A big leap in features, but lags a bit in basic imaging

It is an amazing camera by Nikon, expecially for amateur and enthusiast level photographers. The feature list is fantastic, plus the fact that it has the sensor of similar quality as the professional grade D300 model, and of course how can you forget the HD video capabilities? The sensor is highly rated for amazing dynamic range and color depth (the blues and greens are dreamingly rich, see my images in the customer images section). Please watch the video for a comparison with Rebel XSi that I owned before this one.

[+++++]:
- Great sensor, amazing colors out of the camera
- Auto D-lighting to restore shadowed regions
- Feels great in hand, very comfortable to hold... lighter than a Canon 40d/50d.
- The optical viewfinder is bright and big, with great coverage
- AF tracking points are easy to spot and switch to
- Great 320K dots LCD
- Video feature is great.. you can make some really slick short movies after some practice. It is a bit difficult to master both autofocus and zoom and exposure control in video mode, but I guarantee you a huge share of fun with it.. especially with DOF tests:-)


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- My copy of the camera came with one big bright hot pixel that was ON even at low ISOs like 200 and at fast shutter speeds. I was just about to learn to ignore it by using the software to map it out, and 2 more developed within a week of normal usage. Not good for a $1K camera right out of the box. I searched online and found many many others with the same issue. Further, you will have to pay at least one way shipping to a Nikon service center to have them mapped out, and yet they say it may develop more with time. I dont understand why a brand new camera has this issue. And its not just my copy, you can search "Nikon D90 + hot pixels" and you will find many many recent posts on this topic.

- The live view is just a gimmick. It doesnt stand in front of the implementation in a cheaper Canon XSI even. It lacks exposure simulation (the mode which brightens or darkens the LCD view based upon live shot setting changes like ISO/aperture/exposure time etc.). Further, it only goes as high as 6.7X while the XSi and 40D/50D go upto 10X zoom. To add to that, D90 seems to extrapolate the live view image at high zooms from a lower resolution image... showing bad interpolation artifacts like blocks at 6.7X zoom. You have to see it to believe it. Try a Rebel XSi and a D90 live view, and you will know what I mean. Also, there is no exposure scale overlay on the live view image to guide the user whether the shot is under/over exposed. You will have to switch to optical view finder to confirm the shot exposure level. All this renders the live view practically useless for anything but framing a snapshot or a video. In fact it should have been called an LCD view finder and not the live view, which it is not. D90 also only has one auto focus mode in live view which is contrast based, and too slow. Even 40d has a fast phase detect mode. Also, the D90 LCD refreshes only 15 frames per sec while a 40d/50d refreshes at 30 fps - better for sports. If you wear glasses and are hoping this live view will help you take pictures without having to goto the top LCD or the optical view finder, you will be shocked. Having owned an XSi and tried a Canon 50d, I can say with confidence that Nikon really has to improve their live view, or at least stop calling it that. I have let the Nikon customer support know of the interpolation issue at least, and

Nikon D90

I got the D90 as an upgrade to my aging D70. I have had the D70 for about six years; love it, it was just getting tired. I chose the D90 after reviewing all of the Nikon choices (other bodies I seriously considrered were the D5000, the D300, the D700, or an older D3).

The D90 is an execellent camera; better in every way than the D70 (not a surprise). Slightly larger than the D70. It accepts all Nikon lenses and autofocuses on all AF lenses. Beautiful viewfinder and LCD screen. Easy to learn (very similar to the D70). Very fast responses. I do a lot of indoor fast action sports photography (swimming and water polo). I mostly use a Nikon f2.8 80-200 AF zoom on the D90. The focusing tracks wonderfully and the sensor is great. Shutter speed very fast, no noticable lag. I use the Auto ISO setting which allows me to keep the shutter speed well above 1/200 to freeze action.

The D90 is also a very good "no flash" camera. It takes great ambient light shots. One warning: the light senor on "automatic" is so senstive and the camera has such light grabbing capability (at least as compared to the D70) that it creates pictures much brighter than life. I was taking early morning shots that I expected to be dark with silhouettes that ended up being sharply focsued lookng as if they were in bright daylight!

I added a vertical battery pack which I recommend, especially if using a big lens.

Nikon D90 w/ 18-200 VR

This is better than the average kit you get from Nikon. Skip the 18-105 VR and get the nearly miraculous 18-200 VR. You might need an additional wide-angle and/or macro lens, but you won't need the "holy trinity" covering the 18-200 range. The 18-200 does so admirably. The seller remakes the kit for you, on this one - a bargain and a smart move. It will save you a lot of time and money.

The D90 is a dream to use. A former Canon user, I find the Nikon quicker and far more intuitive. The menus and buttons make more sense and it feels far better in my hands than Canon's 40D or 50D. My wife, who has only used Nikon's F5 and F100 (film), thinks the D90 a God-send. There are no shortcomings with this camera. It's not as beefy in construction as the D300, but it matches it in most other dimensions. In fact, some reviews match the D90's resolution and lack of noise closer to the D3 than to the D300.

[Many reviews miss the fact that there is a mirror delay setting in the D90 menu. Still, you must have an electronic or manual shutter control to keep the mirror up for extended periods, even on "bulb". We have both releases and have been able to mount the D90 to a 14" SCT telescope (about $30 in additions) for more than 40 minutes, utilizing its 3" super-sharp "Live View" LCD as a guide. No expensive flip-up mirror required.]

Since then, we have purchased a wide angle zoom (Tokina AT-X 11-16 2.8) and a couple of macro lenses (Nikon AF-D 60 2.8 and a Sigma EX DG 150 2.8). We do a lot of macro and portrait work in addition to "walking around" and the D90 easily handles all these great lenses. The Nikon 50mm 1.8 is also a must-have. It's sharp as a tack and less than half the price of the 1.4, which is not as sharp and which you should only buy if you shoot often in low light.

Nikon D90 DSLR Camera

This camera has so many features, I couldn't possibly list them all. Some of my favorites are:

-A large LCD viewer screen, which can be used to frame pictures as an alternative to the regular eye piece
-An on-board flash
-Manual or Automatic focusing, the primary reason I purchased this camera was because of the Manual focus options, however I was surprised by the accuracy of the Auto Focus. Most cameras (my old Canons) picked the closest thing to focus on, but this one actually focuses on target. This is especially helpful when photographing my ever-moving kids.
-Interchangeable lenses. I have an old Nikon SLR with an assortment of lenses that I didn't want to have to replace. This Nikon body is backward compatible with each and everyone. And the new lenses are compatible with all of the old filters.
-Lighter than the old model. My old Nikon SLR was work to carry around. The lenses on the new model are shorter (with the same effectiveness) and considerably lighter.
-on-board editing features. Like taking 2 pictures without advancing the film, this model has a feature where you can join to pictures. Ex. take 2 pictures of fireworks in the sky and join them to make a spectacular picture of a sky full of fireworks.
-Fast shutter speed. Photographing my kids is often difficult to get them to stay still, so I usually take about 10-20 pictures in rapid sucession to capture those 1 or 2 perfect shots.

And, by buying this on ebay, I saved over $1000. I purchased a new Nikon D90 (bestbuy value- $1300) with 2 Anti-Vibration lenses (bestbuy value $500 and $300) and a whole assortment of other goodies, like tripods, filters, a soft bag, a hard case, a few shoulder straps, and more... for $1400 (with shipping).

Overall I am thrilled with this purchase, and would (and have) recommend this camera to anyone looking for a good, reliable DSLR.

A great all around camera

At about 1/2 the going rate for the D7000 and better than one fourth the price of a D700, add in the fact that the D90 is now discontinued and the mix still comes up as a good buy on a really great camera...now throw in Cameta's one year warranty on this 'refurbished/factory demo', less than 5K on the shutter count and everything showed up (very quickly I might add) in perfect shape...I'm now super pleased. Three days after getting the D90 I shot over 800 photos at a wedding...excellent results. Two weeks later I shot 504 photos (after 60 or so culls) at our church's VBS with nothing but compliments from all who reviewed them. This was not my first DSLR, nor is it the end-all be-all in my photographic future, suffice it to say, money well spent on this D90 and given the
price increases on the D700 this past year, I may pick up a second D90 for good measure.