PMA 2008: Nikon D60 explored plus image samples

[DPNow]

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Is the new Nikon D60 just a simple revamp of the D40x it replaces? Maybe not as under the skin there are many detail changes. But is it enough to kick the new Canon EOS-450D into touch? While you’re thinking about that, how about looking at some sample images we took at the Grand Canyon yesterday?

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[Stephen]

Originally Posted by DPNow

Here is a summary or excerpt from an article that has just been published on DPNow:

Is the new Nikon D60 just a simple revamp of the D40x it replaces? Maybe not as under the skin there are many detail changes. But is it enough to kick the new Canon EOS-450D into touch? While you’re thinking about that, how about looking at some sample images we took at the Grand Canyon yesterday?

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The pictures shown from this new Nikon really do seem good.

Shown at full screen even the one taken at ISO800 gives a great result, enlarged to 100% you can really see the quality of the APS sensors.

I looked also at the samples from the Lumix TZ5. Whilst they looked pretty good at normal viewing size, when enlarged to 100% they were not a patch on the ones from the Nikon. Now I accept we don't often need to view them at 100%, but the difference is there and even the shots at ISO100 show some cross hatching and deterioration in quality at 100%

For anyone in any doubt about the superiority of the dSLR over the small sensor digicams these are worth looking at for comparison.

[Ian]

The TZ5 shots were exclusively taken with the full Ai auto mode used. I'm particularly pleased with the chipmunk shot - the lens quality at full tele, plus the MegaOIS image stabiliser worked very well indeed. The chipmunk's white fur is indeed blown, but the overall result us still very good. The very fine detail observed at 100% is sometimes a bit busy as a result of the image processing, but all the test shots will print very well to 5x7 or 6x8, which is exactly the kind of size the target users will be aimiing for.

Incidentally, these sets of shots were taken on different days and we had more sun for the Nikon shots.

Ian