Nikon D100
I was on my way out to dinner in downtown Manhattan the other night and decided to drop by J&R because I was a half hour early. As if I was drawn there, I immediately found the camera section and went downstairs where the hard core tools were. I had been oogling over the Nikon D100 for a few weeks online and trying to figure out how I could justify a $1500 investment in a digital SLR and my visit with one didn’t help. I used it with the 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5D AF Nikkor lens, which I own, so I felt very familiar with the lens’ range and limitations leaving only the body as the only variable for me.
The D100 simply an awesome camera. It fits nice in your hand, has excellent controls, and takes an excellent picture. A nicely shaped rubber grip makes holding the camera very comfortable. At the front and back of the grip is a dial for controlling aperture and shutter or other variables depending on the current mode, which is set by a dial on the left side of the camera. Having the two dials makes things exceptionally convenient, allowing you to keep your eye in the viewfinder while making adjustments with your thumb or index finger. The settings are shown in a compact but easy to read display in the bottom of the viewfinder.
Then there was taking shots with it, which just blew me away. I shot indoors without a flash and adjusted the ISO setting to 800. Each shot was exactly what I saw in the viewfinder. The resulting images were sharp and the colors very vibrant and accurate. Even a macro shot in a dark corner of the store with the ambient indoor lighting came out with excellent detail, great color, and no noticeable noise. My Nikon Coolpix 995 just doesn’t compare.
I regret two things about my visit with the D100. First of all, I regret making the visit in the first place because now I’m just dying to buy one. And second, that I didn’t have my own CF card with me to take the test shots home with me.
