The Nikon D3 detailed preview has been released shortly after the Nikon D300 Preview came out as expected.

Still no reviews of either camera, but that’s no surprise.

The Canon EOS 40D came to market extremely fast though, I think Canon is trying to win back some market share before the monster Nikon D300 comes out.

The specs are awesome as from the first release.

• First ever Nikon DSLR with a Full-Frame (36 x 24 mm) sensor (coined FX format)
• 12.1 megapixel full-frame sensor (8.45µm pixel pitch)
• ISO 200 - 6400 (with boost up to ISO 25600)
• Also supports DX lenses, viewfinder automatically masks (5.1 megapixels with DX lens)
• 5:4 ratio crop mode (10 megapixels, up to 9 fps, viewfinder masked)
• 14-bit A/D conversion, 12 channel readout
• Nikon EXPEED image processor (Capture NX processing and NR algorithms, lower power)
• Super fast operation (power-up 12 ms, shutter lag 41 ms, black-out 74 ms)
• New Kevlar / carbon fibre composite shutter with 300,000 exposure durability
• New Multi-CAM3500FX Auto Focus sensor (51-point, 15 cross-type, more vertical coverage)
• Auto-focus tracking by color (using information from 1005-pixel AE sensor)
• Auto-focus calibration (fine-tuning) now available (fixed body or up to 20 separate lens settings)
• Scene Recognition System (uses AE sensor, AF sensor)
• Picture Control image parameter presets (replace Color Modes I, II and III)
• Custom image parameters now support brightness as well as contrast
• Nine frames per second continuous with auto-focus tracking
• Eleven frames per second continuous without auto-focus tracking
• Ten / eleven frames per second continuous in DX-crop mode (AF / no-AF)
• Dual Compact Flash card slots (overflow, back-up, RAW on 1 / JPEG on 2, copy)

The professional Nikon D ’single digit’ series of digital SLR’s started life back in June 1999 with the groundbreaking D1. Groundbreaking because it was the digital SLR which broke Kodak’s stranglehold on the digital SLR market and fundamentally brought prices down to a level which most professionals could afford (around the US$5,500 mark). Since then we have seen a steady progression of this line of cameras, while the core values of a high quality full size body with integrated grip have remained the line split into two halves, one targeted at high resolution photography the other high speed sports type photography (lower resolution but faster continuous shooting); the X and H suffixes. It’s been almost three years since Nikon introduced a completely new digital SLR with a new sensor (the D2X) and there has been much anticipation that Nikon’s next move would be a full-frame chip.

You can find the full Hands-on Preview from DPReview here:

Nikon D3 Hands-on Preview

There are also some new high ISO shots released.

Nikon D3 FX Format Digital SLR High ISO Image Samples

Ah Nikon maintaing the lead in Digital SLR sales..

But is that a good thing? Too many entry level models in the Nikon range recently, where are the serious cameras for professionals and advanced amateurs? The D200s with better noise control, the D3x that can top the 1D MKIII.

If you look at it from an optimists point of view its all good though, as more sales = more money = better R&D for better products.

So it could all turn out well in the end.

Nikon has led Canon in its share of the DSLR market in Japan for the past six months, according to latest sales figures.

‘Nikon nudged Canon from its pedestal in December with the introduction of the D80 in October,’ reports Japanese trade publication PEN News Weekly.

‘Since then it also launched the D40 and D40x and has been maintaining the lead for six months, with a 48% market share in May, while Canon ended up second with a 35% market share,’ adds the report which was based on figures released by market research firm BCN.

The statistics reveal a turnaround on a year ago when Canon held a 53% market share in Japan, leaving Nikon behind with 33% in June 2006.

The figures show that Sony’s market share dropped to 2.6% in May this year, from the near 20% share it held in July 2006.

Pentax’s share also fell compared to last summer, from 13% in July 2006 to 7% in May this year – putting Pentax in third place behind Nikon and Canon.

Olympus share has picked up since March - rising to 6.1% in May, a growth attributed to the launch of the Olympus E-410 digital SLR.

The figures were compiled from sales data received from 2,200 stores across Japan, including ‘large electronic home appliance merchandisers’, says PEN.

Source: Amateur Photographer

Amazing new news, a replacement for D80 has leaked from Nikon.

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*

A quick step up from the previous 6 Megapixel original D40 version! A strong competitor for the Canon 400D now with the added resolution.

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