9-23-2007 Nikon D3 Test Drive!!!!!!! WOW

OK, It's after 1am and I'm totally spent after a busy weekend test driving the Nikon D3 and editing some files. I'm proud to say that I'm the only wedding or portrait photographer in the country to have been given this camera to test.  I'll definitely post a review of the camera in the next few days, but I've got clients to take care of before I take the time I need to write it.

My first impressions, as expected, were mind blowing. To be brief, I'm stunned at how responsive this camera is and I didn't believe there was much room for improvement to the way the D2xs handled. I was clearly wrong. The Focus, feel of the shutter, focus point selection, enormous LCD, auto white balance, dynamic range, color rendition, and a few other things have all been written about and touted, but nothing prepared me for the incredible quality of the files out of camera. In addition, the high ISO performance, which was also talked about, is nothing short of revolutionary.

This camera literally changes the rules of photography and will simply allow me to capture things like never before. I'll post the full review asap. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the new lenses Nikon sent to me. The 14-24mm 2.8 and the 24-70mm 2.8 are amazing pieces of glass. I'll also review these as well. In a nutshell, you must handle them at Photoplus if you go. In any case, I took it for a test drive at yesterday's wedding. Cristina and Steven at the Rittenhouse Hotel in Philadelphia. The decorator was the fabulous Evantine Design and the orchestra was The Eddie Bruce Orchestra. Please keep in mind that I shot this camera quite sparingly. I only had it in my hands for 24 hours before I needed to use it for a wedding. My obligation was to capture this day for my client, not test a camera. I did, however, find a few parts of the day that screamed for this camera. The only hard part was putting it down. I love my D2xs, but I'll be replacing them when I get my D3's on a permanent basis. I'll post some data above the files.

In case anyone was wondering, I'm unable to post full rez files until after Photoplus and these files were absolutely STRAIGHT OUT OF CAMERA!!!! In addition, there is no software to open NEF(RAW) files yet so these are all JPG's with absolutely nothing done to them besides a reduction in file size for the web. Most images were captured with auto white balance. For the decor photos, I dialed in 2500 K to nail the color temperature. If these are the JPG's, I can't wait to see the RAW files!!!!!!

 

50 1.4- 1/320th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 1600

50mm 1.4- 1/125th @ 2.0 shot @ ISO 2000

70-200 2.8 VR- 1/320th @ 4.0 shot @ ISO 200

The new 14-24mm 2.8- 1/160th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 3200

70-200mm 2.8 VR- 1/320th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 3200

70-200mm 2.8 VR- 1/100th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 4000

70-200mm 2.8 VR- 1/80th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 1600

The new 24-70 2.8- 1/125th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 3200

The new 24-70 2.8- 1/30th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 2500

70-200mm 2.8 VR- 1/40th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 3200

85mm 1.4- 1/100th @ 2.0 shot @ ISO 1600

85mm 1.4- 1/320th @ 2.2 shot @ ISO 1600

50mm 1.4- 1/60th @ 6.3 shot @ ISO 6400

85 1.4mm- 1/160th @ 2.8 shot @ ISO 3200

Comments

[Israel Hadari]

WOOOOOH
What a Camera and in such great photographer hands!!
I am bedly looking to get one of mine as 30 years Nikon user and being one of the last Mohicans to use Nikon gear as pro.

[Stan]

Excellent images! Its a great camera but i'm sure it had more to do with the photographer

[bestphotog.com]

Simply amazing. D3 rocks and yes ! , the RAW files would be really great to inspect to see the details. You surely are lucky enough to get D3 :)

[承谦堂主]

真棒！很有启示作用。

[承谦堂主]

D3的高ISO真是无与伦比,令人叹为观止！

[daniel]

ISO 4000 looks smoother than my d200 @ 400- incredible.
Canon are about to see their pro sales drop off . . .

[LinCW]

WOW!
The high ISO was performed so cool.
very smooth, very good.
But I'm already have one D80.

[Antonio J.V Oliveira]

Amazing opportunity to shoot in first hand with a brand new D3!! Images are absolutely beatiful......all of them left my mouth open!! Just amazing!! Cliff you are a hell of a photographer too!
Cheers from Brazil
AJ

[Groba]

What high ISO is that?
Amazing pictures and great camera.
We are in Brazil really anxious for this launching.
I love my D2, but...

[R. Martins]

Very very beautiful. Excelent machine in a good hands.
Congrats Cliff
Cheers from Brazil!!!!
R. Martins

[Stanley Krute]

It's nice to see Nikon putting this remarkable device in the hands of a competent photographer.
Thanks for sharing these.

Whole new worlds of subtly lit interiors are now open to our visions.

To life ! and light !

-- stan

[Jose Luis Gallardo]

Cliff, first amazing photos. About D3, high iso noise is spectacular but it seems Auto White Balance is also improving. Saludos de México y Felicidades.

[Art]

The white balance skin tone on the bride in the hotel room and in the tunnel is horrendous, I bet you can't wait for a proper NEF sofware update so you can get at those 2 shots, everything else looks wonderful. I have heard of reports of blown highlights happening too easily when shoting jpegs, and notice some in several of your shots, did you notice a problem along that line? Something that raw would solve again. Did you experience the flash lock up issue at all during your shoot?

[Inam M Bhatti]

The result are amazing, perfect skin Tones and WB at 2500K. i was wondering how is the Noise level since Nikon switch to CMOS sensor.

[chinese_guy]

我也要说：WOw!!!
高ISO竟然还能这么棒！

[AlB]

The high ISO performance is amazing. Many of the locations I shoot at are low light environments where flash use is discouraged or detrimental, and tripods are limiting.

[Jackson]

Nikon users finally getting what Canon users have had for years. A FF camera with great high ISO.

[Alessandro]

Fantastic camera, but I prefer the photographer.
Mr. Mautner, the greatness of this images is not in the camera you have used, but in your eyes, in your hands and in your mind. The camera? Only a detail...

Sincerely,
Alessandro (Italy)

[Jessie]

Amazing work... the camera is only the tool.

[Roy Fadly]

Good Photographer with Good Eyes and Good Gear -- Is A Complete Set

Thanks for sharing.

[fotoru]

PHOTOS ARE TOO SMALL!

Would you please share larger files, so we can see the quality at high ISO?

Thank you in advance!

[Muhammad Muhsin]

hi,

i am a nikon d200 user, and am planning to get the d3 in november. i've always trusted nikon and knew they'd work on the sensor. these photos, if they are shot with the d3, show just how improved a camera it is, realising the fact that the d2xs was a superb camera :)

photography for me is just a hobby, and i love the d200 for what it does, especially for the high iso grain it produces, i love its grain because most of my work is black and white, and for black and white, i seriously employ grain :)

these are very nice photos, very well taken, and i can't wait to get the 24-70, thought of getting the very best 28-70, but friends are advising me to go for the new 24-70 instead :)

you are lucky to have tried the d3, but november is closing in, and the rest of the d3 anticipators will get their hands on what they've been dreaming of :)

i'll get the d3 for full frame reasons only, so that working with the expensive lenses becomes more challenging :) i will miss the d200's grain, but i have alienskin exposure plugin to get grain :)

liveview is something i am least interested in, so that is a feature i will not be using, nothing beats the optical viewfinder, for me at least :)

thanks for the photos you shared with us, very valuable :)

muhammad muhsin

[mel]

These photos are amazing, not to mention the photographer..
this FF size 12 MP CMOS sensor seems to working perfect in lowlight. i think want this camera, even though i don't need it or can't realize the cost :)