Nikon D850 previews, commentary - first reviews

[Frank Fremerey]

@JohnG: I remember we had a longer discussion of his findings in a dedicated thread. My conclusion was that even the shortest burst length was longer than the longest I might need for my purposes

[John G]

As the MB-D18 is coming into the discussion in the D850 Previews, Commentary Topic, the achievable burst rates seemed a relevant subject to air.
Its great to know that this performance list identifies the burst rates that can be obtained are far beyond your personal requirements.
   

[Ilkka Nissilä]

Use of 12-bit lossless compressed to optimize burst depth seems a good option. As far as I know, 14-bit only improves the image quality at the lowest ISO settings and is wasteful of storage at medium to high ISO.

I am finding difficulty using the D850 with gloves on; my fingers don’t fit comfortably around the grip and I end up supporting the weight with my fingertips only. I had a similar problem with the D750 but not with other Nikon DSLRs. I guess they mainly test with people with shorter fingers than mine and not so much in winter conditions.

[Wally]

Use of 12-bit lossless compressed to optimize burst depth seems a good option. As far as I know, 14-bit only improves the image quality at the lowest ISO settings and is wasteful of storage at medium to high ISO.

Ilkka, is this a statement which applies to older bodies like the D800 too?
Thanks for any clarification!

[Frank Fremerey]

Ilkka, is this a statement which applies to older bodies like the D800 too?
Thanks for any clarification!

Nö, The D800 is slow high resolution, the D850 is fast high resolution. She is the first to support speed increase with grip since the D700/D300 (3rd gen)

[David H. Hartman]

Nö, The D800 is slow high resolution, the D850 is fast high resolution. She is the first to support speed increase with grip since the D700/D300 (3rd gen)

Yes, but the D800 has a built in soft focus filter and the D850 doesn't.

Dave

[Frank Fremerey]

Yes, but the D800 has a built in soft focus filter and the D850 doesn't.

Dave

How exactly does the soft focus change burst speed and depth?

[David H. Hartman]

How exactly does the soft focus change burst speed and depth?

Do not know "speed" and "depth."

DVD

[Frank Fremerey]

Do not know "speed" and "depth."

DVD

Speed means how many exposures per second

Depth means how many exposures the burst lasts

That is the topic you responded to, so you should know

[David H. Hartman]

The D800 possesses neither "speed" nor "depth" as you explain it. 

...but it has a built in soft focus filter.

Dave

[Sorry, I must remind myself to be more liberal in applying smileys. The D800 has an AA filter.  or frowns.]

[Ilkka Nissilä]

Ilkka, is this a statement which applies to older bodies like the D800 too?
Thanks for any clarification!

To be honest I never tried that with the D800. In specs 12-bit compressed burst depth is 25 frames, lossless 14-bit is 17 frames, so not a huge difference.

[Ilkka Nissilä]

I managed to find a store which had the MB-D18 in stock and purchased it.

I find the grip very well made and makes a solid joint with my D850. There is no flex whatsover between the two in my copies of camera and grip. I'm happy with the shape of the vertical grip though I find the main grip on the camera itself to be too narrow and deep for my fingers.

I read that there may be flex between the two but this was not experienced in my samples. Perhaps someone did not tighten the joint properly, or there could be some small changes that Nikon may have made to the grip or camera to make a better fit (which would explain the delay in availability, if true). It feels like one piece when mounted and tightened.

I can start to look at the possible effects of the EN-EL18a battery (I don't have the b) on the AF performance, if any. Shorter mirror blackout time should improve tracking.

Tried CH, release priority, flicker reduction off, 14-bit lossless, I got 28-29 shots at 9fps before slowing down (the menu guide says buffer should give 29). I used an EN-EL18a from my D5. However, my image was underexposed to get a 1/2000s shutter speed, and I believe the buffer may fill up faster when doing normal exposures. I will try it outdoors during the weekend.
I didn't find the sound too bad for a high fps sequence.

[chambeshi]

I managed to find a store which had the MB-D18 in stock and purchased it.

I find the grip very well made and makes a solid joint with my D850. There is no flex whatsover between the two in my copies of camera and grip. I'm happy with the shape of the vertical grip though I find the main grip on the camera itself to be too narrow and deep for my fingers.

I read that there may be flex between the two but this was not experienced in my samples. Perhaps someone did not tighten the joint properly, or there could be some small changes that Nikon may have made to the grip or camera to make a better fit (which would explain the delay in availability, if true). It feels like one piece when mounted and tightened.

I can start to look at the possible effects of the EN-EL18a battery (I don't have the b) on the AF performance, if any. Shorter mirror blackout time should improve tracking.

Tried CH, release priority, flicker reduction off, 14-bit lossless, I got 28-29 shots at 9fps before slowing down (the menu guide says buffer should give 29). I used an EN-EL18a from my D5. However, my image was underexposed to get a 1/2000s shutter speed, and I believe the buffer may fill up faster when doing normal exposures. I will try it outdoors during the weekend.
I didn't find the sound too bad for a high fps sequence.

Thanks for your first hand feedback, Ilkka. The Mieke grip on my D500 has worked fine since Nov 2016, but I am leery of clones on a D850. Main reservation is a 3rd party copy of the MB-D18 may not enable 9fps. Is the Bl-5 included with the Nikon MB-D18 ?

Here is some useful advice on 3rd party batteries - ie the DSTE to maintain 9fps

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8pV4G_lP_o&feature=youtu.be

https://www.amazon.com/DSTE-EN-EL18-Replacement-Li-ion-Battery/dp/B00D6XNWJY/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1516439241&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=dste+en-el18&psc=1

kind regards

woody

PS there is much discussion in forums on these questions - here are 2
https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/60490011

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/60400677

[Fons Baerken]

The battery chamber lock has always been sensitive on nikons often breaking after some years of use.

[Ilkka Nissilä]

The cover that holds the EN-EL18(a/b) has to be purchased separately. It fits the MB-D12 as well so I already had one from D810 days.

I have not managed to break any battery doors in my Nikons.

Ergonomically I find the addition of the grip a big improvement when using medium tele lenses and I am quite happy now, though I would have been happier to spend less money on the D810->D850 transition.

The larger battery increases the pitch and loudness of the camera but a snappy mirror is nice to have for shorter blackout. Qc still offers the soft and more subdued sound so I use that when there is need to be quieter.

AF on walking subjects seemed to work well and I felt it was very similar to use of the D5. I have not yet assessed accuracy.