M11 Monochromvs D5
Leica
M11 Monochrom (2023)
Starting from £8300 new
Best for Black & White Photography
View M11 Monochrom
Nikon
D5 (2016)
Starting from £1800 new
Best for Professional Sports, Photojournalism & Wildlife
View D5
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Black & White Photography — M11 Monochrom (2023): The M11 Monochrom is the finest black-and-white camera in the world. A 60MP sensor with no colour filter array produces sharpness and tonal depth no colour camera can match — combined with extended high-ISO performance. Manual focus, no video, and an extraordinary price make it a specialist instrument, but for dedicated B&W photographers it is unmatched.
Professional Sports, Photojournalism & Wildlife — D5 (2016): Nikon's ultimate pro DSLR and a certified space traveller — the D5's 153-point AF, 12fps, and ISO 3,280,000 made it the weapon of choice for Olympic and space photography.
Who should buy what
M11 Monochrom (2023)
- Dedicated black-and-white photographers who demand the finest possible monochrome files
- Fine art and documentary photographers who work exclusively in B&W
- Leica M system users who want maximum monochrome image quality
- Astrophotographers — monochrome sensors excel at capturing fine star detail
D5 (2016)
- Sports and wildlife photographers with an F-mount telephoto investment
- Photojournalists who need the fastest, most reliable DSLR AF available
- Nikon system professionals looking for a flagship body at used prices
- Collectors of cameras with a documented space pedigree
Quick take: The m11 monochrom has the highest resolution at 60mp; the d5 is the most affordable; only the d5 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | M11 Monochrom (2023) | D5 (2016) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £8,300 | £1,800 |
| Sensor | 60.3MP Full-Frame Monochrome BSI CMOS (no colour filter array) | 20.8MP full-frame BSI CMOS |
| Resolution | 60.3MP | 20.8MP |
| Video | — | 4K UHD 30fps (heavy sensor crop) |
| Autofocus | Manual focus rangefinder (no autofocus) | Multi-CAM 20K 153-point AF system, 99 cross-type |
| Burst Rate | 5fps | 12fps mechanical |
| Battery Life | ~700 shots (CIPA) | ~3780 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 530g (body only) | 1405g (body only) |
| Dimensions | 138.6 × 80.0 × 38.5mm | 160 × 158.5 × 92mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical rangefinder, 0.73× magnification | OVF 0.72× magnification, 100% coverage |
| Screen | 2.3" touchscreen LCD, 2.33M dots | 3.2" tilting touchscreen, 2.36M dots |
| Mount | Leica M-mount | Nikon F mount |
| Memory Cards | Single SD UHS-II slot + 64GB internal storage | Dual XQD slots (XQD variant) |
| Connectivity | USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet (RJ-45), USB 3.0 |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | M11 Monochrom | D5 |
|---|---|---|
| Street | ||
| Portrait | ||
| Landscape | ||
| Astrophotography | — | |
| Travel | — | |
| Casual | — | |
| Sports & Action | ||
| Vlogging & Video | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Wedding & Events | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
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Camera family history