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Photojournalist’s new best friend
 If the first thing you do is obsess about the megapixel count every time a new digital SLR is introduced, you may miss the point of Nikon’s new 4.1MP D2H (street price rumored to be $3,000–$3,500 for the body only). That’s OK with Nikon, since its engineers designed this camera not to impress the pixel-counters, but to wow the pros (especially photojournalists) looking for a camera that captures high enough image quality for publication and gives them a performance advantage over their competitors.
Based on the preproduction model we saw, Nikon seems to have succeeded. The D2H features a new, extremely fast focusing system with 11 AF sensors that cover over 75 percent of the horizontal viewing area. It also packs Focus Tracking and improved low-light sensitivity, fast shutter speeds up to 1/8000 sec, and flash sync to 1/250 sec.
But the D2H really impressed us with its ability to capture up to 40 high-res JPEG images (or up to 25 NEF raw files) at a superfast 8 frames per second.
To verify that you got the shot, there’s a large, 2.5-inch color LCD. And the camera’s new lithium ion cell not only supplies power, but also indicates the number of remaining shots left.
The optional wireless attachment (WT-1) lets you send images to a computer or Wi-Fi 802.11b network from up to 100 feet away. In a studio, the High-Speed USB 2.0 connection helps speed up image transfer from the
camera to a computer.
Nikon claims that a combination of the D2H’s new 4.1MP (2484x1636) CCD image sensor, advanced white
balance control, triple-sensor metering, improved image-processing algorithms and hardware, and sharp DX-Nikkor-
series lenses should help the D2H capture images with higher color accuracy and sharpness, comparable to a 5MP camera. We’re eager to find out if that’s true. Nikon plans several new DX-Nikkor lenses, out when the camera ships in the fall. The D2H includes Nikon Capture 4.0. (Nikon USA; 800-645-6627; www.nikonusa.com)
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