(CNET) -- When you build the follow-up to a hot camera, how do you turn up the heat? When Nikon shipped the D200 a couple of years ago, its combination of speed and photo quality blew away the limited competition, and provided a powerful, relatively inexpensive alternative to Nikon's then top-of-the-line D2X.
The D300 faces a far more crowded field. Not only does it take on its venerable and now lower-priced predecessor, but also a cluster of far-from-shabby dSLRs just at or below its price: the Canon EOS 40D, the Sony Alpha DSLR-A700, the Olympus E-3, and the Pentax K20D.
Nikon's offering a body-only box of the D300 as well as two kits: one with a DX 18mm-135mm f/3.5-5.6G ED AF lens (27mm-202.5mm equivalent with the camera's 1.5x crop factor) and one with a DX 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens (27mm-300mm equivalent). I tested the latter kit, and also used the camera with two non-DX lenses: a preproduction version of the 14-24mm 2.8G ED and the 24-70mm f/2.8G ED IF.
For the most part, Nikon sticks with the tried-and-true body design and interface of the D200, with its intelligently laid out controls. The dust- and weatherproof body weighs a hair over 2 pounds, and feels as solid as a little tank.
The viewfinder is bigger and brighter, with 100 percent coverage. There are a few behaviors I'm not fond of, like the hard to manipulate metering dial (discussed in my more-detailed analysis of the design) and occasionally problematic AF-mode navigation (discussed below), but find the camera's operation comfortable and fluid. Nikon carries over the ultraflexible user-settings menus, which consists of two banks--shooting settings and custom settings--with four nameable slots each.
Though the DX-format (23.6x15.8 mm), 12-megapixel CMOS sensor is new, the D300 otherwise retains the raft of features that made the D200 so powerful, plus some high-profile enhancements. Most notably, the D300 increases to 51 AF points with 15 cross-type sensors, which contributes to the camera's new 3D-tracking 51-point Dynamic Area AF mode, and replaces the Group Dynamic AF of its predecessor. Essentially, the D300's 1,005-point 3D color matrix meter does double duty, feeding a low-resolution digitized version of the scene to the new Multi-Cam 3500DX AF module for tracking analysis. (You can see an interesting video simulation of it on YouTube.)
Based on the description (and the suggested use in the manual), the 3D tracking mode seems like an optimal solution for shooting well-defined subjects--those with strong color contrast relative to the background and which occupy a large percentage of the scene--that remain within the frame. And in shoots at a local dog run, it worked best for portrait-type situations, where it tracked the dogs' wildly moving heads while they themselves remained relatively stationary within the frame. However, for shots where the subject moves too quickly to keep in the viewfinder--as happens with most of the other dog-run shots--Nikon suggests using the 51-point dynamic AF without the 3D tracking. That works relatively well. (You can also choose 21-point or nine-point without 3D.)
Unfortunately, if you need to switch quickly between those two AF options, as I do in the aforementioned scenario, you're out of luck. There's no direct-access control and you can't assign the selection to one of the three custom buttons; the closest you can get is to add it to My Menu, or waste an entire custom setting bank for that one feature. For me, since the 51-point without 3D is the more generally useful of the two modes, the 3D tracking will just be woefully underutilized, and might as well not be there at all. And frankly, I miss the AF-group visual feedback provided by the D200.
The same goes for the D300's Live View shooting. Like the 40D, it supports autofocus, but the D300 uses the typical too-many-mirror-flips implementation that makes it far less useful than it could be. There's actually a flow chart in the manual explaining the series of steps it takes to shoot in Live View--with a tripod it can use contrast AF, which doesn't require the constant mirror flippage. It is neither complicated, nor the shooting experience one should expect.
Like Canon, Nikon has a lot invested in lens-based optical-image stabilization technology, so the D300 lacks the in-body sensor-shift stabilization that Sony, Pentax, Olympus, and Panasonic offer. That's not a big deal if you already have an investment in Nikon's VR lenses or don't really use/care about stabilization. But if you do care about it and making your first dSLR purchase, or contemplating shifting from another brand, then don't discount its importance; the fact that the two kits require a choice between VR and non-VR lenses foreshadows future lens choices you'll have to make.
Other boosts over the D200 include an upgrade to a 3-inch LCD with a 170-degree viewing angle, a stop higher on the sensitivity scale to an effective ISO 100-6,400, the addition of a 14-bit raw mode, and an HDMI connector for optimal HDTV output. Before going into production, Nikon dropped the Virtual Horizon capability (which did make it into the D3). Nice features carried over from the D200 include built-in wireless flash control; selectable 6mm, 8mm, 10mm, or 13mm center-spot for center-weighted metering; and a shutter-speed range of 1/8,000 to 30 seconds. (For a complete list of the D300's features and capabilities, check out the PDF manual.)
There's nothing to complain about with the D300's shooting speed--though it delivers average performance for its class, the D300 does belong to a pretty zippy class of cameras, and it outpaces the D200 on a few tasks. CNET Labs' tests indicate that it wakes up and shoots near instantly, in about 0.1 second. Under good, high-contrast lighting, it focuses and shoots in just under half a second, rising to 0.9 second in dimmer conditions.
Typically, it captures consecutive frames in the same half second, edging up to 0.6 second with the built-in flash enabled. And it delivers a quick 5.8 frames per second for high-speed burst shooting. (We tested without the optional battery grip, which brings the speed closer to 7fps.) Nikon traditionally delivers excellent low-light focus performance in its dSLRs, and the D300 is no exception. Even shooting a black cat sitting in the shadows of a dimly lit apartment proved no problem.
As for photo quality, the D300 delivers great results, with a visibly superior noise profile to the D200 as well as to the Sony DSLR-A700 (which uses the same sensor). At their best, photos are sharp, with excellent exposures, accurate colors, and broad tonal ranges. Flash with the SB-800 Speedlight unit especially showed off how well the metering system works, with none of the harsh, overexposed look that I frequently get on the most difficult shots. (For more details on the photo quality, click through the slide show.)
Although the lack of in-body stabilization can be a big liability for certain users, and its interface not quite as streamlined as I'd like, these negatives are more than offset by the great performance and class-leading photo quality delivered by the Nikon D300--earning it an Editors' Choice.
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