Nikon D300: Taking Photography to the Next Level with the Nikon D300

 Nikon finally decided that the time is ripe to give the aging D200 an overhaul. After adding a lot features and upping the image quality, the Nikon D300 is finally here. The Nikon D300 is available in three different packages: a body only, a kit that includes the DX 18mm-135mm f/3.5-5.6G ED AF lens or a kit that comes with a DX 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens.

Nikon D300s 12.3 MP Digital SLR Camera Body D300 s USA US $1,351.01 (16 Bids) Auction Ends: End Date: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 17:02:15 PST Add to watch list

Nikon D300 Body Only 12.3 Megapixel US $660.00 (22 Bids) Auction Ends: End Date: Thursday Mar-11-2010 8:34:50 PST Add to watch list

Nikon D300 Body Only 12.3 Mp + Sandisk Extreme III 4GB US $850.00 (5 Bids) Auction Ends: End Date: Saturday Mar-13-2010 14:23:29 PST Add to watch list

Nikon D300 Body Only 12.3 Megapixel - VERY LOW MILEAGE US $866.99 (7 Bids) Auction Ends: End Date: Saturday Mar-13-2010 17:23:22 PST Add to watch list

Nikon D300 Body Only 12.3 Megapixel US $711.00 (4 Bids) Auction Ends: End Date: Sunday Mar-14-2010 18:36:16 PDT Add to watch list

The D300 is a hefty machine. The body, battery and CompactFlash card (CF card) provides a total weight of 2.1 pounds. The dustproof, weatherproof body is solidly built. A comfortable grip rests at the right side of the D300. A large, 3-inch LCD that has a wide 170-degree viewing angle stands out at the back of the camera. The buttons are intelligently laid out and are easy to access. You can find the dial that switches between modes at the top of the camera. Operating the D300 is quite smooth and relatively comfortable. The big and bright viewfinder has 100% coverage. The menu system of the D300 is superbly done. Nikon created six different categories to separate the custom menu setting, making it easy to setup and find.

The D300 comes with a DX-format 12-megapixel CMOS under its hood. New also to the D300 is the 51-point autofocus system that uses 36 horizontal sensors as well as 15 cross-type sensors. You also get two live view modes: handheld and tripod modes. It also comes with the new active D-lighting feature that you can activate to brighten up shots that are filled with shadows without removing the shadows altogether, creating a more vivid picture. And since $1,400 is a serious amount of cash, Nikon invested on a new cleaning system that uses resonance frequencies to vibrate and remove dust from the lens.

One of the key missions of Nikon when they came up with the D300 is to remove the shutter lag. While they weren’t successful in this mission, the speed of the D300 is far from disappointing. It needed only 0.2 second to go from a cold start to taking the first picture. Recycle time and shutter lag took 0.8 and 0.2 seconds respectively. Under burst mode, you can take 6 frames per second with the D300, above average for its category. Image quality is excellent. Colors and shadows are accurate and true. Even at ISO 3200, noise level was very low. While noise was more evident at ISO 6400, it was still far from distracting.

While some may balk at the Nikon D300’s seemingly high price, the new features and quality of the images it produces more than make up for it.