After much speculation around the web for an update on the ground-breaking professional Nikon D3, the announcement has officially been made. The new full-frame FX formatNikon D3s rolls out sporting all the great things about the Nikon D3, and then some.
Image courtesy of Nikon USA
The most notable addition is the ability to shoot HD videos (at 720p only) much like the Nikon D300 to Nikon D300s upgrade. However, many internal improvements have been incorporated to the existing D3 such as:
- New 12.1MP, full-frame FX sensor
- In-cam crop of 1.2x (8.4MP, Selectable crop ratio of 2:3 or 5:4) and 1.5x (5.1MP) mode.
- Anti-Dust System
- New EXPEED processor
- Kevlar/Carbon Fiber Shutter Mechanism
- Increase RAW buffer to 48 images
- Base ISO reaching ISO 12800 and expanded ISO mode reaching an unprecedented ISO 102,400
- 9 frames-per-second (fps) in full-frame FX mode and 11fps at cropped DX mode.
- 720p HD video @ 24fps
- Auto-focus during movie recording
- Quiet shutter release mode
- In-camera RAW processing
- Price is set at GBP 4,000, USD 5,199 MSRP at the moment.
Visit the D3s/D3x Special Site here, featuring endorsements by Sports Illustrated photographer Bill Flakes, and wild-life photographer Vincent Munier. While the official Nikon D3s Product Page contains sample images for you to peek at, check out the full-resolution, high ISO shots.
Amazing camera to say the least. Expect Canon to announce their EOS 1D Mark IV within the next couple of weeks as well.
October 15th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
I've been waiting for this! I know it's coming. Read it here first, dude. Nice scoop.
October 19th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Why didn't they increase the Resolution? Isn't that valuable for the cropped DX mode?
October 19th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
I doubt a lot of D3/D3x users bother with DX lenses, to be honest. Just like the 1D series of Canon not supporting EF-S at all.
Increased resolution on a body for Nikon is traditionally suffixed by an "X" for extra resolution. While the suffix "H" is for high speed. Since the D3s added video, the "S" is now the suffix for a body added with video features, so it's just correct to assume that it stays the same, in terms of resolution as the D3 as the D3X is the one with higher resolution.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:03 am
New Samples!
http://gizmodo.com/5386429/nikon-d3s-hands-on-pho...