D700 Firmware Update

If you noticed some errant underexposed images when using your D700, it may not have been due to your settings. Nikon has released a firmware update that corrects the issue. The aberration for the severely underexposed images is rare but can occur.

It is not difficult to implement a firmware update to your camera’s inherent processing software. The instructions can be downloaded along with the update. You do need a card reader, but you should be using one anyway. It’s always wise to implement firmware updates from the manufacturer. In this case, I’m surprised that this fix hasn’t been offered sooner. The D700 has been out for almost 4 years!

Here’s the link: D700 Firmware Update

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The Long Overdue Nikon D800

Three and one-half years… but not quite four. Nikon had a few surprises up their sleeve after all. The D800/800E (no anti aliasing in the E version) is somewhat of the successor to the D700 but to me, it’s a beast of a different color. Nikon Rumors did predict that Nikon would fill the gap between 12.1 MP to 36.3 MP in one fell swoop. Does this guarantee that they will win the megapixel race in the pro circuit at a certain price point? I’m sure that is not the intended goal. At least not without a few tradeoffs. Plunk down your $3,000 if you’re the type who likes to be first. That’s still a good price considering what a D3X costs.

The fps is slower at 4 fps in FX, 6 fps in DX mode  but the level of detail is OMG. Count eyelashes. I’m not so sure that the average Jane is going to want to put herself in front of the D800 without making sure her makeup is picture perfect. All flaws will be magnified. I also believe that the D800 will not take the crown for low light shooting from the D4 or from the D700 for that matter. ISO is 100-6400. This doesn’t seem to be the camera you grab to shoot candids. It seems that it’s more targeted to studio and wildlife shooting.

D800 with grip

What is nice is that the D800 encompasses the dual card slots feature found on many of the other Nikon predecessors. One CF card and one SD card.

1080/30p HD video is a D800 feature that was missing from the D700. This will pair up nicely with the better lenses. Video has been on all Canon bodies for a long time. Even most of the Nikon lineup after the D90 sported video. The D700 seemed lonely without it.

The buzz is still buzzing a couple of weeks later. Preorders have been stopped with the 3 year pent up demand. You can expect the first shipments mid- to end March. Make sure you also budget for more storage space since the output is three times the D700 resolution. That means more hard drives and perhaps more processing power if you don’t already possess it.

All in all, this is a beautiful camera body with some advanced features. I am positive that once it gets into the hands of those who preordered it that we will see what it can do in real use.

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Nikon Adds the all new D4

I couldn’t allow the time to slip away without mentioning Nikon’s announcement of their new D4 body last week.  It’s a beauty. Finally, a larger sensor format at 16.2 megapixels with that venerable high ISO performance in Nikon’s lineup.

Here’s the link to Nikon’s official press release on the bells and whistles. New sensor, new color matrix meter—may mean that Nikon is going to lay claim to being the low light champ with increased MP size at the top of the heap. Considering how difficult it is to a have larger capture size being noise free without making other sacrifices, I marvel at their efforts.

Some of the pundits were confused by the timing of the release, but I’m not. It makes perfect sense that Nikon would release this for pros in time for the Winter Olympics. I was concerned that the earthquake/tsunami in 2011 would really set back some of their FX body releases. This is a very positive sign that Nikon is not asleep with just repurposed goods like that “new” SB-910 speedlight.

This doesn’t mean that I’m ready to plop down $6,000 USD to order mine in advance (they should begin shipping in Feb.) It’s too large for my needs which is why I passed on the initial release of the D3 when it came out and was happy when the D700 popped a year later. What it does mean is that we can now all freely begin to speculate on an eventual D800 body release with greater certainty that Nikon has finally figured out how to break that 12MP noise ceiling for performance. I hope the lighted buttons feature filters down to the D800. It’s been 3 years and counting since the D700 release. What’s another year?

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Body Lust Bust

I’ve been waiting for a D700 successor for over three years. There are always rumors about the arrival of new camera bodies and what they are prepared to do for your photography. Take it to the next level? I don’t think that any equipment should bear that responsibility. It takes more than just gear acquisition to make a good photograph. Beyond the technical knowledge, there’s always the harder-to-be-taught subjects like composition and “intent” of the photo. But, hardware is hardware and it looks bleak for new releases at this time.

Nikon Rumors is such a popular site for speculation about what’s in the pipeline and its release date. There was heavy spec that Oct. 26, 2011 would bear the successor to the D700. Unfortunately, it’s rumor. The latest developments are being discussed over at Nikonians in good detail so drop in and read more about it.

Mother Nature has had a heavy hand in squelching Nikon’s manufacturing process. First the earthquake in Japan in March 2011 and now the  Oct. flooding in Thailand. Both locations factor predominately in producing for Nikon. It will take months to recover the cogs in the wheel. Even if the bulk of manufacturing was not affected at both locations, there’s still the smaller components being made by 3rd parties in Thailand that have been hurt/disabled.

The best camera is the one that is in your hands at present. I am glad that my gear envy has been tempered through the years. Looks like my wait for a D800 is going to lengthen into 2012.

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Nikon Rebates are On

‘Tis the season. Nikon Instant Rebates are on. Here’s a view of them at B&H.

Nikon Rebates 2010

I do see bodies and a lot of kit bundles, but the only lenses are Tammy’s (Tamron) if purchased standalone. Make sure you note the dates on specific purchases. Some are only until 11/27 and others are 12/31.

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Capture NX2 update

I’ve been working in Lightroom so much that I’ve neglected to update my CNX 2 software. I was working on a headshot and forgotten how much truer skin tones are in the rendering of Nikon RAW NEF files.

It’s not uncommon for Nikon to update their software when new bodies are released such as the D7000.

Nikon has updated Capture NX2 to version 2.2.6.

Here

If you’re reading this and have already updated, you may want to check out Nikon’s list of their current software versions.

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Webinars for Capture NX2

Spring has sprung and looks like Jason Odell has too in launching his offerings of Spring Webinars for Capture NX2. You do need to attend live, and I don’t think he’s offering a download for the course. Jason handles the broadcasting of The Image Doctors for Nikonians. The guy knows his stuff.

here

I purchased his ebook, The Photographer’s Guide to Capture NX in pdf format. Capture NX does take some time to learn and it is helpful to have a guide to learn. Capture NX is Nikon’s proprietary software used for conversion of RAW files (NEF) and postprocessing. There are other applications such as Adobe’s Photoshop and Lightroom that enable you to convert NEF files to workable product such as tif, psd, and jpg.

There are some paperback books available too. Real World Capture NX2 by Ben Long. Nikon Capture NX2 After the Shoot by Mike Hagen. Will Capture NX2 replace Photoshop? Not really. Despite the healing tool and other features that you’d find in Photoshop, you will need an application that would allow you different types of tweaking such as removing logos. CNX2 is not a replacement for Photoshop on the back end.

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Nikon Instant Rebates

This type of news always makes me go hmmmmmmm despite periodic Nikon Instant Rebates that go into effect. There is a tendency of Nikon to offer rebates on merchandise before the release of a new model. There hasn’t been much in the Pro lineup releases for a while. Rumors are squashing a D700 replacement. The D700 will be two years old this summer.

Here are some instant rebates available from Calumet on Nikon products.

Bundled Rebates are available from B&H. $400. off a combo kit D700 and a Nikkor 70-200mm f/w.8 G AF-S ED VRII (until May 1)

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New D3 and D700 beta camera profiles for Lightroom

I’ve been using Nikon’s software for converting my RAW NEF files since I began shooting the D100 in late 2003. It started out with Capture but later renamed Capture NX.  I later began using Adobe’s Lightroom when the first version was still in beta.

Why? Because conversions of the RAW format are interpretations. Nikon has had its own proprietary software from the beginning. There was a bit of a battle between the developers of the RAW format and Nikon when RAW was coming on board. There were claims that Nikon had encrypted the white balance and not released the SDK code to the other developers. I think they ended up releasing a mini SDK to the developers for conversions of NEFs after the dust settled.

NEF files are the RAW files generated by a Nikon camera. You can open/convert and resave to tif, jpg or psd file formats.

I tested Lightroom and its conversion of RAW files against Capture NX2 when I began using LR. The images were different in appearance due to differences in interpretation. There was also chromatic aberration in the LR files where it was practically non-existent in the files rendered by Capture NX2. Lightroom has tweaked things further using Camera Profiles.

This is an ongoing process. Here is an March 2010 update for new beta camera profiles for the Nikon D3 and D700. These are beta but give them a whirl.

Download beta Camera profiles for D3 and D700

In Lightroom, go to the bottom of the Develop Module and you’ll see Camera Calibration. There’s a drop down menu that gives you options to choose. Adobe Standard, Camera Neutral, Portrait, Standard, Landscape and Vivid are the standard options. So, if you are shooting a Nikon D90 Camera Standard is the profile for a Nikon D90 or as seen in the screenshot, Camera Portrait for a D90. If you were shooting a Canon 5D2, then the Camera Standard would be for the Canon 5D2. The actual name of the camera that the image was taken with doesn’t show up in your drop down list. Some of the ACR profiles are also available.

I have loaded additional profiles for the D2x mode 1, mode 2 and mode 3 since I have owned that camera and still have thousands of images from it. The rendering of skin tones was superb with a D2x. D2x mode 1 is the original “borrowed” standard taken from the Capture (stopped at v.4 before the release of Capture NX and Capture NX2. Mode 1 was the Kodak standard for portrait work and Mode 2 was pretty close. I’ve found Modes 1 and 2 less punchy than Adobe Camera Standard by comparison. Eye pleasing color is not the same as accurate skin tones. I always felt that I preferred less red in my skin tones. Mode 3 was generally used for landscapes with a lot of green and blue.

According to your “taste” use what you will. One of the best ways to see the differences is to open the same NEF file using Lightroom, (or Photoshop) and then open it in Capture NX2.

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Nikon Capture NX2 update 2.2.4

There’s a new Capture NX2 software update out for Mac users.

update Capture NX 2.2.4

You will need to have NX2 previously installed in order to update it. Support for Mac OSX v. 10.6.2 (Snow Leopard) and a few other bug fixes are addressed.

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