Nikon D810 Field Test

Although I'll happily shoot with just about any camera you care to hand me, I am first and foremost an SLR shooter. I'm a big fan of the optical viewfinder, and I like a camera body that feels molded to my hands. Although I haven't yet gone full-frame -- I can't personally justify the cost, in part because I spend a lot of time shooting with the cameras I'm reviewing, rather than my own personal cameras -- I'd love to switch to a full-frame camera at some point.

The Nikon D810, then, is a camera whose design speaks to me.

As far as I'm concerned, you just can't can't beat a big, bright through-the-lens viewfinder image for the sense of attachment it gives to your subject. (I find it doubly nice when shooting active subjects, as I can keep both eyes open, framing with one and anticipate my subject with the other. That doesn't work as well with an EVF, because the lag inherent in an electronic view of the world means both eyes aren't seeing quite the same thing.)

It's been a little while since I started my Nikon D810 review late last year. Shortly after the first Field Test went live, our review sample camera body had to be returned to Nikon as it was covered by a service program -- and then once it returned, we were hit by a triple-whammy of holidays, trade shows, and personal life intervening. I was pleased, recently, to finally get back hands-on with the D810, though.

After so long without the camera, a period of relearning was needed. I took the D810 around town with me, then brought it along to an ice hockey game and got some pretty nifty shots. Sports shooting isn't really this camera's niche, though, and its epic resolution was robbed by having to shoot through the dirty, scratched-up plexiglass around the rink. Nor, with a 14-24mm zoom and 85mm prime, did I have the best lenses on hand for getting up close to the action.