Yes Scotta Nikon D90 is official. DSLR & HD Movie

http://nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25446/D90.html

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0808/08082702nikond90previewed.asp


(Message edited by phantom5815 on August 27, 2008)

Oh oh yes! What do I win??

And somehow I don't think HD video + consumer grade DSLR = "artistry"

dang.

I am wondering if this changes everything. Suddenly, the rank and file can shoot HD video.

I suspect that even an 8 GB card won't hold much, but this pokes a hole in the existing envelope.

Sites like YouTube will have to make room for new HD videos from its users. (I don't think they accept HD today, right?)

This seems like an awfully exciting development to me!

The rank and file can shoot HD video now with cheap video cams with bigger effective sensors that don't use an antique codec and aren't limited to 720p24. Most people will tell you 24p is worthless for high motion / action sport type shooting anyway.

YouTube currently accepts HD video with file sizes up to 1 gig and offers a high quality viewing mode which is actually pretty decent.

I think we will see more integration of video and photo in both directions in the future but this cam is hardly revolutionary, more a gimmick and simple step in that evolution.

Yep...it's just a marketing gimmick. Gotta do something to convince people that they need to buy a new camera every year!

Dmovie is hardly a replacement for a video camera. It's got mono audio (with no audio inputs), and once the movie starts the white balance is locked and you can't use autofocus. Yep! You read that right- no AF. There is a 5 min time limit which supposedly takes up 600mb of space which is fine, but again, no AF means you're gonna be hand focusing which will get old FAST.

I'm currently carrying a D40X and an older JVC camcorder in my bag. As a total amateur who just has fun with the occasional creative project I'm definitely interested in the D90. It sounds like the conventional wisdom here is that I would be better off buying a standalone HD camcorder than adding a D90. Here's my thoughts...

I'm not nearly as well developed in this hobby as guys like Scott, Rich, Walt, etc. The D40X is great for me, giving me the control to get creative and take what I think are some great shots. I would like to have more focus zones (3 vs 11), bracketing, and the ability to autofocus my nifty fifty as well as lenses that I sometimes rent from borrowlenses.

The D90 would deliver for me on the things I mentioned above, and I could have the D40X as a backup or to avoid lens swaps in dusty situations.

I carry the camcorder around but almost never use it because it seems like such a relic and I just don't have fun shooting with it. I'm thinking that the the convenience of the D90 will at least get me back to shooting video every now and then, especially considering the ability to shoot video with a variety of lenses as opposed to the fixed lens on my camcorder.

Am I seeing this all wrong? I certainly see how you guys shooting higher end gear would brush the D90 aside as a stupid consumer toy, so what would recommend instead for someone in my situation?

I didn't mean to be so "like that" about it, but outside of the fact that the D90 can record images at a higher FPS for a longer period of time and shoot in aperture priority, it really isn't any different than my 4 year old Canon. What Nikon is doing is taking an evolutionary improvement in digital imaging and touting it as revolutionary. That's kind of where the "marketing gimmick" bit came from in my eyes. Not sure where Rich stands on things, but that's my take on it...

Sorry for being such a downer about it, btw. If you're only looking to shoot "artsy" video just to mess around every now and again and you want an excuse to buy a nice new camera body, then by all means pick up a D90. Just don't think that D-movie will totally replace that camcorder of yours, that's all...

For what it sounds like you need/expect Nate the Nikon sounds fine. I'm sure the video is usable provided the shooting conditions are such that you don't run up against any of it's limitations, many of which Scott elaborated on. Even the new consumer HD cams have serious limitations in spite of the fact that they can produce some pretty amazing images when everything is right.

My main point, in my response above, was that this setup is hardly revolutionary and is still, as Scott pointed out, basically a gimmick.

Heck, the ultimate video camera gimmick is the cell phone but when that's all one has to capture the moment it's hard to beat isn't it?

No offense taken from your comments, it was a genuine question. I realize that my needs are different than yours, but your experience still has something to offer.

I've been halfway checking out consumer HD camcorders for a while. I say halfway because I haven't done any real research, but I always stop at the camera rack at Costco and see what's available and what pricing is doing. I like the idea of a camcorder but it's hard to justify the $ in light of how little I used the last one.

Anyway, you guys are no help. I was hoping for a good kick in one direction or the other and all you did was prolong the waffling!

Here is the latest from Dpreview: Sample of the Pics & HD

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0809/08090101nikond90samplegallery.asp

Here is the latest from Dpreview: Sample of the Pics & HD

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0809/08090101nikond90samplegallery.asp


Also how convenient of San Disk to put our a new SD card too:
SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s edition SD Card

http://strobist.blogspot.com/2008/08/nikon-d90-kickass-video-from-you-know.html

I tried to take one home from Best Buy today but I left without it due to ishtty customer service.