Nikon D800 is here...

[Quantum Theory]

...and it's awesome! Didn't expect that sensor. Time to start saving.

http://press.nikonusa.com/post/2012...nal-resolution-barriers-for-maximum-fidelity/

 

[froot]

a groundbreaking new 36.3-megapixel (7360 x 4912 resolution) FX-format CMOS sensor

Can anyone say holy megapixel? Or maybe just A0
Quite impressive, I say.
My only gripe is that Sandisk is going to make even more money now

 

[Quantum Theory]

Here is the DP Review hands-on preview...

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/nikonD800/

 

[fvdbergh]

Here is the DP Review hands-on preview...

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/nikonD800/

Looks like about a 4.8 micron pixel size, i.e., similar to D7000. From my experience with the D7000, you will need some pretty good lenses to make good use of such small pixels --- and now you have to achieve good resolution in a FF corner too ....

Still, it looks like an amazing camera body. But the estimated raw file sizes (~75 MB) are a bit daunting.

 

[froot]

Still, it looks like an amazing camera body. But the estimated raw file sizes (~75 MB) are a bit daunting.

You see the fps it has? It does like 4fps..... probably related to the filesize and the amount of pixels it has to process?

 

[bwana]

I thought the megapixel war had ended? It's going to be interesting to see how current lenses perform on the new body. Canon has just released a few updated lenses so perhaps this is heralding a new 5D in the near future.

 

[fvdbergh]

You see the fps it has? It does like 4fps..... probably related to the filesize and the amount of pixels it has to process?

Yes. I also saw that it will go up to 6 FPS in 1.5 crop (~15.x MP), meaning that it is essentially as fast as the D7000. The interesting thing is that it uses the same battery as the D7000.

This is a bit outside of my expertise, but I wonder if they are power limited? In other words, for the given battery, they cannot get enough processing power / bandwidth to process 36 MP at more than 4 FPS ?

 

[froot]

I thought the megapixel war had ended? It's going to be interesting to see how current lenses perform on the new body. Canon has just released a few updated lenses so perhaps this is heralding a new 5D in the near future.

I also thought the mp war had ended.... it's been quiet for some time, and now Nikon pops up with a whopping 10-15MP increase...
Question is, how big do you have to go to use all those pixels?

Yes. I also saw that it will go up to 6 FPS in 1.5 crop (~15.x MP), meaning that it is essentially as fast as the D7000. The interesting thing is that it uses the same battery as the D7000.

This is a bit outside of my expertise, but I wonder if they are power limited? In other words, for the given battery, they cannot get enough processing power / bandwidth to process 36 MP at more than 4 FPS ?

Well the whole fps thing comes down to two main factors.... processing speed and buffer->memory card write speed.

 

[Quantum Theory]

I agree that you would have to get some good glass to get the best out of that sensor. You would also need to have a powerfull PC, if you are thinking of doing any serious editing, stitching etc. I don't see an issue with the slow frame rate. This camera is not for sport and wildlife guys... That's what the D4 is for.

 

[bwana]

I also thought the mp war had ended.... it's been quiet for some time, and now Nikon pops up with a whopping 10-15MP increase...
Question is, how big do you have to go to use all those pixels?

Wouldn't know - the vast majority of my stuff is destined for websites and newspaper back pages - neither of which require a vast amount of MP. I've printed plenty of A0 canvas prints from my 10mp camera but canvas is also very forgiving.

This is interesting.

D800E - Maximum Resolution Unleashed
In addition to the D800, Nikon will also be releasing a supplementary model for those professionals who demand even higher resolution and D-SLR versatility; the D800E. This model treads in medium format territory for studio work or landscape photography when there is no exception to only the highest fidelity and sharpness. This unique alternative model will effectively enhance the resolution characteristics of the 36.3-megapixel CMOS sensor by cancelling the anti-aliasing properties of the OLPF inside the camera. By doing this, light is delivered directly to the photodiodes, yielding an image resulting from the raw light gathering properties of the camera. A color moiré correction tool will also be available within Capture NX2 to enhance the D800E photographer’s workflow.

Does this mean you can do IR photography without modifying the camera?

 

[fvdbergh]

Well the whole fps thing comes down to two main factors.... processing speed and buffer->memory card write speed.

But 4 FPS at ~75 MB per image ~ 300 MB/s, which means that memory card speed does not feature directly here (only indirectly by affecting buffer clearing speed, and thus sustained burst rate when the buffer fills up). So my question about being "power limited" pertains to whether the ASIC (Expeed 3) is already running at maximum power (available from battery, minus other peripherals), i.e., they will need a better process such as Intel's 22 nm FinFETs to build a more efficient ASIC to squeeze more FPS out of a given battery. Or beef up the battery ?

 

[fvdbergh]

This is interesting.Does this mean you can do IR photography without modifying the camera?

No, I do not think so. If they removed the IR filter (not just the LP filter), then it would ruin all your normal photos.

I am actually curious about how Bayer filter demosaicing would work if you remove the LP filter --- this would imply that you cannot interpolate between the neighbouring photosites, because they are not correlated. I always thought that the LP filter is a requirement for "correct" Bayer filter demosaicing to be possible ... (see http://www.libraw.org/articles/bayer-moire.html for more details)

 

[floydthebarber71]

Crazy. Didn't expect a 36mp D700 replacement :/

I knew there'd be fps comments here, seriously?

http://www.bythom.com/d800intro.htm

 

[d7e7r7]

4 fps is really slow...
Was hoping it would be more than that...

 

[Quantum Theory]

4 fps is really slow...
Was hoping it would be more than that...

Really? Why?

 

[d7e7r7]

Really? Why?

Was hoping it would replace the D700 for photojournalism for those who won't be able to afford the D4.

It's essentially slower than the ancient D200's 5fps...

 

[bwana]

Was hoping it would replace the D700 for photojournalism for those who won't be able to afford the D4.

It's essentially slower than the ancient D200's 5fps...

Why would most photojournalists need anything more sophisticated than the D7000? Apart from sports the needs of your typical photojournalist aren't particularly exacting, are they?

 

[B.K]

4 fps is really slow...
Was hoping it would be more than that...

How about 6 fps?

New stuff: The D800 gets the D5100's two-frame JPEG HDR capability. The Protect button gets overloaded some more: if nothing is displayed on the color LCD it becomes a Picture Control button. Auto ISO now can be set to "automatic inverse of the focal length." IPTC data fields can be entered in camera. The mirror delay is programmable, out to 3 seconds. In Live View, the mirror stays up in Tripod Mode. (As much as all this is good, it barely makes a dent in my User Suggestions list.) The new vertical grip is the MB-D12, and it can take either EN-EL15 (D7000, V1, D800) or EN-EL18 (D4) batteries. You need AA or D4 batteries in the grip to get 6 fps.

Source: http://www.bythom.com/d800intro.htm

 

[fvdbergh]

How about 6 fps?
Source: http://www.bythom.com/d800intro.htm

Yep. I thought about that one too, i.e., shooting in crop mode the D800 essentially becomes a D7000 with the advantage of having the D4 AF sensor. In crop mode you also get the advantage of extra reach on the telephoto end.

But the D800 costs almost 3x as much as the D7000, so it is an expensive compromise ...

 

[Quantum Theory]

Promotional video, shot with D800...

[video=vimeo;36305675]http://vimeo.com/36305675[/video]