Hands-on with the Nikon D5

Bit of a sexist comment thread going on here , just to point out perhaps you would class me as a " girlie photo" HOWEVER I can handle a large pro camera and have both canon and Nikon versions prior to this one. I have taught photography for years , I do embrace change , such as higher iso settings, digital photography , and mirrorless cameras for certain shots . Perhaps you should embrace change and realise women do use pro cameras, and get over ourselves and discuss the camera

It will be years before a mirrorless camera will have the speed (including the buffer), the battery life, or the selection of lenses that any DSLR on the market has today.

Interesting.

It wasn't long ago that some diehards were saying that live view is for noobs and wouldn't make it's way to pro cams. Then the Canon 1D Mark III came along with..........................live view!

Then we had the disparaging remarks about face detection being needed only by soccer mums with their point-and-shoots. And we now have, and have had for some time now, face detection on the flagship pro cams ( even though Nikon were too scared at first to call it what it was so gave it some smarty pants techie sounding name).

Leica, probably the industry's most primitive minded company, now has a pro camera with an electronic viewfinder.

So it won't be long before Canon and Nikon both have electronic viewfinders in their flagship cameras ( I reckon, no longer than three more body updates and more likely just two )

This is a sports camera. Not some compact camera aimed at noobs and hipsters.

Dat flappy mirror thing sounds damn sexy still today:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Fs-_rj1s5o
:P

@deanfuller: probably. But here you want full tracking performance at 12fps in all light situations (look at the videos from the D5 to see what it needs to do), supported by a large metering sensor and dedicated AF module with cpu. OSPDAF can't have phase detection when in focus, as the light rays from different sides of the lens are within the circle of confusion. No phase information. MILC use the initial information to predict the direction and speed of the subject, but when it is changing direction, the OSPDAF needs to wait until the object gets out of focus again to obtain phase information and reacquire AF. Not so with a DSLR. Of course you have the disadvantage of fine tuning there. With 20MP and the pro zooms and primes you get it done quickly and are able for professional results easily. It still takes some time until OSPDAF is up to the task for FF professional sports cameras. There will be a solution, though, but right now?

Shockingly, not every pro photographer wants a dinky compact.

As the girls... SIZE MATTERS... the D5 will get you laid... :D

2 cameras 2 lighting situations and one of the bear looks like cropped image...back to square one.And I am Canon fanboy.

it would have to increase the size (hight) of the mirror accordingly, which would need to increase the depth of the mirror box, which it is unlikely to fit in the flange distance needed for f mount lenses,
a mirrorless design however, it would work.

To me, a 1:1 aspect ratio doesn't make much sense except for maximizing the lens image circle.

Most of my captures have some non-squareness to them. The 3:2 aspect ratio is good for portrait-mode panos. Also, it lends itself well when making 4x6" prints, but you don't need many pixels for such a print.

Otherwise, I'd probably prefer 4:3 aspect ratio, but that is a moot point at this time for full-frames.

Never say it wouldn't work. There are several solutions, for example the split mirror used in the old Zenza Bronica S2 (which by coincidence used Nikon lenses):

http://imagesandcameras.com/zenza-bronica-s2-slr-camera-manual/zenca-bronica-mirror

Personally I favor a round sensor.
J/K !

It would be tough to make that Bronica sliding-mirror cycle at 12 fps, Frank_BR

I say Triangular or Rhomboid sensors FTW!

For novel geometries and mirror actions, you also have the sub (focusing) mirror to accommodate remember! frankly it is the engineering wonder of the the DSLR. That the whole assembly doesn't fly apart on activation surprises me. That it manages to flap about at 10 FPS and still focus follow for 400,000? expected actuations, Wow!

D3 cut in half showing the space constraints

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-V5nqXiYQtOU/TfC_1J0vkvI/AAAAAAAADYY/kXz5SR_3OGE/s800/leica-lens-cut-in-half-5.jpg

Plus, when not tied to a D700-style physical switch, settings can be changed by changing the bank.

Cameras like the D5 are made for those of us who demand complete flexibility in every aspect of our photography. My D4, complex as it is, doesn't offer all the flexibility I would like to have. For example, I shoot mostly motorsports and would love to be able to program a Fn button to immediately switch to a faster shutter speed when panning (in case a crash happens in front of me). The D4 can't do that. The D5 has a third Fn button and I'm hoping this will be an option. Anyone dissing the D5 and other similar bodies (e.g. the 1DX) just isn't doing the type of photography for which these bodies are designed.

ps - I agree with whoever said mirorless cameras are for girls. :P

If you want a camera without a mirror, an SLR is probably a bad choice.

Anyone who shoots more than 3 minutes of video in one go should buy a handycam.Typically, scenes are less than 20 seconds when making a movie.

What's the point of "taping" all letters on your camera?
With or without letters it looks as an expensive piece of gear, nobody will be fooled with a few pieces of tape.

And what "camouflage" do you do with a tape to your 400mm f2.8 to make it look like 50mm f1.8 on your tape camouflaged D4s ?! :) You can only feel a false sense of peace and security, while you are perfectly exposed one way or another.

You sound like you should get out of this business asap.

You can, but that's not very convenient is it? Pity camerphones have much better screens, hehe. The flash radio transmitter is tiny but I also find it very odd that a pro camera this size and $$$$ doesn't have one inside...

2.36 M dots means 2000 something by 1000 something, which should be plenty for this physical size.

I never had any problem with EVF lagging from light to shadow though - they seem fairly instantaneous in my experience.

Certain EVF's can show a live-view stream during burst; many others can only show each frame.

I use both D4/D800e and Fujifilm X-T1 which has EVF. In situations when I really need to see what is happening I still prefer DSLR, because the viewfinder image is predictable and real time and the AF is still better than with mirrorless. Also batteries last vastly longer (like 10 times…) and I can see through the camera even when it is not turned on, I can start framing an image while the camera boots up so to speak.

People who have never used top pro DSLRs (and do not need them) usually do not understand why we still want them, regardless of the price, weight and not being avant-garde a.k.a. mirrorless. Is not (only) that we are old fashioned or stupid or rich, there really are reasons why this kind of cameras are used in press/sports/nature photography, not in many ways splendid new EVF models. Trying to explain it to someone who has never used one in anger is futile.

@Arkienkeli I understand the use of pro-bodies like the D5, but I just don't understand the technical reason behind the lack of a pro-body with an EVF instead of OVF. In my experience, the refresh rate and resolution of the current top of the line EVFs are so good that after using them extensively in the last 2 years, I really don't like OVF anymore. The ability to see the adjustment I make to the setting instantaneously via a quality EVF is just such a plus for me. My question is mainly to see if other members could help me understand the technical advantages of OVF on a pro-body. I think one obvious advantage for my use would be visibility in bright day light - I wear glasses, so looking through EVF in bright daylight can be a pain. But other than that, I am not sure why I'd prefer OVF on a pro-body.

Evf cameras blows battery. Ovf looks real and you can see what is in focus off the bat no zooming. I am not that old still see fine. Larger apeture not f5.6. Except for real time exposure, evf fell in all other field. Most camera metering are so good you dont have to chip. But i rather chip then turn my camera on and of all the time.

Blow batteries... blow chunks...

An EVF is fine when you' re photographing your cat in the house, because you can easily charge batteries again. But when you' re shooting in remote places battery-sapping EVF' s don' t cut it, and photographic toys are best left at home.

If you're shooting kids, landscape, weddings, street, architexture - EVF is fine.

It becomes entirely different when you're starting to shoot elite athletes with explosive athletics in an event that you're shooting 8,000-10,000 pictures in various weather condition. In this case, optical is superior.

1. OVF allows you to follow a subject during continuous bursts. Until mirrorless cameras offer a live feed that is uninterrupted during bursts (like Nikon 1 series), OVF is far preferable for fast action burst shooting, as the Nikon press conference video showed.

2. EVF drains battery; OVF doesn't.

3. OVF dynamic range is only limited by your eye (well, except when it's really really dark, in which case EVF can edge out OVF).

That's just nonsense. At best the 1Dx brought Canon up to the level of the D4 - more like the D3S. The D5 is better on every dimension. The 1DX II will be interesting, but it certainly won't be 5 years ahead.

What a childish remark. Is a Ford still better than a Chevrolet?

Yes, especially with dynamic range similar to Casio calculator :)

Well, they could have bought it as a pre order and than cancelled the order :)

what about the 32 that say "they had it" Maybe they are time travelers?? !

Digital camera capabilities and features are far in advance of any film camera. Not only that, mechanically they are much the same due to lens/image size requirements though the image sensor is somewhat thicker than film. It's surprising that all that advanced technology can be squeezed in.

30 years ago there would have been a wrist-thick umbilical cord running to a semi where the computers would be…

in -69 I attended a lecture where a breathalyzer prototype was first time shown to public, it was a size of large fridge.

Or perhaps Nikon can distinguish between pros who need to get a job done and fan boys looking for cutesy retro yesteryear tosh. Don't underestimate the joy and confidence of shooting with a camera like this.

keeping with your tired analogy it would be intelligent to remember that Dinosaurs existed on this planet successfully and in one form or another for approximately 165million years.
How long have humans managed to Rule the world by comparison?
One might suggest that the dinosaurs were in fact the more successful and triumphant species, no?

Birds are the direct descendants of dinosaurs; 10,000 species inhabiting every region of the planet from the Arctic to Antarctica, including the high seas, covering a larger area than any other vertebrates. 165 million years and still going strong. :-)

I don't even know what this comment is meant to mean, this is a professional, high fps camera that has an even better AF system than the industry leading D750, say whatever you want about it being another black DSLR but what other choices do you have aside from this or the Canon equivalent? (which is using a dated sensor)

Sometimes you just need a dinosaur to do the job.