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Details at a glance
Megapixels: 10.1
LCD: 2.5 inch
Storage: SD / SDHC
Size: 132 x 103 x 77mmmm
Weight: 668g with battery
We clicked with
Huge sexy LCD, 10.2 lovely megapixels - quality!, The price, for what you get it's great value.
Shots in the dark
Takes SD cards only, Noise levels still high (although more grain than moiré), Battery life not as great as D70.
Links
More Nikon information
www.Nikon.co.uk
Price Comparison:
Nikon D80
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To say the Nikon D80 was anticipated with excitement, is to put it mildly. When the courier turned up with his small package (well it was cold) we had some idle chitchat but inside my head I was shouting: JUST GIVE ME THE BOX, HAND IT OVER - I WANT THAT NIKON NOWWWWWW!'
Ok it's out of the box, first impressions - where's the rest of it? It seems a tad on the small side, but it's actually only slightly smaller than the D70s and just 10g heavier but and it's a big but - this time we're talking 10.2 megapixels. Wow.
In the hand, it's a good weight and feels sturdier than it looks and due to those groovy ergonomics it's comfortable to hold.
The main control dial on the top and a wheel below allow easy access, as do the surrounding buttons which control metering, exposure compensation (a whopping +/- 5EV) drive and AF modes. Buttons to the left of the LCD control white balance, ISO as well as image quality and size.
The main mode dial, as you might expect is located on the top left and on the body there are manual, auto, modes (prog, ap priority & shutter priority) and exposure presets. The D80 is powered by a rechargeable Li-ion battery and accepts SD cards, including cards with capacities greater than 2GB for those that like to shoot first and ask questions later.
Sturdy seems to be the name of the game as the D80 has a very chunky eyepiece cup (DK-21) and an LCD cover made of tough plastic. I like this a lot, it gives much better protection than the thin peelable stuff you can get. If you're a bit gung-ho you can always buy a spare. Cool. The LCD by the way is up from 5.1cm to a gorgeous 6.4cm - it's like a big plasma for ants.
Before you start there's a bit of housekeeping to perform. In basic set-up mode you get to select the language, time & date and most importantly you must format memory cards the first time they're used. A nice touch is that if there's no card in the camera two icons appear - one in the top control panel and one in the viewfinder. In fact an E appears in the control panel even when it's switched off, so if you're packing your camera bag you won't be caught out. I tend to think of the 'E' as a friendly Northern hint as in: 'Eeeee let's put t' card in.' Another great feature is that if it all seems too complicated you can hide some of the menu items by plumping for the simple menu or create your own version (imaginatively called My Menu.)
There's an auto built-in flash which will only fire when the flash indicator is ready and not before, this could be a little irritating if you're a trigger happy bunny. Flash modes depend on the mode currently selected but there's a good choice including red eye reduction, off (ie. will not fire if the subject is, for example, back lit and glowy) auto, slow sync and rear-curtain. This latter option is nifty as it fires just before the shutter closes, this creates an effect of a 'stream of light behind moving subjects' well, that's what it says in the manual. Whoops nearly forgot the guide of the flash is 13 (@ 100 ISO) which is up from 11 and if you like to use a little fill, it appears (rather like the weather today) nice and crisp and even.
The ISO sensitivity can be selected by pressing the ISO button and rotating the main command dial as well as by adjusting info in the shooting menu. It's ok from 100 to 1600 but values over 1600 are displayed as H0.3 (ISO 2000) H0.7 (2500) and H1.0 (3200) - I bet there must be a good reason for this but I can't think of it. However, Auto and Digital Vari-prog modes offer an ISO auto - basically the camera automatically increases sensitivity when light is low/too bright. Good idea but it may impede on your creativity and if you don't learn by your mistakes how are you going to improve?
Talking of it going horribly wrong there's a two button reset that restores default values - custom settings are not affected.
There are six Digital-Vari program modes (portrait, landscape, close up, sports, night landscape and night portrait) and selecting one of these automatically optimizes settings to suit the selected scene.
I gave portrait and close up a go and it was ticketyboo.
The most notable changes are in the custom functionality and camera edit functions - which allow you to crop, re-size, add filters and even play around with layers. You can also create your own curves (due to a fondness for muffins, I've been doing this for years) and experiment with hues. This is great for an in camera tweak but obviously no substitute to la grande fromage that is Photoshop.
However, there's a great multiple exposure option which allows you take up to three images but the best bit is that the camera combines them - now this is worth the entry fee alone.
Like the D70s, the D80 includes Commander Mode (which I first misread as Commando mode, which sounded jolly exciting) and this lets you control compatible Nikon Speedlights without the need for a separate wireless trigger.
You could be forgiven for getting over-enthusiastic and shoot like there's no tomorrow, to counteract this you can literally get a grip. A dedicated MB-D80 vertical grip means no more reliance on third parties and this can hold up to 2x Li-ions or 6AA batteries (I guess that would be AAAAAAAAAA.) In the setup menu, you can view any remaining battery life as a percentage, as well as how many pictures have been shot since the last charge, this is all very good stuff. Although if you look at some forums there is a general consensus that the battery life is not as good as the D70.
Shooting is wonderful, it's just so speedy - even when shooting in raw. A quick check in the manual and there's apparently a shutterlag of 80 ms - crumbs. The D80 is great for animal work.
Also, well, it's not exactly a great technical point to make but it the D80 makes a really good camera sound when you take a shot. Try it you'll see what I mean.
It's a fast little mover and like the D70 it still shoots 3 fps but in continuous you can shoot up to a staggering 23 frames in jpeg or 6 in raw (great for fast animals, children and women.) It's little wonder that the AF areas have been increased but going from 5 AF areas to 11 is like fitting a jet engine to your bike.
The AF modes include an auto select option - which is a great timesaver if you're out and about, as it automatically selects single-servo AF when the subject is stationary, or continuous-servo when the subject is moving.
Noise wasn't noticeable until you get around ISO800+ and it's worth mentioning that there are three levels of noise reduction and when light is low the D80 has got an AF assist illuminator, which funnily enough is to 'assist in auto focussing' which is a thoughtful addition. When noise does rear its ugly head it's more like grain than moiré.
Camera specification
| Mega-pixels: |
10.2 |
Photo: | JPEG |
| Optical Zoom: |
n/a |
RAW: |
Yes - Neff |
| Digital Zoom: |
n/a |
Aperture: |
n/a |
| LCD: | 2.5 inch |
Focal Length: |
n/a |
| Dimensions: |
132 x 103 x 77mm |
Shutter speed: |
30 - 1/4000s + bulb |
| Weight: |
668g with battery |
Exposure: |
ISO 100 to 1600 + Hi 0.3 - 1 giving up to 3200 |
| Storage: |
SD / SDHC |
Movie: |
No |
| Battery: |
Lion |
Microphone: |
No |
| Interface: | USB 2.0 |
PictBridge: |
Yes |
