Nikon D600 Review: Best DSLR in 2025?12 min read

I must have the latest camera body, with a 60 million megapixel sensor, autofocus that can track a mosquito’s eye lash. I need 8k video, dual SIM card, stabilisation and weather sealed body. This will make me a better photographer! Thats what I thought, and I was wrong. 

The myth

There is one universal truth about advertising: you will never be completely (or healthy) until you buy what they are selling. We all have the common goal of getting the best photos possible, at a high or consistent rates. However not even the best gear will do that for you. It’s you the photographer that makes the greater difference. 

Greater number of pixels and autofocus will make a difference of course. Autofocus will make things easier. If Shakespeare had an iPad he would have produced more work, but would it have been better? Most of my favourite photos and photographers and probably yours too, used old Leicas and film. Of course I am talking about the giants of photography like Henri Cartier-Bresson, Alex Webb, George Rodger, Susan Meiselas and many, many others.

The beginning 

I started with the X-T1. I took a few good pics, but thousands of awful, blurry, badly framed images, mostly because I didn’t really understand the exposure triangle. 

I believed I could just push the button and the camera would do everything else. I learnt the basics on this camera, I used the hell out of it and it’s still one of my favourite sensors of all time. However like all APSC cameras it performed badly in low light. Everything else was near perfect. 

I realise I am bit of hypocrite here, because I fell for the initial Fujifilm campaign with Zack Arias. The campaign was genius, I still haven’t anything better since. I honestly thought that if I had that camera I would automatically become a great photographer like him. I’m still waiting for that to happen. 

The Nikon D600

Until the day I bought this, size, weight and ergonomics were the most important features to me. I’m almost embarrassed to admit that this. I have never owned a full frame until the D600. I’ve had many APSC bodies but not that.

What really changed my mind was the YouTube channel by Martin Castein. There was one video on the Nikon D600 in particular was: Don’t miss this excellent Nikon DSLR. 

This video opened my eyes to the possibility of an affordable full frame. Martin highlighted a few very interesting features: 

• It’s small for a full frame, thus easy to hold for long periods. 
• The colour rendition and files are unique and beautiful. 
• He also mentioned the very solid low light performance, 
• Dual SIM card slots, which was something I never had before. 

The cherry on top was the estimated second hand price, which I reckoned would be similarity low here too. Before I knew it, I was crossing the buys border between Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The camera seemed to have everything I wanted. 

The price

I still wasn’t sure if I could go for an older camera, I still carried the stigma that an old camera could not be as good as new one.

I wasn’t completely sold on the D600 either, it was still a toss up between Nikon D750, D600 and the Canon 6D. I did think briefly about the Nikon D800 or the D810 but they just seemed to heavy in the hand. I couldn’t find a D750 (with a flip screen) and the guy who was selling the second hand Canon 6D was a completely unfriendly asshole. There were many other Canon bodies around to be fair, but they were so scratched, dusty they looked unusable. Plus they didn’t come with any warranty at all. 

Then I found a near perfect D600 for $275, and extra $78 for Nikon’s version of the nifty fifty (50mm lens), plus the seller was super nice. The price was amazing, back 12 years ago this camera would have cost $2000. 

I snapped up the Nikon D600 from him and the lens from another nice guy next door. Honestly I haven’t looked back since.

My first impressions 

That very evening I took the camera out for test drive. I headed to a part of Shenzhen that I haven’t been to in years. It’s area in that still has a lot flavour. Parts of Luohu have changed little in the last decade or so, other parts have virtually disappeared. I found a street that still had echoes of the past, small shops, local people, lighting with a bit of atmosphere. More importantly its an area where people still live, eat and play. 

The weight felt good in my hand, the grip gave me such confidence in the handling. I felt I didn’t really need the grip that I was using. It was after sundown. It was the exact conditions that my APSC camera have mostly failed me in. 

I’m not going to lie, I did feel quite self conscious. Even in the poor light a full frame camera from yester year is still hard to hide. I gave up on triying to be subtle. I found a certain amount of honesty in that. I wondered around, the beautiful shutter sound clunking as I went. The autofocus does hunt a little, but it’s easy to work around.

I really enjoyed using the old glass viewfinder, the LCD is cumbersome and just as Martin Castein said, I had to get real familiar with the histogram. It’s important to take a sample shot, to see how the image looks, especially in the light changes. I tried checking my photos, but at best its just a guide. It only shows about 80% of the final image.

I exposed with exposure dial and keep the it about F4.5 for the whole evening. I didn’t feel I hit any roof with the ISO. I was having fun. It wasn’t until I got back to my iPad that I really saw how gorgeous the images looked. I will include a few hear for you to see.

Nikon D600 Specs

Specs are not everything, but I will mention a few of the important ones here. 

• Weight 760g
• Dual sim card
• 24 megapixel

For a comparison the newest Fujifilm X-T4 which is another great Fuji camera:

• Weight 600 g (approx)
• Dual sim card
• 26 megapixel

The only specs I care about are the user experience specs:

• Gorgeous files
• Not that heavy
• Megapixels don’t care
• Wonderful dynamic range
• Battery lasts 2-4 weeks
• ISO Performs wonderfully 
• Bright screen

Some ways its perfect – Advantages

You might be able to tell from my very detailed user specs, what the major advantages are.

The Images

This camera produces the most beautiful images that I have seen, of course that’s a little dependant on the light source. The images are vibrant and there is retro feeling about the colours. The way this sensor processes sunsets, or artificial light sources brings a happy tear to my eye. The X-T1 trans sensor is very comparable in its beautiful renditions of light and colour. Without any doubt in my limited experience the images from this camera when exposed properly are dreamy and delicious like an ice cream sunday from my childhood. 

The files

Oh boy.. you can really push these files. They are so easy to push and pull. This camera like many works much better when under exposed. I have not used any other full frame camera, and not edited other files, so admittedly I have limited experience. I love these files, they are a pleasure to use. The files from my X-T30 and Sony a6300 feel insufficient by comparison, although I know its not fair to compare APSC files to full frame.

Ergonomics

Nikon have been in the game for a long time. For a bigger camera it feels great. The grip is deep, button layout is so instinctive. Even without a strap I’m happy to carry this in my hand for many hours.

Weight

Okay, it’s not a light camera. If your bag shoulder bag doesn’t have a lot of other stuff in it (books, iPad, etc) then it’s not a problem. I don’t carry extra lenses, because I’m reasonably happy with the 50mm focal length, though I find it a bit tight at times.

Battery

I have used the same battery with a heavy use for 2 weeks. I only own 2 batteries! The battery has stayed mostly charged on a light workload for 4 weeks! I love this. Next to image quality this might be my favourite plus feature.

Build Quality

It’s solid, strong and very rugged. I am not careful with cameras so this important. One the battery door came off, I simply snapped it back in place. 

Weather sealing

I am a street and travel photographer and tend not to expose my gear to hard rain or dusty conditions, but it’s wonderful to have this.

Dual sim cards

I have not taken full advantage of this, but like weather sealing its great to know that that feature is there. I do intend to fully use this feature in the future.

Menu

Next to the menu on my Ricoh Gr III’s I find this gloriously simple to navigate and you can find anything without any hassle. 

Nothing is perfect – disadvantages

There is surprisingly few things I dislike about this camera. The few things I don’t like are more to do with the age of the camera. Let’s have a look:

• Rubber over view vender always comes off
• LCD screen is just for reference, the actual photo looks quite different
• AF is slow, and hunts in low light, its great in good light though
• Lack of flip screen, I really miss that.
• And the a beautiful EVF, miss that for for viewing images
• Video…. Don’t bother.
• Frames per second (FPS) is quite low
• I’m not crazy about the black and whites 

From what I have read and heard, I would seriously consider the Nikon D700 for black and whites.

Thats it. Not bad for a 12 year old camera.

Final thoughts

So here I am now with a 12 year old camera, a nifty 50. Not a perfect lens for me but it really good enough. I have wasted so much time researching, wondering if I could afford a great camera. I probably spent more time looking over camera review than taking actual photos. I wish I had bought this camera a while back. 

The low light experience for me at least is wonderful, coming from APSC sensors. This classic camera produces glorious images and its fun and very simple to use. People say modern cameras just get out of your way. I would argue that this experience is also pretty damn simple, and I rarely find the camera is barrier to what I want to use it for.

This camera is fun. It feels like a real camera. Ergonomics are super. Layout is functional and logical. It’s basically one of the easiest cameras I have ever used. Most importantly from my perspective the images that this little beast produces feel glorious. It almost feels like painting by hand, compared to using AI engines to make your art. The image quality is amazing. If the AF system in this camera is not playing up, then the sharpness in its images is easily good enough.

You could spend all your time, saving for the next best mirrorless camera, and reading/watching reviews for a tool that will not make you a better photographer (by itself). Or you could just go out, save time and get to work an old classic full-frame, like the Nikon D600 in 2025. 

I know which one I would choose, because I already have.

Other posts you might like

If you are interested in other camera reviews I have one for my old faithful Fujifilm X-T30 here, and the wonderful Ricoh GR III here. If you’re interesting in challenging your photography why not read my suggestions here, and see what I am doing to challenge myself in 2025 here. If you are looking to up your game you could also check out my street photography/travel photography here.