A common expression used by many of us from time to time is, of course, “they don’t make them like they use to.”
Well, it seems this is not the case with Nikon. Nikon has been teasing all us photographers with a newly designed camera — a camera that some of us would remember from back in the day. We remember how they felt in your hand, the size, the noise the shutter made, and not to mention the cool look they had back then.
Well folks, the wait is over.
Nikon recently unveiled its latest and greatest addition to a rich history of cameras, the Nikon DF.
Now I’m not going to spew out all the specs for you, you can figure that part out for yourselves quite readily, but I’m sure you will be quite impressed. I will, however, tell you why I think it’s a good move to produce this type of machine, and what I like about it.
First of all, it does not double up and do video. Nikon’s intent with this unit was aimed, as I am to understand, to the purist of photography. There are not bazillions of functions and menus, dials and screens to flip through to take a good shot. So, in essence, they have redesigned the old style, well proven film cameras, and brought them forward to modern times meaning that you have a true, tried and tested piece of gear intended for those serious about taking photos, and not video.
One of the many features I’ve always questioned about all other models is the inability to take just about any lens from previous designs and models and use it on the new bodies.
Well guess what? This new design is capable of using a wide range of lenses, old and new. The mount can be changed to adapt to many lens types made for Nikon, and you don’t have to spend a fortune. So hang on to that old glass, it’s all new again! I simply love that about this new camera.
There is an argument about the price of this unit being a little high when you consider that it has no video ability, when for a few bucks more you can buy one that “has it all,” so to speak.
This is true, but I really think this unit is now in a class of its own, more so for the serious photographer, who wants a high-end, well-managed piece of kit. It is designed to take awesome pictures in the hand of a serious enthusiast or advanced photographer.
Its specifications, as you will find out, allow you to work in low light environments with the excellent results expected from a pro unit, and do all the hard and often demanding shots that a pro unit should and can do.
What you’re not getting in features such as built-in video, musical presentation and garage door openers, you get in high-quality, professional imagery, which is, after all, what a still camera should always do.
So who wants to buy this camera versus an all-bells-and-whistles type camera?
Well I, for one, am quite interested in this unit. And yes, I hear what you’re all thinking: “Blasphemy from the mouth of a pro Canon user! What is the world coming to?”
I don’t have video on my existing camera. I have a video camera for video. And I don’t want a dozen ways to adjust my ISO settings from numbers Lo 1 or 2 etc., or all the crazy PhD-required skill sets to change the settings on my camera.
What I need is the ability to adjust the basics, do it fast, work in tough conditions and hard-to-do situations. If I am going to impress anyone, it should be with the final image I made, and not with a burst rate of a gazillion frames per sec, or some Hubble-sized lens dangling at the end of my camera body.
I need to manage what I call the photography trinity (ISO, f-stop, and shutter speed) coupled with a sensor worthy of those tough situations like low light, and quick response shots as is often required. I don’t need all the rest of the stuff that’s often loaded in today’s many cameras, Canon included.
I am anxious to get my mitts on one, try it out for a day, and let you all know if I am either a convert, or one that has been let down on expectations.
Chuck Swinden is a professional photographer and photography instructor at Rodenas Photography. For more information, visit www.rodenasphotography.com.
