Today the D3 went on sale in the US and I was one of the first to get it in AZ.

I quickly sat down for a few photos to compare iso noise with my D200 and I'm blown away by it. It even seems better than my Mark III, but I'll be doing a full test with a friend in a few weeks to compare the D3 and the Mark III cameras.

Here are some images to check out:

The lighting setup. It is meant to be poor lighting to see how much color noise the photos have in dim lighting.
All files are cropped to 100% and are jpegs straight from the camera.

The setup:


D3 1600ISO


D200 1600ISO



D3 3200ISO


D200 3200ISO (high 1.0)



ONLY D3 below

D3 5000ISO


D3 6400ISO



Just from a quick glance, the camera does amazing up to 5000iso. At 6400iso it starts to get really blocky and shows more color noise.
I'm stoked to use it at my rainy wedding tomorrow since we'll need to do more indoor photos.

Hope this was helpful!

Wow... that looks great! I wish I could justify a $5000 camera...

I was going to get one too... but couldn't justify the cost at the end of the year.

Got my D300 though and LOVE IT! So happy to be back with Nikon!

Anyway - congrats on getting the Best DSLR on the market!

OMIGOOOOOOOODNESS..

I just squealed outloud. I can't handle this. I need one.

NOW.


Ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!


Thank you for posting this!

hugs!

I was playing with a D3 today at the store, it's an amazing camera... wait did I just say that out loud (being a Canon guy and all). Enjoy!!!

John

I just fell in love with AUTO ISO! It's a way better implimentation than on the Canons. I set the highest ISO setting for it to use and the lowest shutter rate that it can use. And I can even use it in Manual mode (no possible on a Canon)!

And if I were to overexpose an image, it drops the ISO too!

LOVE the step-by-step comparisons! Thanks

Sweet stuff JT... thanks for sharing!
Where did you get it?
Did you get any of the new lenses too?

Who cares about the photos...... I love your little smiley nikon face!!!

Thanks for posting the D200 comparison shots - the difference between the two cameras is amazing and the auto ISO feature sounds great too. Can't wait to get ours!

We need a ::wiping drool:: smiley!

LOL! You could of purchased two 5D's.

Or a 5D and a 24 or 35 1.4L. Even a 50 1.2L.

I can't imagine shooting at 3200+ ISO in the land of the sun: AZ

I am waiting for mine to arrive!!!


Here are some more examples upto ISO 26,500

Also, look on Mike Colón Blog

Yeah I could have, but it doesn't even compare. And for the record I do have a Mark III which I believe performs better than a 5D. But I'll be selling it after the Canon Recall repair because this D3 already shows better performance.

Haven't you ever been inside those wonderfully lit catholic churches that don't allow flash. No more worries for me.

Unreal, JT. Thanks for the awesome preview. I just got the D300 and I'm already seeing HUGE differences in ISO performance over D200. I shot in a shaded alley at ISO 640... looked like daylight with no discernable noise! And white balance seems to be better as well.

Wowsers.... Nikon came back with a killer set of cameras.

I agree Shane. BTW - did you get the grip for it too?
I just picked up my grip and LOVE IT! It feels like a D2x with the grip on it. And 8FPS with AA batts is amazing!

No grip yet... workin' on it.

Oh man, you're going to love it. I had a D200 w/ grip and returned the grip, I hated it. This grip is wonderful. Are you needing a good place to purchase? I've got connections here in MN and they match B&H pricing.

Dude thats so cool JT. Jen and I really wanted to get the D3 but we got the D300 and its awesome!!! Hoping to get one more in a few months. Thanks for the pics showing the difference between the D200 and the D3. Very Cool!!!!

Stewart C.

OK, somebody with a D300 & D200 do the same comparison. Do it now!

Before I run out to buy a D3!

I do not have a D200 (just switched back to Nikon from Canon).
All I can say is the D300 IQ compares with the Canon 5D / 30D that I owned. The 5D may have a nudge better detail, but at print sizes it isn't noticeable. But the D300 (and of course the D3) has a much better build, AF sensor, controls, feel, heft etc...

But comparing it to what I remember of my D200, this cam is at least a stop to a stop and a half better with noise levels.
Resolving power seems to equal the D2x imo.

You'd be really happy with a D300 but even happier with the D3.
I plan to get a D3 in time for next wedding season.

I can post some snaps I've done around the house if you like.

HOLY SH^T...HUGE DIFFERENCE! Thanks for the comparison photos!

Right, but I could be happy with 2 D300's, grips, extra batteries, another SB800, and $500 in the bank for the price of the D3.

JT,

That's just the kind of comparison I've been looking for. Something real world. Thanks man. I get the call soon saying mine is in.

E

That was my reasoning for waiting too.
Although, I only have 1 D300 w/grip - but because I just switched back I had to get all new lenses. Plus I need to take care of family stuff too.
Prudence!

Yeah, seriously, I want to know...What do you do when you have on a 1.8 lens on ISO 1000 and the shutter speed is still 1/30th or less??Haven't you ever been inside those wonderfully lit catholic churches that don't allow flash. No more worries for me.[/quote]Can you do some side by sides with the D200?

I would buy the D3 if you have the cash. But the D300 is great too.

THe 5d tests vs d300 show the 5d superior, but better color goes to the d300. See www.Kenrockwell.com for lots of tests.

The other big deal about the D3 is the dual card slots, that and the noise and the autofocus combined with the active D lighting make it well worth 5k. Imagine a lost card and refunding a wedding makes it more of a value. I was number 2 on the list at my favorite camera store and they got only 1 d3. I'm jealous!

We walked in to our favorite store today and I had to drag Amanda out before she bought the D3 they were going to sneak us. I'm not allowed to tell you the discount they offered Man it was hard not to take it on the spot!!

Just curious!!

Dont tell us the discount amount then, just tell us the total price of the camera?!?!?

A yard short of 5k.


We shop this store all the time and the sales force is allowed to give some discounts to customers they like It's nice living next door to a national retailer.

I've preordered one too... and your post has made me so very happy! I was on the fence as to which to buy. I'm glad I went with the D3

Did you know that I have a soft spot in my heart for turtles?
It's true. Painted turtles are my favorite.

And I feel that turtles owe me a little gratitude for my kindness to them, don't you?

So, how's about you share your D3 with me... remember, my kids need socks.

























j/k - I am envious but will have one of my own within a few (hopefully short) months. Congrats!

ok, just arrived back to the studio from my wedding today. The camera was amazing! I love the dual Compact Flash slots. I had a 2GB card that shot small JPEGs all day for use in the slideshow. No more downloading of all of the cards, or having to carry around an SD card reader like you would have to do with the Mk III.
And I shot high iso for much of the day because it was rainy all day long. No flash during the ceremony, NO WORRIES!

The biggest and next test will be seeing how Lightroom performs with this new camera. Lightroom has never been a great processor for Nikon raw files. It just doesn't seem to be as dialed in, but I'm hoping they worked with Nikon a bit on this since they had support for it before Nikon even released the camera.

It's time for bed, but I'll be posting the slideshow once it is on.

That's awesome JT! Can't wait to see the files.

FWIW - you may want to look at using Phase One's Capture One v4 (I think it is in Beta still). Totally free download and it supports the D3 and does a great job on Nikon files.

Can you shoot RAW to 1 card and small JPG's to the other at the same time??

This is interesting, especially as the Rockwell review basically pans the D300 as having unacceptable built in NR at higher ISOs...another reason to get the D3. Just hafta keep saving I guess...

Nice JT! There is still good detail even at iso 5K, very impressive.
The Canon primes are still a major factor for me but man am I glad Nikon has stepped it up! Hopefully this rattles some cages at Canon so they get off their butts and do something better than the MkIII (I'm totally not impressed with that camera, come on- 1.3 crop, 10mp and faulty AF?! No thanks!). Maybe the reason Canon is taking so long with the 5D replacement is the make it more of a pro model to compete where the MkIII fails?
Looks like the d3 will be pulling some people back to Nikon and making many loyal Nikon users very happy!

Yes, that is what I did. I just left a 2gig card in the jpeg slot the whole day. It made it much easier to download the the jpegs to my laptop.

Thanks JT, I might have gotten mine by now, but when I heard about the cash back deal through Jellyfish.com, I reoredered through Ritz. The deal may have been ledit or not, but I dont have a wedding until next year, so I dont really care.

Well, I DO, but you know what I mean

PS Keep your tips coming, we appreciate them!

Yeah, TOTALLY, JT!!! Thanks!

P.S. I ordered my D3 from B&H this morning and I ordered a 12-24 on Friday. Supposedly they'll arrive one day this week!

Oh, one more thing I wanted to ask while we are on the subject...

Since the D3 has great ISO performance at the high end [ to say the least ] , would you recommend the VR version of the 70-200 2.8, or just go with the regular one? I have never used either one of them so I dont know about sharpness comparisons.

Nikon does not make a 70-200 f/2.8 without VR.

They make an 80- 200 2.8 or at least you can still find them around.

First of all - CONGRATS JT! That is awesome my man! I'm a little late to the game but not to late to share how stoked I am for you dude!

I absolutely LOVE the images I've been seeing from the D3 and I can't wait to see some of the stuff you shoot with it.

One of my classmates (did I share with you guys that I'm in class?) just received his D300. I haven't been crazy about the high ISO images I've seen so far BUT he shot a few at 6400 ISO and I fell in love.

So, now I'm a convert on the D300 as the 6400 ISO images w/out noise reduction were wonderful. Yes, they needed a little noise reduction but they looked like my D70's ISO 800 images.

Again my friend CONGRATULATIONS as there are several features of the D3 besides low noise that you will find incredible! Don't forget to share your images from your rainy day wedding as they will be awesome!

JT,

I've been following this thread for a couple of days now; and I'm really excited for you. We're looking at two of these puppies before the next wedding season kicks off. Got a D300 and it is great, but I really think the D3 is that much better. I'm also really interested in the comparisons that you are doing. Thank you very much for sharing with us.

Richard

+1 - I'd love to have 2 of these babies by next wedding season. How much larger/heavier is the D3 compared to the D300?

From the reviews I've been gleaning off the web, if you have the MB-D10 grip on the D300, then the difference is negligible. Without the grip, then the D3 is about a pound heavier. (pretty noticable over the course of a wedding)

Ok then, between the 80-200 2.8 and the 70-200 2.8 VR???

There is a D3 sitting behind the counter with our name on it. Amanda is wearing me down. Pleas help!!

Buy it and sell it to me. I can't find one in stock!