The retro-styled camera has similar performance with Nikon's D4 flagship model

Dec 10, 2013 08:13 GMT  ·  By

Following a series of teaser trailers filmed in multiple history-rich locations of the Scottish Highlands, Nikon Df was officially unveiled at the beginning of November.

The camera hit market shelves a few weeks ago and it was received by Nikon fans with both positive and negative feedback, mostly for Nikon's high price approach for the European market, especially in the UK, as well as the lack of video capturing capabilities.

The new Nikon Df comes with a retro-styled body inspired from the firm's classic film cameras (F, F3 and FM/FE), but features the latest technology from Nikon's flagship DSLR, the Nikon D4.

In addition to the 16-Mpix full frame sensor borrowed from the D4, the new Df model comes with a 39-point AF system that uses the same Multi-Cam 4800 AF sensor as the D610.

With a 1/4000 of a second maximum shutter speed, Nikon Df is capable of capturing up to 5.5fps in continuous shooting mode. In terms of low light capabilities, the new retro-styled camera has a high ISO sensitivity of up to ISO 12,800 (ISO 204,800 extended).

In the latest DxO Labs tests, the new Nikon Df camera received a score of 89 points, placing it on the eleventh position in the DxOMark sensor score chart just ahead of Nikon's D4 and D3S models.

Compared with the Nikon D4, the Df model benefits from the use of the same image sensor and gets a similar score as the D4 in terms of image quality, color depth, dynamic range and ISO performance.

Side by side with the D800, the new Df model manages to have a +1/2 stop advantage from ISO 800 onwards. In terms of color depth, Nikon Df can't match the D800 36-Mpix sensor and scores -1/2 stop less from ISO 100 to 200, which drops to around -1/3 stop from ISO 800 to ISO 25,600.

The tests also covered a performance comparison of the Nikon Df against the popular Canon EOS 5D Mark III, which concluded that the new Nikon retro-styled model has around +2/3 stop advantage when it comes to overall image quality.

In addition to that, Nikon Df manages to outperform the 5D Mark III with up to +1 stop in terms of color sensitivity. Dynamic range values are also higher than the 5D Mark III and the charts show that the Df model drops only 1Ev between ISO 100 and ISO 800.

Nikon Df is clearly a camera to lookout for and thanks to its unmatched low light capabilities, the new retro-styled model manages to offer a competitive alternative to the popular Nikon D800 and Canon 5D Mark III models.

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Nikon Df Vs Nikon D4
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