More than just a novelty, the Nikon D90's ability to shoot HD video provides photographers with a useful one-two punch.

I have to admit that I’ve been a little bit taken by surprise by all the buzz over digital SLRs that can also shoot high-definition movies. After first hearing about the HD capabilities of cameras like the Nikon D90 and, more recently, the Canon 5D Mark II, I thought all the excitement mostly had to do with the novelty of the feature.

Up until recently, camera designers struggled with figuring out a way to get a DSLR to also shoot movies, a function that has been available on compact cameras for some time now. Because digital SLRs use a mirror to reflect light onto the eyepiece, the mirror must be moved out of the way in order to record video. To do this, both the D90 and the 5D Mark II employ their Live View mode to lock the mirror back so that the camera can shoot HD clips directly from the imaging sensor.

The problem is that all that direct exposure to light can cause the imaging sensor to heat up dramatically, which can damage the chip. Consequently, Nikon recommends only five minutes of HD video use with the D90; though the 5D Mark II can shoot movies of considerably greater length. Either way it didn’t sound like such a hot idea to me. Would photographers really use this feature?

It wasn’t until I saw Vincent Laforet’s already- legendary “Reverie” commercial shot with a prototype of the 5D Mark II, which I wrote about for PDN’s Gear Guide online, that I finally “got” it. It’s not the camera itself, but rather all the interesting effects you can get using photo-based camera lenses while shooting video; exploiting the great depth of field, its super low-light ability and the wide-angle drama of the best glass.

I recently tried out the 12.3-megapixel Nikon D90 and while none of the video I shot with it approaches the quality of Vincent’s commercial—admittedly, that’s a very tough act to follow—I was surprised at how easy and fun it was. I could certainly see wedding photographers using this function to create movies during a reception to sell as an add-on. And mainstream TV commercials? Why not?

SHOOTING VIDEO

Shooting video with sound with the D90 is about as simple as it gets. Just press the Live View mode button (clearly labeled “LV”) and you can view the scene you’re about to shoot on the D90’s crisp 307,200-pixel, 3-inch LCD. Once in Live View mode, hit the OK button and you’re off and running with your first movie. The one catch is that the camera’s autofocus shuts down once you start filming your clip, so you need to prefocus on your subject first by half-pressing the shutter. (You can also manual focus using the focusing ring.)

The image quality of the D90’s HD (1280 x 720) movies was great, although the amateur-level Nikkor 18-105mm VR lens that came with the test camera offered only mediocre sharpness and certainly not any of the eye-catching selective focus that stood out in Laforet’s commercial. I also felt that the D90’s 24-frames-per-second video speed produced slightly jittery results in playback and I craved the 30fps HD speed of the higher-end Canon 5D Mark II. I also thought that the D90 lagged a bit when panning in the movie mode, producing a split-second stutter as I followed the action, which became more prominent the greater the pan. Not bad—but not perfect, either.

SHOOTING STILLS

As a prosumer/low-level pro digital SLR still camera, the D90 excelled. (It replaces the now-ancient Nikon D80.) I shot with the D90 extensively in Europe and was impressed with its well-above-average low light performance, capturing pictures with low-noise even in very dark conditions including extensive shooting inside the Cologne Cathedral in Germany.

I particularly liked the camera’s active D-Lighting mode, which did a great job of handling contrast in street scenes I shot in Amsterdam, with a good balance between the bright blue skies and the dark areas under bridges and around the city’s canals. The D90 also showed good speed overall, starting up in a split second and helping me capture the action in a basketball game at 4.5 frames per second.

On the downside, I experienced a nagging technical problem with the D90 during my travels overseas, which could be an isolated incident or could be a byProduct of the fragility of using a prosumer-level camera for heavy shooting. About midway through my photo trip in Europe, the camera began to lock up periodically and flash an “F—” error on the top panel. According to Nikon, an “F—” error indicates a lens connection issue; but despite remounting the lens several times and cleaning the contacts, the problem continued to dog me during my travels. It was a real pain in the neck that blew a lot of candid shots due to unexpected camera lock-up.

THE BOTTOM LINE

If, like me, you never thought you’d have much use for shooting video with a digital SLR, it’s worth it to give the D90 a whirl. As the first camera on the market to offer both HD video and stills—now since joined by the Canon 5D Mark II and possibly other models—the Nikon D90 does a fine job of balancing decent high-def skills with very good still-picture capability. Professionals who want something with higher quality overall, however, may want to wait for a true pro-grade combo camera to come down the line from Nikon.

Nikon D90
www.nikonusa.com

Pros: A very easy-to-use, high-quality digital SLR for shooting both HD video and still images; deserves props for being the first camera to pull off this one-two punch successfully; excellent low-light shooting with low noise

Cons: HD video is slightly jittery at 24 frames per second; panning in video mode produces some lag; test unit I tried had persistent error message and camera lock-up issue.

Price: $999 (body only)