Photography News 13

Camera review

NikonD750 Nikon’s third full-frame DSLR of the year tried and tested ON TEST

Words and pictures by Will Cheung

SPECS

STREET PRICE £1799 body only CONTACT www.nikon.co.uk SENSOR 24.3 megapixels, CMOS, 35.9x24mm IMAGE SIZE 6016x4016 pixels ISORANGE 100-12,800, expandable to ISO 50-51,200 AUTOFOCUSMODES Single, continuous, AF- A. 51 AF points, 15 cross- type sensors. AF area mode – single point AF, 9-, 21- or 51 dynamic area, 3D-tracking, group area AF, auto area AF EXPOSURE COMPENSATION +/-5EV in 0.3, 0.5 steps. Bracketing 2-9 frames in 0.3, 0.5. 0.7 and 1EV steps. 2-5 frames in 2 or 3EV steps SHUTTER 1/4000sec-30secs, Bulb, Time, flash sync at 1/200sec METERING Uses RGB sensor with 91,000 pixels. Matrix, centre-weighted, highlight-weighted, spot 1% of the frame EXPOSUREMODES PASM, effects, scene, green square auto, auto flash off SHOOTING SPEEDS 6fps in continuous high, 3fps in quiet continuous mode. Mirror-up and self-timer LCD SCREEN 3.2in TFT LCD, 1229k dot resolution. 100% coverage STORAGE Twin SD slots, SD, SDHC, SDXC DIMENSIONS (WXHXD) 140.5x113x78mm

The Nikon D750 is priced at £1799 body only and slots in between the entry-level full-frame D610 and the high resolution D810. It has a specification to tempt those photographers thinking of moving up from an APS-C DSLR sensor or those wanting a backup camera to their existing full-frame DSLR. Whether it will tempt D600/D610 owners to upgrade we’ll have to wait and see. Given its positioning, it’s no surprise that the D750 shares some features with its sister models but there are key differences too. It has the same 24.3-megapixel resolution as the D610 albeit with a different sensor but its ISO range tops out at 51,200, identical to the D810. The D750’s AF system has 51 points with 15 cross-type, the same as the D810 and more than the D610’s 39 points with nine cross-type. Greater sophistication is also seen in the meter where the D750 and D810 use the identical 91,000 pixel RGB sensor compared with the D610’s 2016 pixel sensor. One key difference compared with both of its sisters is the D750’s tilting monitor. Handling-wise the D750 shares many of the long-established aspects of Nikon DSLR design including the menu structure as well as physical traits. For example, the exposure compensation button and metering pattern selector are adjacent to the shutter release while the nearby movie record button can be reassigned to adjust ISO, among other options.

BELOW Shooting in contrasty situations can be challenging for the D750 (and every other camera). In this JPEG original Nikon’s Active D-Lighting set to Extra High was used and that helped bring out some shadow detail. The Raw file had plenty of information so recovering more highlights and shadows is straightforward enough.

there’s no doubt on this one. More than 1000 shots taken, mostly in Matrix and aperture-priority AE modes, and very, very few total rejects. The failures (the Raws at least) could still be recovered to some degree in processing. Shooting into the sun and very dark subjects provided the usual headaches but nothing that couldn’t be easily remedied with compensation or the exposure lock. The most extreme situation was a sunset and having the sun in frame caused at least 3EV underexposure of the foreground but the conditions were extreme and any camera would need help (and grad filters!) to cope.

The left top-plate is dominated by the exposure mode and drive controls, the latter offering a maximum shooting rate of 6.5fps and it also has quiet shooting too. Handling, I found assured, straightforward and, importantly, with a relatively shallow body and large handgrip, the D750 is very comfortable to hold and that aids security and stability. Performance, as with handling, is more than acceptable and I got consistently high-quality shots with minimal manual intervention. Using a 91,000 pixel RGB sensor, you would expect exposure metering to be accurate and

WEIGHT (INC BATTERY AND CARDS) 840g

With a relatively shallowbody and large handgrip, theD750 is very comfortable to hold

Photography News | Issue 13