There is no denying that the past few years have fantastic for Nikon as they have released some great cameras. In thinking ahead what do you think we will see in Nikon bodies 5 years from now? Are we going to see minor tweaks of existing technology or could there be something major on the horizon? It seems like this technology has matured somewhat and do we really want/need a body that delivers 30fps, 50 megapixels, and clean files at ISO 102,400? Just what might be lurking around the bend?
As amazing as that would be, I think it would kind of ruin the "art" of photography. It's a challenge to make good photographs with what we are given. Granted, a camera with 30fps, 50mp, and clean ISO files up to whatever ridiculous level still wouldn't guarantee good images, I think that it would make it quite a bit easier to get good pictures in bad situations, and I've always thought that the best photographers are those that can make a great picture in the worst of scenarios.
I imagine there will be a shift into FF on a major basis (though I don't want it to go that way). I predict the MP's will be curtailed and stay similar to the current setup (Between 12 AND 25mp). I think the ISO will get to clean at 50k +iso's. I predict several AF-S, nano coated primes and zooms. One big thing will be the addition of multi layer sensors and black silica used to develop them for super high sensitivities.
non optical finder, compact smaller bodies because of this, no moving parts (less of them), and no rear screen, better weather proofing, and longer battery life with the 1 minute full charge batteries...
I think that the software in cameras will improve much more, perhaps not in 5 years, maybe 10 or more. The metering will improve and i think that the minor pp will be handled in camera.
Iso will increase naturally, as technology improves and gets cheaper, more bodies will incorporate video mode. Larger, better and tilting screen for all. More smart buttons.
Perhaps in 15 years the 2.8 zooms will be faster, im thinking f2.
In five years processing power will be such that we may have the ability to take an image that has info for multiple depths of field so in post processing we can choose what to have in focus, or have in camera focus stacking.
An add noise function as a camera special effect .
As a people photographer, I wonder about the value of high ISO cameras. Isn't photography also about the lighting/ posing? Shooting in a church at high ISO using available (tungsten) lights that are mounted on the ceiling often results in dark shadows under the eyes. Also, fast write speeds are important for events. That is why the Fuji 5 was useless to me next to my D300. Maybe all of the amateurs will soon be shooting as good as the pros do now, further cutting into our business. Faster quality primes would be nice if they have contrast and don't flare.
lets go back five years when the question was asked then and look at what all has been accomplished in that time frame,, it seems the electronics side of life just continues to accelerate with little to no slowing down,,
in another five years our cell phones will probably be handling what most cameras are doing today with photographs and video,, flash will only be needed if your wanting to try special lighting effects, great ISO at 100,000,, the lens offerings has certainly lagged behind the camera goodies and will not change,, EVF will become the common place and hopefully the body size can be reduced while maintaining the same build quality,, flash cards of 50 to 100 G will be commonplace and low price,,
5 years is long enough for the D4, D5 and discussion about the D6, 3-4 updates to PhotoShop, 2 further operating systems after Windows 7 and even more new operating systems for Mac.
It is almost pointless to try project so far into the "electronic" future.
Oh I'm quite certain in 5 years we'll have 32mp FF cameras as plentiful as the 6-10mp cameras of today. The noise levels at ISO6400 will emulate ISO400. No doubt dynamic range will have increased considerably by then as well. Lets hope the lens offerings keep up. I also hope the prices of these toys will drop as well. $3,000-$5,000 a pop is a bit much for my budget to absorb on a regular basis.
The fact that crop bodies have become ubiquitous in the last 5 years, I think the APS-C sensor cameras will become the new bridge cameras and everything between them and point and shoots will fall off. Crop formats were really all there was 5 years ago, and today plenty of people (not me) refer to the D300 as a consumer or novice body. It seems that today, and crop format bodies are considered amateur. But with the proliferation of D40s and D90s in the mainstream, that sector will eventually be absorbed altogether. Thusly, most of the people here will be shooting FX bodies in 5 years. DX won't die, it will just shift to a different market, as it's already been doing.
Nikon and Canon used their entry level models to bring dSLR to the masses and now the masses want more.
As for the leaps in technology, protographers will benefit the most. I'm guessing that we'll be approaching the resolution and dynamic range of some of the very best 35mm film. AF will be even faster and more accurate, and ISOs will be cleaner and higher. Overall, we'll have a few sensors spread over more body styles and more choices, soft of like how if was with film.
In 5 years we may have variable dynamic range sensors with each photosite adjusting exposure: set the max and min limits, and the sensor will expose within; no more blown highlights, lost shadows.
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