Nikon D300

Manual Control Options
You can manually control just about everything on the Nikon D300. There are buttons all over the camera body that provide easy access to many manual controls. There are also scores of menus chock-full of manual controls, and even a Custom menu that lets you define how, when, and where you want to use them. Read on for more details on specific manual controls.

Focus
Auto Focus (9.5)
The Nikon D300 has the same Multi-CAM 3500DX autofocus module that is included in the $4,999 pro-grade Nikon D3. The D300 out-muscles all its competitors in this area. It has the fastest autofocus system we’ve seen. The autofocus system uses 51 points, including 15 cross-type sensors and 36 horizontal sensors. This is a huge upgrade from the 11-point D200 and the 5-point D100. Even the Canon 40D has 9 cross-type autofocus sensors.

The numbers are not only staggering on a spec sheet: the Nikon D300 focuses quickly in a variety of lighting situations and does it fast. The autofocus system performs well in low light, snapping into focus while the Canon 40D was zipping back and forth looking for the right focus spot. For really dark situations, the camera has a bright assist lamp on its front that shoots out a beam when needed. There are dozens of ways to customize the autofocus system from the shooting menu; you can disable the assist lamp or tweak any of the myriad settings of the system. The default is for the 51-point 3D-tracking autofocus, but you can set the dynamic AF area to 9, 21, or 51 points.

You can set the autofocus to function when the shutter release is pushed and/or when the AF-ON button is pushed. The latter button is used mainly when the live view on the LCD screen is in use. In that instance, the shutter button is used to take pictures and the autofocus button is used to flip the mirror and enable the autofocus system. The live view shouldn’t be used when you’re in a hurry. The autofocus system itself doesn’t take long, but the flipping of the mirror up and down adds a few moments to the process.

The D300’s through-the-lens autofocus system uses phase detection for the handheld Live View mode and contrast detection for the tripod Live View mode. The default is to use the phase detection. All in all, the Nikon D300’s autofocus system is among the best.

Manual Focus (8.5)
The manual focus functionality can be selected with the switch near the lens mount. Most new Nikkor lenses have a switch on them as well that moves from M/A to M. The Nikon D300’s viewfinder has a clear and bright focusing screen, which is good because it isn’t interchangeable like some of its competitors. The live view on the LCD shows manual focusing, and that view is certainly bright and sharp enough, too. Bonus: the live view can be magnified with the buttons to the left of the LCD, so you can be sure to get every thread of fabric perfectly focused without sacrificing your own eyesight.

ISO (9.5)
The ISO is easily accessible from its designated button on the left shoulder of the Nikon D300. It moves within a 200 to 3200 range that can be customized to jump in steps of 1/3, 1/2, or 1 EV. Like other Nikon DSLRs, there are also expansion options on both ends. There are LO 1 (ISO 100 equivalent), LO 0.7, and LO 0.3 options, along with HI 0.3, HI 0.7, and HI 1 (ISO 6400 equivalent). An automatic ISO control can be set, as well. There is a high ISO noise reduction system that can be set to high, normal, low, and off. See how well it performs in the Testing/Performance section of this review.

The Nikon D300’s 200 to 3200 range is shifted slightly from the 100 to 1600 range on the Nikon D200, but most users will prefer the extra couple of stops available at the high end.

White Balance (9.0)
The through-the-lens white balance system functions with the help of a 1,005-pixel RGB sensor. There is an automatic setting along with several presets: Incandescent, Fluorescent, Direct Sunlight, Flash, Cloudy, and Shade. Each preset can be fine-tuned with a +/- 6 color balance grid that moves from blue/amber on the horizontal axis and green/magenta on the vertical axis. An evaluative setting is also available, where you shoot a white card and the camera calculates the correct balance from the card. Five memory locations are available for this; useful if you are moving from one lighting situation (such as outdoors) to another (such as indoors under florescent) and you want to measure and store the settings before you start shooting.

The fluorescent white balance option is really a portal to seven fluorescent options: Sodium-Vapor Lamps, Warm-White Fluorescent, White Fluorescent, Cool-White Fluorescent, Day White Fluorescent, Daylight Fluorescent, and High Temperature Mercury-Vapor Bulbs.

If that wasn’t enough, you can access several Kelvin color temperature settings of 5000K, 5260K, 5560K, 5880K, 6250K, 6670K, 7140K, 7690K, 8330K, 9090K, and 10000K in the Shooting menu. White balance bracketing of between two to nine frames is also available. And if you’re still not satisfied, there’s a color balance setting in the Playback mode – although most DSLR users will opt for their own editing software.

Exposure (9.25)
The Nikon D300 has Manual, Aperture Priority, Shutter Speed Priority, and Program exposure modes that allow flexibility in the level of control allowed when coming up with an exposure. The Program mode has a +/- 5 EV scale available in increments of 1/3, 1/2, or 1 EV. It even has its own button near the shutter release button for quick access if the lighting situation demands a quick shift. More manual controls of the shutter speed and aperture are controllable via the dials on the front and back of the right hand grip.

Auto exposure bracketing is available that can shoot between two and nine exposures in increments of 1/3, 1/2, and 1 EV; very useful if you are shooting high dynamic range images. In the Shooting menu, an "active D-lighting" feature can be turned on to brighten images if needed. This is also found elsewhere in the camera. In the retouching menu, there is a D-lighting option that acts as a sort of auto fix for darkened images. This helps enhance details in shadows with normal and high adjustments.

Metering (8.5)
The D300 has a 1,005-pixel 3D Color Matrix Metering II system that functions through-the-lens. It is enhanced with what Nikon calls a "scene recognition system" that "provides even more intelligent auto exposure capabilities, along with smarter white balance detection and faster, more accurate AF performance," according to the manufacturer’s website.

There are three Metering modes available from a switch on the back of the camera. The default improved Color Matrix metering mode functions with type G and D lenses, while the older version of the metering system works on other CPU lenses. The standard color matrix metering functions on non-CPU lenses if you input the lens data into the custom menu. The Center-Weighted metering favors the central 75 percent of the frame but can be set to a 6, 8, 10, or 13mm diameter circle in the menu. The Spot metering mode uses only 2 percent of the frame and does so from the autofocus point. You can quickly swithc metering modes with the small switch to the right of the viewfinder, which means experienced shooters will be able to change metering modes without looking away from the viewfinder.

Shutter Speed (9.0)
The Nikon D300 has an electronically-controlled vertical-travel focal plane shutter that flips within a wide range of 30-1/8000 of a second. This is the same range found on the D200. The D300’s range can be customized to appear in increments of 1/3, 1/2, or 1 EV. There is also a bulb option for longer exposures. A long exposure noise reduction system can be turned on and off in the Setup menu.

The shutter life is rated at 150,000 cycles, which is half that of the Nikon D3 but more than most of the competitors within its price range. Many of the competitors, including the Sony DSLR-A700, have a 100,000-cycle lifetime. So, in theory, the D300 shutter should last half as long again.

Aperture (0.0)
The Nikon D300 controls the aperture electronically unless an old non-CPU lens is attached that has its own aperture ring.