I want to remind everyone that cameras at REPUTABLE shops do not go on pre-sale before they’re announced by Nikon.I also want everyone to remember that yo mama wasn’t lying when she said that if it’s too good to be true, it probably is.
If the price is way lower than the reputable camera stores, I guarantee you’re going to be taken.
Don’t be a sucker.
[Update: Sorry, they keep changing the links, so I can’t find the shots I’d linked to earlier. I’d still take a look though- there’re some nice pictures. Links fixed, it looks like they removed a few…]
I’ve seen a few shots like this one lately where there’re a wad of pro’s at the Olympics using the Nikon equipment. We didn’t see shots like this, even last year!
What’s really interesting to me too is that they’re still using those awful photographer’s vests despite the fact that you ‘re not carrying 10 rolls of film and sets of batteries, etc, on you.
I normally to get away with 2 16gb cards and a polarizer- all easily fitting into 2 pockets, but I’m no pro.
Oh- and just to remind you that being in the right time and the right place is important, I give you this gratuitous shot.
I also remind you that … aw never mind, here’s another really gratutious shot that you will not see published (nsfw- includes a boob).
Cheerleaders (sfw)
More cheerleaders (sfw)
Female power lifter (didn’t know they had them) (sfw)
Another she’s hot- Marilou Dozois-Prevost of Canada.
Arg- apparently, the D700 doesn’t use the regular HDMI (Type-A) connector, it uses a HDMI-Mini (Type-C) connector.
Wow, I didn’t even know there were different types of connectors. Thankfully, the D3 use the more normal Type-A.
If you’d like to get a cable, here’s where I bought mine for <$10 and they worked quite well. You do not need to spend a lot of money on an HDMI cable- it’s digital so it (more or less) either gets there or it doesn’t- it’s not like analog audiophile equipment.
And if you haven’t tried the HDMI out of your camera, let me tell you that it’s fantastic and wonderful to be able to put up your family snapshots on a huge HD tv instead of emailing them around a week later.
Want to break your SB-800 a little internally so that it’ll swivel 180 to one side like normal, then ~135′ to the other side instead of stopping at 90′? I kind of do, but would prefer to try it on a dead flash instead of an expensive live one.
Pete didn’t seem too concerned though. (If you’re using IE, you may or may not see an embedded youtube video. If not, please use the link):
Harrison, on a Nikon list, writes that he had the buffer upgrade done a week ago and there’s a change to the menu to tell you if it was upgraded:
Subject: Re: D3 back from Buffer Upgrade
From: Harrison Diamond
Date: Thu, 07 Aug 2008 11:18:40 -0400One more thing… on the firmware screen there is now a graphic in the
upper right corner showing two memory chips and a “2X” to indicate
the buffer upgrade.
This is important because when you buy a used D3 or sell yours, you’ll want to know or be able to show that it was upgraded.
Thanks to everyone for writing into tell me that it comes with the LCD protector- it appears that the D700’s LCD is based on (or is…) the D300’s LCD.
A personal aside, if you will– I’ll be damned if CaptureNX 1.3 lets you select a printer to print to- it seems to always print to the default printer.
I can only get it to print to a different printer if I set Windows to default to the printer I want to use.
Presuming I’m right-you’re inconvenienced if you have say, a Laserjet for regular documents and a photo printer for pictures.
This is just plain amateur-hour - very lame. Hopefully this is fixed in V2. I also have to give them hell for not using the regular Windows help system- I can’t stand the Mac-type help- it’s just not easy to find anything without doing a search.
If I’m wrong here, please let me know.
What am I missing? Does the D700 come with an LCD protector? The D3 didn’t because they said you didn’t need it- the glass was extra hard– isn’t the D700 using the same LCD as the D3? Or are the Russions getting a protector just because?
Here.
Engadget points us to this D700 minisite which has a D700 unboxing video- you know, if you’re into that…
The Strobist is nice enough to show us a SB-800 next to an SB-900 and, as I’ve read elsewhere, it’s much bigger!
…
I got a chance to play with a new Nikon SB-900 speedlight over the last few days and I gotta say, it’s a pretty sweet flash. Long story short: Nikon has just extended their lead in the flash department.
…First impression: It is much bigger than the SB-800. Didn’t really seem any heavier, but definitely takes up more space.
…It’s the most sophisticated refractor/reflector system I have ever seen on a flash. They actually modulate the tube with respect to both the front fresnel and the polished, rear reflector. This gives you the ability to shape the internal qualities of the beam, too.
…Big on the advantage list: Recycle time absolutely rocks at 2 seconds with no accessory battery back.
…The bar-coded Nikon gel thing is a little gimmicky — it sets your camera’s WB to the “appropriate” setting. The special Nikon gels could easily be duped with a template and some liquid paper. You will not need to re-up with the official Nikon gels ($$) if you do not want to.
…Goofy, but cool: At full power, the discharge sounds like a blaster from Star Wars (”pew, pew, pew“). Recycling is almost silent. And oh-so-fast.
…A “thermometer” in the rear display shows you if you are starting to red-line it.
…The hot shoe is a new, thicker size that will not fit many current accessory shoes. McNally dropped one out of a Justin Clamp, which is a staple lighting tool.
…The new AS-21 foot must be used because of the new shoe size.
…
You may have noticed that I’m starting to write “Nikon” in front of lots of stuff, eg- “Nikon D700″, “Nikon SB-900″, etc.
This is to try and help this site get a little higher on the list of searches, so do me a favor and go ahead and ignore it.
Sorry to have to be overly verbose, we KNOW a D700 is a Nikon product but most people search for “nikon d700″.
InfoBorder has some close-up shots of the D700 compared to the D300 and a quick write-up here.
…To flatten the ongoing 95% viewfinder discussions: In my opinion the 95% of the FX (D700) looks *much better* than the 100% of the DX (D300) body - and the D300 viewfinder is actually quite good…
I’m seeing reports that the SB-900 flash’s are starting to appear in stock in various places.
Plug: B&H still doesn’t have them yet though- and they’re the only shop I trust to be truthful about whether they actually have them or not. When their system says it’s in stock, it’s in stock.
If you’d like to support Nikon Watch and give me a few pennies, then do me a favor and click a B&H ad (like at the top of the page) then place your order like normal.
[Note: this is not a request for you to click a google ad. Urging you to do that violates their policies and I won’t.]
Martin saw my attempts at showing you the difference in viewfinder coverage between the Nikon D3 and the D700 and thought that he might be able to better. I’m still partial to my attempt, but admit defeat.
Here he shows you the practical difference in coverage between the D3 and the D700:
Xavier is a lucky bastard who’s gotten to use a D700 before the rest of us plebes and writes:
Hello Matt,
[There] are lucky guys like me that can use new cameras before they are actually on sale….I “played” with the D700 this week end, taking pictures of my lovely Rose, a 5 and 1/2
month old australian sherpherd, at the park of Sevres, near Paris.
I [used] the camera as it was given to me, meaning, in program, auto white balance, regular
autofocus, etc. I only changed the ISO according to the amont of light available.
I must say that it is extremely comfortable to re-use the 36×24 finder even if this one “only” cover 95% of the frame (frankly for years i used the F100 and 95% never really bother that much. But for some specific photography i can understand the need). the view finder is clear and crisp, and you can see right away if you are in focus or not.The autofocus is fast and acurate. But really, my D200 was too, and I think Nikon came up with the most reliable autofocus ever. Even in low light and low contrast, the autofocus works perfectly. It is great not to hear anything moving and ending up with sharp pictures.
The lens- the recent 24-70/2.8 - already fantastic on my D200 is being even better. Silence, speed and acuracy along with good control of lens imperfections bring this zoom to the top. (actually today, i’m going to use the 14-24 and the 70-200 so more pix to come)
All combined, a good light measuring, a great aufocus, an excellent auto white balance and, above all, a super fast response when riggering the shutter make this equipment worth to be bought. I am looking forward to use it in extrem cold weather to see how it will react.
Of course, there are little things that people would expect, but overall, this camera IS FANTASTIC, as always with this brand.
What i like: Everything
What i don’t like: the price (of course!)
I send you several shots of puppy Rose….at the park and at home….
Here’s the shot I like the best:
He’s got some nicer shots from his portfolio here. Hey! Is that Paul McCartney?
Thanks X! If you get a D3x before we do, please send us some shots of that too!
Ok- based on the great comments by you guys, I think I’ve gotten what Bjorn’s saying when he refers to linear vs planar.
After many hours of work, I have come up with a picture to demonstrate the difference:
This isn’t a great thing- if the cleaner works, I need it, but I also need the full image in the viewfinder- I hate having to guess what I’m going to get in a shot with other cameras I have that don’t show you 100% of the image in the viewfinder.
I’m betting we’ll eventually (D3x? D4? F7?) see a huge viewfinder with both sensor cleaner / shaker and 100% coverage.
Here are some very nice side by side shots from a Japanese site:
Bjørn Rørslett (Norway) is very interesting- everytime I read something from him, there’ll be something in there that makes me think either, “He’s bullshitting” or “I’m not certain what he’s talking about”. I always believe it’s the latter, but it always strikes me as the former.
So for example, this time he’s found out that the way they’re measuring the viewfinder coverage really equates to 90% coverage, not 95% (bolding is mine, making text red is his):
…here is the definite answer to the question of viewfinder coverage: the 95% figure is NOT a planar measure as it should be, but linear. Hence actual frame coverage is 90%. This figure will vary slightly with the actual lens used. I tested with the 45/2.8 PC-E. Traditionally, frame coverage is specified for a 50 mm lens at infinity.
…
A new confirmation: The dust reduction assemblage adds a frame structure inside the mirror box, just in front of the shutter curtain. This might be a stop for the shaking system? Whatever the explanation, it is clear that this frame will mask the finder slightly. This lends support to the explanation I got from Nikon techs earlier that the dust-removal system was responsible for the slight reduction in finder coverage on the D700, NOT the built-in flash since the prism heads appears to be large enough on its own.
I really have no idea what the difference between planar and linear is in this context, but I’ll accept his word for it.
The Terminator is one of the best movies ever, if you ask me– there’s just no way not to look at the endoskeleton Terminator and say, “Wow, that’s cool!” Which is likely why I love the shots of the D700 (and the other Nikon bodies) in all of its magnesium glory before it gets painted and padded in rubber which easily comes off.
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