Nikon D5000 Digital Camera Review - Nikon DSLR

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	Resolution Summary
• Image sharpness was unimpressive shooting with the kit lens • Distortion very low at tele and midrange settings and acceptable at wide angle • Image stabilization effective when camera shake is high
	Noise	Page 5 of 21	White Balance

Resolution (6.86)

This is an area where we were surprised at the D5000s mediocre performance. While test images shot with the kit lens were slightly sharper than the Canon Rebel T1i, which is this camera's most direct competitor, even the value-priced Pentax K2000 outpaced the D5000 in resolution performance by a substantial margin. And the Nikon's problem lies in the core component in our resolution testing, image sharpness.

We test resolution in three parts, distortion, chromatic aberration and sharpness, but with SLRs don't incorporate the distortion results in the final section score, since it's so dependent on the interchangeable lens you're shooting. Our testing was conducted using the 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR kit lens. We shoot the multi-target resolution chart shown below at three focal lengths (widest, full tele and the midpoint), at three aperture settings for each distance. The resulting images are analyzed using Imatest at multiple points across the frame. Click here for more on how we test resolution.

Distortion
The good news in this test came in the one area not included in the scoring. Distortion with the kit lens was very low at the 33mm and 55mm focal lengths tested, and the 2.54% barrel distortion at 18mm is within the acceptable range.

Chromatic Aberration
Performance here is a mixed bag, with reasonable performance overall but readily noticeable trouble spots when shooting at 18mm.

Sharpness
Maximum sharpness results were found at 18mm, where the camera hit a mediocre 1169 lw/ph horizontal and 1342 vertical. At the center of the lens results were sub-1000 lw/ph at most focal length/aperture combinations. As you can see in the same-size crops from our test shooting below, the D5000 equipped with the kit lens takes noticeably soft photos.

	Image Sharpness and Chromatic Aberration

	f/3.5	f/10	f/22
18mm

At the widest 18mm setting, sharpness is very low at f/3.5, with noticeable chromatic aberration. Results improve as the lens is stopped down, but not by much.

	Image Sharpness and Chromatic Aberration

	f/3.5	f/9	f/22
36mm

Chromatic aberration improves somewhat at 36mm, but edges lack crispness throughout, particularly at f/22.

	Image Sharpness and Chromatic Aberration

	f/5.6	f/14	f/36
55mm

At the maximum zoom setting, sharpness at the center is marginal, particularly when fully stopped down, and the crops along the edges of the lens look fuzzy at all apertures.

The fact that the Nikon D5000 isn't the lowest scoring camera in our resolution comparison says more about how poorly the Canon T1i performed than how well. the Nikon did. It's interesting that both of the sub-$1000 video-enabled SLRs on the market revealed significant sharpness problems in our lab testing.

Resolution Score Comparison

NOTE: We updated our testing and scoring procedures in January 2009. For comparison purposes, we re-tested several cameras we'd reviewed in 2008, producing the scores shown in the chart above for the Canon Rebel XS and Nikon D90. However, the scores in the original reviews for these re-tested cameras remain unchanged, for consistency's sake.

Picture Quality & Size Options (8.85)

Three image sizes are available; large, medium and small.

Image Size Options
Large	4288 x 2848
Medium	3216 x 2136
Small	2144 x 1424

The D5000 will shoot in JPEG or RAW (in the Nikon NEF format). There are three available JPEG compression settings. Fine uses approximately 1:4 compression, Normal 1:8, and Basic 1:16. When shooting RAW+JPEG, any of these JPEG compression settings can be selected.

Dynamic Range (7.46)

The Nikon D5000 offers an impressive dynamic range, meaning it will handle high-contrast subjects well, without blowing out the highlights or losing detail in the shadows. We test dynamic range by photographing a 20-patch Kodak Stepchart at all standard ISO settings and a range of aperture settings, shooting at a bright 3000 lux illumination. The resulting images are then analyzed using Imatest to determine how wide a range in the white-to-black chart progression was captured. Click here for more on how we test dynamic range.

Dynamic Range

The dynamic range starts at a solid 7.46 stops at ISO 200, and while this inevitably diminishes as the ISO setting is raised, the progression is smooth and scores remain high throughout, maintaining nearly 6 stops even at ISO 800. By contrast, the Canon T1i was down to a 3-stop dynamic range at ISO 800.

Dynamic Range Comparison

Shooting at ISO 200, the two Nikons produced nearly identical results. The Canon T1i result was acceptable at this level, but plummeted at ISO 400 and beyond.

Dynamic Range Score Comparison

As shown in the chart above, the D5000 stacks up well against the competition here. It's worth noting that the least expensive camera in our test group, the Pentax K2000, offered the widest dynamic range across the full range of ISOs.

Image Stabilization (4.48)

We test image stabilization at two levels of shake intensity, producing interesting results when shooting with the D5000 and 18-55mm VR lens. At our low shake setting, the stabilization system produced minimal benefits. Crank up the movement to a higher rate, though, and the VR lens delivered a significant improvement at most shutter speeds, even the higher-speed settings where most image stabilization systems we've tested are ineffective or even have a negative effect.

To test image stabilization, we mount the camera in a custom-designed computer-controlled rig that produced carefully controlled movement patterns and shoot a slanted-line chart at a range of shutter speeds from 1/500 second down to 1/8 second, analyzing the sharpness of the photos taken using Imatest. Click here for more on how we test image stabilization.

Nikon D5000 Image Stabilization: Low Shake
Horizontal: Sharpness Vs Shutter Speed	Vertical: Sharpness Vs Shutter Speed

The low shake setting is meant to approximate the movement you might experience holding the camera two-handed while standing still. As shown above, the image stabilization system had minimal effect in this relatively quiet shooting situation. On the plus side, it didn't hurt resolution results at any shutter speed, which has frequently occurred with other cameras we've tested.

Nikon D5000 Image Stabilization: High Shake
Horizontal: Sharpness Vs Shutter Speed	Vertical: Sharpness Vs Shutter Speed

At the higher shake level, roughly what you'd find when shooting one-handed or while moving around, the VR lens produced a nice improvement at most shutter speeds, though at the really slow 1/15 and 1/8 second shutter speeds the effects were minimal.

Compared to the two other cameras in our test group for which image stabilization data is available, the Nikon scored nearly the same as the Pentax K2000, which uses in-camera image stabilization. This is an area where the Canon Rebel T1i produced a higher score, but this is in part due to the fact that the base resolution figures for this camera were quite low, so the gain from using image stabilization enhancements represented a greater percentage improvement.

Image Stabilization Score Comparison

The table below will help visualize the effects of image stabilization, based on the data above. These are same-size crops taken from our test photos, at each horizontal shake level and shutter speed.