Universal Vibration Reduction (uVR)

The new D90 incorporates an optional feature called Universal Vibration Reduction (uVR). This turns all lenses into uVR lenses, and offers a 10-stop advantage.

This means a person using a 500mm lens, who would normally have to shoot at 1/500th of a second, can shoot at 2 seconds when uVR is enabled.

The new uVR system isn’t sensor based, and instead requires one of the three optional vertical battery grips (see below). In this case, the MB-D90a is required. This grip provides all the normal controls and extended battery life of a regular grip. It also holds 8 EN-EL4a batteries, along with a step-up transformer.

Memory card incompatibility solved

The D50 and D80 caused some controversy by moving Nikon’s consumer-orientated DSLR models away from CF cards. This lead many Nikon users to resort to unseemly and ungentlemanly language in the forums (expressly forbidden under the terms and conditions of the standard Nikon warranty).

In an effort to avoid such distasteful events this time around, and ensure everybody can enjoy a D90, Nikon now supports the following storage formats…

• SD
• CF
• XD
• Memory Stick
• 3.5 inch floppy
• 5.25 inch floppy
• 8 inch floppy (in MB-D90b only)
• CD/DVD (in MB-D90b only)
• High-speed paper tape to maintain compatibility with Colossus
• Punch cards

New built-in artistic-effect modes

In addition to the regular scene modes, Nikon have included several artistic-effect modes. You can apply these to your image in-camera. Modes include…

• Black and white mode
• 1960s-style fast-film grain mode
• Nikon long-banding effect mode
• Canon plastic skin mode
• KM7D high ISO smearing mode
• Sony Alpha 1.3-stop underexposure mode
• Point and shoot artefact mode

A picture of the Nikon D90

You can read the full article here:

Nikon D90 Specifications Revealed

*Disclaimer – Only camera geeks will really understand this*

Buy the Nikon D90:

Or the new replacement, the Nikon D7000:

It shows consumers really do still want more Megapixels and the 6 Megapixel D40 kept a lot of people on the fence with it’s competition already at 10 Megapixels.

The new D40x shares the same 10.2 Megapixel sensor as the D80 and D200, has a faster burst mode (up to 3fps) and has an extended ISO range of 100 to 3200.

The Nikon D40X measures 126.0 x 94.0 x 64.0mm and weighs 481 grams.

The Nikon D40X will have a retail price of $729.95 USD when it ships in April. Alternatively you can bundle it with a 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor lens for $799.95 USD.

That should make it around RM2500 with the kit lens!

Full details here:

Nikon D40x

We covered when the D80 was announced in August last year.

It’s a great camera, enough megapixels for anyone, good features, nice external controls, great image quality and the room to grow with support for plenty of pro quality lenses.

One thing I do recommend though, if you buy this camera don’t take the kit lens (the 18-135mm) as it’s not a great lens. Get the D80 body with the 18-70mm (Around RM650 second hand) lens from the D70s kit or get another lens completely like the 18-200mm VR (if you have the budget of around RM2500) or a third party lens like the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 (RM1550) or the Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 (RM1800).

The D40 is ok for real beginners, but people with some good photography experience might find it limiting, also the lack of support for good but cheap lenses like the 50mm f/1.8D is not there.

The reviews are generally excellent, so here’ a summary for you:

Nikon D80 Review (DPReview)

The number of cons, and the fact that there are no serious ones, is a testament to the thought and work that has gone into the D80′s design. It’s one of those cameras which just feels ‘right and sorted’ from the moment you pick it up. Things just get better the more you use the camera, you will begin to discover the usefulness of major features like the customizable automatic ISO and the subtle touches like being able to tap the DELETE button twice to delete an image (sounds insignificant, but in use things like this make the D80 far more usable than other cameras).

Nikon D80 (Nikonians)

After following the speculation in our Nikon D80 Users Group forum at Nikonians I’d say Nikon has delivered on many fronts. It’s clear this new D80 DSLR can not be slotted simply as a straight replacement for either the Nikon D50 or the Nikon D70, but that’s not to say it isn’t. It’s shaping up to be a lot like a Nikon D50 in terms of size, but these comparisons can no longer be simply made.

Nikon D80 review (Photography Review)

Like the D100-200 upgrade before it, this upgrade from the D70 to D80 is a worthwhile step up, both in ability and performance. The jump in pixel count and autofocus ability alone warrants the change, but there are literally dozens of other tweaks as you delve further into the menus. The price also seems to be pitched about right, although market forces will soon see it settle into a slightly lower slot, which is all good news. Highly recommended.

DCRP Review: Nikon D80

The Nikon D80 is a fairly inexpensive digital SLR that packs spectacular performance and excellent (though somewhat soft) image quality into a well-built, solid camera. . For under $1000 you get quite a lot of camera, and it will certainly make people think twice about spending hundreds more on a D200. The D80 was a joy to use, and I’m certainly going to miss it when it goes back to Nikon. In other words, the D80 easily earns my recommendation.

Nikon D80 (Ken Rockwell)

When the D80 came out in mid-2006 I bought one immediately because it gave the same resolution as my D200 in a more portable package. My D80 is as small and light as my D70 with the same sensor as my D200. Whoo hoo!

Nikon D80 review (Camera Labs)

The Nikon D80 is without a doubt a very classy camera. It feels great, handles well, performs superbly and has one of the best viewfinders around. At times when rivals struggled with various lighting conditions, the D80’s metering remained unfazed and quite simply delivered great-looking images every time.

Once again I say if you have the budget, go for it, you won’t regret it.

Image from dpreview.com

Having IS/VR in the lens means you can see the effects through the viewfinder and it’s more accurate as it’s tailed to the lens (each one having different focal lenghts, different aperture and different setups with more/less blades and elements).

Having tried the Alpha out the picture quality is ‘ok’ for an SLR type cam, but its not very exciting, the latitude or dynamic range doesn’t seem very great and the controls aren’t super accessible.

I’d go for the Canon 400D or the Nikon D80 everytime, if you have the budget of course get the D80 as it’s the superior cam but does cost more.

Also remember when you are buying a camera you are buying into a system, the bodies will come and go, what you will spend money on is accessories and lenses.

Sony lenses are expensive and hard to find, the second hand market is next to zero and finding anything for Konica-Minolta mount in Asia is hard.

KM was pretty popular back in Europe but it’s not here in Asia.

Anyway here is some info if you are considering getting a mid/entry level dSLR and specifically the Sony Alpha A100.

Reviews

DPReview Extensive Sony Alpha A100 Review

DCRP Review: Sony Alpha DSLR-A100

Imaging Resource: Sony Alpha A100

Camera Labs Sony Alpha A100

Comparisons

EOS 400D / XTi vs Nikon D80 vs Sony A100 – Camera Labs

Sony Alpha A100 Compared to the Nikon D80 and Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi / 400D Digital SLR’s

Image from dpreview.com

Ah the new Nikon D80 kit lens looks like a peach too, yet to see any good hardcore reviews of it yet though, it’s a nice new release though to go along with my much sought after Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED as I currently don’t have any telephoto past 70mm!

I’m actually using the Nikon D70s kit lens most of the time which is the superb Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED I shall do a proper review of it one day.

It’s a very sharp lens though at least at f/5.6 and above, I find it a nice focal range too, but it does distort a bit at 18mm, but is fine again by 20mm.

The 18-135mm gives a nice boost in focal length without the weight of going up to 200mm.

From the Nikon press release:

Nikon is pleased to announce the introduction of the AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED, a compact, lightweight 7.5x zoom lens. Boasting a range of state-of-the-art optical technologies, this new lens offers outstanding performance at a remarkably affordable price.

The AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED features Nikon ED glass, aspherical lens elements and SWM (Silent Wave Motor) for enhanced performance. With a focal length range of 18-135mm, the lens is suitable for a wide variety of shooting situations; from sports, action and portraits to wide-angle landscapes. The picture angle is equivalent to a 27-202.5mm lens in the 35mm format.

RRP: £299.99
Sales release: September 2006.

That makes it around RM2000 in a direct conversion, so perhaps we’ll get it for about RM1800, not bad!

It’s not a great jump from the D70s but there are some nice minor refinements, I don’t regret getting my D70s though as I doubt there will be any stock for this cam until 2007.

We posted our first thoughts after the leak here: D80 leaked shots and thoughts

The major changes are:

• New 10.2 effective megapixel Nikon DX Format CCD image sensor with the power to capture exceptional sharpness and faithful colour at 3,872 x 2,592 pixels size.
• Inherits the industry-leading advanced imaging processing engine of Nikon professional D-SLR cameras. Colour-independent pre-conditioning prior to A/D conversion works in harmony with high-precision digital image processing algorithms to produce natural-looking images that benefit from faithful colour and tone reproduction.
• 3D Colour Matrix Metering II automatic exposure control ensures ideal exposures in most lighting conditions. It evaluates brightness, colour, contrast, selected focus area and camera-to-subject distance. The system references the data against an expanded onboard database created using data from more than 30,000 actual photographic scenes to instantly and accurately calculate the final exposure value for the shot. Variable centre-weighted metering and spot metering centered on the active focus area are also available.
• Refined 11-area AF system packs the same number of focus areas available for the professional D2 series into a space-efficient system that features fast, precise operation. Each of the 11 focus areas can be used individually, the centre sensor can be switched to wide-frame operation for broader coverage and new Auto-area AF mode measures all 11 focus areas. The system automatically determines which are on the primary subject and activates only those areas.
• ISO AUTO mode automatically adjusts sensitivity between ISO 100 -1600 to maximize available light and achieve optimal exposure. Sensitivity can also be set manually between ISO 100 – 1600 in steps of 1/3 EV, plus HI-0.3, HI-0.7 and HI-1. Three levels of High ISO Noise Reduction are available when shooting at high ISO settings. Long Exposure Noise Reduction is also available when shooting at shutter speeds of 8 seconds or slower.

The full specs and press release/pics can be found here.

The preview looks good so far, I’d like to see some sample shots though.

Two and a half years ago Nikon announced the six megapixel D70, their first affordable enthusiasts digital SLR, it proved to be a very popular camera and strong competitor to the Canon EOS 300D (Digital Rebel). Just fifteen months later Nikon revealed the D70s which was essentially the same camera with a some subtle tweaks (improved AF, wider flash coverage, higher capacity battery, larger LCD monitor). And so just over fifteen months on from the D70s Nikon present the latest incarnation of their ‘enthusiasts’ digital SLR line, the ten megapixel D80.

The D80 slots nicely between the entry-level D50 and the semi-professional / professional D200, clearly based on the D70 design but also different enough to be seen as a completely new model. It features a ten megapixel DX format CCD (the same we presume as used by Sony in the DSLR-A100), the metering sensor from the D50 and numerous other items taken or modified from the D200.

The full hands on preview is here.

They also announced another couple of AF-S lenses to go with the launch of this cam an 18-135mm as the new optional kit lens with more focal range (AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED) and another which I might add to my shopping list after I see some reviews as it’s the exact range I’ve been looking for and it has VR!

The AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED, it’s not f/2.8 but with VR it gives you that couple of extra stops anyway and it’s much more affordable. It’s equivalent to 450mm on a 35mm camera. It should be about RM1500 where as the f/2.8 version is RM6100, a huge difference, but is it really 4 times better? I shall test it out.. but if it’s anything like the 18-200mm VR it’ll be impossible to get hold of.

I’ll talk more about the lenses later.

Last week, Nikon had posted a teaser on its websites worldwide about a new, upcoming 10.2-megapixel DSLR (Click here for the DPreview article).

These leaked shots (if they prove to be real) reveal the camera to be the Nikon D80 – the successor of sorts to the highly popular Nikon D70. I believe that these shots are real. Even if they aren’t, the D70 is due for an update anyway – although it’s still a great camera by today’s standards, it is over two years old.

But what does this mean to existing D70 owners? Should you upgrade? Is this camera as good as a D200 (which has the same megapixel count)? How is it different from the D70?

I’ll try to answer these questions, but bear in mind that they’re completely based on assumptions made from these pictures, which I also assume to be true. With these disclaimers out of the way, let’s have a closer look.

FRONT

From the front, the camera looks a lot like a souped-up D50, with more rounded lines and a smaller appearance than the D70. However, it does have the D70′s front command dial on the hand grip – something which was sorely missing from the D50.

Unlike the D70 (and like the D200), the pop-up flash release and flash mode/exposure selector have been separated into two separate buttons. No big difference in operation here.

However, there seems to be a custom button located below the AF-assist lamp, which is good. Custom buttons are always good – maybe it’ll let you select your ISO settings or to an AF lock or more. I dunno, but it’s a good sign.

BACK

The back of the camera reveals quite a number of changes. Firstly, there’s a new 2.5in LCD (bigger than the 2in one on the D70s and 1.8in one on the D70). The button layout is largely the same as the one on the D70, although the ISO and white-balance buttons (with their corresponding playback functions) have been swapped. The trash button has also moved to the top left (where the bracketting and drive-mode buttons used to be)while a new ‘OK’ button has appeared where the trash button itself used to be.

However, the fact that the ISO, white-balance and quality settings are still shared with playback buttons isn’t good news – especially if you normally enable instant review. The problem is: if you want to change you ISO settings right after a shot, you may still be in image playback mode and end up switching to thumbnail view. Not a serious problem, but it’s annoying (and is one very good reason to buy a D200 instead).

More shocking, though, is that the CF card door has now moved to the side of the camera (it used to be at the back, which was perfect ). In fact, the shape and dimensions of the door seem to suggest an SD card slot instead (just like the D50). I can’t tell for sure, as it may just be a notch that leads to a much bigger CF card door. Only time will tell, unfortunately. In the mean time, hold off those CF card purchases if you’re planning to upgrade to a D80!

TOP

Now this is interesting… The drive-mode button is now located to the right of the monochrome LCD panel, along with a new AF button. My guess is that this AF button lets you select either between single- and continuous-autofocus, or between different autofocus dynamic/spot modes. Or all of the above! This may also see the introduction of a new AF module, although there’s nothing wrong with the one on the D70 to begin with. AF mode selection was one of the weaknesses of the D70 (you could do it, but it required going through the menus, which is very *yucks!*) – nice to see Nikon doing something about it.

The more observant may also notice the disappearence of the bracketing mode button. Well, I never used the one on the D70 much anyway, so Nikon probably listened to customer suggestions here as well.

VERDICT

Well, the D80 looks to be an incremental update over the D70/D70s. The only reason I’d ever buy one is if the D80′s viewfinder offers much higher magnification (maybe closer to that of the D200′s) – so I can actually keep an eye on the depths of field while I’m framing a shot. It’s a problem for me, personally – even after jamming a DK-21m magnifying eyepiece to my D70.

I doubt the D80 will have the D200′s 5fps continuous drive or weather sealing either. Only time will tell, of course. Until then, wait for the official announcement from Nikon.