Editor's Choice 2008: Professional D-SLRs

Click to Enlarge

Fujifilm IS Pro

To buy this infrared- and UV-sensitive camera you have to sign an agreement in which you promise not to use it for "paparazzi-like activity." While exhibitionist celebs might like the idea that it can see through clothes (it can't, contrary to popular belief about infrared), we like the Fujifilm IS Pro for its artistic possibilities. Though designed for forensic use, its extended sensitivity subverts the translation of tones that black-and-white photographers expect, lightening organic substances because they reflect more IR radiation.

The Fuji IS Pro's cost might seem steep for such specialized effects, but if you put a UVIR cut filter on the lens it becomes a normal camera. In fact, it's basically a FinePix S5 Pro (the Fuji winner in last year's Professional D-SLRs category) from which the built-in infrared-cutoff filter has been excised. In turn, the S5 Pro's body is basically a Nikon D200, not the Nikon N80 body on which the IS Pro's predecessor, the S3 Pro UVIR, was based.

That means the IS Pro is a much more capable camera. It shoots simultaneous RAW+JPEG, a feature we find useful for workflow purposes; there's even a firmware upgrade that lets you shoot old-fashioned TIFF files. Its LCD is bigger and better; its live preview lets you view TTL with a visually opaque IR filter and gives you an idea of how the colors will translate into tones if you're shooting black and white. (You still need a tripod for precise composition because you can't shoot while viewing.) The IS Pro has the same nominal resolution as the S3 Pro, but improved image processing makes output smoother and lessens noise at high ISOs.

At a Glance: Fujifilm IS Pro

Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III

Although Canon is no longer the sole player in the full-frame D-SLR arena, the company deserves credit for making 35mm-size image sensors a practical reality, starting with the 11-megapixel EOS-1Ds in 2002. The third generation of this full-frame flagship raises the bar again with a 21-megapixel CMOS image sensor -- making the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III the very first 35mm-style digital SLR with resolution equal to that of many medium-format digital systems. Yet this image quality comes at one-third the price of the 22-megapixel Hasselblad H3DII-22.

In addition to being much smaller and lighter, the Mark III boasts features and performance that medium-format systems can't match, including 5fps continuous shooting; superfast 45-point autofocus; smooth output from ISO 50 to ISO 3200; a dust-busting self-cleaning sensor; wireless Live-View remote operation; and a combat-ready magnesium-alloy body that can survive the roughest location shoot. With the exception of its slower shooting speed, in fact, the full-frame Canon is identical in nearly all respects to its sports- and reportage-geared sibling, the 10fps, 10.1-megapixel EOS-1D Mark III, our 2007 Professional D-SLR of the Year.

Unlike that cropped-sensor twin, however, the new model has an enormous viewfinder, which Canon calls its finest ever. And it takes more than 60 Canon EF-mount lenses -- a much larger and more diverse selection than available in medium format -- all of which retain the same angle of view that they would produce on a 35mm film body.

At a Glance: Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III

Best Buy: Nikon D300

Unveiled at the same time as Nikon's heavyweight D3, this slimmed-down but feature-rich sibling offers many if not most of the same assets -- at only one-third the cost. The Nikon D300's specs are so good, in fact, that we think many pros will buy it not as a backup body but as their primary D-SLR. A key selling point is its 12.3-megapixel CMOS image sensor, which delivers cleaner high-ISO output than the like-sized CCDs used in earlier Nikon D-SLRs. (Its sensitivity is ISO 200 to ISO 3200, expandable to ISO 100 and ISO 6400.) Being smaller than a full 35mm frame, of course, the chip results in a 1.5X field-of-view crop. This means telephotos get an often-useful boost in focal length of 50 percent, but Nikon DX-format zooms are needed for most true wide-angle shooting.

Other than the smaller sensor and accordingly smaller viewfinder (still bigger than some competitors'), the D300's features nearly match those of the D3. They include a weather-resistant magnesium-alloy body; a super-sharp, three-inch LCD with 920,000-dot resolution; 14-bit RAW capture; wireless Live View remote shooting; and the ability to autofocus in Live View mode using either contrast detection (mirror up) or the optical AF system (mirror down). The new MB-D10 battery grip boosts the D300's swift 6fps to a smoking 8fps, just one frame slower than the D3 at full-resolution capture. Compared with its big brother, the D300 even has a few advantages, including a self-cleaning sensor, one-third less weight -- and, of course, considerably reduced sticker shock.

At a Glance: Nikon D300

• Print
• Stumble It