Hara: "And our conceptual foundation was to provide high image quality in a compact body similar to the D700, one that had to handle well, given that it would be used by professionals and advanced amateurs: not a big body like a medium-format camera, but one capable of the mobility typical of a D-SLR camera. Some may think that the D800 is the successor to the D700, but we were looking to bring the world a whole new category of camera."
Unlike most D4 interviews where they constantly compare it to the D3s and the improvements or progression considered, the D800 was NEVER ONCE mentioned as an upgrade to the D700.
They don't even proceed to say stuff like, "so to improve the D700 further, we implemented blah blah blah" or "unlike the D700, we have enhanced its image quality blah blah".
They have asserted very clearly, it IS NOT the successor to the D700 and you may be compelled to feel that way, but it ISN'T... just as how some perceived the D3x was intended to replace the D3 as well. You wouldn't argue against that now.
I believe Nikon has made it very clear; the D800 is a whole new category of camera. Btw, having you believe its the successor to the D700 is a great marketing strategy because it deceives the upgrade further. But lets get real, they weren't thinking of the D700 when creating this bad boy.
In Japan, the D800 is the D700 replacement since the D700 cannot be sold there any longer. The Japanese domestic market is an important market for Nikon, don't you think?
Yes, but there has been rumor and\or suggestion that this is temporary ... perhaps there is a simple fix? Or perhaps the gap won't be all that long? I'd bet the original plan, disrupted by the earthquake floods, was to have the D4 and D800 out earlier, and the D700 replacement out later before the new law went into effect.
So far, there are no indications that another FX format camera is forthcoming from Nikon.
When? Now? Next year? Ever? Well, there has been rumor on a few things .... like an entry level FF, a FF D400, and of course a D700 replacement. Many hints on a D700 replacement, even post D800. Normally I would not expect to see a D700 replacement until 12 months after the D4, but who knows ... the battery issue may force the issue.
Nikon has confirmed that pre-orders for its new semi-pro full-frame DSLR, the Nikon D800, have been better than expected.
Even Amazon shows the D800 as the #1 selling camera right now (as of 03/13/2012 ), pretty impressive considering all the cameras available. The Canon 5D III is #12. The fact that Nikon still holds a considerable lead on Amazon over the Canon was a surprise to me.
Techradar also mentioned: According to Nikon, it doesn't replace the D700, but rather sits alongside it in a new category that seems to be pretty squarely aimed at medium format users and portrait photographers.
Here is yet again another source indicating the D800 is NOT a replacement for the D700 and still gives me hope that an updated D700 is coming
patriot wrote:
Yes, but there has been rumor and\or suggestion that this is temporary ... perhaps there is a simple fix? Or perhaps the gap won't be all that long? I'd bet the original plan, disrupted by the earthquake floods, was to have the D4 and D800 out earlier, and the D700 replacement out later before the new law went into effect.
When? Now? Next year? Ever? Well, there has been rumor on a few things .... like an entry level FF, a FF D400, and of course a D700 replacement. Many hints on a D700 replacement, even post D800. Normally I would not expect to see a D700 replacement until 12 months after the D4, but who knows ... the battery issue may force the issue....Show more →
Rumors? Temporary? From what source? I have not heard anything about this from any of the usual sources.
Look up "forthcoming" in the dictionary. I used in the context of meaning "about to appear" or "imminent".
According to NR the D700 is being listed as discontinued. So there is potentially a FX hole to fill below the D800 and above the impending "D400" if it's DX. If the D400 is FX, then it will likely fill this hole I would think.
One can hope! I use high ISO quite a bit, but don't need so many MP, so a D700-sized, lower MP, low noise at high iso body would be great!
jhinkey wrote:
...the impending "D400" if it's DX. If the D400 is FX, then it will likely fill this hole I would think.
I've never shot with a D300/s but I know a few who do and prefer the 1.5x crop factor, I would be shocked if the D400 ends up being an FX, I think Nikon still needs a pro style 1.5x crop body.
At some point Nikon is going to have to rethink it's naming strategy because we are already running out of 100's. What will the next generation D800 be? The D900? And then what?
I would really like them to follow the model of Mercedes or BMW. Let's put in the size of the MP, and classify the AF engine or other components. A Mercedes C230 is a "C" Class and has a 2.3 litre engine, the BMW 535 is a "5" series with a 3.5 litre engine, a 535x indicates it's an all wheel drive and so forth. Nikon could do a D836e indicating it is an "800" series with a 36MP sensor and the enhanced Multi-CAM 3500 AF engine. Maybe I'm wrong but it just seems that we are going to run out of hundred series soon and then what? In 30 years are we going to have a D14 instead of a D4? I don't know but that sounds kinda lame
I went through a rash of upgrades in 2009 when I got my 5DII, primarily a NAS that could saturate a GiGE network so I could keep the large raw files on it and a faster CPU for the video processing. Lightroom2 handles the 22mpix files pretty easily on my somewhat oldish quad core AMD Phenom. I doubt the 36mpix will slow it down much.
When I went from my 20D to 5DII, I did not notice that much slow down to begin with. LR3 and 4 promise significant speedup so I think (hope) that will make the 22 -> 36mp a non issue for me and maybe for most people whose PC handled 5DII files. Best to wait and see how bad the 36mp is going to be before pre-emptively upgrading your PC. Maybe moving up to a SSD for the main drive is all most people will need.
For quickly focusing on fast moving kids, I find the 51pt 3D, with the Center AF for initial acquisition to be the best option. Any other mode, I tend to waste time using the dial to reposition the AF point (In this one thing, I find the Canon joysticks to be more quicker to use than the Nikon choice) for better comps. I am really looking forward to seeing how much they improved tracking. That with the -2ev AF, F8 AF, better exposure and 36mpix of cropping goodness with video (with Audio levels so I can forego my clunky zoom recorder) when needed is a killer upgrade for me.
wjmeyer wrote:
I would be shocked if the D400 ends up being an FX, I think Nikon still needs a pro style 1.5x crop body.
+1 to that.
wjmeyer wrote:
Maybe I'm wrong but it just seems that we are going to run out of hundred series soon and then what?
From what we know so far, a new "hundred" is needed every four years: D300/D700 in 2008, D400/D800 in 2012 (expected), therefore probably D500/D900 in 2016. A neat way to understand which is the current DX and FX body from here until 2020, which is when they'd be scheduled to release a camera that had run out of hundreds. A naming scheme that has another 8 years of juice in it does not seem too bad an idea... sure it could be changed, but it doesn't need to be changed for a long time yet.
