Buzz around the blogosphere this morning about Nikon’s announcement of the D80 digital camera.  At US$999.00 this is a great price point, and obviously a replacement for the D70/D70s series. From Maxwell’s site (Australian Nikon distributor):

The D80 features a new 10.2 effective megapixel DX Format CCD image sensor, bringing a new level of high resolution and sharp detail to the class while also providing plenty of freedom to crop creatively and print impressive enlargements. Nikon’s DX Format sensor and Nikon F bayonet lens mount design assure unprecedented compatibility across the comprehensive assortment of AF Nikkor lenses and DX Nikkor lenses designed exclusively for Nikon digital SLR cameras.

This looks like a sweet camera, with a 10.2 megapixel sensor, great autofocus and other great features.  For topside use, I reckon this would have to be high on the list for serious amateurs.

Underwater, I am not sure.  The SD card is a great storage technology, and probably better than CF as a technical design.  But the sizes of SD cards are limited, with 2GB about the top of the line available now (I know that 4GB have been announced, but I haven’t seen much availability yet).  OTOH, 8GB CF cards are available.  Not having to change cards as regulalry is a big thing for UW photographers, especially with the huge file sizes of the 10.2 megapixel images.

Not withstanding, the D80 should be a strong contender for anyone considering a first DSLR.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 10th, 2006 at 7:56 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.