Nikon D3 evaluation report

The Nikon D3 is a digital SLR camera using a full-frame CMOS sensor released by Nikon on August 23, 2007. It is equipped with a CMOS of 12.1 million effective pixels, an EXPEED image processor, a 3-inch 920,000-pixel LCD, all-alloy body, 51-point focusing system, 9 frames/second continuous shooting speed (all pixels), ISO 100-25600 ultra-wide range. On September 23, Nikon Imaging Instrument Sales (China) Co., Ltd. Guangzhou Branch collaborated with Ruiyi Camera Store to hold a Nikon D3 introduction and experience meeting at Guangzhou Tianhe Haoyuan 3G Photographic Equipment City. PConline reviewers received assistance from the organizer and tried out Nikon in detail D3 is the top digital SLR.

Appearance details

The brain door on the D3 contains a large pentaprism specially designed for full-frame cameras, giving the D3 a 100% viewing range and a bright viewing effect. The 3-inch LCD on the back is the most attractive, but even such a large LCD won't look out of place on the D3. On the left side of the fuselage, various interfaces are distributed. From this angle, you can also see how large the viewfinder part of the D3 is. On the right side of the fuselage, the lines on the handle are relatively simple and there are not too many buttons. On the top of the fuselage, the button settings have not changed much. The simple bottom of the machine cancels the wireless transmission interface of D2Xs. From this angle, you can also see the shape of the vertical shooting handle. The handle for vertical shooting is actually not as comfortable as the handle for horizontal shooting, and there is not enough room for the three fingers except the thumb and index finger. The flash sync terminal and shutter cable interface above the lens release button are covered by a rubber cover, and the cover has a rubber strip connected to the body. It will no longer be lost as easily as the D200. There is an additional "LV" mode on the drive mode dial. This is not the LV brand bag! "LV" means Liveview mode. After selecting, press the shutter release button to activate this function. The actual original image is zoomed out, and the red frame is the screenshot area

Live view mode

D3 has two states in live view mode (needs to be set in the menu), one is One is "Handheld Mode", which uses TTL phase difference AF for autofocus, similar to the focusing principle of a general household DC; the other is "Tripod Mode", which uses contrast detection AF for autofocus, similar to the AF system of a general SLR ( That is the original focus system of the D3). In the past, most netizens were confused about the autofocus in the live view mode of Nikon D3 and D300. They thought that like the Canon 40D or Olympus E510, it was not necessary to restore the reflector position before autofocusing. In fact, D3 and D300 can autofocus without restoring the reflector. The principle used is the same as that of ordinary household DC. However, there is a disadvantage. In terms of pure focus speed, TTL phase difference AF is slower than contrast detection AF. As for how much slower it is, you can imagine it as the difference in focusing speed between high-end DC and SLR. Some people think that TTL phase difference AF is very slow, while others think it is acceptable. This is a matter of opinion. As for contrast detection AF, there is a process of up and down movement of the reflector. Although the focusing speed is relatively fast, the total focusing time is actually similar to that of TTL phase difference AF. In addition, the D3’s live view mode has relatively average picture smoothness. Dual memory cards are common, but dual CF memory cards are less common. Nikon's explanation for the dual CF card slots is that CF cards have many advantages over SD cards in terms of operational stability, data security, and actual performance. The use of dual CF cards is to improve the performance and stability of the storage system.

Double CF cards can be set to the following working modes: store pictures sequentially (similar to the RAID-0 mode of a hard disk, which increases storage speed), and store the same pictures at the same time (similar to the RAID-1 mode of a hard disk, Increase storage stability), store RAW+JPG separately, and copy each other between the two cards. The metering mode switching is still set on the side of the viewfinder, so there is no problem in using it. The diopter adjustment knob needs to be pulled out before adjustment.

The lens release button feels average, and the key travel is very short, almost only 1mm. It's not easy to press when changing lenses. The focus mode lever feels good. HDMI has been added to the interface, corresponding to high-definition output, and the output signal can also be set in the menu. The battery is 11.1V, 2500mAh lithium-ion battery. The specifications are the same as Canon's 1Ds III and 1D III. It seems that the appearance is also relatively similar. The 3-inch, 920,000-pixel LCD works very well, and the picture is very detailed (beyond words that can be described). The viewing angle of 170 degrees is also above the horizontal level. During use, you can hardly see the LCD color inversion.

Nikon’s charming red triangle logo

The angles of the front and rear dials and the shutter release button have been modified to suit finger operations. With its wide, bright and 100% viewing area, D3 will amaze users as soon as they put their eyes up. The viewfinder has a built-in shielding blade to prevent light outside the viewfinder from interfering with the metering system during long exposures or night scene shooting. The shutter release button has a two-stage key feel, and the 8-directional selector also has a two-stage key feel, which is strange. Reviewers think that the D3's 8-direction selector is a bit too flexible, and if you press it too much, your fingers will feel a little numb. However, the feel has also improved a lot compared to previous models. There is a confirmation button in the middle to facilitate menu operations.

Close-up of D3 handle

Compared with D2X/D2Xs, the handle of D3 is not as "sharp" as the former. It feels rounder and more comfortable to hold, and the texture of the skin is also better. Top-notch anti-slip performance. The more dazzling “FX” logo marks the arrival of a new era for Nikon. Close-up of the oversized reflective version (I was used to seeing DX format reflectors before, so I thought the D3 was very big). The place pointed by the red arrow is where to replace the focusing screen.

D3’s continuous shooting

Thanks to the D3’s 12-channel balanced output technology, the D3 can achieve 9 frames/second high-speed continuous shooting (continuous shooting) in FX format (full frame). The shooting speed is adjustable), and can reach an ultra-high speed of 11 frames/second in DX format. During actual shooting, at the speed of 9 frames per second, the D3's reflector moves very smoothly and the vibration is not large. The object being photographed during continuous shooting can also be clearly seen in the viewfinder. But at a speed of 11 frames per second, the mirror moves so fast that the subject seen in the viewfinder becomes less clear. The reviewer compared the 10 frames/second continuous shooting of the previously reviewed Canon 1D III and found that the impact of the mirror movement was not as great as when the D3 used 11 frames/second continuous shooting (9 frames/second was no problem). The biggest core value of D3 is the CMOS size of 36mmX23.9mm. The Nikon NIKKOR AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED was tried together. This D3 trial meeting was only equipped with this new lens. The others were all old lenses, but the lineup was exaggerated: Nikon NIKKOR AF-S VR Nikkor ED 200mm F2G (IF), Nikon Nikkor AF-S VR Nikkor ED 300mm F2.8G (IF). The front lens has a faint green coating, and the lens diameter is not large, it is 77mm. The rear lens is sealed and should have good dustproof performance. The rear lens is also coated and optimized for digital SLRs. Without internal zoom, the lens reaches its longest state at the 24mm end. The 50mm end is the shortest state. In addition, the lens hood is fixed on the lens barrel and will not move with the extended part when zooming. Therefore, after the lens hood is installed, it is difficult to observe the length change of the lens when zooming.

Menu

D3 has many functions, and there are naturally many options to choose from in the menu. There are 6 groups of 44 options in the personal menu settings alone, and there are nearly 20 options in the shooting menu. To be familiar with the menu settings of D3 cannot be completed in a day and a half. Set the storage method of dual CF cards; the dynamic D-Lighting function is more attractive. The built-in GPS and virtual level are very practical functions, among which the accuracy and response of the virtual level are relatively good. The lens AF fine-tuning function is similar to Canon's. It can register 20 lenses and adjust them individually, or you can select all lenses to be adjusted together. It can be seen from the firmware version that this is still an engineering prototype. Generally, the official firmware version is 1.00. The post-retouching function almost contains most of the basic functions of Nikon Capture NX, which is very practical.

When the in-camera high ISO noise reduction function is turned off, at ISO 1600, the picture noise is completely within the acceptable range, and even the dark parts of the picture have excellent performance. In terms of acceptability, ISO 6400 is usable, while ISO 12800 requires reducing the image size to reduce the impact of noise (general network communication is sufficient). At the highest ISO of 25600, a large number of bright spots suddenly appear, and the entire picture is disturbed to varying degrees, especially the dark parts.

After turning on the high ISO noise reduction function in the camera, you can see less noise in the picture starting from ISO 1600. The most obvious thing is that the bright spots like stars under ISO 25600 have disappeared, and the degree of noise in the picture has been reduced a lot. With the enhanced high ISO noise reduction function, ISO 25600 can also meet the needs of general network exchange photos.

From a practical point of view, the reviewer feels that ISO 1600 is the balance point between the best image quality and high ISO. It has good image quality and less noise, but the sensitivity is at a high level and is suitable for weak photos. Light shooting environment. ISO 3200 needs to be supplemented by in-camera noise reduction, so that large-area pictures can be output without much noise problems. The situation at ISO 6400 is similar to ISO 3200, but the noise reduction needs to be a little more intense. ISO 12800 and ISO 25600 are suitable for situations where images can be reduced for output, such as general online news, magazine illustrations (non-spread pages), newspaper images, etc. The image quality cannot be forced too much. Overall, the D3 is impressive in the ISO 1600-6400 range. Partial analysis of the picture

In the highlight area, the transition of the picture is smooth and there are sufficient details. There is no obvious or visible purple fringing in the high-contrast part. Of course, this is largely due to the excellent performance of Nikon NIKKOR AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED. The high-contrast parts also have smooth transitions. The reason why Nikon did not launch a full-frame digital SLR before was because the F-mount diameter was insufficient. It has even been suggested that Nikon will change the bayonet to match the full-frame digital SLR.

However, everyone should be clear that the F mount has been used since the 135 film era. There was no problem using the F mount on the "full-frame" SLRs back then, and there is definitely no problem using the F mount on the current full-frame digital SLRs.