What will the Nikon D300 be like?

Matt Clara wrote:
SNIP

Contrary to Scott's point in this thread, there's nothing inherently better
in medium format lenses or bodies over 35mm.

Wow, Matt, with all due respect, when did I ever say they were
inherently better? They just are in practice, because the most serious
photographers are willing to pay the price, and in reiteration, their
superiority isn't all based on resolution. Of course negative size
plays a roll, but it isn't the end all.

I agree with Tony, as the imaging chips get smaller and less expensive,
larger chips will become less expensive too! Critical photographers
will probably be willing to pay the price that larger chips might
command because of their bit depth and "ability to make lenses
sharper".

Scott Chapin

Alexander Arnakis wrote:
Full-frame CCD, compatible with all AF and manual lenses, lower
current draw, smaller form factor, price point under $2,000?

When will we see it? This time next year?

I would expect a D3 long before seeing anything called a D300. Guessing
full frame, or something really close, is probably a fair prediction.

I would expect better battery life in the future. I would also expect
fairly good wireless file transfers.

Things to hope for, but might not happen, would be a selectable RGB
working space other than sRGB or AdobeRGB (hopefully ProPhotoRGB), or
ideally some form way to stay within LaB space. Other nice thing would
be CMYK in camera, much like some medium format digital backs, though I
suspect the majority of Nikon engineers and end users are too clueless
to use that to any advantage. A LaB Histogram would be nicer than the
current sRGB waste of time.

Oh well, will prices ever really come down much . . . seems like top
line Nikon choices are over $4000, and mid range likely to stay near
$2000. Of course, whenever a D300 would arrive, it might be possible to
get a good used D200 for as little as $500. I would guess that around
that time, the F6 would be the only Nikon film SLR.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
A G Studio
http://www.allgstudio.com

On Sat, 03 Dec 2005 17:21:24 -0800, Gordon Moat
wrote:

Alexander Arnakis wrote:
Full-frame CCD, compatible with all AF and manual lenses, lower
current draw, smaller form factor, price point under $2,000?

When will we see it? This time next year?

The most reasonable rumors I have picked up (here and there on the
'net) say that Nikon will have a full-frame DSLR announcement at
PhotoKina next September, that is September 2006. PhotoKina is THE
big tradeshow for the photo trade, so that is a logical place for such
an announcement.

Now, the event dates are fixed,, but the actual ship date is probably
a bit more "flexible," so my personal planning is a purchase sometime
in the first quarter of 2007. (saving up for it already, won't be
inexpensive.)

The only "spec" that I have heard is that there will be an automatic
cropped mode for DX lenses. That is, DX lenses will be recognized by
the body. Important details like price, other new or improved
features, no information. Sensor type, nothing on that either.

I know lots of people are saying, "Think of all the great pictures you
could be taking if you went out now and got a D70 (or D200), instead
of waiting for this full-frame sensor DSLR. True enough for digital
photography, but I will simply continue to use my film cameras for
now.

If you look at Thom Hogan's web site here
http://www.bythom.com/2005dreamdslrs.htm you will see his 2005 Nikon
predictions, which he made in November 2004. Some of the predictions
are out of date, but the D3 spec is still interesting reading.


Father Kodak

I would expect a D3 long before seeing anything called a D300. Guessing
full frame, or something really close, is probably a fair prediction.

I would expect better battery life in the future. I would also expect
fairly good wireless file transfers.

Things to hope for, but might not happen, would be a selectable RGB
working space other than sRGB or AdobeRGB (hopefully ProPhotoRGB), or
ideally some form way to stay within LaB space. Other nice thing would
be CMYK in camera, much like some medium format digital backs, though I
suspect the majority of Nikon engineers and end users are too clueless
to use that to any advantage. A LaB Histogram would be nicer than the
current sRGB waste of time.

Oh well, will prices ever really come down much . . . seems like top
line Nikon choices are over $4000, and mid range likely to stay near
$2000. Of course, whenever a D300 would arrive, it might be possible to
get a good used D200 for as little as $500. I would guess that around
that time, the F6 would be the only Nikon film SLR.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
A G Studio
http://www.allgstudio.com

Father Kodak wrote:
On Sat, 03 Dec 2005 17:21:24 -0800, Gordon Moat
wrote:


Alexander Arnakis wrote:

Full-frame CCD, compatible with all AF and manual lenses, lower
current draw, smaller form factor, price point under $2,000?

When will we see it? This time next year?


The most reasonable rumors I have picked up (here and there on the
'net) say that Nikon will have a full-frame DSLR announcement at
PhotoKina next September, that is September 2006. PhotoKina is THE
big tradeshow for the photo trade, so that is a logical place for such
an announcement.

Now, the event dates are fixed,, but the actual ship date is probably
a bit more "flexible," so my personal planning is a purchase sometime
in the first quarter of 2007. (saving up for it already, won't be
inexpensive.)

The only "spec" that I have heard is that there will be an automatic
cropped mode for DX lenses. That is, DX lenses will be recognized by
the body. Important details like price, other new or improved
features, no information. Sensor type, nothing on that either.

I know lots of people are saying, "Think of all the great pictures you
could be taking if you went out now and got a D70 (or D200), instead
of waiting for this full-frame sensor DSLR. True enough for digital
photography, but I will simply continue to use my film cameras for
now.

If you look at Thom Hogan's web site here
http://www.bythom.com/2005dreamdslrs.htm you will see his 2005 Nikon
predictions, which he made in November 2004. Some of the predictions
are out of date, but the D3 spec is still interesting reading.



Funny, the more I read into his "predictions", the more sense medium
format digital backs make. This is all okay for speculating, or the
enthusiasts market, but not so good for professionals. As it stands now,
one needs to replace everything about every 18 months . . . it would be
nicer to break that cycle, but I don't think it will happen.

The part that needs the biggest help is the software colour modelling.
This was something I worked on as a subcontractor this spring. The
engineers just don't get it . . . yet. They seem to be understanding
that as professionals, we need to have images printed; which means
commercially output CMYK images, not internet, not HDTV, and not
interpolated inkjet. Things might be getting better, but until the sRGB
and AdobeRGB bias ends, there are serious problems (workflow and
capture) that affect anyone doing commercial work intended for
commercial offset printing. These are the things you should watch out
for, and less so the availability of full frame sensors.

In fact, it would not surprise me if Nikon went towards a 24 mm by 32 mm
(or 34 mm) sensor to get more towards common printing sizes. The other
direction might be a 16:9 aspect ratio, though I would expect it as a
crop mode rather than a sensor size. Until that happens, it looks like
medium format digital is the best professional choice.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
A G Studio
http://www.allgstudio.com

On Sat, 03 Dec 2005 23:02:10 -0800, Father Kodak
wrote:

I know lots of people are saying, "Think of all the great pictures you
could be taking if you went out now and got a D70 (or D200), instead
of waiting for this full-frame sensor DSLR. True enough for digital
photography, but I will simply continue to use my film cameras for
now.

My standard of comparison is my 1985-vintage FM2n, which makes a nice
package for use while traveling, and is absolutely reliable. I can
carry the camera, normal lens, 24mm wide angle, 200mm with Nikon
doubler, flash, etc., in a Domke satchel bag, and it's very portable
and unobtrusive.

I bought a D70 last year when they first came out, and although it has
its good points, it's way too bulky to carry when traveling. Plus, it
doesn't make good use of my MF lenses.

What I would really like is a "digital FM2." The new D200 is a small
step in this direction, in that at least it meters with the manual
lenses. Full frame would be better, since a given lens would have the
same perspective whether used in a film or digital camera (this is
important for those who consider all their camera bodies and lenses to
be part of a consistent "system"). After that, miniaturization and
more efficient batteries would be logical improvements. (And where is
it written that a digital camera has to be autofocus?)

Until this happens, I'm going to stick with my FM2 and scan my film
into the digital format.

Isn't it obvious? The Nikon D300 will be like the D200, only 1.5 times more
so.

Does anyone on this group know about GIMP? I bet not...

Uncle Ron

Gordon Moat wrote:
Alexander Arnakis wrote:
Full-frame CCD, compatible with all AF and manual lenses, lower
current draw, smaller form factor, price point under $2,000?

When will we see it? This time next year?

I would expect a D3 long before seeing anything called a D300. Guessing
full frame, or something really close, is probably a fair prediction.

I would expect better battery life in the future. I would also expect
fairly good wireless file transfers.

Things to hope for, but might not happen, would be a selectable RGB
working space other than sRGB or AdobeRGB (hopefully ProPhotoRGB), or
ideally some form way to stay within LaB space. Other nice thing would
be CMYK in camera, much like some medium format digital backs, though I
suspect the majority of Nikon engineers and end users are too clueless
to use that to any advantage. A LaB Histogram would be nicer than the
current sRGB waste of time.

Oh well, will prices ever really come down much . . . seems like top
line Nikon choices are over $4000, and mid range likely to stay near
$2000. Of course, whenever a D300 would arrive, it might be possible to
get a good used D200 for as little as $500. I would guess that around
that time, the F6 would be the only Nikon film SLR.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
A G Studio
http://www.allgstudio.com

"Uncle Ron" wrote in message
oups.com...
Does anyone on this group know about GIMP? I bet not...

Uncle Ron

Yes....I am thinking about installing it....I was here last night:
http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/faq.html

Uncle Ron wrote:

Does anyone on this group know about GIMP? I bet not...

A bit (I'm a Linux user), if you need to ask something better make a
separate subject.

Oh, by the way, the book "Grokking the GIMP" is very nicely done and well
written without being too big/heavy, and the concepts hold in other image
processing applications too.

Regards,
N.Fotis

Uncle Ron wrote:

Does anyone on this group know about GIMP? I bet not...


I've used it. Thought it was pretty good, although I wasn't particularly
impressed with the port to Windoze.