I've gotten similar results
with those in people photography situations. If you put more effort into the M50 and using
it which is kind of counter-intuitive with its level of user generally,
you can get it to work just fine. Using the single point autofocus mode.
Using full manual settings or at least automatic ISO, works out well.
I have used that in a wedding situation, made it happen...
made it work with the 32 millimeter lens. Neither camera would be my ideal wedding
photography setup. I'd go for something
that has better autofocus in general. I have not used the camera for action photography.
I'd say they're not ideal for that situation anyways.
They are lower cost in their own tier, so keep that in mind.
In video modes going through the aperture range in full manual settings outdoors trying
out the autofocus with each... I'm going to let you decide
on which one you prefer. I wouldn't judge the colors
and such too harshly on either camera because of course those can be adjusted to your preferences.
In automatic settings with video mode you can see how that works out.
For the video test I was using face detection on for each camera.
I did a lot of outdoor image tests with the two cameras side by side.
Going to show you the full view and a zoomed in view of each photo.
All the different settings will be on screen. Again, I'm not focusing on equivalence but rather
the look and what you get at the same settings. I'll let you decide for yourself
which one you think or prefer. Of course considering price, considering size,
and all those other factors involved. I did do a controlled indoor image
test with two cameras and lenses. Of course there could be inconsistency
and variation between lenses of the same model. However, between the 32 millimeter and the 50
millimeter that I have, I do think the z 50 millimeter F/1.8 s produces higher quality
results than the 32 millimeter lens. There is more aberrations on
the EF-M 32 millimeter. Of course, that could be
up to variation with lenses and everything else. Of course you're paying a lot more money for the
Z setup but that does depend on the time of year and rebates and everything else.
If you look at used prices on KEH and MPB, the Z5 in excellent condition $989 dollars.
And the M50 in excellent condition $414, so a big savings there on the body.
With lenses the Z 50 millimeter, the lowest price that I found was $469 dollars,
again in excellent condition and for the 32 millimeter lens the lowest price was $374.
You will be saving money either way. The Z5 offers more exposure range compared
to the M50 with the maximum shutter speed of 1 8/000 of a second, it's a big benefit
for larger aperture lenses. And of course the M50 tops
out at one for a thousandth of a second. The Z5 also has a lower sensitivity ISO mode,
again.. helps out with large aperture lenses. So with the M50 and F/1.4 lens you
might be struggling in bright daylight to use that aperture.
You can use ND filters to deal with that but it's just an important consideration.
That was a look at a combination of Z5 with the 50mm F/1.8 s and the
Canon EOS M50 with the 32mm F/1.4 STM. I'll let you decide on the results,
but I think it's pretty clear you are going to have positives and negatives depending
on the system, the size of the camera, the price of the camera, and everything else.
There's a lot to consider, but at the very least here's some data for you to help you decide.
Hope you enjoyed this video. I'm Scott of Photography Banzai, thanks!