nikon continue to release new bodies at breakneck speeds … the latest in the line is nikon’s D90, the successor to the popular consumer D80. the D90 features a very interesting new set of features that has nikon fans giggling like school girls, despite the fact that many of the new ‘features’ are just bells and whistles.
amongst the most talked about features is the D90’s ability to shoot video. it’s the first DSLR with video capabilities (thanks to its other new feature, live view). nikon are also claiming that the D90’s video is better than most consumer camcorders and can produce more interesting movies (thanks to myriad of lenses, especially the fisheye, telephoto and macro lenses).
personally, i see a lot of pitfalls here. users are going to start trying to make movies with these DSLR cameras, winning users with a few ‘eye candy’ features that are starting to move nikon away from their true focus - quality DSLR cameras.
the new D90 also has sensor vibration cleaning, 12.9 mp DX sensor, live view (as mentioned, bigger 3 inch screen, better iso noise control, more frames per second, but a poor buffer rate (only 7 raw images, meaning a burst rate of less than 2 seconds when shooting raw), and a few other bells and whistles.
although the D90 is a greatly improved camera, it still fits the model of releasing minor improvements and bleeding consumers dry … amateur photographers should not be buying bodies every 12 months.
the only thing i’m even remotely excited about is not the nikon D90, but an accessory that has been released at the same time; nikon’s GP-1 GPS unit. this handy gadget will attach to the hot shoe and add gps data to each photo as its taken. the gps data is stored into the image’s exif data for later use. this has come just in time for me to make use of it during my travels!
although i’m no expert (and nobody cares about my opinion), i think users should keep away from buying the latest camera bodies. if you have no camera, then it makes sense to buy the best body you can afford (i did that when i bought my D200). but if you have a good camera, upgrading to a new body … to get a few extra megapixels and new features … is a snake oil sales pitch that people are falling for. nikon and canon have both worked out that the ‘camera wars’ are not good for consumers, but good for profit margins. by constantly releasing new models, the camera companies are greatly improving their revenues.
live view and movies are not what DSLRs are about. DSLR cameras have a viewfinder because they’re professional cameras with interchangable lenses. let the point and shoot crowd have live view. let camcorders have the movies. nikon and canon should stick to improving lens technology. they should spend time developing DSLRs with gps built in (not a hot shoe accessory). they should be working on electronic shutters (where 50 frames per second would be possible). they should work on sensors and noise reduction … btw, some of nikon’s bridge cameras and “point and shoots” DO have gps built in.
i personally think nikon is losing sight of its true purpose with this new camera. many will disagree with me, but the serious photographers will know what i’m talking about.
i guess the next camera that comes out will also have a phone, mp3 player, and be able to make espresso … although i have to admit, that some of the D90 sample movies do look very good.
