Nikkor 85mm f/3.5g Micro

• £499.99 / USD ?
• 52mm thread

Not a heck of a lot to mention here- it’s a DX lens, unfortunately, and it’s smallish aperture should be fine in the studio and help keep price down.

It’s not a huge surprise that they’re still cranking out cheaper DX lenses- this would imply that they don’t see going full-frame with the lower-end cameras any time soon, and the consumers, even pro-sumers aren’t likely to notice the difference. There are still a good number of people who should know better who still think that the 1.5x crop factor means their 18-200mm zoom is now really a 27-300mm zoom!

Nikon D3s Annnounced

This camera was expected to land tomorrow, but it’s dropped a day early!

Here are the specs that stand out:

• Features a redesigned 12.1 megapixel sensor that has standard ISO’s from 200 to ISO 12800 and CAN get to 102,400 (not a typo) in Hi-3 mode.
• Seven stop ISO range of 200 – 12,800
• Movies: 720p/ 24fps in motion JPEG with stereo sound using an input jack!
• Crops modes: 5:4 (30×24); 1.2x (30×20); and DX (24×16).
• New Quiet shutter release mode
• Extra Active-D lighting modes: Extra High, High, Normal and Low
• Buffer is twice the size of the D3
• Focus appears unchanged
• Same battery
• Same LCD

Here’s a very brief hands-on. Here are some sample movies- complete with low-light examples!

We’ve also got an external mic jack:

There’s also a new lens- more to come.

Capture NX 2.2.2 Update

No doubt, just to give me a reason to post an update, Nikon has released an update to Capture NX.

Basically, the update adds D300s and D3000 support and fixes a crash.

From the press release:

USA Here

Euro-Land Here

Nikon D5000 Recall #2

Unfortunately, there appears to be yet another snag with the D5000’s. The Euro’s appear to have gotten a batch that need an extra special repair and some of you that sent them in got it in before the enhanced procedure started to be performed.

Apparently, it’s the same issue as before though- your D5000 may not power up.

Nikon S1000pj - Projector Camera

Nikon’s finally decided to inject some zazz into their point and shoot category. Instead of getting  another lame CoolPix from their intern’s product comparison write-up,  out of the back of the freezer, they’ve gone and done something interesting by inserting a projector into the front of the CoolPix.

This camera could be a lot of fun- something I’ve thought about periodically is getting a computer hooked up to a projector so that I could get precisely the color of light I wanted instead of using gels. I wonder if I could create “pictures” of color in PS and then put them onto this camera, then project them to get rid of gels. It’s likely not going to be a strong enough light, but might do.

Basic specs: 12.1mp, SD card, ~$650 $430 or so supposedly, available next month.

More info and a quicky demo here.

Some of the rumors were true. Here’s a round-up of the announcements:

Overviews: Endaget, dpReview, etc.

Bodies

Nikon D3000

Official Nikon D3000 site

dpReview D3000 specs

dpReview D3000 quicky hands-on

Nikon D300

Official Nikon D300 site

dpReview D300s specs

dpReview D300s quicky hands-on

Lenses

New Nikkor 18-200mm

Official Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G VR II site

dpReview 18-200mm specs

New Nikkor 70-200mm with VR II

Official Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II site

dpReview 70-200mm specs

“Honey, I’m hungry, have we got any crow around?” In truth, I’m partly wrong, partly right. So let’s call it:
D3000: I Predicted: Not soon, if ever. Reality: Announced today, due November.

D300s: I Predicted: “Questionable”, not 1080p HD. Reality: Announced today, due November– 720p.

New Nikkor 70-200mm: Prediction- not this year. Reality: Announced today!

New 18-200mm: Prediction- “no reason not to update it”. Reality: it’s here. Admittedly, my prediction is squishy, so I’ll only claim partial credit.

D700x: Prediction – not likely. Reality- still not announced. Since every other item announced is due in November (as I predicted, for Christmas), I’m doubting it’s forthcoming this year, if ever.

Nikkor 24-135: Prediction – “Who knows, who cares.” Reality- still not announced.

Nikkor 35mm f/1.4 AF-S: Prediction – if this year, ready for Christmas. Reality- still not announced.
Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S: Prediction – Possibly, but doubtful this year. Reality- still not announced.

[Update]

The serial number checker is available here. There does not appear to be a specific range, or at least they’re not telling us, and since no link is apparently, I presume that if it says your body is affected, it’ll give you a link to further info an provide you with the 2 day shipping label, etc.

If you’d like to talk to them about this issue: (USA) 800-645-6678, 8am to 2am (Eastern), 7-days-a-week.

A FAQ is here.

[/Update]

You hit all the right buttons on her body, you perform all the right moves, you charge her up, you even tell her the things she wants to hear, “Yeah baby, I’m gonna buy you that 200mm f/2 VR you’ve wanted for so long! I’m gonna get you so hot, your SB-900 will melt!”

But, nothing seems to consistently work. Then you realize, it’s not you, it’s not your moves, it’s her- she’s got some flaw.

Nikon has put up a service advisory on the D5000 explaining that sometimes it won’t turn on even when the battery is fully charged and it won’t turn on sometimes even when the AC adapter is plugged in.

This is not good. So here’s what you need to know:

• On July 23rd, they will have a serial # checker to let you know if your body is affected.
• The fix requires you to send in your body, they’ll start accepting bodies on July 23rd- the website (?) will have a label generator for you to use.
• Shipping both ways will be paid for by Nikon and will be 2-day shipping to minimize inconvenience

Check here for updates.

Kudos to Nikon for taking responsibility and working to make it easy on you to get fixed.

What’s interesting is that this must be a hardware issue since they’re requiring you to send it in, normally, you’d expect software. Also interesting that it’s only some serial numbers- this implies a design change (or manufacturing snafu?) which makes you wonder if they swapped a part or supplier in the middle of the run.

Nikon Spins-Off Firmware Development

Strange… Worrying… Do you know what your precious D3x without good firmware? Yeah- it’s expensive, Italian-designer industrial art.

That’s why I’m a little concerned that Nikon is making a joint venture with Fujitsu to engineer future firmware. It really makes you wonder what’s going on.

The only scenario I can think of that makes sense is:

Software development for devices like this is always a loss-center: you sell the camera, but then you have to upgrade the firmware and you don’t get any more money for it. So if you spin off that cost to a different company, then you’re basically getting the liabilities off your books and the MBA’s are probably telling them that it’ll help the horrible revenue/profit numbers that have been coming in. In addition- you can now hire yourself out, openly, as happy to make firmware for whomever wants it and try to generate some revenue from it.

There may be other reasons, but this scenario or similar ones are the only thing that fits.

The only easily accessible link to the press release is at dpReview.

Nikon says "Sayonora" to 1000 workers

Nikon Corp is not doing too well right now- in addition to cameras, they make really expensive precision steppers that make your computer chips. Well no one has any money, no one’s buying computer equipment, no one’s upgrading their steppers.

Nikon Will Cut 1000 Workers to Save $84 Million Annually

Nikon (OTC:NINOY) said Tuesday that it will terminate 800 non-regular employees from its domestic manufacturing unit by March 2010 and another 200 from marketing and servicing departments in Japan as well as overseas. It said the cuts will likely save the company 8 billion yen, or $84 million dollars annually. Nikon is expecting an FY 2010 net loss of 17 billion yen, or $179 million. In a statement, the company said, “Nikon has decided to implement drastic measures for fixed cost reduction in every business step of production, marketing and servicing.”

Here’s a sampling of the latest headlines:

Nikon Corporation To Reorganize Japan Precision Equipment …

Nikon Corporation Expects Extraordinary Loss

Nikon Profit Falls 63%

Nikon Corporation to Apply for Delisting from OSE, SSE and FSE

I was worried about that last one- you either delist because it’s too expensive to continue paying the fees and associated costs, or because you’re not going to be able to maintain the listing requirements (stock price, volume, etc) until I saw this:

Nikon separately said it will delist its shares from the Osaka, Sapporo and Fukuoka stock exchanges due to low trading volume on these bourses.

Oh- and we’ve got yet another advertising firm. I believe this makes 2 new advertising agencies in the last year or so. And they’re still coming up with idiot ideas like:

LIVE FROM THE RED CARPET…NIKON, THE OFFICIAL CAMERA SPONSOR OF 2009 MTV MOVIE AWARDS

Nikon, the Official Camera Sponsor of the 2009 MTV Movie Awards, will reveal all the fun, stylish moments of this year’s award show from the red carpet. This includes a 30-minute televised special, “MTV Movie Awards Confidential presented by Nikon,”…

The kids are coming to want something more stylish and interesting than the blah CoolPix’s…

Carrying case recall for Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 200-400mm f/4G IF-ED (CL-L2)

Word from Nikon’s USA Product Manager David Dentry is:

Just a heads up, we’re announcing a Service Advisory on the CL-L2 case which
ships with the 200-400 lens and is available separately for other lenses.

The bottom part of the case may crack and possibly fall out… See:

http://www.nikonusa.com/cl-l2sa

Check with your local Nikon office for information on getting a replacement bag.

Apparently, a fault in the bag may cause it to come apart at the bottom and you’d really hate to see your 200-400mm f/4g to drop onto the floor!

While this case comes with the 200-400mm, it was also available separately, so if you bought one, you’d better replace it.

How do you know if your case is ok? Does it look like this? Notice the “T” on the bottom of boths variants? If it says “T”, then you’re ok, according to the official release.

You may apply for a replace here. They’ll ship you a container to send in your old one and pay the FedEx in both directions. You can also call them if you’d like to discuss the issue: 800-645-6687.

Nice to see Nikon taking quick responsibility and handling the return in an honorable fashion.

Nikon Releases Camera Control Pro 2 V2.5 Update

Nikon has released an update to Camera Control Pro 2 here (Windows), Mac here.

Changes:

Support for the D5000 has been added.

Mac OS X version 10.3.9 is no longer supported. DO NOT update to this version if you are currently running Mac OS X 10.3.9.

When a camera control settings file was loaded with the Image area: Auto DX Crop box in the Storage tab checked while shooting with a D3, D3X, or D700 camera and a DX lens, a warning message was displayed and the image area and image size could not be specified.  This issue has been resolved.

In some rare instances, Camera Control Pro 2 displayed an error and quit unexpectedly when any of RAW and/or JPEG images recorded at an image quality of NEF(RAW)+JPEG was moved from the destination folder specified in the Download Options dialog to the Trash from the Finder.  This issue has been resolved.

The D5000 is official:

Nikon D5000 Officially Announced / Shown

From the release:

NIKON’S D5000 DIGITAL SLR CAMERA EXPANDS POSSIBILITIES FOR PHOTO AND HD VIDEO CREATIVITY WITH D-MOVIE MODE, VARI-ANGLE LCD MONITOR AND 19 AUTOMATIC SCENE MODES

…Easy one-button Live View activation now features Subject Tracking autofocus (AF), which automatically locks onto a moving subject…

…Subject Tracking AF maintains focus, making the D5000 ideal for capturing fast moving children and pets. In addition to Subject Tracking AF in Live View, the D5000 features Face Priority AF, which automatically detects up to five faces in a scene and focuses on the closest subject; Wide Area AF, which offers a large AF area for optimal hand-held shooting; and Normal Area AF, which provides pinpoint accuracy when shooting with a tripod…

…The D5000’s D-Movie Mode allows users the exciting ability to record HD movie clips (1280 x 720) at a cinematic 24 frames per second with sound …

…With the broad range of automatic Scene Modes, including Sports, Portrait, Candlelight, Silhouette, Autumn Colors and more, D5000 is the perfect camera for anyone looking to make inspiring images in challenging photographic conditions…

…Price and Availability
The D5000 outfit, which includes the AF-S NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens, will be available at Nikon Authorized dealers beginning in late April 2009 at an estimated selling price of $849.95.** For consumers who want to configure their D5000 system or for photographers who need an additional D-SLR body for an existing system, the D5000 will also be offered as a body only for an estimated selling price of $729.95.…

So basically another consumer-grade SLR with movie mode, NOT full-frame- the notable features seem to be the articulated (not fixed) LCD and some updates to the autofocus tracking to make it easier to use in movie mode!

Still confused about the model number though- maybe we’ll be seeing single digits for Pro bodies, triple digits for advanced amateur to pro range, and double and quadruple digits for consumers?

New Nikon Nikkor 10-24mm DX Lens!

From the release:

…the new AF-S DX-NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED lens, giving photographers the opportunity to capture a unique perspective in a variety of shooting environments. Compact and lightweight, the new 2.4x zoom DX-NIKKOR lens offers a focal length of 10 to 24mm,(FX-format equivalent of 15-36mm) creating a picture angle ranging from 109-degrees to 61-degrees making it ideal for a variety of applications including restrictive interiors, architecture and sweeping landscapes…

…The AF-S DX-NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED will be available at Nikon authorized dealers beginning May 2009 at an estimated selling price of $899.95…

New Capture NX v2.2

After a long, dry (several days at least!) spell of little news is finally broken but (wait for it)- UPDATED CaptureNX! We’re now at V2.2.

Windows Mac

What’s changed?

Enhanced processing capabilities with more advanced functions

Tokyo — Nikon Corporation is pleased to announce that from the beginning of April 2009, they will offer a free download of image-editing software Capture NX 2, Ver. 2.2 to current users of Versions 2.0 and 2.1.1. In addition to providing the features of earlier versions, which allow quick-and-easy on-image photo editing to optimize photographer workflow, this latest version includes more powerful and refined tools to greatly improve image-processing efficiency.

Newly added functions include:

• improved speed in batch processing
• Intel-approved logo permitted for Core 2 Duo/Core 2 Quad support
• NRW (COOLPIX P6000’s RAW data) support
• Vignette control function utilizing lens information
• Axial color aberration correction.

1. Improved operational efficiency with higher speeds for batch processing

With batch processing, pre-set editing information can be applied to all of the image data in a selected folder. By revising the memory control system, processing is accelerated.* Operational efficiency is greatly improved, even with large quantities of image data.

* By about 10 – 20% with Windows Vista, 50% with MacOS; varies according to operating environment and conditions.

2. Intel-approved logo permitted for Core 2 Duo/Core 2 Quad support

This software has been optimized for use with industry-leading Intel processors. As a software application based on Intel architecture, Capture NX 2 has received permission to use the Intel-approved logo.

3. NRW support

NRW, a form of RAW data taken with the COOLPIX P6000, is newly supported.

Note: NRW can be saved in NRW, JPEG or TIFF (not in NEF). Saving data in NRW is not possible from NEF/TIFF/JPEG, but only from NRW data. Also, with NRW data, functions peculiar to digital SLR cameras, such as Image Dust Off, are not supported.

4. Enhanced Distortion Control Functions

Superior-quality distortion-free images are ensured by reducing pincushion and barrel distortions. With the new version of Capture NX 2, more effective automatic control is made possible based on information of compatible lenses.

5. Axial Color Aberration Correction

This newly added function automatically detects axial color aberration and corrects it to provide pictures of higher quality. This can be applied to any image because shooting data that depends on lens information is not used in the process.

Ok- I’ll take any upgrade that makes Capture better or easier. It’s strange to me that they list the Intel logo as the number 2 bullet in all of these mentions (this announcement and others) but provide zero information on what practical application this has. NX appears to have been multi-core (on Windows anyway) aware since V2 (if I remember correctly).

What would -really- help is if they made a 64 bit version- I’m really tired of the 20 open pictures limit.

A while ago, I got tired of this limit and started to think- the NEF format is a modified TIFF, and Capture seems to use the uncompressed TIFF directly (it doesn’t operate natively on the NEF in memory). So its temporary in-memory version of your NEF is ~80 megs (as far as I’m able to discern), so 20*80 = ~1600 megabytes, throw in overhead and the memory required by NX’ code, you realize that it quickly would bump against the 2gig limit of address space for a 32bit process in Windows (I know there are exceptions, let’s not get pedantic).

So, make it into a 64bit process and soon, I can use all 12gigs on my machine and everyone’s happier. I’d even pay another $100 to upgrade.

Nikon DTown

Not satisfied with having a bewildering number of websites, Nikon’s just added NikonDTown whose purpose appears to be to have instructional videos provided by Scott Kelby and Matt Kloskowski.

The premiere episode a bit over ten minutes long shows us:

• Setting whitebalance in liveview
• White balance control points in CaptureNX
• A pitch for the DIGPS GPS device (not the GP-1, surprisingly)
• D90- using the rear command dial to flick through your shots

Nothing hugely exciting, decently produced though.

Nikon 35mm f/1.8 AF-S DX Lens Announced

In news that will thrill 10’s of people around the globe- Nikon has announced the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX.

That little “DX” addendum means that you won’t want to use in on a full-frame camera (D3, D3x, D700) unless you want to be stuck in crap crop-mode.

But, if you’ve got a D60 and the angle of view was too little for you with the 50mm, then you’ve now got a cheap way to get your 50mm perspective back.

Your first reaction is probably something like, “Wtf are they spending lens-development resources on the amateurs who buy $300 lenses when the higher-end guys have been asking for a lens like this too?”

But it does make sense, having a 50mm AF-S f/2.8G allows the DX guys to have their near-85mm equivalent and giving them a 35mm gives them a near-50mm equivalent.

Now if Nikon would stop making any new DX lenses, they would be free to concentrate on the fullframe guys.

Otoh- these lenses are relatively cheap and putting them out in a down market makes sense- since they’re probably also made in China or Thailand- the strong Yen actually makes them even more profitable.

Nikon’s spokes-droid selection is kind of strange for the US. Europe gets a naked Kate Moss, we get Aston Kutcher, John Mayer, and now Carson from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (a good show, btw).

But, Nikon would like you to take better pictures and Carson gives you some tips for looking slimmer and other stuff you don’t care about.

Nikon Revenue Down

Unsurprisingly, fewer people and organizations have wads of cash to throw at new cameras:

Per-share revenue was down nearly 45% for the 6 months from April to December! However, revenue was down ~12 billion yen, ~$133m.

The fiscal year ends in March 09 and revenue is expected to be 10%, while profit is expected to be down 68% from the previous year.

Interestingly, revenue isn’t down terrible, but profit is tanking- presumably because the higher-end items with more profit (D3x, exotic lenses, industrial equipment that costs a fortune) aren’t being bought in the volumes they were.

Not good.

(Since I’m trying to cover all of Nikon rather than just the cool stuff)

Nikon Coolpix's Announced

Nikon yesterday (11pm Eastern) announced a slew of new point and shoots and would like you to know about it:

NIKON ANNOUNCES EIGHT NEW STYLISH COOLPIX CAMERAS WITH APPROACHABLE TECHNOLOGY FOR ENJOYABLE PICTURE-TAKING

POWERFUL NEW L100 PACKS PERFORMANCE, HIGH-POWERED ZOOM AND ADVANCE FUNCTIONS INTO AN EASY TO USE CAMERA

NIKON UNVEILS S630 NEW POCKET-SIZED 7X ZOOM DIGITAL CAMERA

NIKON UNVEILS NEW S230 TOUCH SCREEN DIGITAL CAMERA

POWERFUL NEW NIKON P90 UNLEASHES CREATIVE FREEDOM WITH 24x OPTICAL WIDE ANGLE ZOOM, VARI-ANGLE LCD AND ADVANCED SHOOTING MODES

Anything of note? Nope- but having a touchscreen on the back of the camera is way better than a d-pad (that little 4-direction button thingy like on the SLR’s for focus point control) if it works as well as the iPhone’s does.

I’d expect to see touchpads on the back of the flagships for the next generation. The iPhone’s touchscreen (actually a different part from the LCD itself) is AMAZINGLY GOOD at figuring out where you actually pressed. How much better it’d be to pinch the screen and drag it around than use the command dial to zoom in!