Very Nice and Different
Pros:
Video mode, dynamic focus, D-lighting, sensor cleaner
Cons:
tendency to over expose slightly
The Bottom Line:
Go buy it!
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
I just picked the kit up this month. First, let me say that I sold the kit lens because I already have other Nikon Lenses. This review is about the camera, not the lens. For the record, the lens I use most often is a Nikkor 18-200 VR.
Anyway, I love the D90 and I am surprised by the D90. This camera replaced my D80 which I had for 2 years and I loved beyond description. By far the best camera i have ever worked with. So upgrading to a D90 was a logical step...how can I go wrong, it's a D80 but better and then some. Let me tell you the first and only negative. The D90 leans more on the over exposed shot. If you are not used to this, it will hit you. You will feel that your shots are always too light or about +1/3 step. I feel like it's just a little too much on highlights. Why is that? I don't know. You'd think with all the new features it like D-lighting it should be dead on. Anyway, the good news is that you can adjust for it and then you can adjust yourself to know how to shoot with this camera better. It's not so bad that you will hate it, I'm just saying you will notice it on 70% of bright or daylight shots.
Ok, that's out of the way. As far as the rest of the camera and features, what can I say but WOW! The rear LCD is like watching my HDTV Plasma. The Live view, a much needed feature, is very useful and useable espcially with that screen clarity. Dynamic are auto-focus has so far been good too and th eonly thing I wish it had is an even faster autofocus like the D300. Face detection is good also, but i found it to be more needed on a P&S than a DSLR. Ok, and I have to say this, the fact that they put MOVIE mode on a DSLR is awesome!!! This is definitely the future. Some critics have complained about the auto-focus not being available in Movie mode. I have tried the manual focus approach and it's worked great. Do you know how many time I had to carry 2 cameras and switch just to capture movies? well no more. I can now do it in one place and it's really easy and simple. Besides, most of the time, you get a scene and you film it with no need to zoom in between. But if you do, just turn the focus ring and Voila! I love this feature. I love it even more when you consider the competition added it to a model that costs $2K more.
Everything else on the D90 is pretty much a freshened up D80 so it's great. The only additional feature I will mention worth noting is the internal sensor cleaning which is very important. I don't know how good it is yet because the unit is new, but time will tell because I take my cameras EVERYWHERE including beach.
If you wanna know more, read the specs and professional reviews by people who know how to criticize everything. But if you want to know how it will be in your hands, and the average joe who likes photography and knows a bit more than the rest, please be assured that you will LOVE this camera. If you had a D80, no rush, but you will love this one. If you had anything else, GET this one.