I've spent my entire photographic life shooting Canon. And throughout that 25 years I've rubbed shoulders many times with photographers wielding Nikon cameras. It was a source of endless banter as the two giants of professional photographic equipment traded the lead in technology – in the beginning it was autofocus, ergonometry, frame rate and then sensor quality. Nikon and Canon took turns leading the advances and their duel just meant we kept getting better and better equipment. Each new advancement well and truly exceeded my expectations and when Nikon made a leap I cringed when shooting alongside my Nikon wielding friends. When Canon advanced the tech then I looked for those same Nikon photographers to return a little banter.
These days we have Sony well and truly in the frame with their mirrorless tech and possibly some day we might all be heading into the world of mirrorless thanks to them. For me, looking through a prism for the past 25 years, I'm going to find that a hard one to shake. So when the team at Nikon New Zealand called up and offered me a chance to test out their latest full-frame high-resolution Nikon D850, my initial thoughts were, no chance. But curiosity – that squeaky wheel in my mind that has so often proved to be the font of good things – won over. What was to lose? I could test the Nikon gear and then ring my mate Watto in Aussie and tell him how far ahead Canon was.
Learning a new camera is like learning a new language. The Sony A9, while impressive in its own ways has a cryptic operating system with very little reference to intuition. Nikon's operating system makes sense, but the lenses focus and zoom backwards and ergonomically are about as opposite to the Canon setup as you can get. So to get to grips with the D850, and to be fair to the test, I have to get comfortable with it.
This week I shot the entire Box of Light with the Nikon D850 (yep, that's every picture below). It's in the same space as the Canon 5Ds that I use. I should note that while I love the Canon 1DX, and I know its Nikon stablemate, the D5, is of similar Formula 1 spec, I prefer the higher resolution that's made possible by the 5Ds (50MP) and D850 (45.7MP). That basically means that if someone wants to make a billboard from one of my images then we can do that.
So after a week with the D850 what did I learn? Well, some of the best review sites consider it the best DSLR available for stills right now. I found it cack-handed to use, but mainly because I'm still learning its language. It surprised me in a few other ways. It feels like a pro camera – responsive, minimal shutter lag and a mirror slap that is consistent and confidence inspiring.
The proof is always in the processing – that's where the devil lives – right there in the detail. I have to say the detail in the D850 files is extraordinary. I've always loved the 5DSR files, but there is something overwhelming about the success rate (the number of shots that are useable) and the quality of the pixels in each of those out of the D850. Is it enough to turn? I'm not sure, but I'm more curious than I have ever been.
See you at the beach ... Derek
PS Last chance for print orders for Christmas. Last orders need to be in by December 10. Check out the options right here and starting from $49.
Proudly supported by:
