Nikon D700: It’s Official

July 1st, 2008 · No Comments

Nikon has announced the much-anticipated D700, basically a D300 with a full-frame sensor. Also in the lineup is a new SB-900 flash unit and two new perspective control micro lenses. More details after the jump.

According to a Nikon USA news release, the D700 appears for all intents and purposes to be a D300 with the full-frame sensor from the D3 transplanted. It uses the same MB-D10 grip as the D300, and can achieve 8 fps using the grip and an EN-EL4a battery (5 fps otherwise).

The new camera has the same 200-6400 ISO range as the D3, and is also extensible to 100-25600.

Price? $3000, available late July 2008 according to Nikon. Get those orders in now!

Back view. Note circular viewfinder.

Place your pre-order for the D700 from Adorama

SB-900. Also announced today is a new flagship speedlight, the SB-900. New features include a zoom range of 17-200mm, a guide number of 157.5 (feet, ISO 200), firmware upgradeability, and three selectable lighting patterns.

Support for i-TTL and the Creative Lighting System are of course maintained, and Nikon boasts a 2.3-second recycle time for NiMH batteries, faster even than the SB-800 with its fifth battery attachment. A larger LCD, new interface controls, and automatic sensing of gel filters are also interesting new features.

All this power won’t come cheap, as the SB-900 will have a whopping $500 price tag. An optional SD-9 battery pack, which redcues recycle time to just one second, will cost $230. Both should be available come August 2008.

Pre-order now throigh Adorama.

PC Micro Lenses. Nikon has extended its tilt-shift lens lineup with two new lenses, the PC-E Micro NIKKOR® 45mm f/2.8D ED and the PC-E Micro NIKKOR 85mm f/2.8D. Both lenses offer 1:2 magnification and will cost about $1800. Available in August 2008.