Nikon D800 review

A full-frame digital SLR is an object of desire for virtually every photographer. With prices now in the region of £2,500, they’re a viable proposition for semi-professionals and keen amateurs as well as full-time professionals. The D800 is Nikon’s second full-frame camera at this price, and comes with some truly mouth-watering specifications.

The 36-megapixel sensor is far higher than even Nikon and Canon’s top-of-the-range SLRs. There’s a 51-point autofocus sensor, 15 of which are cross-type for added sensitivity, plus sophisticated subject tracking with the help of the 91,000-pixel metering sensor. As with all full-frame SLRs, the optical viewfinder gives a much larger view of the scene than cameras with smaller sensors.

We always appreciate single-function controls for quick access to settings, and the D800 has more than we’ve ever seen. It manages to avoid being cluttered, though, and the ability to hold down a button with the left hand and adjust the setting via the command dials with the right hand makes for an exceptionally efficient system.

There are SDXC and CompactFlash slots, and the bank of sockets include microphone in, headphone out, HDMI and PC sync for triggering external flashes. It’s relatively heavy at 1kg without a lens, but it’s hard to imagine it being any more comfortable to use.

The main attraction of a full-frame SLR is its image quality, and the D800 makes no bones about this with its record-breaking resolution. Sure enough, we had to pick our jaws up off the floor as we zoomed in to inspect its photos. Whereas the Canon 5D Mark III applied fairly heavy digital sharpening in JPEGs to squeeze the last drops of detail from its 22-megapixel sensor, the D800’s gentler sharpening gave more natural results and still easily surpassed its rival for details. It wasn’t always easy to capitalise on this advantage, though. The tiniest amount of motion blur, camera shake or focusing inaccuracy would level the playing field. This camera deserves the highest quality lenses, and they don’t come cheap.

JPEGS use a relaxed approach to digital sharpening, but there’s still a huge amount of fine detail in photos – click to enlarge

The inevitable downside of the huge resolution is that noise levels aren’t as remarkable as from the Canon EOS 5D Mark III. The D800’s sensor has a similar pixel density to the Nikon D7000’s 16-megapixel APS-C sensor – it’s akin to taking the D7000’s sensor and adding more pixels around the edge as you make it bigger.

Arguably the most useful function of the huge resolution is the ability to crop photos and still have lots of pixels at your disposal – click to enlarge

As such, the D800’s noise levels were closer to those of the D7000 than the 5D Mark III. However, that’s not to say that the two Nikons were equal in low light. Because the D800 has so many more pixels, the noise was finer and less visible. The D800’s heavier noise reduction took its toll on details at fast ISO speeds, but it wasn’t until ISO 6400 that the 5D Mark III matched the D800 for detail. As such, you’d need to be shooting regularly at ISO 12800 and above to gain a practical benefit from the Canon’s lower noise.

Noise levels at high ISO speeds are reasonably low, but not up to the Canon 5D Mark III’s standards – click to enlarge

A bigger downside of the huge resolution is that continuous performance is relatively pedestrian. It set off at 4fps but slowed to 1.2fps after 18 frames for JPEGs, and to 0.7fps after 15 frames in raw mode. We got the same JPEG performance from SDHC cards rated at 30MB/s or 95MB/s, so it appears that the D800 doesn’t have the processing power to save JPEGs any faster than 1.2fps. The D800 can shoot at 6fps when set to DX crop mode (using the central 15.3-megapixel area of the frame) and with the optional MB-D12 battery grip attached, although we weren’t able to test this. In DX mode without the grip, it managed 5fps for 20 frames before slowing to 1.9fps.

Some potential buyers will be considering the D800 as a video camera first and foremost. Video picture quality was stunning, with rich, warm colours and dramatic depth-of-field effects just as valuable here as they are for photos. Details were notably crisper than from the 5D Mark III’s videos, too. It records at 1080p at a choice of 24, 25 and 30fps, with AVC compression keeping file sizes at a manageable 22Mbit/s. There’s also an option to send uncompressed video out of the HDMI port to a stand-alone recorder such as the Atomos Ninja. This also gets around the 20-minute clip limit. It’s a shame there’s nothing approaching a raw video output without any colour processing, though. We’d love for there to be a Picture Control preset that really is neutral, to give as much flexibility as possible for colour grading in video-editing software.

Videos exhibited various other quirks and foibles we’ve come to expect from SLRs. Autofocus was clumsy while recording, and not smooth or fast enough for serious use. Moiré interference meant swirling patterns and discoloration on textures such as bricks and rippling water (see video below). Automatic, aperture-priority and manual exposure modes are available for video, but it’s not possible to fix the shutter speed to control motion blur and let the camera adjust the exposure via the ISO speed. Despite all this, the D800 is arguably the best SLR to date for video, but we’d rather use a compact system camera such as the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2.

Video picture quality is excellent but not without its problems – the ripples that mysteriously change direction just below the reflection of the trees is moiré interference, and so too is the yellow discoloration just above – select 1080p and full screen mode to get the best view of these issues

If photos matter more than videos, our advice to anyone who’s toying with the idea of upgrading to a full-frame SLR is to go for it. The D800 is in a different league to cheaper APS-C cameras, not just for image quality but also for ergonomics and features.

For those choosing between the Nikon D800 and the Canon EOS 5D Mark III, the decision is trickier. Each one is an absolute pleasure to use and produces beautiful photos, but their image quality excels in different directions. It’s tempting to conclude that landscape and studio photographers who shoot in bright light with a tripod are better off with the Nikon, while those who mostly shoot handheld or in low light should go for the Canon. However, that’s a cop out for the majority of photographers who can’t be pigeonholed so easily.

For us, picking a favourite is less technical and more emotive. It requires discipline to make the most of the Nikon’s vast resolution, whereas the Canon’s lower noise supports a less disciplined approach. You can shoot in low light using fast shutter speeds or small apertures and take comfort in the knowledge that the resulting fast ISO speeds won’t spoil the shot. That’s a liberating feeling. It also helps that the Canon is significantly faster in burst mode.

Ultimately, though, choosing between them is largely academic. The D800 is a fantastic camera and its consistency with other Nikon cameras – and compatibility with lenses – mean there’s no need for existing Nikon users to switch allegiance. It’s time to start saving up.