Looks much as expected – the same screen and sensor as the D300, in a body which is basically identical to the D70/D80. Also includes the D300’s sensor cleaning and ‘Picture Controls’, but not the focusing system, which is a shame – but perhaps not surprising, since they need a reason for people to buy the D300. So it’s stuck with an 11-point focusing system – hopefully faster and more accurate than in my D70s, but it’s definitely not going to be as speedy, low-light capable and precise as the D300.
The headline feature is a continuous 24fps video mode at 720p resolution – theoretically you could use the body (with a suitable lens) as a cheap-but-decent-quality HD camcorder. Seems like a gimmick to me, but I know nothing about video capture – maybe it’s of sufficient quality (at the price point) to be a big deal, or maybe there’s a target audience for whom it removes the need to carry a separate camcorder.
Focusing in low light is much more dependent on the maximum aperture of your lens than the capabilities of your AF system. Multi-CAM1000 was also seen in the D200, which was no slouch in the focusing stakes. In the D90 it also inherits colour-tracking capabilities from the higher-end cameras.
Re the video capability: how many camcorders can you stick an f/1.4 lens on? 🙂 Great for low light, great for creative DOF effects…
I like what I see at http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2008/09/nikon-d90-video.html
buying one as soon as I get back to NYC… assuming I have ANY money left!
Well, make sure you do a blog post once you’ve had time to play with it. I’m curious to know how the kit lens is, since I recently played with a friend’s D40 and the kit lens it ships with felt decidedly cheap.