Nikon D300 In-depth Review: Digital Photography Review

Compared to...

The choice of cameras for comparison is the same as the specification comparison on the previous page, so that's the D300 versus the Canon EOS 40D, Olympus E-3 and Sony DSLR-A700. In addition we'll add the D200 in for a relative improvement comparison over the camera it replaces.

Lenses used

For direct comparisons we always use sharp prime lenses stopped down (F8-F9 or F6.3 for the Four Thirds lens). Here we have used the Minolta 50 mm F1.4, Canon EF 50 mm F1.4, Nikon 50 mm F1.8 and Olympus 50 mm F2.0 Macro.

Studio scene comparison (JPEG)

This is our standard studio scene comparison shot taken from exactly the same tripod position. Lighting: daylight simulation, >98% CRI. Crops are 100%. Ambient temperature was approximately 22°C (~72°F).

Nikon D300 vs Nikon D200

There are a few caveats you should consider when looking at the comparison below; firstly that the D200's default sharpening is less than the D300 and secondly that the D200's base sensitivity is ISO 100 where as it is ISO 200 with the D300.

Camera settings:

Nikon D300: Nikkor 50 mm F1.8 lens, Aperture Priority, ISO 200 (default base)
JPEG Large/Fine, Manual WB, Default Parameters (Normal), Self-Timer (with exposure delay)
Nikon D200: Nikkor 50 mm F1.8 lens, Aperture Priority, ISO 100 (default base)
JPEG Large/Fine, Manual WB, Default Parameters (Normal), Self-Timer

Nikon D300	Nikon D200

4.4 MB JPEG (4288 x 2848)	4.2 MB JPEG (3872 x 2592)

Firstly you can see the improvement in edge sharpness and texture definition gained from the slightly stronger sharpening employed by the D300. You can also see an improvement in the level and definition of detail thanks to two more megapixels (which equates to just 256 additional vertical lines). Tone and color balance are very similar, the D300 perhaps just a little more saturated, especially reds.