Nikon D200 for Documentary Photography - Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

What I don't like...continued

The viewfinder. I wear glasses and am used to a restricted view of the finder in all my cameras because of this. Generally I manage fine with the D200, I consider the finder magnification and brightness acceptable. On the positive side I should mention that the eyepiece is well guarded with a good synthetic rubber covering and as a result my glasses have remained scratch free. What I dislike is the crop factor of the viewfinder - allowing you only approximately 95% of the full sensor area. Now - this is not a criticism of the camera or Nikon - the D200 specifications state quite clearly that the finder does not provide 100% coverage of the full sensor area - this is not a failure of the camera in any way - however, for my style of shooting where often the success of an image depends on precise framing then it can be a significant drawback. In a critical situation there's always the option to check the framing in the monitor (that does show 100%) but this is only of benefit when photographing static subjects that can be retaken if framing is off.

Accidental Battery Release. While I like the battery retention aspect of the design when the door is opened I have, on several occasions found it very easy to accidentally open the battery compartment door during use. The compartment is opened by pulling out a small release catch on the right-hand underside edge of the body - every now and then when I'm hand-holding the camera my little finger will catch this door release and the battery will drop out.

Thanks to the battery restraining feature built in to the body the battery doesn't fall to the ground but the sudden loss of power can cause the current frame to be lost and there is potential for further missed photographs and a loss of concentration when this happens.

As I've pointed out before I dislike any unnecessary disruption during shooting and this kind of thing is a prime example of an issue that can cause a distraction and a lost shot. Other Nikon bodies that I've used have very affirmative battery compartment release mechanisms and why Nikon chose to go away from this is a mystery to me.

The AF assist light also gets a little annoying, but credit to Nikon you can easily deactivate it through custom setting a9 (this didn't last past day two on my D200).

Depth of Field (DOF). One aspect of the 1.5 x crop factor of Nikon's DX sensor is that for any given focal length the DOF is increased by comparison to what would be expected with 35mm. This is something I was warned about before I purchased the camera. I really like to exploit shallow DOF and many of my photographs rely on shallow DOF for their impact so I really miss this.

Summing Up

Having completed my list of personal likes and dislikes my overall conclusion is that the D200 is a great tool for documentary photography. With any photographic situation equipment choice is likely to be a compromise and the reception that this camera has received since Nikon launched it shows that the compromise achieved is one that many people with diverse shooting styles and subjects are pleased with.

Many of the points I've touched upon in this review are general differences between using film and digital, but having moved from one medium to the other with my purchase of the D200 and knowing that many people will be planning a similar transition I hope my comments will be of interest.

Nikon took their time to develop the D200 but I'm full of admiration in what they've delivered and the fact that they took their time to produce such a well conceived camera.