Cool nikkon d5000. Review on Nikkon D5000

The Nikon D5000 is a new 12.3 megapixel DSLR camera that can record HD movies at 1280x720 pixels / 30fps with sound. A 2.7 inch vari-angle LCD monitor makes it easier to compose your shots from difficult angles, while the extensive ISO range of 100-6400 should cope with most lighting conditions. A 4fps burst shooting mode, 11-point auto focus system with 3D Focus Tracking, 100, 000-cycle shutter unit, quiet shooting mode, Active D-Lighting and 19 Scene Modes complete the Nikon D5000’s headline specs.

The Nikon D5000 costs £719.99 / €878.00 / $729.95 body only, or £799.99 / €972.00 / $849.95 with the 18-55mm VR kit lens.The new Nikon D5000 slots in between the existing D60 and D90 models, not only in terms of feature set and functionality, but also in terms of size and weight. It isn't as compact and lightweight as the D60 but neither is it quite as bulky and heavy as the D90. The right-hand grip bears more resemblance to that of the D60 - it's a wee bit uncomfortable for photographers with large hands and/or longish fingers, but not annoyingly so. New to the D5000 is a rubberized thumb rest on the back of the body, which is a welcome improvement over the D60.

The 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 VR kit lens that Nikon supplied feels fairly well-balanced - if a tad front-heavy - on the Nikon D5000 and it fits into place with a reassuring mechanical click. It also adds the very important advantage of Vibration Reduction. Nikon bodies don't offer any form of in-camera image stabilization, unlike similar models from Sony, Pentax and Olympus, so the affordable 18-55mm VR lens is a good investment.

The shutter release action on the Nikon D5000 is surprisingly quiet, with an exemplary dampened mirror slap that makes this DSLR actually quieter than some rangefinder cameras! Furthermore, there is a new Quiet mode, in which the mirror is raised fairly slowly to further reduce the sound it makes. This, however, introduces some shutter lag, which usually isn't worth the few decibels of difference versus what is already an impressively quiet shutter (Nikon recommends using the Quiet mode for taking pictures of sleeping babies, a situation in which a bit of shutter delay isn't a problem).

The other button sitting next to the shutter release, which was dedicated to the Active D-lighting function on the D60, is once again labeled 'info', just like on the old D40. This button is arguably at the heart of the Nikon D5000's ease-of-use, as the camera lacks the monochromatic status LCD of the D90, so Nikon had to provide a different way to check vital shooting information without having to look into the viewfinder. Enter the info button - pressing it displays virtually all of the camera's main settings on the large rear screen, provided it is not folded inward to protect it from harm.

This articulated screen is one of the few true novelties the D5000 offers over previous Nikon DSLRs. It took some time for Nikon to realise that the full potential of Live View can only be exploited if it is delivered on a hinged screen, but the company has finally joined the ranks of Olympus, Panasonic and Sony in offering a model sporting this feature. In terms of flexibility, Nikon's bottom-hinged LCD is midway between Sony's simple tilting screen and the left-hinged, free-angle monitors offered by Olympus and Panasonic. In other words, the bottom placing of the hinge wasn't the most brilliant idea, as it's more limiting than the left-hinged solution, but it's still more flexible than a simple tilting screen (and much more useful than a fixed LCD).

Sadly though, the anti-glare coating leaves a lot to be desired - so much so that the screen proved almost unusable outdoors in strong daylight. Cranking up the LCD's brightness didn't help much. We are not quite sure if it the lack of proper anti-reflex coating is just an unfortunate oversight or the result of deliberate cost-cutting, but it definitely is an annoyance on a DSLR whose main selling points are Live View and video recording, among others.

Of course the Nikon D5000 is an SLR, so Live View and video recording are add-on features, more than anything else. Its primary function is to take still photographs, and for that, you do not have to use Live View. Like all SLRs, the D5000 has a proper through-the-lens optical viewfinder too, albeit it's smaller than the D60's and much smaller than the D90's; about the same as that of the old D70. The Nikon D5000's 11 auto-focus points are permanently marked on the focusing screen, whereas the compositional grid lines can be called up via a menu option. Two warning signs - telling you that the battery is running low or you have forgotten to insert a memory card - may also appear in the form of overlaid icons when appropriate. Below the finder is a traditional monochromatic status bar showing practically all relevant shooting information (including the ISO sensitivity, if so specified in the menu).

As stated above, the Nikon D5000, like the D90 but unlike the D60, has 11 auto-focus sensors, out of which only the central one is a cross type (compared to five out of seven in the Olympus E-620, for instance). The other ten are of the line variety, consequently being only sensitive to either vertical or horizontal detail, but not both. In practice, this did not turn out to be a real problem, with the camera typically locking focus on the subject quickly and easily, no matter which AF point was selected.

In the viewfinder, the active AF point appears in brackets, which are easy to see. Selecting the active AF point is done by way of the four-way pad - except if you choose Auto Area AF -; again a simple and intuitive solution. Be aware of one thing though: after the auto meter-off delay specified in Custom Function 'c2', the camera goes into a sort of sleep mode, in which you cannot set the shutter speed, the f-number or indeed the active AF point until you half-press the shutter release button to wake the camera fully up. In low light, the AF sensors are helped by an AF assist lamp located on the front plate of the camera.

The Nikon D5000 is powered by a proprietary EN-EL9a Lithium-ion battery and records videos and image files on SD/SDHC cards. As we noted in our D90 review, we would really have liked to see Nikon add a second card slot for Compact Flash cards, so that owners of higher-specified Nikon DSLRs who buy a D90 or D5000 as a second body can use their existing memory cards, but so far Nikon has not shown any interest in providing dual card slots. As far as connectivity goes, there are USB/VideoOut and Mini HDMI ports as well as an accessory terminal for the connection of a wired remote or a GPS unit, all sheltered behind a door on the left side of the camera, when viewed from the back.

In summary, the Nikon D5000 is a fairly compact and admirably quiet DSLR that inherits the self-cleaning 12-megapixel sensor, 11-point AF module, Live View and video recording capability and extensive menu system of the bigger, heavier and more expensive D90, and the infopanel-driven operation of the smaller, lighter D60, while adding an articulated LCD to the mix. The result is a versatile and unobtrusive little DSLR that is very well suited to a broad range of photographers and photographic tasks.