Nikon Z7 II vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Nikon Z7 II and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Nikon Z7 II was introduced in October 2020 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 was introduced in June 2012. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon Z7 II over Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 over Nikon Z7 II.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Nikon Z7 II has a 3.2" Tilting screen with 2,100k dot resolution and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 has a 3.0" Fixed screen with 460k dot resolution. Tilting screen makes Nikon Z7 II very useful for photography purposes but not so useful for video shooting. Nikon Z7 II also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Electronic Viewfinder on Nikon Z7 II

Nikon Z7 II has a built-in 0.5" Electronic viewfinder with 3,690k dot resolution. It has a 100% coverage and 0.80x magnification. There is no built-in or optional viewfinder available on Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15.

Nikon Z7 II features a 45.7 megapixel Full Frame BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 35.9 x 23.9 mm and a total area of 858 mm². Its native ISO range is 64 - 25,600 and expands to 32 - 102,400 in boosted mode. Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 features a 12.1 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor with dimensions of 6.17 x 4.55 mm and a total area of 20.7 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 6,400.

Nikon Z7 II has BSI-CMOS sensor, short for Backside Illuminated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor sensor. In traditional CMOS sensors, the wiring and circuitry are located on the front side of the sensor, which can block some of the incoming light. BSI technology flips this design by placing the photosensitive elements (pixels) on the backside of the sensor, allowing more light to reach the pixels. This significantly enhances light sensitivity and improves low-light performance. BSI-CMOS sensors are particularly effective in low-light conditions, as they can capture more light, resulting in brighter and less noisy images. This makes them well-suited for indoor and night photography. BSI-CMOS sensors deliver a higher SNR and reduced cross-talk.

Nikon Z7 II is equipped with Dual EXPEED 6 processor and can take pictures up to 8256 x 5504 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 5408 x 3600 (DX crop), 6880 x 5504 (5:4), 5504 x 5504 (1:1), 8256 x 4640 (16:9) with 1:1, 5:4, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios. Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 can take pictures up to 4000 x 3000 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 4000 x 3000, 4000 x 2672, 4000 x 2248, 2992 x 2992, 2816 x 2112, 2816 x 1880, 2816 x 1584, 2112 x 2112, 2048 x 1536, 2048 x 1360, 1920 x 1080, 1600 x 1200, 1600 x 1064, 1600 x 904, 1504 x 1504 with 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios.

No Low-Pass Filter on Nikon Z7 II

There is no optical low-pass filter (OLPF), also known as an anti-aliasing filter, in front of the sensor on Nikon Z7 II. This results in a slightly sharper image but may also introduce moiré patterns and aliasing artifacts when photographing subjects with fine, repetitive patterns or details.

Image Stabilization

The cameras have a built-in image stabilization (5 stops of compensation in Nikon Z7 II). On Nikon Z7 II it means that you are still getting vibration reduction when it is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.

Built-in Wi-Fi on Nikon Z7 II

Nikon Z7 II has a built-in Wi-Fi (Wi-Fi 5, 802.11ac/b/g/n, 2.4/5 GHz) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

Bluetooth on Nikon Z7 II

Nikon Z7 II has a built-in Bluetooth which lets you to connect the camera to a smartphone or a dedicated remote control device. This allows you to remotely trigger the camera, adjust settings and controls remotely through a paired mobile app. While Wi-Fi is generally faster for transferring larger files, Bluetooth can be used for small, selective transfers, it can provide real-time information about your camera's battery status, memory card capacity, and other key settings directly on your paired smartphone or smartwatch.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in Bluetooth.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB inputs for data transfer. Nikon Z7 II has a Mini HDMI and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 has an HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Nikon Z7 II comes with EN-EL15c battery pack with battery life of 420 shots.

External Storage Slots

Nikon Z7 II has two card slots - one for CFexpress Type B / XQD and one for SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II). Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC card slot.

Shutter

Nikon Z7 II has Electronic shutter and Mechanical Focal Plane shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec on Nikon Z7 II, and up to 1/4000 sec on Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15. Nikon Z7 II can shoot continuously up to 10.0 fps. Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 can shoot continuously up to 1.9 fps.

Focusing

Nikon Z7 II has Hybrid phase-detection/contrast AF system with 493 focusing points and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 has 23 focusing points. Nikon Z7 II has detection range from -4 to +19 EV.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Nikon Z7 II ranges from -3 to +17 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range on Nikon Z7 II and ±2 range on Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon Z7 II and exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15.

Flash

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 has a built-in flash with maximum range of 6.40 m. Nikon Z7 II has no built-in flash but an external flash may be connected via Hot Shoe. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/200 sec on Nikon Z7 II.

Nikon Z7 II body has dimensions of 134 x 101 x 70 mm (5.28 x 3.98 x 2.76") and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 body has dimensions of 105 x 58 x 33 mm (4.13 x 2.28 x 1.3"). Nikon Z7 II weighs 705 g (1.55 lb / 24.87 oz) and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 weighs 208 g (0.46 lb / 7.34 oz).

Nikon Z7 II

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15

134 mm

101 mm

105 mm

58 mm

101 mm

58 mm

70 mm

33 mm