Last night, the UPS man delivered my new camera – a Nikon D800. After unpacking and taking the obligatory “photo of the new camera using the old camera,” I immediately began exploring the menus and taking test shots. With the exception of the auto-focus illumination lights being on, most things were set as if they had me in mind.
First shots were with a 50mm f/1.8 Nikkor lens, which felt more like a 70mm on my prior DSLR body with a DX sensor. I am so happy that I chose to spend the extra money (and time waiting) for the D800 instead of settling for the D7000. Though the D7000 is a very nice camera, it isn’t full-frame. I have missed full frame advantages since I started shooting with a DSLR in 2006.
Some additional shots of the D800 with my phone camera:
I am extremely impressed with this camera. I am sure that others can and will find defects, but it is such a giant leap in quality for me that I am less likely to notice any problems quickly. On the walk to work this morning, I took a few shots to get an idea of the resolution possibilities.
Here’s a shot to see resolution detail.
The full photo:
The actual pixels:
To me…this is amazing. I am excited to start shooting in even greater detail and even begin experimenting with HD video. I was scared at first to make such a large investment in a camera that I couldn’t even handle physically in a store, but so far this appears to be not just a great investment, but a source of so much fun for me.