Nikon D800 - Ahead of its time

This is not a D800 review, as there are plenty of them floating about. Most reviews will say the same thing; they state the tech specs, complain that the 36.3 megapixel count in the D800 is too high, that it is competing with Medium Format and that the D800 is not a D700 replacement.

My Thoughts

I personally feel the D800 is the D700 replacement and that nothing else is in the pipeline. If something does crop up within the next few months, its due to Nikon listening to their consumer demand for an affordable, semi-pro, full frame DSLR with a manageable megapixel count.

Over the past few years, one of the features most advertised with DSLRs, or any camera in fact, is the megapixel count, this is due to the consumer perception of increased megapixels relates to increased quality.

Following this conventional wisdom, Nikon has bumped up the megapixel count from 12mp in the D700, to 36.3mp for the D800. Most who have used the D700 agree however, that the 12mp has been sufficient.

I believe when Nikon released the D800 with 36.3mp, it had nothing to do with consumers needing more megapixels, it was purely so Nikon could have a ‘one-up’ on Canon in terms of megapixels.

The downside to this frantic quest to be the top of the megapixel game is the increased file size, which results in a higher demand with computing power and storage which few people can easily attain.

Many people say the D800 is a poor choice for wedding photography. However, I personally love using the D800 for Weddings as it has a strong build quality, shares the same AF system as the flagship model D4, compact (for a pro DSLR that is), immense dynamic range, great low-light capability (even better when the file is downsized), and with the 36.3mp, it allows you to either crop for perfect composition or print large for the couple.

Many reviews have complained that the D800 is slow and that 4fps is not cutting it by todays standard and because of this, they regard the D800 more as a studio camera. As far as I’m concerned, the 4fps is sufficient for event purposes as event photography is about capturing the decisive moment. At a wedding, I am never in “Continuous” and have never felt restricted by this 4fps.

So I feel the Nikon D800 is the perfect camera for wedding photography and that it’s my computer that is not ideal for the large D800 files!

Conclusion

History tells us that the time lapse between full frame camera upgrades is roughly 2-3yrs, while computer equipment is upgraded annually. Likewise, the cost of storage decreases each year.

Memory cards over the years have gone down drastically in price. The same 45mb/s 16Gb SanDisk SD Card that cost me £49.99 in 2011 now costs £9.40 from Amazon.co.uk. The only difference is this card is now labelled “Extreme” while the new “Extreme Pro” is now rated at 95mb/s.

I predict that in a few years’ time, we will see more DSLR’s approaching this high megapixel count and that even in a few years’ time the D800 will still be able to hold its own against the competition as a serious shooter! Then again, my opinion may be biased as that’s what I own now :S