james fryer

I’ve been using the new Nikon D7000 for several weeks now and just love it. It’s such a huge upgrade from my dear old D70 that it’s hard to believe it’s only been five years since the D70 came out.

I’ll be writing a lot more in the coming weeks about the D7000 (especially in comparison to the D90), but I wanted to share some of my initial giddiness.

Nikon D7000 - f/2.8 : 1/125" : 35mm : ISO 3200

Nikon D7000 - f/1.8 : 1/640" : 35mm : ISO 100

Nikon D7000 - f/1.8 : 1/25" : 50mm AI : ISO 3200

Here is a list of what gets me me excited about the D7000:

1. High ISO performance. I shoot at ISO 3200 without a second thought.
2. Meters AI lenses. This may be just me being a super geek, but using old buttery smooth AI lenses is nothing short of awesome.
3. But shooting manual lenses wouldn’t be as much fun if the viewfinder wasn’t so big and bright, noticeably brighter than the D70. This may be subtle, but it’s a big deal to me.
4. U1 and U2 custom profile buttons. This is such a complicated camera with so many shooting options that having two banks of instantly re-callable setting configurations is incredibly useful. It’s like instantly switching to a different camera with the simple flick of the Mode Dial.
5. Buttons, buttons, buttons! The D7000 is covered in buttons that give you immediate access to important settings. This makes the camera easier and faster to use (assuming you read the manual).
6. Better Dynamic Range. It actually takes a little work to get blown highlights, at least compared to the D70.
7. Dual SD card slots. I haven’t used this yet, but I can tell you it will make me a lot more comfortable the next time I shoot a wedding. Knowing I’ve got an instant back up of every shot of a bride on ‘her day’ is piece of mind that you can’t pay enough for.

What not so hot:

1. It’s pricey. Though that might not be a fair comparison as it has pro features you won’t find on any other Nikon DSLR in this price range.
2. The colors it produces are kind of weird. It’s taken me a couple of weeks to get accustomed to and get the colors I like. Part of this may be due to shooting in lower light than I have in the past at much higher ISOs.
3. I’m not convinced that the image quality or high ISO performance is much higher than the D90.
4. There is some talk about the D7000 being less sharp than the D90. I’ve not done any serious tests on this yet, but my casual appraisal doesn’t refute this. Definitely and issue that will get a lot more of my attention, stay tuned.

Surprising:

1. I’ve actually used the Live View a few times already and find it far more useful than I had thought.
2. The video is pretty darn impressive. Though I think it will be difficult for a casual user to get good results with the video, if you account for it’s many weaknesses, I think the D7000 will be able to shoot amazingly good video.

Where the D7000 stands in comparison to other Nikon DSLRs

The D3100 is a great camera that makes much better pictures than it should for such a low price, but it lacks a lot of pro features. The D90 adds a little bit better performance and lot of pro features. The D7000 is (probably) comparable to the D90 in performance, but adds pretty much every pro feature you can think of.

Nikon apparently still makes other DSLRs, but I’m not sure why. These three cameras pretty much cover the entire range of what DSLRs should be.

Well, OK, sure, the D700 is full frame and the benefit of that (having an even bigger and brighter viewfinder) is nothing to write off. And the D3X is also full frame and is pretty much the most perfect shooting machine made by man. That is if you don’t mind lugging a camera body around that is about as big and heavy as a small Korean automobile.

More to come… Stay tuned!

Filed under: Photography by James Fryer