Nikon Announces D7000 DSLR, 35mm/f1.4 AF-S, 200mm/f2 AF-S VR2, and SB-700 Flash

[szrimaging]

<p>Shun, I bet the AI/AIS metering is because of video. Since a lot of videographers use prime lenses with low "breathing" characteristics. Makes sense to me. And a huge plus for me.</p>

<p>Yep, this camera will be mine, has everything I need. My only complaints are buffer and it doesn't use the 10 pin connection from my D200. Minor complaints, and nothing to stop me from buying it.</p>

[wade_thompson]

<p>Wow, then I'm now convinced this new D7000 is a replacement for both the D90 and D300s.... with probably no D400 in the works.</p>

<p>Very interesting....</p>

[waltflanagan]

<p>Will the "D400" be DX or perhaps the "low" cost FX camera that many want? Some people prefer the DX crop over FX. Will Nikon continue to put their top of the line AF into a DX body? Of course no one here knows but I can see a scenario that the D7000 is the top DX body and then D400/D800/D4/D4X that are all FX.</p>

[wade_thompson]

<p>So, is this a fair comparison between the D300s and the new D7000<br /><strong>Measure D300s D7000</strong><br />Top ISO: 6400 vs 25,600<br />AF: EXCEL vs GOOD<br />VIDEO AF: FIXED vs ZOOMABLE<br />BODY: MAG vs MAG<br />FPS: 7 vs 6<br />BRACKTNG: GOOD vs POOR<br />AF: 51 (3D) vs 39</p>

<p>what else?</p>

<p> </p>

[randyhargraves]

<p>One of Chase Jarvis' crew members posted that he felt the D7000 is 1 stop better high ISO than the D90. If true that would mean usable 6400 which is on par with the D700. He did add that the "grain" pattern is a little tighter on the 7000 because of the higher pixel density. Also confirmed on the Nikon site that it has AF microadjustment. </p>

[emiliogtz]

<p>Wow, I'm impressed.</p>

[wade_thompson]

<p>I looked at the picture of the front of the camera and it looks like the D7000 does not have the M, S, C autofocus mode toggle switch that the D300 camera has. Looks like it just has "M" and "AF".</p>

<p>so, does that mean it does not continuously autofocus? if so, that kills it for pro sports.</p>

[jose_angel]

<p>Yes, it`s odd. Maybe it`s selectable via menu. The AF-ON mark (or button) is missing, too. <br /> Otherwise, it has a dedicated Live View button. I`d like to have it on my D700!</p>

[szrimaging]

<p>Wade, by reading the info on the site, sounds like if you use the 3D tracking mode for AF, then it would work the same as continuous. Good question though, and I could be wrong.</p>

[rossb]

<p>At the Nikon.com site the specifications list these AF functions: </p>

 

<li>Autofocus (AF): Single-servo AF (AF-S); continuous-servo AF (AF-C); auto AF-S/AF-C selection (AF-A); predictive focus tracking activated automatically according to subject status </li>

<li>Manual focus (M): Electronic rangefinder can be used </li>

[wenhan_xue]

<p>Hey, guys, I never mean to blame Nikon though lesson is leart at a price. But it's not the end of world. I stay with my decision and accept the consequence. In reality, the world is not perfect.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>Sorry Wenhan, I should clarify myself. You certainly did not blame Nikon, but Ilkka did as he always does.</p>

[Andrew Garrard]

<p>Ross - that was my assumption too; it seems to be the same as the 3100 et al. I have to say that the focus selector on the D700 is not in the most accessible place when you're holding a big telephoto in your left hand, so having it in a menu (and "intelligent") isn't such a bad thing. I suspect you still need the lever to make the screw disengage from an AF lens, otherwise it'd need to be moved electrically.<br>

<br>

Is it me, or is $1800 a bit steep for a fairly fast, slightly-wider-than-normal lens? (Compared with, say, the 50mm.) I could understand it of the 24mm and 28mm, but is shouldn't be so hard to design a decent 35mm that Nikon can charge that for it. Mind you, people say the same of Leica. Maybe the performance is stellar; who am I to judge? (The 200 f/2 is also extortionate, but at least that was expected.)</p>

[billfoster]

<p>I read somehwere that the continuous function is activated by pushing the center button of the Manual/Auto button and then turning a dial on the back.<br>

If so, that would be a huge relief because I change that damn m/f/c switch on my D700 about five times a night by accident. It's the only thing that really drove me crazy about the camera.</p>

[kenneth_cortland]

<p>Wow! This D7000 looks very interesting. I have a D90 now and was considering getting a D300s to use as a main camera (with the D90 as the back-up since I plan to stick with DX), but this new D7000 is can certainly fit my purposes with its specs.</p>

<p>The $1800 price tag on the 35mm f/1.4 AF-S is a little out of whack though given the 35mm f/2 AF-D is only $350 or so. Is one stop of light and a silent wave motor worth $1500? I think the price of this lens will drop big time pretty fast...say to around $1400 or so (priced slightly higher than the Canon version).</p>

[jose_angel]

<p>I can be wrong but I don`t expect a 35mm version of the 50AFS... at three times the cost it should be <em>the</em> reference lens, -far from the 50AFS, or from the 35/2-.</p>

[rossb]

<p>I think this camera should prove to be a big seller over all. Seems like an excellent introductory time for the Christmas stampede. It will be fun reading the upgrade threads that are to come. I can see the D90's and maybe some D300's going up for sale very soon. I just looked at BHPhoto and it looks like most of the DLSR camera's are out of stock. I suppose they are making the changes needed for the new models that should be coming soon.</p>

[dbcooper]

<p>Except for some wildlife and sports DX shooters, it looks to me like the D7000 is squarely a D300/300s killer. I skipped both D300 series cameras, since they weren't the quantum leap that my D200 was from a D70s. My FX is a D700, and it looks like I just found my next DX body. It should be a very brisk seller through the Christmas season. Used-gear buyers ought to be able to get good deals on D5000 and D90's shortly, so everybody wins. Gotta wonder how the D300s replacement will spec out. Canon 7D: <em>Hannibal ad portum!</em> :D</p>

<p>Glad I skipped the SB600 as well. IMO Nikon's sales text bytes went <em>way</em> over the top by describing the D7000's onboard flash as a Speedlight (talk about sound bytes!), but the SB700 looks great.</p>

<p>35mm is the perfect urban walk-around lens for me, especially in the evening. The extra stop for shallower DoF and AF-S is exciting, but gotta see how the IQ pans out. If all goes well, maybe in the spring after the price drops a bit. </p>

 

[wade_thompson]

<p>Bill F.,<br>

I laughed at your comment on accidentally switching the C/S/M autofocus on your camera when you are shooting. I do the same thing and I can't even "feel" it to see which position it is unless I whip the camera and lens around and actually see it.</p>

<p>Surely they could find a better place to mount that sucker.</p>

[nishnishant]

<p>For DX camera owners, getting this 35 mm 1.4 AF-S does not make any financial sense since the 35 mm 1.8 AF-S is only 200 bucks.</p>

<p>FX users will probably have better value for it, though it's still on the expensive side by a fair distance.</p>

[left_ayyones]

<p>Hmm, I wonder if the various sellers of used gear (Adorama, KEH, B&H etc.) are going to jack up their prices for AI/AI-S lenses now... Really, it still amazes me how much AI/AI-S lenses sell for as it is.</p>

[nishnishant]

<p>AI/AI-S lenses are all manual focus, correct?</p>

[left_ayyones]

<p>Yes, they are manual focus. There is a good summary of what the Nikon lens names mean here: http://www.nikonlinks.com/unklbil/nomenclature.htm</p>

[ilkka_nissila]

<p>Ai doesn't indicate manual focus; it refers to the method of aperture information transfer. Many AF Nikkors are also Ai in Nikon's nomenclature.</p>

[Andrew Garrard]

<p>As Ilkka says: it's not that AI lenses aren't AF, it's that all AF lenses are AI (-s). So a lens is AF if it says AF (or AF-I, or AF-S) on it, and if someone says AI then they're making the distinction by not saying AF. I learnt all this one day after buying my D700 and laughing at the claim that all Nikons are compatible with all Nikkors. (Canon threw everything out in 1987, but at least everything since just works. Plus side: I can buy useful Nikkors from the early 1980s. Minus side: so can everyone else, so they're not dirt cheap. As said, maybe AI lenses are about to get pricier, although I suspect the main market will still be film users and high-end DSLR owners who want weird stuff.)<br>

<br>

Wade - I have the opposite problem: I don't knock the focus mode selection on my D700 (my left hand's usually on the lens, too far forward), but I can never find it when I'm feeling for it. I certainly agree that it's hard to feel which position it's in.<br>

<br>

The toggle between M and AF physically moves the screw into and out of the mount, so it has to be on the front of the camera unless the whole thing was electrically operated (or kept the screw attached and had an electric clutch). Putting it under the right pinky would still be hard to see, but at least wouldn't involve moving your hands out of position.<br>

<br>

It's a similar problem to the ISO button - there's no point in giving me shooting controls for my left hand, it's busy holding the lens. It could be worse: Canon keep putting the DoF preview button on that side, and I never worked out what kind of grip you were supposed to have which would have made it possible to press. Actually, I once shot an entire roll of Kodak HIE with a fixed aperture I didn't want, because the button to change aperture in manual mode on an Eos 620 was in the same silly place (where I didn't spot it, after examining the camera for several minutes and even having used it in the past).<br>

<br>

Maybe the people who design camera bodies only ever use them with a normal prime on the front. If you're only testing the body, why carry around a 600 f/4? Well, now we know. It sounds as though Nikon might have listened to recent grumbling about it, though, so credit where it's due - shame it's taken a couple of decades.</p>