Pixiq

When the Nikon Corporation announced the introduction of the D7000 back in September last year, it turned out not to be the long-anticipated replacement for the venerable D90 but an entirely new model, to occupy a place in the Nikon D-SLR line-up somewhere between it and the flagship D300s.

Design

Such is the pace in development of modern digital cameras that a quick look through the specification of the D7000 will raise more than a few eyebrows when comparing it to the specification of the D300s, which was launched barely a year before. Key features of the D7000 include a new 16.2MP CMOS DX sensor, which is fabricated by Sony from a design specification developed by Nikon, giving the camera the second highest resolution in the Nikon D-SLR range behind the professional, FX-format D3x, new TTL metering and AF sensors with the highest pixel count of such sensors used in any previous Nikon SLR camera, an expanded ISO range of 100-6400 (extendable to 25,600 in Hi2 setting), and full HD 1080p (24 fps) video. Add to this the 100% viewfinder frame coverage, 3-inch LCD monitor screen, 1/8000s shutter speed, 6fps continuous shooting speed, dual SD memory card slots, plus a built-in sensor cleaning mechanism, and it's easy to see how the D7000 seems to cast something of a shadow over the D300s.

The camera offers a very wide range of exposure modes, from full manual control through the familiar semi-automated aperture-priority and shutter-priority options, to a plethora of dedicated ‘point-and-shoot’ scene modes. For the first time on a Nikon D-SLR there is the ability to save and recall two sets of shooting settings, via the U1 and U2 positions on the Mode dial. The built-in flash will cover the angle of view of a lens with a focal length of 18mm and supports the features of the Nikon Speedlight (flash) Creative Lighting System, including wireless remote control of compatible Speedlights, such as the SB-900 and SB-700. The D7000 uses Expeed 2 an enhanced version of Nikon’s in-camera image-processing regime. It not only helps to support the video functionality of the camera, including its HD (1920 x 1080 pixel) resolution and use of the H.264/MPEG-4 codec, but also boosts image-processing speed while contributing to improvements in stills picture recording in respect of better noise reduction, smoother tonal gradation, and greater color fidelity. 

Finally, the D7000 has clearly been built to last, with its magnesium-alloy body shell and chassis, extensive sealing against the ingress of dust and moisture and robust shutter mechanism that is tested to at least a 150,000 cycles.

Handling

In general handling is very good, with the magnesium alloy top and rear panels imparting a very solid feel to the camera, which is enhanced by the thick rubberized grip around the right side of the outer body. Some users may find the small size of the D7000 a little awkward when it comes to operating some buttons and dials; for example, I have found using the AF lock button when shooting with the camera held vertically very difficult due to its proximity to the viewfinder eyepiece. Another potential handling foible concerns the Mode dial, located on the top left (as viewed from behind the camera) of the body, which has a high profile. On several occasions it turned inadvertently while carrying the D7000 over my shoulder; it really needs a locking mechanism.

That said, there are several aspects of the D7000 design that have enhanced camera handling and operation over previous models in this class, including the arrangement of the release mode selector switch with dedicated lock button, set around the base of the exposure mode dial. The D7000 offers a full range of shutter release options, with single, continuous-low, continuous-high, a quiet shutter release that separates the lifting of the reflex mirror and shutter operation from the lowering and re-cocking of the shutter, self-timer, remote control via the Nikon ML-L3 infrared remote release, and a proper two-stage mirror lock-up facility.

The one-touch, “flick” style switch to active Live View and its central on/off button for video recording has been migrated straight from the D3100. It is a very ergonomic solution to accessing Live View and controlling video recording. Another small but very useful modification is the method of setting AF settings via the new style AF mode button located at the centre of the focus mode selector switch, which places all selection of the AF modes, and AF-area modes via a single button in conjunction with the rear and front command dials.

The remote control of the camera has been expanded, with sensors for the ML-L3 IR remote release on the front and rear of the camera; it is also possible to use the mirror lock-up feature via ML-L3. The camera accepts the Nikon MC-DC2 remote release cable and Nikon GP-1 GPS unit.

The 100% coverage of the bright, clear viewfinder, which benefits from a solid glass pentaprism rather than the cheaper pentamirrors used in some less well-specified bodies, such as the D3100, makes accurate composition very straightforward. The 3-inch monitor screen with its 920K-dot resolution provides a bright clear view for assessing recorded images and navigating the comprehensive menu system.

As we have come to expect on Nikon D-SLR cameras, there is a programmable function button, plus the depth of field preview and AE/AF lock buttons can also be assigned a variety of different roles and allow the user to customize camera operation to suit their requirements. Allied to this is the ‘info’ button that, when pressed, will display all the camera settings and shooting information, shown normally in the LCD control panel on the top plate, on the rear monitor screen; however, this information display also allows quick access to the assignment of functions to the customizable buttons, and other camera features such as high ISO noise reduction, Active D-Lighting, the Nikon Picture Control system, and settings for video recording. It all adds up to very slick and intuitive camera handling.

Despite its diminutive size, the new EN-EL-15 battery has proved to be a real powerhouse for shooting both pictures and video, although for the latter I would certainly advise carrying a spare; however, on the downside the new MH-25 charger is anything but fast, taking about 2.5 hours to recharge a completely exhausted EN-EL15. The optional MB-D11 battery pack is a mixed bag, while it certainly extends shooting capacity by providing additional power for the camera and has a full array of controls to facilitate vertical shooting, to further improve handling characteristics, it only accepts one EN-EL15 battery. If you run the D7000/MB-D11 with two batteries, the battery pack has to be removed every time the battery installed in the camera requires recharging, which is not only inconvenient but also likely to result in wear and tear issues over the course of time.

Performance

The new 2,016-pixel RGB TTL metering sensor is a significant development, as it represents more than a doubling in the number of the sampling points on this key component compared with the venerable 1,005-pixel sensor that was first introduced way back during 1996 with the launch of the Nikon F5 film camera, and which has served in every mid and top of range Nikon D-SLR camera since. With the extra sampling points the camera has the benefit of more information, and this is certainly apparent in the performance of the TTL metering, which I have found to be very accurate, even coping well with large expanses of extremely light, or dark tone. For example, if you are in the habit of adjust exposure when shooting in snow, or on very pale sand with your current Nikon SLR you’ll need to amend your shooting technique. That said I still see the integration of the metering and autofocus systems coming in to play and impacting on Matrix metering, as it does on other recent Nikon D-SLR cameras, for example, the slight overemphasis on the tone under the active AF point when using single AF point and single-servo AF mode is also apparent with the D7000.

Introduced for the first time in the D7000 is the Multi-CAM 4800 AF sensor that supports an array of 39 AF points. With more sampling points than any previous Nikon AF sensor, the AF system of the D7000 is very responsive and the best DX format camera for AF in low light conditions I have used. 

It has 15 cross type sensors sensitive to detail in horizontal and vertical orientation clustered at the centre of the frame area, with a further two groups of 12 line-type sensors on either side. The D7000 has tow familiar collection of AF area modes, with Single-point, Dynamic-area (using either 9, 21, or 39 points), 3D-tracking, and Auto-area that selects the AF points to use automatically. The system is optimized for Nikkor D, and G-type lenses that communicate focus information to the camera. The AF system is of course fully integrated with the Scene Recognition System (SRS), which also uses the 2,016-pixel RGB TTL metering sensor to map the distribution of tone and colour, enabling the camera to plot subject location within the frame area to enhance focus-tracking capabilities. In this respect I would suggest subjectively that it out performs the D300s, and as far as any other previous Nikon DX format camera is concerned there simply is no contest!

A new feature of the autofocus system is the Full-time servo AF (AF-F) mode, which performs continuous autofocus in both Live View and D-Movie mode. AF-F operates while the reflex mirror is raised and works on a contrast-detect system and is consequently very slow; to be candid I do not consider it to be a usable feature. Comparing the normal phase detection AF and contrast-detect AF of the D7000 is like comparing the proverbial chalk and cheese!  

It is all very well having a quick and accurate AF system but a camera also needs a shutter that can keep up a fast pace and a buffer memory that will allow you to shoot rapid bursts of pictures. The D7000 is capable of a maximum frame rate of 6 fps, which should be adequate for many users, but the rather restricted buffer memory is going to impact fairly quickly, since recording lossless NEF Raw at 14-bit depth (and assuming other functions such as Active D-lighting and Automatic Distortion control are not operating – if they are expect to reach the buffer memory limit even sooner!) the buffer capable of recording only 10 NEF Raw files, or less than 2-seconds of shooting time, before it needs to draw breath. You can sacrifice some highlight information and bit depth by recording compressed NEF Raw at 12-bit depth but even then you’ll only stretch the buffer to about 15 frames. This is certainly one area where the D7000 cannot match the D300s. 

Another aspect of D7000 performance that has delivered a very welcome and pleasant surprise is the noise performance. Squeezing over 16-million pixels on to its DX format sensor seemed to be a recipe for little, if any improvement in terms of noise performance over existing 12MP models such as the D300s and D90. The Nikon engineers appear to have struck a perfect balance between suppressing chroma noise and controlling luminance noise to the point that the D7000 is without doubt the best DX-format camera, as far as noise level and the ‘look’ of its noise pattern is concerned. As you would expect at low ISO settings (100 to 400) results are exemplary and virtually indistinguishable but it is at the higher settings that the real world improvements can be observed. It may not be in quite the same class as the D3/D700 sensor, and it certainly cannot compete with the D3s at higher ISO sensitivity settings but it is still a remarkable achievement. In practical terms, combined with careful post-processing, you should not encounter any problems producing very good quality prints up to A3+ (13 x 19-inches) at ISO 1600, and even out to ISO3200. Closely allied to noise is the workable dynamic range of the camera, which is also impressive. At its base ISO (100) and using the NEF Raw format I would suggest it is possible to achieve a full 9-stop range from holding the brightest highlight to discerning detail in the deepest shadow of a scene. This puts the D7000 on a par with the likes of the D3-series cameras, although unlike those models the dynamic range does begin to contract almost as soon as you move above base ISO.

The bump up in resolution to 16MP brings another consideration to the fore – lens performance. This camera is unforgiving when it comes to any lens that is less than top quality. While most of the current DX Nikkor lens line up can hold their own on the 12MP cameras, on the D7000 the better performers, such as the AF-S 16-85mm and AF-S 17-55mm start to show their qualities. Plus, the effect of diffraction at small lens apertures should not be ignored, as it will soon start to undermine any perceived increase in image acuity. I would suggest the break point is somewhere around f/11, possibly even a little wider, depending on print size and viewing conditions. 

The D-Movie mode is the best iteration of video recording, including the audio capabilities when used with an external microphone, in a Nikon D-SLR to date. Providing options for full HD 1080p resolution at 24 fames per second (fps), as well as HD 720p at frame rates of 24 / 25/ 30 fps, with clean compression, even in scenes where there is a lot of subject movement, thanks to the H.264 codec. The maximum duration of a single clip is 20-minutes, and it is possible to configure the camera so video is recorded to the memory card installed in one card slot while the other card is used for stills pictures. The D7000 has a 3.5mm stereo mini-jack pin terminal for connecting an external microphone, which is in my opinion a necessity if you want to record good quality audio within the camera, as the built-in microphone is prone to picking up the slightest noise generated by either the camera’s mechanisms, or general handling. The rolling shutter effect observed in previous video enabled Nikon D-SLR cameras has also been suppressed quite effectively, making camera pans and following all but the fastest moving subject possible. The only real weak point is the contrast-detect AF, as discussed above.

Comment: Shortly after the introduction of the D7000 the Nikon Corporation issued an advisory notice concerning the appearance of ‘hot’ pixels when using Live View and the D-Movie video recording mode of the D7000. A firmware update has since been released that helps to mitigate this issue but it is important to put the matter in perspective, since the creation of ‘hot’ pixels afflicts all video equipped D-SLR cameras, and while the D7000 is by no means the best it is very far from the worst when compared with its competitors.

Conclusion

It is easy to be very complimentary about the D7000 – it rightly deserves a lot of praise! It represents state-of-the-art camera design for the smaller Nikon DX-format and mitigates one of the most common the arguments for moving to the larger FX format, namely better high ISO performance. Granted it doesn’t offer the bright, expansive viewfinder of the current FX cameras, nor their armour-plated build quality, but for me the only real remaining drawback of the DX format is the lack of some fast, wide-angle prime lenses!

In general the D7000 is an excellent all-round performer that delivers very high image quality, ample resolution, much better low light capabilities than any previous Nikon DX D-SLR camera, and quick accurate AF, combined with highly functional and practical HD video. It represents a highly desirable camera for a wide range of photographers, although I must add a couple of caveats: sport/action/wildlife shooters accustomed to capturing a rapid sequence of pictures will find the limited buffer memory a drawback, and the continuous AF feature in Live View / video recording is not yet a fully developed function.

The camera has a feature set and handling qualities that should meet the demands of just about any user of a camera in its class, to the point that if you cannot capture technically competent pictures with it, it’s not the equipment that’s at fault! I cannot think of a better reason to buy your first D-SLR, or upgrade from any previous Nikon DX camera, including a D1, and D2-series model, with the possible exception of D300/D300s, which is very likely to be replaced later during 2011. In short there is an awful lot to like about the D7000 and hardly anything to fault about it. 

© Simon Stafford