Nikon D300

Just as soon as the Canon 40D was announced, Nikon has announced the release of the new Nikon D300 and from the specifications; the Nikon seems to come out on top.

Here are the specifications

Type of Camera - Single-lens reflex digital camera

Effective Pixels - 12.3 million

Image Sensor - CMOS sensor, 23.6 x 15.8 mm; total pixels: 13.1 million; Nikon DX format

Image Size (pixels) - 4,288 x 2,848 [L], 3,216 x 2,136 [M], 2,144 x 1,424 [S]

Dust-reduction System - Clean image sensor, image dust-off data acquisition (Capture NX required)

Sensitivity - ISO 200 to 3200 in steps of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV with additional settings of approx. 0.3, 0.5, 0.7 and 1 EV (ISO 100 equivalent) under ISO 200 and approx. 0.3, 0.5, 0.7 and 1 EV (ISO 6400 equivalent) over ISO 3200

File System - Compliant with DCF 2.0, DPOF and Exif 2.21

Storage System

-NEF 12-bit or 14-bit (uncompressed, lossless compressed or compressed RAW)
-TIFF (RGB)
-JPEG: JPEG baseline-compliant

Storage Media - CompactFlash (CF) Card (Type I and II, UDMA compliant), Microdrive

Release Modes - 1) Single frame [S] mode 2) Continuous low speed [CL] mode: 1 to 7*1 frames per second 3) Continuous high-speed [CH] mode: 8 frames per second*1, 6 frames per second*2 4) Liveview [LV] mode 5) Self-timer [] mode 6) Mirror-up [Mup] mode

*1. When using AC Adaptor EH-5a/EH-5 or Multi-Power Battery Pack MB-D10 with batteries other than Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e
*2. When using Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e

(When shooting in Continuous-servo AF (C), Shutter-Priority Auto [S] or Manual [M] exposure modes, at a shutter speed of 1/250 s or faster with other settings at default)

White Balance - Auto (TTL white balance with 1,005-pixel RGB sensor), seven manual modes with fine-tuning, color temperature setting, white balance bracketing possible (2 to 9 frames in increments 1~3)

Liveview - Hand-held mode, Tripod mode

LCD Monitor - 3-in., approx. 920,000-dot (VGA), 170-degree wide viewing angle, 100% frame coverage, low-temperature polysilicon TFT LCD with brightness adjustment

Playback Function - 1) Full frame 2) Thumbnail (4 or 9 segments) 3) Zoom 4) Slideshow 5) RGB histogram indication 6) Shooting data 7) Highlight point display 8) Auto image rotation

Delete Function -Card format, All photographs delete, Selected photographs delete

Video Output - NTSC or PAL; simultaneous playback from both the video output and on the LCD monitor available

HDMI Output - Supports HDMI version 1.3a; Type A connector is provided as HDMI output terminal; simultaneous playback from both the HDMI output terminal and on the LCD monitor not available

Interface - Hi-Speed USB

Text Input - Up to 36 characters of alphanumeric text input available with LCD monitor and multi-selector; stored in Exif header

Lens Mount - Nikon F Mount with AF coupling and AF contacts

Compatible Lenses

1) DX AF Nikkor: All functions possible
2) D-/G-type AF Nikkor (excluding IX Nikkor lenses): All functions possible (excluding PC Micro- Nikkor)
3) AF Nikkor other than D-/G-type (excluding lenses for F3AF): All functions except 3D-Color Matrix Metering II possible
4) AI-P Nikkor: All functions except Autofocus, 3D-Color Matrix Metering II possible
5) Non-CPU AI Nikkor: Can be used in exposure modes A and M; electronic range finder can be used if maximum aperture is f/5.6 or faster; Color Matrix Metering and aperture value display supported if user provides lens data

Picture Angle - Equivalent in 35mm [135] format is approx. 1.5 times lens focal length

Viewfinder - SLR-type with fixed eye-level pentaprism; built-in diopter adjustment (-2.0 to +1.0 m-1)

Eyepoint - 19.5 mm (-1.0 m-1)

Focusing Screen - Type-B BriteView Clear Matte screen Mark II with superimposed focus brackets and On-Demand grid lines

Viewfinder Frame Coverage - Approx. 100% (vertical and horizontal)

Viewfinder Magnification - Approx. 0.94x with 50mm lens at infinity; -1.0 m-1

Autofocus - TTL phase detection, 51 focus points (15 cross-type sensors) by Nikon Multi-CAM 3500DX autofocus module; Detection -1 to +19 EV (ISO 100 at 20°C/68°F); AF fine adjustment possible

Focal plane contrast [in Liveview (Tripod) mode]

Lens Servo - Single-servo AF (S); continuous-servo AF (C); manual (M); predictive focus tracking automatically activated according to subject status in continuous-servo AF

Focus Point - Single AF point can be selected from 51 or 11 focus points

Liveview (Tripod mode): Contrast AF on a desired point within entire frame

AF Area Mode - 1) Single point AF 2) Dynamic Area AF [9 points, 21 points, 51 points, 51 points (3D-tracking)] 3) Automatic-area AF

Focus Lock - Focus can be locked by pressing shutter-release button halfway (single-servo AF) or by pressing AE-L/AF-L button

Exposure Metering System - TTL full-aperture exposure metering using 1005-pixel RGB sensor

1) 3D Color Matrix Metering II (type G and D lenses); color matrix metering II (other CPU lenses); color matrix metering (non-CPU lenses if user provides lens data; metering performed)
2) Center-weighted: Weight of 75% given to 6, 8, 10, or 13 mm dia. circle in center of frame or weighting based on average of entire frame (8 mm circle when non-CPU lens is used)
3) Spot: Meters approx. 3 mm dia. circle (about 2.0% of frame) centered on selected focus point (on center focus point when non-CPU lens is used)

Exposure Metering Range - 1) 0 to 20 EV (3D Color Matrix or center-weighted metering) 2) 2 to 20 EV (spot metering) (ISO 100, f/1.4 lens, 20°C)

Exposure Meter Coupling - Combined CPU and AI

Exposure Modes - 1) Programmed Auto [P] with flexible program 2) Shutter-Priority Auto [S] 3) Aperture Priority Auto [A] 4) Manual [M]

Exposure Compensation - ±5 EV in increments of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV

Auto Exposure Lock - Detected exposure value locked by pressing AE-L/AF-L button

Auto Exposure Bracketing - Exposure and/or flash bracketing (2 to 9 exposures in increments of 1/3, 1/2, 2/3 or 1 EV)

Picture Control System - Four setting options: Standard, Neutral, Vivid, Monochrome; each option can be adjusted

Shutter - Electronically-controlled vertical-travel focal plane shutter, 1/8,000 to 30 s in steps of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV, Bulb

Sync Contact - X=1/250 s; flash synchronization at up to 1/320 s (FP) adjustable with Built-in Speedlight or optional Speedlight (will reduce GN)

Flash Control

1) TTL: TTL flash control by 1,005-pixel RGB sensor, built-in Speedlight, SB-800, SB-600 or SB-400: i-TTL balanced fill-flash and standard i-TTL flash
2) AA (Auto Aperture-type) flash: Available with SB-800 used with CPU lens
3) Non-TTL Auto: Available with Speedlights such as SB-800, 28, 27, and 22S
4) Range-priority manual flash; available with SB-800

Flash Sync Mode

1) Front-curtain Sync (normal) 2) Red-eye Reduction 3) Red-eye Reduction with Slow Sync 4) Slow Sync 5) Rear-curtain Sync

Built-in Speedlight - Manual pop-up with button release

Guide number - (ISO 200, m): approx. 17 (manual 18)

(ISO 100 equivalent, m): approx. 12 (manual 13)

Flash Compensation - -3 to +1 EV in increments of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV

Accessory Shoe - ISO 518 Standard hot-shoe contact with safety lock provided

Sync Terminal - ISO 519 standard terminal

Creative Lighting System - With Speedlights such as SB-800, SB-600, SB-400, SB-R200, supports Advanced Wireless Lighting, Auto FP High-Speed Sync, Flash Color Information Communication, modeling flash and FV lock

Self-timer - 2 to 20 seconds duration

Depth of Field Preview - When CPU lens is attached, lens aperture can be stopped down to value selected by user (A and M mode) or value selected by camera (P and S mode)

Remote Control - Via 10-pin terminal or Wireless Transmitter WT-4 (optional)

GPS - NMEA 0183 (Ver. 2.01 and 3.01) interface standard supported with 9-pin D-sub cable (optional) and GPS Cable MC-35 (optional)

Supported Languages - Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish

Power Source - One Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e, Multi-Power Battery Pack MB-D10 (optional) with one Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL4a, EN-EL4 or EN-EL3e or eight R6/AA-size alkaline (LR6), Ni-MH (HR6), lithium (FR6) batteries, or nickel-manganese ZR6 batteries, AC Adapter EH-5a (optional)

Tripod Socket - 1/4 in. (ISO 1222)

Custom Settings - 48 settings available

Dimensions (W x H x D) - Approx. 147 x 114 x 74 mm (5.8 x 4.5 x 2.9 in.)

Weight - Approx. 825 g (1.82 lbs.) without battery, memory card, body cap, or monitor cover

Operating Environment - Temperature: 0-40°C/32-104°F, Humidity: under 85% (no condensation)

Supplied Accessories (may differ by country or area) - Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e, Quick Charger MH-18a, USB Cable UC-E4, Video Cable EG-D100, Strap AN-D300, LCD monitor cover BM-8, Body cap, Eyepiece Cap DK-5, Rubber Eyecup DK-23, Software Suite CD-ROM

Main Optional Accessories - Multi-Power Battery Pack MB-D10, Wireless Transmitter WT-4, Magnifying Eyepiece DK-21M, AC Adapter EH-5a, Capture NX Software, Camera Control Pro 2