Once upon a time in a galaxy far far away…..
Tuesday, 28 April 2009
Tuesday, 14 April 2009
D5000 video
Yeah right use it on the beach, great idea
Clearly Nikon want you to buy a lot of cameras...
Also not so sure this is the right camera for kids and preteen, it's fairly complicated and relatively pricey.
Clearly Nikon want you to buy a lot of cameras...
Also not so sure this is the right camera for kids and preteen, it's fairly complicated and relatively pricey.
Nikon D5000
IT'S OUT !!!! (But D400 not...)
The dark lord ... with a microphone (image Nikon)
D5000 is the update of the D60 entry model DSLR - so it's compact, DX APS-C format and has no auto focus motor, needs lenses with built-in AFS motor basically all DX format lenses in Nikon range are (except 10mm fisheye). Does have vibrating sensor cleaning system plus airflow. Uses SD card. No dedicated grip foreseen by Nikon (possibly a market brand will be available as it is the case for D40/60, although not sure existing one can be used).
It borrows from D90/300 higher range models: CMOS 12 Mpixels image sensor and image processor, so we can expect very good image quality and above average low ISO performance, which I hope will be confirmed in future tests. AF sensor is the 11 point module with focus tracking capacity found in D90, which is clearly an upgrade from D60's 3 sensors AF module.
What's really new: movable screen although lower resolution than D90/D300, Live View but slow AF performance in this mode, movie recording capacity, upgraded battery, new body but with traditional Nikon layout.
Movie mode: 16/9, 720p, 24fps with HDMI output - so no full HD. No autofocus during recording but stablisation functions with VR lenses. Max recoding in high quality 720p format 5 min.
What I consider weak points are rather related to the structure of the camera, where economical imperatives clash with what you would expect in a Nikon camera that is many dedicated buttons, big bright finder to facilitate composition and a sturdy frame. In fact the viewfinder on the D5000 is even smaller than on the D60, there is no rotating selection wheel in front of shutter button, no depth of field preview button, etc. The camera is clearly not weather sealed contrary to what Nikon promotional video seems to imply (see other posting)
Raw capacity: Image processor is 12bit only and Raw mode is compressed - those using Raw intensively will probably turn to more capable upper end cameras.
The positive aspects is that basically you get a D90 image quality (possibly slightly improved by 6 further months of devlopment) plus movable LCD screen (which is always cool) in a compact package.
For manual lenses shooters, the camera while probably unable to meter as there is no metering coupling. This means however that any Nikon lens (with very few exceptions) produced in the past 50 years can be mounted on this camera. And while no auto focus will (ever) be available with manual lenses (obviously...), you can always use the focus confirmation function in the finder.
In addition, all lenses can be used with live view and movable LCD which is interesting in Macro photography. The camera has an automatic function for the correction of lateral chromatic aberration (which is a common problem with older lenses used for digital) and additional cool in camera retouching options like perspective control, D-lighting, etc.
Also, I would be courious to try some older lenses for movies (AF doesn't work with movie mode anyway).
As an interesting note, the D5000 has a dedicated socket to be used with additional GPS module, which will make geotagging simple.
Price is around 700-800 $/Eur body only and 800-900 $/Eur with 18-55 VR kit lens.
The D5000 at first look does not sound like terribly competitive. Frankly at that price I would either spend a little more, forego the movable LCD screen and buy the D90 or use a Canon 500D (possibly with a F/EOS adapter ring) .
But if you want an uptodate Nikon camera in a more compact package, the D5000 is certainly a competent camera.
The dark lord ... with a microphone (image Nikon)D5000 is the update of the D60 entry model DSLR - so it's compact, DX APS-C format and has no auto focus motor, needs lenses with built-in AFS motor basically all DX format lenses in Nikon range are (except 10mm fisheye). Does have vibrating sensor cleaning system plus airflow. Uses SD card. No dedicated grip foreseen by Nikon (possibly a market brand will be available as it is the case for D40/60, although not sure existing one can be used).
It borrows from D90/300 higher range models: CMOS 12 Mpixels image sensor and image processor, so we can expect very good image quality and above average low ISO performance, which I hope will be confirmed in future tests. AF sensor is the 11 point module with focus tracking capacity found in D90, which is clearly an upgrade from D60's 3 sensors AF module.
What's really new: movable screen although lower resolution than D90/D300, Live View but slow AF performance in this mode, movie recording capacity, upgraded battery, new body but with traditional Nikon layout.
Movie mode: 16/9, 720p, 24fps with HDMI output - so no full HD. No autofocus during recording but stablisation functions with VR lenses. Max recoding in high quality 720p format 5 min.
What I consider weak points are rather related to the structure of the camera, where economical imperatives clash with what you would expect in a Nikon camera that is many dedicated buttons, big bright finder to facilitate composition and a sturdy frame. In fact the viewfinder on the D5000 is even smaller than on the D60, there is no rotating selection wheel in front of shutter button, no depth of field preview button, etc. The camera is clearly not weather sealed contrary to what Nikon promotional video seems to imply (see other posting)
Raw capacity: Image processor is 12bit only and Raw mode is compressed - those using Raw intensively will probably turn to more capable upper end cameras.
The positive aspects is that basically you get a D90 image quality (possibly slightly improved by 6 further months of devlopment) plus movable LCD screen (which is always cool) in a compact package.
For manual lenses shooters, the camera while probably unable to meter as there is no metering coupling. This means however that any Nikon lens (with very few exceptions) produced in the past 50 years can be mounted on this camera. And while no auto focus will (ever) be available with manual lenses (obviously...), you can always use the focus confirmation function in the finder.
In addition, all lenses can be used with live view and movable LCD which is interesting in Macro photography. The camera has an automatic function for the correction of lateral chromatic aberration (which is a common problem with older lenses used for digital) and additional cool in camera retouching options like perspective control, D-lighting, etc.
Also, I would be courious to try some older lenses for movies (AF doesn't work with movie mode anyway).
As an interesting note, the D5000 has a dedicated socket to be used with additional GPS module, which will make geotagging simple.
Price is around 700-800 $/Eur body only and 800-900 $/Eur with 18-55 VR kit lens.
The D5000 at first look does not sound like terribly competitive. Frankly at that price I would either spend a little more, forego the movable LCD screen and buy the D90 or use a Canon 500D (possibly with a F/EOS adapter ring) .
But if you want an uptodate Nikon camera in a more compact package, the D5000 is certainly a competent camera.
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