Nikon launches premium compact DL range with 1 inch sensors

[Andy]

For those who are interested, a few first impressions from the pre-production units:
Initially I played with all 3 DL models, but quickly centered my attention to the DL 18-50. Which is the most interesting for me.

For the DL18-50:
1) The basic operation of the camera is fast (on, off, menue, AF, ...)

2) The lens has 11 elements, 7 of them are special lenses (hri, ED, aspheric, etc .. pls check technical data). The DL18-50 is the only DL model with Nano coating. This lens was the most impressive lens I took from this short encounter. Impressive not by the data, but by IQ (as seen on the monitor and zoomed in)

3) If the macro option is turned on in the menues, the lens focus until 3-4 cm in front to the front lens. Good quality IQ and impressive macro wide angle perspective.

4) If AF is set to AutoAF, AF is very fast. Would not be surprised if as fast as DSLRs with fast lenses.

5) In low light situations (i.e. ISO 6400, f1.8, 1/20 sec ; EV = 0), AutoAF was fast and precise. Could not find a darker spot in the room. The faster lens vs. the 1 Nikkor 6.6-13mm support the operation of AF and sensor. It is approx 2 stops faster.

6) Switching the AF to AFS and 1 AF field, some of the AF performance goes away. It looks like the CPU is fast enough to interpolate AF information when many AF fields are active vs. relying on the info from one AF field (which might find contrast or not).

7) Nice image on monitor when the camera is set to ISO 6400. Again, it could be the faster Expeed, allowing higher quality real time NR algorithms.

8.) Usually small camera zooms are hard pressed with cross light situations. Not this one - I tried intentionally to maximize flare. Good suppression. Nano?

9) Compared to the DL24-85:
The DL18 is more "special" with its focal range. The DL24-85 has more competition. The DL18 is heavier - more glass in the lens. 18mm vs 24mm is significant at the wide end - think rooms/city/street. But 50-85mm is missing then. 18mm & macro is very nice.


Overall, the DL18-50 was the one which triggered more interest with me. Will wait for final models for another quick look and then decide.

My temporary ranking based on this quick encounter:
1) DL 18-50
2) DL 24-85
3) DL 24-500 (pls consider: I have no "need" for this)

cheers,
Andy

[ArendV]

Thanks for sharing your first impressions Andy !

[richardHaw]

http://richardhaw.com/2016/02/26/cp-2016-pt-1/
some videos that i took for the DL 
it is too expensive i think.

[Andy]

Thanks for sharing your first impressions Andy !

Arend, you are welcomed.

A few additional observations:

1) Glad, that Nikon discontinued the MicroSD card size from the J5 and went back to SDXC. MicroSD are just too small for frequent handling.

2) No indication, that the camera battery can be charged via the USB port. Allowing to travel without the large MH-31 charger. I'd love to get this USB charging option for all 1 Nikon cameras as well. Even if it would be a bit slower.

3) If the charger is the same as for the J5 (MH-31), it will be about the same size as the camera. Additionally, the European customers have to deal with this awkward connector on top of the US retractable plug connector which is unnecessary hard to get off (same issue with this form of charger with the D3xxx, D5xxx and 1 Nikon series). If you cant get the connector off, its hard to get it in a small bag. Why does these things need to be so large?

4) Filters can be mounted with a 46mm size

5) focal length adjustment is electrical, with 2 modes of operation. Either turning the focal length wheel on the lens, or use the small lever on the upper right side of the camera (W/T).

6) The EV compensation is easy to find and operate. Maybe for some people too easy. As there is no lock lever/knob, some might run into the issue to turn the EV compensation wheel without intention.

rgds,
Andy

[ArendV]

Richard, you are a famous CP+ reporter 
http://nikonrumors.com/2016/02/26/nikon-dl-accessories-and-hands-on-reports-from-cp.aspx/

[richardHaw]

Richard, you are a famous CP+ reporter 
http://nikonrumors.com/2016/02/26/nikon-dl-accessories-and-hands-on-reports-from-cp.aspx/

ah haha!

i am actually one of the contributors to his (nikon and pentax rumors) site. next time i am going to make more pentax related stuff for him and my blog. 

if there is one positive thing that i can say about the DL's  is that they are pretty responsive for their class. usually, compacts tend to be sluggish 
i wanted to try the EVF but there were limited samples available and i do not want to argue with some Japanese old men just to get to try them (they can get aggressive at camera shows  ).

i really dont know if this is going to be a success or not. the asking price is just too high to be honest. last year's P900 or P800 (forgot the name) is also an amazing performer. sometimes you dont know how nikon's management thinks

[dslater]

Not 'silly notation', but highly misleading marketing. Why use an 'equivalence' that really is a nonsensical reference for the targeted user group anyway? Just playing a number's game probably.

Shooting with arms stretched out in front of you is possibly the worst manner in which to hold a camera steady ....  No amount of in-camera stabilisation can change this simple fact.

I agree, I find the use of FX/35mm equivalence to be increasing annoying. Before digital cameras, no one talked about focal length equivalence for different formats. You simply knew a 80mm was "normal" for medium format, while 150mm was "normal" for 4x5, etc. shorter FLs were wider, longer FLs narrower. What I find particularly annoying about using the equivalence is that only the field of view is equivalent. It completely ignores the fact that even though the FoV may be the same, the DOF is very different, thus the different lenses on different formats are not really equivalent.

As to shooting at arms length, I agree with you. However, I would note that the DL 24-500 does have a viewfinder, so you can hold it properly while shooting.