Ken Anderson’s Weblog

I bought a D3 last week and must admit that since that fateful day my life has changed for ever, and for the better.  I had read many reviews about this latest Nikon offer. Poured over the posts by the “If ya ain’t got 22546 megapixels you ain’t got a pro camera”!  A lifelong Nikon shooter, I had even contemplated a complete shift to Canon since it appeared they were walking away with the digital market.

I started reading the reviews, did pay attention to the folks who seem to think that only megapixels equal quality and found that most of the better know and well respected commentators liked the new camera and made very compelling cases that the D3 was indeed a contender for the Canon title and from a picture quality standpoint was much better.  Noise was significantly lower in D3 photographs at high ISO.

It would appear that digital photography has entered a new phase, one where pixels might not tell the whole story and one where the days of picking a camera based on a megapixel count have gone, and the technology that supports the collection of the image becomes the most important part of the complex ingredients that go into making a modern digital picture.

I won’t lie to you, for those who have not picked up a D3, it is not a light piece of kit or as the great Joe McNally likes to say - it’s a commitment.  Once youv’e done some bench presses and strengthened your camera arm, things start to fall in place.  It is a great camera to hold, feels natural when in shooting position.  The eyepiece is clear and large and contains all the information you need to compose the shot.  The real treat is when you get home and look at the photos.  WOW!  It does a great job.  Complex lighting is no problem.  Checkout the shot of the Criterion Theatre on the website.  

I will update both the website and the blog in coming weeks with pictures and observations.  As of now, i can’t put the thing down.  What a great camera, Canon must be concerned given the apparent lack of picture quality in the their latest offering even with 22 megapixels on demand and the focusing issue.  I hope Nikon will forgive me for doubting them after 30 years of patronage.  The D3 puts Nikon back where they belong - on top of the professional DSLR offering!