Nikon have designed a digital camera with similar features to its F5, long the workhorse of most professional photographers. With a 2.7-megapixel CCD that produces some of the most stunning images we've seen taken with a digital camera to date. But why get excited about 2.7 megapixels, especially when the AU$12,249 price tag only includes the D1's body, 96MB CompactFlash Card Type I/II, one rechargeable battery, quick charger, and no lenses or flash? Because it takes excellent photographs. The main reason the camera takes such stellar photos is because the camera can accept most of Nikon's professional lenses.
Key Features
2.7 megapixel CCD
2,012x1,324 image resolution
2-inch LCD (With backlight/brightness adjustment)
4.5 frames per second in continuous mode
3D metering system
Can use any F-mount Nikkor lens
Auto exposure control
Auto aperture control
Optical SLR viewfinder with 96 percent frame coverage
IEEE-1394 connector
NTSC/PAL video out
The D1 supports a maximum resolution of 2,012x1,324 pixels and supports both JPEG and TIFF image compression. When using a 96MB CompactFlash card, we took 66 images in fine quality mode, 132 images in normal quality mode, and 256 images in basic quality mode. At its highest quality setting, we got 12 images. There are two ways to get your images from the camera to your PC. One way is through an IEEE 1394 (FireWire) interface, and the other is through CompactFlash adaptor.
Nikon's 3D metering system takes into account distance to subject, contrast, and brightness. Then, it calculates the best setting for optimal image exposure. The D1 also uses a super fast (1/500 of a second) flash sync rate and through the lens (TTL) flash metering when the camera is equipped with the Nikon SB25 DX flash. The flash automatically compensates and adjusts how much light it will fire based on the readings received by the camera through the lens. This eliminates the need for the flash to process its own calculations, which can lead to burned or washed out images from too much light from the flash.
Usability
The D1 is as easy to use as a standard 35mm camera. The dual shutter buttons are logically placed for both horizontal and vertical shooting. Mirror prelock (where the mirror flips up and locks before the shot is taken to eliminate camera vibration during the shot), depth-of-field preview, aperture priority (which forces the camera to compensate exposure based on what aperture the user specifies), and full manual mode settings were all available and at our fingertips. Navigating through the images on the LCD was a straightforward, pleasant affair. The information supplied for each image, such as its relative data as it pertained to camera settings and histogram settings (light values), was all easily navigable.
The D1 is based around the principles of film-based cameras, so you don't need to rely on LCD-based menus, which are typically found on most consumer digital cameras. The buttons that control the menu and digital settings are understandable and easy to access. And thankfully, deleting an unwanted image is as easy as pressing the delete button on the back of the camera twice. All camera settings are available at the photographer's fingertips via the camera's front and rear dials. The D1 has inherited custom settings from the F5 and F100, which include functions such as tone compensation and edge enhancer and lets users create up to 29 other functions, all of which are detailed in the D1's manual. The D1 has so many custom functions we had to make a hard copy of the custom function guide to keep with us when we went shooting just so we could keep things straight.
Look and Feel
If you didn't know the D1 was a digital camera, you'd think you were holding a 35mm film camera. All the camera's main controls and buttons fall where you'd normally find them on a standard 35mm camera. During our testing, there were actually times when we couldn't believe we weren't shooting film. The D1 weighs about as much as Nikon's F5 film camera. In fact, when you include the weight of the camera's long-lived Ni-MH battery pack, the D1 tips the scales at about 1.6kgs. This camera is no picnic to carry around all day. Most of the camera's weight can be attributed to the solidly built camera body and the professional lens we had mounted to it. But, while the D1 may be a little weighty, the camera feels solid in the hand and can withstand professional abuse.
It was a joy to look through the D1's quality optical viewfinder, which has a 96 percent frame coverage. There was no need to even think about using the LCD panel for framing and focusing, though it's nice the LCD was there to let us quickly review and delete unwanted images. The flash, which came with the our review camera, had a cheap plastic feel to it, but performed admirably when put to the test.
Performance
The D1's performance out in the field was remarkable. It was like no other digital camera we've tested to date. When combined with a Nikkor 50mm lens, the D1 is a photographer's dream.
The D1 has two shooting modes on the left dial;single shot and continuous shooting. In the continuous mode, we snapped 21 continuous shots in the fine image quality setting. Afterward, it took about two minutes for the camera to finish writing the images to the Flash card before we could continue taking more pictures. Because the D1 stores each image it takes before it writes it to disk, we never had any down time between shots, letting us shoot whatever - and whenever - we wanted. Even in continuous mode, the 21-shot maximum before the camera stops shooting is more than adequate for any professional shooter's needs.
The auto-focus was responsive and accurate as was the 3D colour RGB exposure metering system. This exclusive Nikon feature evaluates not only each scene's brightness and contrast, but using a special red-green-blue (RGB) sensor, it also evaluates the scene's colours. The matrix meter evaluates scene brightness, contrast, selected focus area, distance information, and colour. All this information is processed by the onboard computer, which automatically sets the camera's aperture and shutter speed to achieve the desired picture.
The first image we saw on our computer screen blew us away. The clarity of the image, the quality of the colour, and the sharpness and complete lack of aliasing took us by surprise (even when magnified in Photoshop). After all, it is only a 2.7-megapixel camera, relying on CCD technology that is at least a year old. The main reason the camera can take such incredible images has to do with the quality of the Nikkor lens we were using.
The D1 has the advantage of being an SLR (single lens reflex) camera and therefore can accept the highest-quality lenses in 35mm photography. This coupled with Nikon's latest 3D metering technology of image exposure compensation led to perfectly exposed images, shot after shot. The one design flaw with the D1 was that its external power coupling on the front of the camera is right under the video out terminal. We found this a poor placement of the socket, as plugging the Nikon in to the power supply and trying to work with it on a tripod proved awkward. We kept rechecking the coupling to make sure it was securely fastened in the socket.
The optional software is complicated, and we found it overwhelming at times, with a litany of choices and myriad ways to screw up our pictures. In addition, the software was not really an intuitive way to edit images. We would suggest not bothering with the software at all and instead use another image editing program. After a while, we started downloading everything from the Flash Card through the USB port to our computers and editing in Photoshop.
Lens Compatibility
The D1 is an SLR (single lens reflex) digital camera that can be used with most Nikkor autofocus lenses. Here is a lens compatibility chart.
Usable Lenses on Nikon D1
D-type autofocus Nikkor: All functions possible
D-type manual-focus Nikkor: All functions except autofocus possible
Autofocus Nikkor other than D-type: All functions except 3D colour matrix metering and 3D multisensor balanced fill-flash possible
AI-P Nikkor: All functions except 3D colour matrix metering and 3D multisensor balanced fill-flash possible
Non-CPU: Usable in auto or manual mode, centre-weighted or spot metering; electronic rangefinder usable with lens with maximum aperture of f/5.6 or faster.
Value
There is no doubt in our minds that the D1 is a professional-caliber digital camera. But is the base camera (not including the lens) worth over AU$12,000? Yes and no. The image clarity and colour resolution is the highest we've seen from any digital camera. Also, the ISO range, from 200 to 1,600 is the most extensive coverage we've ever witnessed in a camera. But, its CCD is only 2.7-megapixels. With rumours of 6.7 megapixels looming on the horizon, we had to ask ourselves, "If we invested AU$12,000 in this camera, would we be getting a reliable workhorse of a camera that will last for years with positive image results or a white elephant that we'd be trying to unload on eBay a year from now at a quarter of what we bought it?"
The bottom line is that D1 is a tough sell for anyone but professional digital photographers. If you are a professional photographer who has already invested in a plethora of Nikon lenses and camera attachments, and you're looking to make a smooth transition into the digital realm, the D1 is a natural choice for you. However, if you're just looking for a professional-quality digital camera and haven't already invested thousands of dollars in Nikon gear, take a deep breath and look elsewhere.
By the time you buy this camera, a good lens, flash, and so on, you'll be looking at spending around AU$15,000. That's a lot of money for a digital camera, especially when Canon just announced the 3-megapixel SLR EOS D30 for about AU$6,000 less.
Nikon D1
Company: Maxwell
Ph: 02 9390 0200; Fax: 02 9390 0220;
Price: AU$12,249.
Rating: 4 Star
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