Complete Guide to the Nikon D200- P3 pot

V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 61 autofocus, and vibration reduction, the physical attributes have remained virtually unchanged. This allows D200 owners to use virtually any manual focus or autofocus lens Nikon has made (for a list of the very few that can’t be used, see “Lens Compatibility” on page < H312>). Another carryover from the D2 series: the D200 body can matrix meter with older, non-CPU manual focus Nikkor lenses (the D1 series could only use center-weighted and spot metering with AI and AI-S lenses, while the D50 and D70 don’t meter at all with these older lenses); note that you have to manually set maximum aperture and focal length in order to allow matrix metering on a D200 (see “Lenses and Focusing,” on page < H303>). The D200 retains the “button and command dial” interface for most major controls that was first seen on the N8008 and F-801 in 1988. The D200 also uses the exposure system first found on the F5 and D1 series and refined in the D2 series, but includes new autofocus capabilities not found in any other Nikon SLR—film or digital. The D200 has a new viewfinder design that’s not quite as friendly to eyeglass wearers, but shows a bigger and brighter image than the D50 and D70 series cameras. From the back, the larger LCD and button sizes of the D200 versus the D100 should be immediately apparent. Moreover, as with the front of the camera, there are subtle shifts in position and more controls. In short, the D200 will be remarkably familiar to anyone who’s used a recent high-end Nikon 35mm film or digital SLR. If you’re used to an F5 or F6, you’ll even find most of the V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 62 major shooting controls are in the same place on the D200, and offer much the same set of options. If you’ve used a D1 or D2, the similarities are even more apparent, as the digital controls also are similar, though many have been resized and repositioned. The biggest differences will be found by users moving from a consumer Nikon SLR or DSLR, such as the N80 or D70s. There are more controls and options on the D200, though the ones that overlap with these earlier cameras will be familiar. So, what’s different about a D200? Let’s take this in steps. If you’re coming from a film camera such as the F100 or F5 the primary visible differences are found in three areas: • On the back of the camera you’ll note a large color LCD and additional buttons for the digital functions, while some of the shooting controls you’re used to have been moved to slightly different positions (e.g. the focus direction pad is slightly bigger and has been moved when compared to an F5). • The camera back no longer opens as it does on 35mm film models, but several new “doors” and connections are present. The door on the right side of the camera houses CompactFlash storage media (see “Image Storage” on page < H109>), while the small rubber “doors” on the left reveal new connectors that allow the D200 to be hooked up to a TV, computer, or USB device. • The battery compartment no longer accepts AA batteries. You must use an EN-EL3e Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery. (In the US, D200 models are only sold with an EN-EL3a and charger.) The D200 also sports many internal changes from the F100 and F5: • In the mirror box inside the camera, the shutter mechanism has been altered slightly. While the mirror, autofocus sensor, metering system, and shutter curtain remain, many of these have been modified significantly V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 63 for improved performance. The D2 series mirror system has the shortest viewfinder blackout time of any Nikon SLR made to date (a trait shared by the F6), but the D200 is no slouch, with a faster blackout (105ms) than the consumer SLR and DSLR bodies Nikon has made. The shutter itself has seen some modifications: no second physical shutter mechanism exists behind the primary curtain; when the curtain is open, a small digital sensor is revealed instead of film. And the shutter lag, at 50ms, is awful close to that of the F5. One thing that isn’t visually apparent is that the D200 uses a 1005-element CCD in the viewfinder as the main means to measure flash. Unlike the D2 series, the D200 does not have a second set of flash sensors to support D-TTL (only i-TTL flash units are supported for TTL). • All mechanisms associated with film transport have been removed. Mechanically, a D200 is even more reliable than the already rugged F100. • While the CPU and software that run the film SLR’s controls remain (albeit substantially updated), they’ve been modified to deal with the all-electronic nature of the D200, plus additional electronics have been added. In particular, the D200 models have added internal memory buffers, a multi-channel analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a dedicated digital processor with software to analyze and interpolate pixel data, plus additional I/O support. Top that off with new control software that uses the Direction pad, new buttons, and the color LCD to provide additional camera options and image review. Thus, one should conclude that Nikon has done a considerable amount of engineering since the F5. Whereas the F5 was a modest step above the F4 that preceded it, the D1, the D2, and now the D200 represent larger steps beyond their predecessors. Indeed, F5 users would covet virtually every non-digital aspect of the D200: matrix metering with older lenses, better flash metering, power options, and even body ergonomics. About the only thing an F5 user might like better on their old film camera is the autofocus system, and even that’s debatable. V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 64 If you’re coming from a previous Nikon digital SLR (DSLR), the D200 still represents plenty of change. Unlike the D1 series, where Nikon simply used many repurposed 35mm parts, Nikon did change the metering, autofocus, and flash sensors for the D2 models, and again slightly for the D200. While many early adopters had issues with the D1 series in these three areas, the D200 erases those problems and gives us the digital-centric abilities we wanted. Here are the primary differences between the D200 and its predecessor, the D100: • New Sensor. Both the D100 and D200 use a CCD technology made by Sony; but the D200’s sensor is now 10mp versus the 6mp of the older camera. It also features a four-channel ADC to move data off the sensor faster than before. The benefits: increased resolution, faster shooting speeds, and better image quality. • New Power. Gone is the simpler EN-EL3 battery. In its place is an “intelligent” F 23 variant of that Lithium-Ion battery, the EN-EL3e. Battery performance hasn’t been particularly increased by the change, but the intelligence provides abilities that weren’t in the older battery. The benefits: precise readings of battery charge, exact end-of- life prediction, less likelihood of cell imbalance shortening the battery life. • New Mirror/Shutter. Surprisingly for the price, Nikon went all out to optimize the D200 series for action. Viewfinder blackout time is 105ms under optimal conditions and shutter lag can be as little as 50ms, both very good figures (by contrast, the fastest camera currently produced, the D2hs, has figures of <70ms and 37ms, respectively). The D200 figures are in the same league as the venerable F100, a camera well-regarded by professionals. Moreover, they’re significantly faster than the D50 and D70s consumer bodies. Unlike the D1 series, D50, and D70 series, the D200 uses an all-mechanical shutter, though it 23 Intelligent refers to the fact that the battery can be queried for its exact status. V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 65 is still electronically monitored for precision. The benefits: even at 5fps you can usually follow action in the viewfinder, and the camera overall feels as responsive as any prior Nikon SLR other than the D2 models. • New Autofocus. The CAM 1100 module used in the D200 provides remarkable coverage of the frame with 11 focus sensor positions in the viewfinder (7 when Wide Angle Autofocus is used). Unfortunately, this new sensor design is arrayed differently than any other Nikon body, so requires study. The good news is that it is more sophisticated and customizable than the simple CAM 900 system used in the D100. With the additional sensors have come new autofocus methods, including the ability to pick a group of sensors for focus. As if that weren’t enough, the D200 shares the fastest focus calculation and anticipation capabilities of any Nikon SLR, meaning that it simply doesn’t take long to focus and focus rarely hunts (at least with AF-S lenses, for which the system is optimized). The benefits: more control over the autofocus system, and better performance. • Metering Improvements. The D200 gets the 1005-pixel CCD for matrix metering and white balance that first appeared in the D1 series (and F5), which is more sophisticated and precise than the simpler matrix meter used in the D100. Nikon is also using this metering part for more functions in the D200 and has revised the metering algorithms slightly. For example, flash sensing is done with the 1005-pixel CCD instead of a dedicated part in the mirror box, as it was in the D100 and older Nikon bodies. AI and AI-S lenses can finally be used in matrix metering mode (though you’ll have to enter the maximum aperture and focal length manually). For matrix metering, the D200 now uses a scene database of about 300,000 patterns (compared to the earlier models using 30,000). The benefits: better flash performance, more accurate matrix metering. • Flash Improvements. Speaking of flash, the new i-TTL system has added capabilities while improving exposure accuracy. By using the 1005-pixel CCD to measure flash, V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 66 the D200 gets information that’s better integrated with the ambient exposure and autofocus sensor use. But the big pluses are Flash Lock, true wireless and multiple flash TTL (with SB-600’s and SB-800’s), and Automatic High-Speed TTL flash (called TTL FP; FP is no longer a Manual flash mode). The benefits: more accurate flash exposures and more flash options, especially for users of multiple flashes. Amazingly, there’s more: write-to-storage performance has been substantially improved from the D100, wireless file transmission is now possible at 802.11g speeds, and dozens of other more subtle, less detectable changes have been made. Up through the F5, Nikon’s major product cycle generally took about eight years between substantive engineering changes. With the D2 series, this cycle has dropped to three years, yet many of the changes are more dramatic than ever before. On the Internet you see plenty of criticism about how slowly Nikon is moving, or how Nikon is falling behind (usually in relationship to Canon), or how Nikon isn’t innovating. My analysis shows the opposite: Nikon is moving faster than ever and leaving no stone unturned. Nikon DSLRs have pioneered a huge list of firsts and the D200 has revealed another handful of those. Would I have liked more resolution than 10.2 megapixels? Yes, it would be nice to get to about 16mp for some additional cropping flexibility. But frankly, megapixel count is generally overvalued by many. In short, while much of the visible D200 resembles earlier Nikon bodies, there’s a lot more going on inside the camera than any previous Nikon consumer camera body, and it was arguably close to the D2x in capability. The D200’s Sensor The key element of any digital camera is the image collection device, called a sensor. In the case of the D2x, that is a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) sensor made by Sony, apparently with Nikon’s design input. In the V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 67 case of the Nikon D200, it’s also a Sony sensor with Nikon design input, although this time it’s a CCD (Charge Coupled Device). While the D2x and D200 sensors are similar in resolution, much of the image quality differences between the two are explained by the CMOS versus CCD change. Sensors all work in basically the same way: they have light collection areas, called photosites, which are sensitive to light photons. CMOS, CCD, and LBCAST F 24 refer primarily to the transistor type and underlying electronics methodology used to do the collection and transfer of light data. CMOS is likely the long-term winner in the sensor wars. While it is more difficult to design (especially for high speed transfers, as are used in the Nikon D2 and Canon 1D series), the manufacturing costs are much lower. You can also design more electronics into the sensor itself. But CMOS has the problem of being inherently noisier than CCD technology, all else being equal (see “Noise,” on page < H80>. CMOS is also somewhat more difficult to engineer, since it allows photosite- level electronics and the external circuitry addresses each photosite individually. The CCD sensor used in the D200 appears to be a close relative of the sensor used in the original D1. Most people don’t realize that the original D1 had almost the same number of individual photosites as the D200; the difference is that the D1 sensor grouped four photosites together (a process called “binning”), allowing it to get better noise properties. Since the D1 sensor first was produced, Sony and Nikon have both gotten a great deal of experience with improving the basic technology and dealing with potential sensor issues at the ADC and in post processing. One primary change is the addition of a four channel transfer mechanism. We’ll examine 24 The Nikon-designed sensor used in the D2h and D2hs. LBCAST stands for Lateral Buried Charge Accumulator and Sensing Transistor, a technology unique to Nikon sensors. LBCAST is a relative of CMOS—the primary difference is that LBCAST uses a JFET type of transistor instead of MOSFET. V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 68 that when we examine the Bayer pattern a bit further along in this section. The D200’s sensor (the greenish area surronded by blue exposed here). This shot was taken with Mirror Lockup so that the mirror mechanism flipped out of the way to reveal the sensor as it appears during the taking of a picture. The dark green area is the actual image sensing area. Any dust or dirt that gets into the mirror box (behind the lens) seems to ultimately work its way and attach itself to the sensor. Unlike some of the earlier Nikon bodies where the frame holding the sensor came right up to the imaging area, there’s enough room in the D200 to get a Sensor Swab or SensorBrush off the imaging area when cleaning. The blue area, which contains non-sensing electronics and signal paths, acts as a “landing zone” for brush and swab type sensor cleaning. See “Keeping the Sensor Clean” on page < H575>. Many newcomers to digital photography are confused by the published information about imaging sensors. Here are the key specifications for the D200 and other Nikon DSLR models: Sensor Specifications (Size) Camera Size “ (mm) Pixel Size D70/D70S .93 x .61” (23.7 x 15.6mm) 7.8 microns D100 .93 x .61” (23.7 x 15.6mm) 7.8 microns D200 .93 x .62” (23.6 x 15.8mm) 6.05 microns D1X .93 x .61” (23.7 x 15.6mm) 11.8 x 5.9 microns D1H .93 x .61” (23.7 x 15.6mm) 11.8 microns D1 .93 x .61” (23.7 x 15.6mm) 11.8 microns D2H/D2HS .93 x .61” (23.7 x 15.6mm) 9.4 microns D2X .93 x .62” (23.7 x 15.7mm) 5.49 microns V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 69 Sensor Specifications (Pixels) Camera Active Pixels Bit Depth D70/D70S 3008 x 2000 12 bits (but compressed) D100 3008 x 2000 12 bits D200 3872 x 2592 12 bits D1X 4024 x 1324 12 bits D1H 2012 x 1324 12 bits D1 2012 x 1324 12 bits D2H/D2HS 2464 x 1632 12 bits D2X 4228 x 2848 12 bits F 25 Note: Nikon’s pixel dimensions are always for the active imaging area of the chip. Moreover, Nikon has sometimes chosen a slightly different active area than the chip manufacturer suggests (3008 x 2000 instead of 3000 x 2000 for the D100, for example). But the active imaging area may be slightly less than the number of “effective pixels.” You’ll note, for example, that Nikon claims the D200 has 10.2 million effective pixels, but the image only ends up with about 10. That’s because some of those extra pixels at the edges are masked off and used for noise management and other purposes. Obviously, not all sensors are built the same, so what are the key differences, and what do they mean? First, note that the physical size of the D200’s sensor is larger than that of the all-in-one consumer digital cameras, such as the Coolpix models, which use sensors much smaller (typically 4 x 5.4mm or 5.4 x 7.2mm, which is about one- ninth the area of a DSLR sensor in the best case). Likewise, the individual areas used to capture light and generate pixels—called photosites by engineers—are much, much larger than the Coolpix models (~36 square microns on the D200 compared to the best case Coolpix, the 5000, at 11.56 square microns). Note, however, that the D200’s photosites 25 Unlike some previous Nikon DSLRs, the D2x and D200 do their JPEG processing with the full 12-bit capture prior to reducing to 8 bits. More on this in the section on JPEG (see page <131>). V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 70 are significantly smaller in area than those in the D50, D70/D70s, D100, and D1 series F 26 . Size of the photosite is directly related to the ability to record a wide and accurate tonal range and inversely related to the amount of noise in the image data. That makes the D200’s performance with its modest-sized photosites remarkable, as the light capture area is significantly smaller than that of many previous Nikon DSLRs. Yet the D200’s sensor manages to eke out better performance in almost every area that can be measured. That just goes to show how fast technology has changed since the original D1 sensor design was completed in the late 1990’s F 27 . Sensor Filtration The D200 uses a Bayer-pattern filter over the photosites, named for the Kodak engineer who originated the method. Each individual photosite has a colored filter over it so that the underlying photosite is responsive to a particular range of color. Adjacent sites have different colored filters over them. Basically, odd-numbered pixel rows alternate filters to produce red and green values, while even-numbered pixel rows alternate filters to produce green and blue. It’s very important for D200 users to understand what this pattern does, and the consequences it produces in images. 26 The critical measurement is area. The best case in a Nikon DSLR, the D2h, has a bit over 88 square microns of area in a photosite, while the worst case, the D2x, has only about 30 square microns. Other aspects do come into play: somewhat less of the area of a CMOS sensor is devoted to light collection than on a CCD sensor, but overall, the area measurement gives you a ballpark way of comparing light collection ability. 27 You might wonder if the pace will continue as quickly in the future. Perhaps, but other issues will start to make such advances less important. For example, the D200’s sensor is good enough to clearly show the differences between poor and good lenses, and some designers think that the D200, D2x, and Canon 1DsMkII are nearing the resolution limits current lens designs can manage, especially in the corners. The D200 and D2x have a greater photosite density than the 1DsMkII, so we may soon need better lenses to handle any further advances. More likely, we’ll get software that addresses physical lens defects if sensors continue to downsize (increasing the photosite per millimeter ratio). [...]... on detailed objects To prevent this being a problem in the D200, a small lens-like bit on top of each photosite—called a microlens—redirects the light so that it enters the sensor perpendicular to the film plane The result is better color accuracy and saturation, and less light fall-off in the corners (compared to a photosite without microlenses) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 88... fill the entire area the sensor array occupies This catches some digital newcomers by surprise, as they imagine that the photosites are all jammed up against one another and the entire sensor captures light The photosites are jammed together, but the light-sensing portions of most sensors, including those in the D200, are smaller than the overall photosite size, partly in order to keep light photons... up in photos as incorrect pixel values, and is easiest to see in large areas of a single color (like the sky, or the rim in the above image) or in deep shadow areas (where noise shows up as false detail) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 81 V1.03 As I noted earlier, the larger the photosite, the less that noise is a factor Thus, Coolpix users have discovered that pictures they’ve taken... off the sensor to the edge, where they’re then read by the ADC (Analog -to- Digital Conversion) circuitry But here’s the issue: the green data in the sensor is moved off the sensor in two different pathways: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 84 V1.03 Green is the primary luminance (brightness) component for image data Since adjacent green values are being moved off the sensor on different... format” on page < 145>), the camera simply saves the values it recorded at each photosite into a file (along with some additional camera data) Software on your computer (Nikon Capture or one of the many third-party RAW file converters that are available) is then used to interpret the photosite information to produce RGB values and a visible image H Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 71 V1.03... hitting the photosite from oblique angles (dotted green line in above illustration), because it might not get into the photosite’s light collection well So the microlens is designed to take light hitting at all angles and redirect it straight down into the photosite well The smaller sensor size also comes into play here Getting light from the rear element of a wide angle lens to the far corners of the. .. hit the extreme corners of the frame at a very oblique angle with older lens designs As previously noted, we want light to hit the sensor as close to perpendicular as possible Nikon has done three things to make this true for their DSLRs: • APS frame size The smaller frame size of the Nikon DSLRs mean light doesn’t have to get “bent” as much to reach the edges of the capture area • Microlenses—These... those above the frequency tend to more easily generate aliasing artifacts (often visible as moiré or color fringing in digital cameras) The filter on the D200’s sensor attempts to pass the data below the Nyquist frequency for the sensor pitch, and reject data above that frequency, thus the name “low-pass.” Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 75 V1.03 Tonal Range 12 bits-per-pixel tonal range... Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 72 V1.03 little energy in the blue wavelengths available to be captured by the sensor • Red to Black and Blue to Black transitions compromise detail Black is defined as the absence of light in all three channels (R, G, and B) Thus, when you have a pure red area adjacent to a pure black area, the Bayer pattern gets in the way (no value is being reported by the. .. values Compare this matrix to the previous one and you’ll see that the effective resolution has decreased (I’ve made the patterns the same size) • Moiré patterns may appear When the frequency of image detail changes at or near the pitch of the photosites (imagine a photo of the screen on a door where the line intersections of the screen hit almost, but not exactly on the photosites), an artifact of interpolation . refers to the fact that the battery can be queried for its exact status. V1.03 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 65 is still electronically monitored for precision. The benefits:. lens) seems to ultimately work its way and attach itself to the sensor. Unlike some of the earlier Nikon bodies where the frame holding the sensor came right up to the imaging area, there’s. Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D200 Page 70 are significantly smaller in area than those in the D50, D70/D70s, D100, and D1 series F 26 . Size of the photosite is directly related to the