HarveyG

The New Nikon D800 Offers Unrivaled Resolution and Features Designed for a Variety of Demanding Professional Photographic and Multimedia Disciplines, Videographers and Filmmakers

Nikon D800/D800E

Exciting news indeed. After months of watching and wondering, and 3.5 years after the D700, it’s here! I’ll be brief. After my debate of “Are more Megapixels better?” the D800 now sports a 36.3Mp CMOS sensor in Full Frame (FX) 35mm (35.9 x 24.0 mm). That is rivalling Medium Format…but with the choice of f/1.4 lenses where nearly all MF lenses start at f/2.8! The sensor is also completely redesigned and engineered by Nikon, and with Nikon’s legendary FX Format Low Light Low Noise characteristics, this is a leap forward in the evolution of the digital camera, especially in this format. Not just a small Mp progression…It allows unedited A1 size pictures without needing Fractal Software and amazing cropping options without degradation of pixel/image quality.

That’s a pixel density of 42,131 pixels per mm² and to all appearances it’s not at the cost of IQ, sharpness or noise, keeping in line with the high ISO, low noise tradition of all Nikon full frame DSLR’s from the D700 on up, and specifically the D3s.

(Owners of the remarkable Sigma SD1 Digital SLR Camera with the FOVEON  X3 – 46Mp will no doubt be wondering what all the hype is about…except maybe the price tag, however the SD1 has an APS-C 24 x 16mm small frame sensor and thus a pixel density of 119,791! Yes I know it has 3 stacked sensors (layers), each 4800 x 3200px but thus needs no AA filter (such as the D800E) and no coloured jaggies but with a slight increase in colour noise in low-light.)

As a reminder here are the current FX per mm² pixel densities (from my 2009 500mm Vivitar mirror-reflex-lens report):

Nikon D800/E 36,3Mp CMOS

All of the FX DSLR’s use a Nikon designed and built CMOS

D700—14,063 pixels/mm² (12.1 Mp FX 36.0 x 23.9mm)
D3 -–- 14,063 pixels/mm² (12.1 Mp FX 36.0 x 23.9mm)
D3s –- 14,063 pixels/mm² (12.1 Mp FX 36.0 x 23.9mm)
D3x –- 30,113 pixels/mm² (24.5 Mp FX 35.9 x 24.0mm)
D4 -–- 18,850 pixels/mm² (16.2 Mp FX 36.0 x 23.9mm)
D800—42,131 pixels/mm² (36.3 Mp FX 35.9 x 24.0mm)

I won’t add more tech gumf, as no doubt thousands of other blogs and websites have done so already however you can download the PDF brochure here (3.6MB) / Full D800/D800E Specifications here.

Despite all it’s new bells and whistles, this is the most intriguing and interesting aspect to me:

What is the difference between the D800 and the D800E or the D800 vs D800E? (Note: Both have the SAME resolution and SAME sensor at 36.3 Mp)

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Rumours have been flying around for a while. Thom Hogan’s logic about the life cycle of Nikon models and their launch times makes sense as is his question as to who will buy the D4 is also pertinent as it means that delivery will not be in the 100′s of thousands. The D800 (D700 replacement) and a successor to the D300s would be more important to Nikon. The only curve ball has been the Tsunami in Japan and the flooding in Malaysia which has set them back a few months. Expect an announcement at the PMA show in Las Vegas (January 10-13, 2012).

Here are a few specs gleaned from the web (scary right?) from sources that are generally on the ball. The D4 would be competing with the Canon EOS 1Dx.

16.2 MP (18Mp?)
11 fps
Shutter durability up from 150,000 to 300,000 (A real guess)
100 to 102,400 native ISO range, expandable to 50 and 204,800
Face detection/recognition function that will work in the viewfinder (Nikon has submitted several viewfinder patents)
Improved video, possibly 1080p/30/25/24 fps and  720p/60/30/25/24 fps similar to the expected Nikon D800
Uncompressed video out through an HDMI port
Ability to assign the two front body buttons to smooth aperture control during video recording
Compatible with a new Nikon WT-5 wireless transmitter to replace the 2007 WT-4a
Ethernet integrated in camera (wired tethered shooting?)
Expeed 3
USB 3.0
Improved 51 AF points
AF detection range will go down to EV-2.0 (the D3s went to EV -1)
Autofocus system: 9 cross-type sensors operational up to f/8
Compact Flash + XQD memory card slots.

Gear I use: Bodies: Nikon D-SLR’s / Lenses: Nikon, Sigma, Tokina, Vivitar /
Filters: Hoya UV & Polarizing / Flash: Nikon Speed-lights / Bag: Lowe Pro /
Tripods & Heads: Manfrotto / Grips, Triggers, Timers, Batteries: Phottix /
Editing Plug-in: Topaz Labs for Noise Reduction, HDR.

[Note the date I posted this article  (March 2010)]
I held off buying a new flash. Whilst I love the tech specs and build quality of the Nikon SB range, new they are just a bit too rich for my blood. (I subsequently bought 2x SB-800′s 2nd hand ). I have been using older manual flashes (Minolta and Vivitar) triggered either via sync cable or optic slave mode (indoors).

I have been watching this brand, YongNuo, with interest for the past few months, and read write-ups on the Strobist site as well as on Flickr about their various models.

Many good reviews and as usual a few not so good, by mostly “reviewers” who gave no satisfactory reasons for their dislike of the product. Take those reviews with a Pinch of salt.

I held one in my hand recently, the YN460II at a local supplier, and tested it. optically triggered by a basic DSLR popup flash, it fired flawlessly in all directions  optical slave mode and felt pretty solid, when it’s used as a manual off-camera flash, being fired either by light (optic slave mode) or by a radio trigger, like a Cactus 3/4, a Phottix Tetra/Aster/Atlas, AlienBees or Pocket Wizard’s.

However as an eTTL I have no doubt it will function as well as the Canon original albeit with some small configuration and menu differences. Quality and durability remains to be seen by owners and regular users.

ETA: June 2010: I’ve since bought a new YN460II (and the 2 x 2nd hand SB800′s) and have carried it (the YN460II) all over Africa as a spare off-camera kicker or on camera hot shoe flash when I want to go totally [M]anual at events or need fill light. It’s WB temperature looks spot-on, it’s rugged and very efficient on Li-Ion or NiMH rechargeable batteries. It’s much simpler to use than my 2 x SB800′s on CLS! Recharge time on 4 x fresh AA’s is under a second on full power.

Here’s a sample image of a pre shoot lighting test taken with the YN460II on a D90. All I’ve done with this image is smooth Christa’s skin and a bit of softness to everything but skin. No light modifiers whatsoever. Very acceptable.

ETA: July 2011, YongNuo 460II still behaving perfectly.
ETA: November 2011, YongNuo 460II still behaving perfectly.

However, for my primary flash(es) I need more than just a manual flash with optic slave mode triggering or radio/cable triggering. Cactus, Phottix, AB’s or PW’s are great but I still would like the option of iTTL. The YN468 has it! The Canon version is expected April 2010 and the Nikon version in May 2010.  (ETA July 2011!:  when is the Nikon version being released?). I deduct that it will be shipped to the USA before we even sniff it out here in the RSA. There is no indication of pricing yet, but I expect not more than US $200-00, probably less. In South African Rands? Your guess is as good as mine, but typically less than an SB 800/SB 900, maybe by a 1/3rd less?

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AF-S NIKKOR 24mm f1.4G ED

New release from Nikon, the AF-S NIKKOR 24mm f/1.4G ED. Get one here…

A really nice to have if you can afford it and will certainly delight landscape and low light photographers no end.

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Vivitar VIV-500-6.3 500mm f/6.3 Mirror Lens

Note to readers: Please leave a comment! It would be nice to know where you are from and if the article helped you in any way!

Christmas 2009. A new Vivitar 500mm f/6.3 DX Series 1 Mirror Lens. I’ve always been fond of them.

A lightweight (1.4 lb – 651 g) manual focus, multi-coated, catadioptric (reflex), fixed aperture “Super” Telephoto which, despite the “DX” label, can be used on full and small frame DSLR sensors as well as on regular 35mm film SLR’s. On the D90, with it’s DX sensor and 1.5x crop factor, that’s an effective 750mm! Make sure you are a good 15+ meters from your subject unless you want to shoot that Lion’s eyeball. These mirror lenses can be attached to virtually any (D)SLR using common T-Adapters. My first set of images can be found at the end of this post. You deserve to see what some lens manufacturers may not want you to see and thus why reviewers (and others) often unfairly malign these marvellous mirrors…

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