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Why AA filter in the D750?

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Sten E

Sten E

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Hi all,

The D750 seems to be a very attractive camera.

But why has Nikon kept the AA filter in the D750?

Without an AA filter you can get sharper pictures.
 
You'll also get more moire. The photos are plenty sharp. I already get moire in bird feathers from time to time. As a self-proclaimed pixel peeper who likes to crop deep, I'm happy with the results. .... but.. everyone has different needs.
 
Not sure about the theory, but the two Nikons without it, the D810 and the D7100 have a higher pixel density than the D750. Nikon may feel it needs it.
 
It is likely due to the video features. Hard to remove moiré from video.
 
It seems Nikon has suddenly discovered another goose that lays golden eggs...

To have or not to have (AA filter) allows them to create a largely insignificant market differentiation - either a hypothetical D750E, like some other user said, or just another AA-less Nikon model.
Sten E said:
Without an AA filter you can get sharper pictures.
Click to expand...
It's not that simple...

The choice, first of all, is not only between having an AA and not having one; it's not just black and white. Some AA filters are weak, others are strong; it depends on whether the AA filter is set well below the Nyquist frequency (if it is, there's in theory some acuity loss).

What happens in real life (particularly with such huge in MP count sensors), is that if you shoot mostly wide-open with fast glass (so, f/1.4 to f/2.8), you will have (theoretically; if your technique and lenses among other things are dead-on) better sharpness without AA filter. If you shoot landscapes and use lenses at f/8 or so, the difference will be practically non-existent, because diffraction will start robbing you off any extra resolution gained by the lack of the AA filter.

Bottom line: AA filter is definitely not something people need to worry about (despite what Nikon marketing would like us to believe)

--
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Sten E said:
Hi all,

The D750 seems to be a very attractive camera.

But why has Nikon kept the AA filter in the D750?

Without an AA filter you can get sharper pictures.
Click to expand...
 
Sten E said:
Hi all,

The D750 seems to be a very attractive camera.

But why has Nikon kept the AA filter in the D750?

Without an AA filter you can get sharper pictures.

--
Best regards,
Sten

--
Best regards,
Sten
Click to expand...
Because if they didn't keep the AA filter your buddy would ask "But why has Nikon REMOVED the AA filter in the D750?"
 
Thank you all for good and interesting answers so far!
 
The Sony RX1R has no AA filter and, according to most reviewers/users, the difference in detail and sharpness with the RX1 (with AA filter) is insignificant. I wouldn't put too much weight on the absence/presence of an AA filter for 24mpix FF.
 
My theory is that they want to woo video shooters (their marketing certainly suggests this), since video shooters were actively buying cameras.

The D800e got a panning in some video reviews most notably the quite influential Phillip Bloom, due to moire and aliassing issues, so keeping the AA would be theoretically attractive to video shooters.
Pity mirrorless came along and took most of those buyers.
 
jtan163 said:
My theory is that they want to woo video shooters (their marketing certainly suggests this), since video shooters were actively buying cameras.
The D800e got a panning in some video reviews most notably the quite influential Phillip Bloom, due to moire and aliassing issues, so keeping the AA would be theoretically attractive to video shooters.
Pity mirrorless came along and took most of those buyers.
Click to expand...
I thought we killed that myth two years ago. There is virtually no difference in video moiré between the D800 and D800E. Nikon states as much. The D800 AA filter is not strong enough to have any effect on line skipping for 1080p video. Think about it. The D800 filter rather mild for still images. When you see moiré in a D800E, it usually shows up in a D800 just not as pronounced. Line skipping would require a much stronger filter than that of the D800.

Phillip Bloom pulled that threat-down out of his a$$. He was making that comment from theory, not experience. There were some real-world examples around two years ago showing that the D800E was no worse at video moiré than the D800.
 
Thank you again for still more interesting comments!
 
As seen in the D7100 review, very minor increase, indeed, almost negligible.
 
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