The next day we see more tiger sharks and I slowly start to get used to these enormous beasts. During a dive at sunset we are treated to four great tiger sharks. As a team we work together and take turns taking photos. At a given moment one of the sharks gets in too close to one of the divers and Jim intervenes. He gives the shark a push with the camera. The tiger shark is not impressed. He grabs hold of the camera and swims aggressively away with it. I am feeling uncomfortable and go through my oxygen quickly. Luckily the shark eventually lets go of the camera and swims away. Once we are back on board Jim asks if anyone made a photo of it. I ask him if he's crazy. When I look at my photos that night I realize someone did take photos...

For a full review and all of Karin's beautiful photos, go check out her report on Let'sGoDigital. [Let's Go Digital]

Conclusions, after the jump.

After many pages of intricately detailed comparisons, Singleton seems to declare the competition almost a dead heat, depending on what features are most important to you. He lauds the dust control and image stabilization of the Sony camera, the color accuracy and high ISO dynamic range of the Canon, and the autofocus and build quality of the Nikon.

I like the fact that the image stabilization is built into the Nikon's lenses (and my dad has a huge collection of them), better on-board flash which I use a lot, and it has a more-comfortable grip, along with easy handling and precision construction. But that's just my opinion; I could be wrong. – Charlie White

Canon Rebel XTi vs. Nikon D80 vs. Sony Alpha A100 [DigitalCameraInfo]

The EOS 400D Rebel XTi is Canon's latest addition to the sub-$1,000 dSLR camera market. Technical improvements include an impressive 10.1 megapixels, 9-point autofocus, 3 frame-per-second image capture and 27-frame bursts. Add a self-cleaning image sensor, and the XTi looks like one hell of a camera. But while Canon was sleeping, the camera gods blessed consumers with the Sony A100 and Nikon D80 - two formidable opponents. Check out the results in our 4D bargraph and then hit the jump for our frankenreview: the best parts of every review blended into a succulent technosmoothie. – Mark Wilson

Imaging

"The 400D / XTi still delivers silky smooth images, is usable at its highest sensitivities and feels very responsive overall."
"What I am seeing is a new tone curve. Reds, yellows, and oranges seem to be slightly darker while blues seem slightly lighter. The tone curve seems to push shadows darker - but the detail remains."
"...the XTi's measured and visible image noise was significantly worse than that of the CCD-based Nikon
D80 for any given ISO speed."
"The XTi uses Canon's Digic II chipset rather than the newer Digic III, and I wonder if the company might
have been able to eke out better performance and noise suppression with the latter."
"Canon has been renowned for their clean high ISO results. And, the new 400D is looking very good from this perspective."
"Focusing performance under low light has been improved by 1 stop."
- Canons traditionally need a lot of light, especially without image-stabilizing lenses.

LCD

"The bigger screen, while long overdue, is also welcome."
"...the paper-white background gets distracting."
"It's easily visible under all but the very brightest conditions."
"...at the highest brightness settings...gamma is increased enough to make exposure hard to determine."
- Future so bright, you gotta wear shades.

What the Camera Needs

"There is still no spot metering."
"I couldn't avoid severe underexposures of a backlit subject with the available metering tools..."
"...the only thing which seems to be missing from the standard 400D XTi package is anti-shake."
"This will undoubtedly have potential buyers carefully weighing it up against the Sony Alpha A100."
- Anti-shake lenses add $$ to this budget dSLR.

Random

"The responsiveness of this camera makes taking a photo about as instinctive as blinking an eye."
"Sitting on top of the new sensor is another of the Canon EOS 400D Digital Rebel XTi's major improvements - a self-cleaning, sensor-sealing low-pass filter..."
"Ironically, my 400D/Rebel XTi came with the dirtiest-from-the-factory sensor I have seen yet. And no, the self-cleaning sensor didn't make a difference."

Conclusions

"Canon already had a great product with the 350D / XT, but rather than resting on its laurels has upped the ante and delivered a worthy successor."
"If you don't yet have an investment in any particular manufacturer's lens system and want this year's best model for less than $1,000, you might consider the Nikon D80."

Specs

Sensor resolution
10.1 megapixels

Optical sensor type
CMOS

Effective sensor resolution
10,100,000 pixels

Gross sensor resolution
10,500,000 pixels

Light sensitivity
ISO 100-1600, ISO auto (100-400)

Shooting programs
Close-up, Landscape, Sports mode, Portrait mode, Night portrait

Max shutter speed
1/4000 sec

Min shutter speed
30 sec

Still image format
RAW, JPEG, RAW + JPEG

Continuous shooting speed
3 frames per second

Auto focus
TTL phase detection

Focal length
18 mm - 55 mm

Focus zones
9

Min focus range
11 in

Lens aperture
F/3.5-5.6

Optical zoom
3 x

CameraLabs
CNET
DP Expert
The Digital Picture (photo thanks)

Nikon D80 Skelton model at Photokina 2006 [Fareastgizmos.com]

Nikon's been teasing us for days, and it looks like every camera site on the Web has been holding one of these D80 DSLRs for a while now. Our tipbox was full of links to their extensive reports this morning, so let's give you a link roundup. If you're interested in every possible detail about this hot shooter from Nikon, you'll be able to bask in the glow of this much-anticipated release. Full spec list and maximum linkage after the jump. – Charlie White

Here's a partial list of excellent reports about the Nikon D80:

•Nikon D80 Preview [Let's Go Digital]
•Nikon D80, 10 mp, previewed [DP Review]
•Nikon D80 Digital Camera [Digital Camera Review]
•Nikon D80 Pictures Unveiled [Hip Tech Blog]
•In-Depth Hands-On Preview of Nikon D80 [Imaging Resource]
•Hands On: Nikon D80 DSLR [PopPhoto]
•Nikon D80 [Digital Photography Blog]

Nikon D80 Specifications:
* Effective Pixels: 10.2 million
* Image Sensor: RGB CCD, 23.6 x 15.8mm; total pixels: 10.75 million, Nikon DX format
* Image Size (pixels): 3,872 x 2,592 [L], 2,896 x 1,944 [M], 1,936 x 1,296 [S]
* ISO Sensitivity (Recommended Exposure Index): 100 to 1600 (ISO equivalent) in steps of 1/3 EV, plus HI-0.3, HI-0.7 and HI-1
* Storage Media: SD memory card
* Storage System: Compressed NEF (RAW): 12-bit compression, JPEG: JPEG baseline-compliant
* File System: Exif 2.21, Compliant DCF 2.0 and DPOF
* White Balance: Auto (TTL white balance with 420-pixel RGB sensor), six manual modes with fine-tuning, color temperature setting (Kelvin), preset white balance; white balance bracketing also available
* LCD Monitor: 2.5-in., 230,000-dot, low-temperature polysilicon TFT LCD with brightness adjustment, allows up to 170-degree viewing angle.
* Playback Function: 1) Full frame 2) Thumbnail (4 or 9 segments) 3) Zoom 4) Slideshow (Standard or Pictmotion) 5) RGB histogram indication 6) Shooting data 7) Highlight point display 8) Auto image rotation
* Delete Function: Card format, All photographs delete, Selected photographs delete
* Video Output: Can be selected from NTSC and PAL
* Interface: USB 2.0 (Hi-speed) (mini-B connector); SD card slot: supports firmware updates via SD cards
* Text Input: Up to 36 characters of alphanumeric text input available with LCD monitor and multi-selector; stored in Exif header
* Compatible Lenses: Nikon F mount (with AF coupling and AF contacts)
* Picture Angle: Equivalent in 35mm [135] format is approx. 1.5 times lens focal length
* Viewfinder: Fixed eye-level pentaprism; built-in diopter adjustment (-2.0 to +1.0m-1)
* Eyepoint: 19.5mm (-1.0m-1)
* Focusing Screen: Type-B BriteView Clear Matte screen Mark II with superimposed focus brackets and On-Demand grid lines
* Viewfinder Frame Coverage: Approx. 95% (vertical & horizontal)
* Viewfinder Magnification: Approx. 0.94x with 50mm lens at infinity; -1.0m-1
* Viewfinder Information: Focus indications, Metering system, AE/FV lock indicator, Flash sync indicator, Shutter speed, Aperture value, Exposure/Exposure compensation indicator, ISO sensitivity, Exposure mode, Flash output level compensation, Exposure compensation, Number of remaining exposures
* Autofocus: TTL phase detection by Nikon Multi-CAM 1000 autofocus module with AF-assist illuminator (approx. 0.5m to 3.0m) Detection range: EV -1 to +19 (ISO 100 equivalent, at normal temperature: 20 C/68 F)
* Lens Servo: Instant single-servo (AF-S); continuous-servo (AF-C); auto AF-S/AF-C selection (AF-A); manual (M); predictive focus tracking automatically activated according to subject status in continuous-servo AF
* Focus Areas: 11 areas; any single area can be selected; center focus area can be switched from normal to wide-frame
* AF Area Modes: 1) Single Area AF: Focuses only on subjects in the selected area. Selection can be made from any one of the eleven AF spot sensors. 2) Dynamic Area AF: Focuses on subject in the selected area, but follows the subject if it moves from its original position, shifting instantly and autom

From the pictures, you can plainly see the new model will be called the Nikon D80, not the D90 as some speculated. There are a few extra buttons on the camera, such as a physical self timer, IR remote button, an autofocus button, and it looks like the D80 uses SD flash memory cards instead of the CompactFlash cards used on its predecessor.

Even with these new pictures staring us in the face, there's still mystery associated with this model. And that's probably just the way to Nikon wants it. Guess we'll have to wait 13 more days. – Charlie White

Photime.net [via Hip Tech Blog]