Introduction
At long last, it`s here - the Nikon D780, successor to the D750 that was released more than five years ago. At the time, we considered the D750 as one of the most well-rounded digital cameras ever made, and it remains highly capable even today. So, to put it lightly, the new model has some big shoes to fill.
We`ve just received a full-production D780 and have gotten a start on our full review. As we work through our testing, we figured we`d take a look at the D780`s design, handling, and some of its high-level updates.
New BSI sensor
The heart of any digital camera is its sensor, and the unit in the D780 looks to be a good one. With 24MP, it`s not a megapixel monster, but should offer enough resolution for most users and most use cases. It`s now backside-illuminated, which is nice to have but doesn`t offer the same image quality benefits on large, full-frame sensors as it does on smaller ones. No, the real news is that it`s a dual-gain design. This means that, at the lowest ISO values, you can get maximum dynamic range out of the sensor, while higher ISO values give you better noise performance.
The sensor is also capable of 4K video, and the D780 can shoot silent bursts at up to 12 fps. We`ll be taking a look at rolling shutter as we push through our full review.
New shutter and mirror mechanism
Being a DSLR, a mirror sits in front of the sensor most of the time and redirects light up to an optical viewfinder. The D780`s sensor and mirror mechanism have been redesigned, boosting burst speeds modestly up to 7 fps from 6.5. The redesigns also enable a minimum mechanical shutter speed of 1/8000 sec (the D750 could only reach 1/4000 sec). Unfortunately, the flash sync speed remains at 1/200 sec; many competing high-end models can reach 1/250 sec or even 1/320 sec.
And, speaking of flash...
Removal of pop-up flash and top-plate design
That`s right, Nikon`s removed the built-in pop-up flas ...
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