Just Out – Nikon D800 & D800E

When Nikon introduced the D700, in July 2008, many Nikon aficionados were thrilled to be able to purchase a full-frame Nikon DSLR for about half the price of Nikon’s heftier and pricier D3-series cameras. That said, it looks like Nikon is about to make a lot of people even happier this time around.

The new Nikon D800 is downright impressive across the board, starting with its 36.3-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor. Thanks to improvements in sensor technologies, the new sensor features large 4.88μm pixels, which in concert with the D800’s EXPEED 3 imaging processor, allows the sensor to capture full-bodied image files with plenty of detail in the shadows, highlights and every tone in between.

In addition to robust JPEG, RAW, and JPEG+RAW still capture, the D800 can also capture cinema-like Full HD 1080p video @ 30 or 24 frames per second in H.264/MPEG AVC format in both FX and DX imaging formats. The D800 also affords you the option of simultaneous Live View output using external monitors while recording uncompressed video via HDMI terminal. You can also bypass the camera’s dual memory card slots (CF and SD) and record your video directly onto your computer or an external drive.

Compared to earlier video-enabled DSLRs, the D800 displays far fewer rolling shutter effects, which makes it easier to capture moving and rotating subjects, or when panning the camera while capturing a video sequence. The D800 also utilizes B-frame data compression, which allows for lighter files without loss of image quality. Lastly, the D800 features a Multi-Area Full HD D-Movie Video recording mode for recording video in FX or DX-formats at Full HD 1080p @ 30 /24p in a 16:9 aspect ratio.

Another broadcast-quality feature found on the D800 is a built-in external microphone input that accepts the optional 20-increment Nikon ME-1 stereo microphone. As icing on the cake, you can monitor the audio quality using headphones that you can plug into the camera’s audio port, just like the big boys.

Nikon has always been recognized as having one of the most accurate metering systems on the market, and here, too, the D800 shines with a 91,000-pixel 3D Color Matrix Metering III System that features an advanced Scene Recognition System that enables face recognition (up to eight faces) through the camera’s optical viewfinder, along with improved exposure, white balance detection, autofocus performance and i-TTL flash exposures.

In the performance department, Nikon’s D800 features a 51-point AF system with four Dynamic AF modes and 3D Focus Tracking, up to four-frame-per-second still capture in FX mode, an HDR capture mode that captures two images and combines them for up to a 3 EV exposure advantage, dual Live View modes (Photography Live View and Movie Live View) and up to 900 exposures per battery charge. The ISO range of the D800 goes from 100 to 6400, and is expandable to 25600.

For composing and reviewing stills and video, Nikon’s D800 features a bright optical pentaprism that displays 100% of the image area, as does the camera’s 3.2-inch 921,000-dot LCD, which allows you to zoom in up to 46x for critical focus checking.

In addition to the standard D800, Nikon is also introducing a special edition version—the Nikon D800E—which features a low-pass filter without anti-aliasing properties to facilitate maximum sharpness levels when shooting RAW files.

The Nikon D800E is best used when the subject can be lit and photographed at a distance that mitigates the risk of moiré patterns common to fashion and textile photography.

Nikon’s new D800 and D800E are thoroughly compatible with all current and many older-generation Nikkor optics.