Best Nikon Camera For Vlogging

Nikon has been one of the most successful camera brands for many years. Each competitor has its own strength, and Nikon's main strength is photography. Even though its main competitor does offer many more options for video, it doesn't mean Nikon can't compete. You will be surprised at the cameras I'll show you in this list of the 4 best Nikon vlogging cameras.

Table of Contents

Why Use Nikon for Vlogging?
Nikon Z fc
- Nikon 1 J5
- Nikon 1 V3
- Nikon D5600
- Nikon D610

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Why Use Nikon for Vlogging?

It's undeniable that you will find more options for video recording from other brands. This is especially true for vlogging, as Canon, Panasonic, and Sony have more experience and they love making small cameras that perform well for video.

However, Nikon has been stepping up their game these last few years, and now they're offering pretty nice mirrorless cameras that you might want to consider.

I still like to recommend Nikon mainly for people that need a camera for their Youtube channel but that also need to take a lot of pictures.

For example, makeup artists will get a lot from these cameras. They can deliver great video, but they excel at taking pictures. Food vloggers will also find these cameras really useful.

But I think we're in an interesting time for Nikon, and I believe they will soon start releasing amazing vlogging cameras. But for now, here are the options they offer.

Nikon Z fc

The Good

4k recording
Flip screen
Mic jack
Good eye autofocus

The Bad

No in-body stabilization

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This is the closest thing you'll get to a vlogging camera from Nikon. It's a mirrorless APS-C camera with a flip screen, external mic jack and that can record video in 4k —surprisingly— without crop.

And what's even better, the eye autofocus is pretty good. This is a surprise coming from Nikon, so it basically makes this a pretty decent vlogging camera.

It also supports live streaming and the connectivity with social media is great. You can upload to your phone or directly to the cloud without any trouble.

The only real disadvantage is the lack of in-body stabilization, but this is common even in Canon mirrorless cameras. It comes with electronic stabilization that will add a small crop to the image if you use it. It's worth using if you want to improve the stabilization, but you still will want a lens with optical stabilization.

It's not the lightest mirrorless camera either at 445g, but it's still easy to carry around and its vintage look will surely be something many people will like.

Nikon 1 J5

The Good

Great price
Easy to carry around
Flip screen
Good sensor size

The Bad

No 4k
No in-body stabilization

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The Nikon 1J5 is the only affordable mirrorless proposal from this company, but it is a good one.

This mirrorless is a small camera that has better sensor than point & shoots, has interchangeable lenses and a flip screen.

It is as light as the Canon Powershot G7 X, even though it comes with a larger sensor, which improves its low-light performance.

It can record up to 1080p60 and it offers time-lapse and slow-motion recording.

These are quite good things to have in a vlogging camera. But the best thing is that it's all available for a good price.

It's a shame that Nikon didn't build an APS-C sensor for it, and this is the main reason why people prefer Sony or Panasonic for mirrorless. However, this would have made this camera a lot more expensive.

Either way, it still is a good vlogging camera thanks to the good stabilization system included in the stock lens and its good price.

Nikon 1 V3

The Good

Better slow-motion
Friendlier with photographers
Microphone input
Decent battery life (310 shots)

The Bad

No 4k
No interchangeable-lens
Not so good in low light

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The following camera is another mirrorless proposal from Nikon. It is more expensive than the Nikon 1 J5, but it also has another features that make up the price difference.

To begin with, this one comes with a microphone port. This means that you won't have to spend an extra few hundred bucks in a portable recorder and a microphone. This by itself makes recording video a lot easier.

It also has better battery life (310 shots instead of 250), but it doesn't come with a flip screen.

It offers quite a bigger help to photographers too. This one comes with an electronic viewfinder, which is necessary to take pictures in sunny days, and it's generally more comfortable to use this way.

It also offers better slow-motion because it can get up to 120 frames per second, while the other one tops at 60.

Finally, it is very comfortable to hold, even though it's quite heavier than the Nikon 1 J5.

It is the second good option that Nikon offers if you want a camera with larger sensor (which means better in low light) but that is still easier to carry around than a DSLR.

Nikon D5600

The Good

Great DSLR for both video and photography
Great battery life for the price (600 shots)
Great in low light
Flip screen and mic input

The Bad

No 4k
DSLRs are heavy to carry around

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Here we enter the DLSR territory. This camera has an APS-C sensor, which is the largest you can find before full-frame.

This makes it better in low light than most cameras in the market.

They can be quite big, but they also perform the best. They offer the best dynamic range, colors and performance in low light. That's why while the previous cameras are the ones you need to get if you want to record vlogs outside, these ones are great options if you want to record mostly from home.

To begin with, the D5600 is the first camera that comes to mind when introducing someone to DSLRs.

It's cheap for a DSLR, but it offers everything that makes these cameras unique. The Nikon D5600 comes with everything a YouTuber needs to start implementing real high quality to their channel.

It has a flip screen, WiFi, timelapse recording, good focus and fully manual mode; all this in a camera that delivers great colors and can take professional-looking pictures for a good price.

A cheaper good alternative is the Nikon D3300, which is basically a D5600 without the extra useful things like WiFi, flip screen, and timelapse recording. Its autofocus isn't as good either but this is not important if you want to record from home

Nikon D610

The Good

Affordable full-frame sensor
Outstanding battery life (900 shots)
A lot of helpful features for photographers
Microphone input

The Bad

No 4k
DSLRs are heavy to carry around

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If you want to take it one step further, the Nikon D610 DSLR is an outstanding camera combining both photography and video.

I recommend this one if you are truly serious about photography and vlogging at the same time.

It isn't the most comfortable camera to carry around, and it's much heavier than the D5600, but it's a camera that any photographer could love.

It performs extremely well in low light for the price. This is because it's a full-frame DSLR that won't cost you an eye watering amount of money.

This camera has environmental sealing, a top LCD screen that helps changing settings easily, can shoot up to 900 pictures without depleting its battery, and its viewfinder is extremely good (pentaprism and 100% coverage).

I could say this one is worth getting only if you are planning to take a lot of shots together with your vlogging, but the truth is that having a full-frame camera for this price is good for any kind of job.

You don't need to worry about lighting with this camera, and that is enough for it to be considered one of the best cameras for YouTube vlogging (although using good lighting will make your channel stand out).

Just remember that it's quite heavy.

It is a camera that comes in handy to few people, as most vloggers will be satisfied with any other cheaper camera from this list. But if you're the right person, you will find this camera really useful.