dSLR Dad

Popular Photography Magazine has published their review of the Nikon D700 12.1MP dSLR Camera .  Oddly enough, they really liked it:

Does the D700 obviate the more expensive D3? Not for high-end pros: Hardcore types who find themselves shooting in the Arctic one month and the desert the next will prefer the D3’s extraordinarily tight level of weathersealing. For paparazzi, who shoot lots of vertical images and so prefer a built-in vertical grip to a bolt-on battery grip, the D3’s better. And pro sports shooters blasting off frame after frame need the faster native burst and extra CF card slot of the D3.

Meanwhile, the rest of us will be more than happy with the D700 fulfilling our full-frame fantasies.

Of course, if all your Lenses carry the DX moniker of Nikon’s APS-sized format, you should stick with the D300. After all, it basically mirrors the image quality and performance of the D700, and your DX Lenses will yield only 5.1MP images on the Nikon D700. In other words, those digital-only lenses will fit this full-frame camera, but at a cost of massive cropping — a sacrifice that hardly seems worth making on a regular basis.

But if you have some full-frame lenses or want to move toward Nikon’s FX glass, the D700 is money well spent.

You can read the entire review of the Nikon D700 over at PopPhoto.com.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Digital Photography Review has published their epic odyssey on the full-frame, 24.6-Megapixel, Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 Camera:

The success of the Alpha 900 amongst the Minolta, Konica Minolta and Sony faithful seems assured; at a launch price of just shy of $3000 it offers a lot of ‘bang for your buck’ and there is undoubtedly a significant number of Minolta film SLR users who’ve been waiting years for a full frame digital body on which to use their existing lenses. The challenge for Sony, however, is to generate some interest from people without an existing investment in the Minolta (or subsequent Alpha) system. And on paper the Alpha 900 looks promising - and we’re already impressed with the build, handling and viewfinder, so let’s find out how well the latest addition to the small but growing ‘full frame club’ performs.

You can read all 37 web pages over at dPreview.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Digital Photography Review has published their odyssey on the Nikon D90 dSLR Camera:

Almost exactly two years after the D80 was announced comes its replacement, the rather predictably named D90. The D80 has been one of Nikon’s quiet successes, and even today, despite being positively Methuselah-like in digital camera terms it continues to sell and often makes its way into our top 10 most clicked on cameras. Because it looks so similar to the D80 the D90 appears at first glance to be one of those rather subdued incremental upgrades, but dig a little deeper and you’ll find there’s plenty to keep Nikon fans happy.

You can read all 37 web pages over at dPreview.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Michael Reichmann, creator of The Luminous Landscape, has published his preview of a pre-production Canon EOS 5D Mark II and it’s 1080p video prowess:

Lurking inside the Live View mode is video capability. Oh your say. That’s interesting. Nikon announced their D90 just last week. Must be a trend.

Well, yes. It’s a trend alright. In fact I’ve been forecasting the convergence of stills and video for quite some time now, as anyone who reads this site regularly knows.

So – let’s see – how does it work and what are the specs?

You can read the entire article here.  You can also find out more about the Canon EOS 5D Mark II in the dSLR Dad Resource Guide.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Digital Photography Review has published their typical in-depth review of the Nikon D700 dSLR Camera:

When we reviewed Nikon’s first full-frame DSLR, the D3, in April this year we said it was ‘possibly the most compelling, capable and well-rounded professional digital SLR ever made.’ Only three months later Nikon announced another full-frame camera with the D700. The new model’s ‘compact’ dimensions and much more affordable price tag make it a more appealing proposition than the D3 to many professional photographers and serious amateurs alike but can it keep up the high standards that have been set by its bigger brother?

You can read all 33 web pages over at dPreview.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Michael Reichmann, creator of The Luminous Landscape, has published his review of the Nikon D90’s video capabilities.

This is clearly a first generation product. Nikon saw an opportunity to add video capability to the DSLR and did so in a simple manner with little intention of creating a new type of hybrid camera. The D90 is a stills camera (and a very good one) at a very reasonable price, that happens to also shoot moderate quality video.

There’s little doubt that stills / video convergence is on the way. The Nikon D90 though is simply a harbinger, and shouldn’t be seen as much more than that. As discussed above, while it is no replacement for a camcorder (even a consumer grade one), in the hands of Indy film makers it will likely turn out to be a productive tool, filling in when shallow DOF or special lens use is required.

You can read his entire review here.  You can also find out more about the Nikon D90 in the dSLR Dad Resource Guide.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Now in 1080p High Definition

It has been quite an interesting three years since Canon first released the original EOS 5D. At the time, it was the first full-frame, compact digital SLR that sold at a somewhat affordable price of $3,299 at launch.  It proved popular with dSLR Dads who required really big pixels for their landscape and portrait work.  Remarkably enough, it is only recently that Canon has faced competition in the space it created with the introduction of Nikon’s D700 and Sony’s Alpha A900.  And while those are some mighty fine cameras, Canon has once again decided to set itself apart from the crowd.  With the introduction of the 21.1 Megapixel full-frame EOS 5D Mark II, Canon is also the first to introduce 1080p high-definition video recording in a digital SLR Camera.

(more…)

Popularity: 17% [?]

Popular Photography Magazine has published their review of the Nikon D90 dSLR Camera:

Borrowing its 12.3MP APS-C sized CMOS sensor from the higherend D300, the D90 is the fourth successive 12MP Nikon DSLR. Clearly, the company has eased off the megapixel race, instead focusing on other areas of image quality, such as low noise at high ISOs and convenient features. And the results are impressive. In our lab tests, the D90 scored Excellent in overall image quality right up through ISO 3200….

You can read the entire review at PopPhoto.com.

For all of the latest news and reviews, check out the dSLR Dad’s Nikon D90 Resource Guide

Popularity: 7% [?]

Popular Photography Magazine has a comparison review for you dSLR Dads of five, sub-$900 dSLR Cameras.

Five affordable DSLRs vie for honors in the “step-up” class. If you’re a serious shooter looking to move on up to a better DSLR — with more resolution, faster firing, advanced features like in-camera image fixes and live view — but have been scared off by the $1,000 price barrier, fear no more. An entire class of DSLRs has appeared at this intermediate level, none of them more than $900, street — with a kit lens. And every one of these five comes with image stabilization right out of the box, through either a shifting image sensor or moving elements in the included lens.

Their judgment criteria included image quality, ease of use, camera controls, and system flexibility.  For those of you who want to skip ahead, here are the results:

1. 1. Canon Digital Rebel XSi 23 points
   2. Nikon D60 17 points
   3. Pentax K200D (tie) 15 points
   4. Sony Alpha A350 (tie) 15 points
   5. Olympus Evolt E520 dSLR w/ 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 Zuiko Lens 10 points

You can read the entire article over at PopPhoto.com.

Popularity: 5% [?]

VS.

Popular photography has released the review that every dSLR Dad has wanted to see since last September. American Photo contributor Jonathan Barkey has compared the new Nikon D300 dSLR (available at Amazon and B & H Photo) against the Canon EOS 40D (Amazon, B & H Photo). And even though they named the Nikon D300 dSLR Camera of the Year 2007, head-to-head competition usually produces different results. Just ask the Patriots.

While mid-priced DSLRs from competing manufacturers may excel in different ways, these semi-pro models from Canon and Nikon give you a winning combination of speed, image quality, extensive lens/accessory systems, and an upgrade path to their top-drawer professional brethren.

Of course, pitting the two against each other isn’t entirely fair, since the technology-showcase D300 ($1800), a junior version of Nikon’s tour-de-force flagship D3, costs 50 percent more than the EOS 40D ($1200), which has evolved from humbler “prosumer” models. Still, we found them to be more evenly matched than we expected, based on our evaluations in the key areas detailed below.

You can read the full review here.

Popularity: 26% [?]

Lawrence Ripsher has posted a review of the Canon EOS 1D Mark III (Amazon, B&H Photo) on his Photo Journal Blog.

I’ve been the owner of a 1D Mk3 since early December 2007 and this review comes about a month in after many thousands of actuations. For those of you who are not familiar with my background, I have shot Canon for some time now (having transitioned over from Nikon) and shoot a variety of subjects including sports, portraiture, street and what I call narrative photography. For examples of my work, you can click on the galleries to the left (or simply follow this review).

The Canon EOS 1D Mark III has had quite a ride. Released as part of Canon’s 20 year EOS anniversary strategy it was both highly anticipated and widely applauded when it was announced. From the outset it has arguably generated more noise (of the vocal kind) than any other camera in the market today, with the possibly exception of the Nikon D3. Leading the emotionally charged opinions on the camera have been photographers from all walks - some highly respected professionals, some skilled amateurs, some hopeful hobbyists and typically, an even greater number of users who have never touched this particular camera. The 1D has been heralded as everything – from the greatest sports and photojournalism camera in the world today, to a huge disappoint and failure. Even in the already emotional and divided world of camera equipment forums, the Canon 1D Mark III has shown an extreme example of split opinion. (more…)

Popularity: 13% [?]

Tags: 1D Mark III, AF Servo, auto focus, camera body, camera review, Canon 1D, canon camera, canon dSLR, canon review, comparison, EOS, L lens, review, SLR