Nikon D780 announced

Tuesday 7 January 2020, 09:27 by Elja Trum | 6,282 views | 12 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Nikon unveiled the Nikon D780 this morning. This new full-frame DSLR is the successor to the D750 and also borrows some elements from the Nikon Z6 and the D5.

Nikon D780 specifications

- 24.5-megapixel BSI-CMOS sensor
- 7 photos per second (12 in live view)
- 51-point autofocus
- UHD 4K video (30p, 10-bit N-Log and HLG HDR)
- 3.2-inch tilting touchscreen
- USB-C connection
- 2x SD(XC) card slots

In live view, this camera looks more like the Z6. The camera probably uses exactly the same sensor as well. In live view, you can therefore also use face and eye detection. The autofocus has been significantly improved when using live view.

Unless there is a specific reason to choose a DSLR, I would certainly also consider the Nikon Z6 as an alternative to this camera. In my view, mirrorless cameras are the future.

Price and availability

The Nikon D780 will be available from 23 January at a recommended retail price of 2,499 euros. The Nikon D780 combined with a Nikkor AF-S 24-120mm f/4 lens has a recommended retail price of 2,999 euros.

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About the author

Elja Trum is the founder of Photofacts and online photography course website Photofacts Academy. He has been writing about photography since 2006. Elja is also the author of (Dutch) books on composition, black-and-white photography, flash photography and portrait photography.

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12 comments

Martin Hermes wrote on Tuesday 7 January 2020 at 12:12 | reply
and no GPS again?
Translated from Dutch.

A.J.J.maas wrote on Tuesday 7 January 2020 at 14:25 | reply
I completely agree with Mr Trum, system cameras have many advantages and are the future. As an avid Nikon user, in 2004 I got acquainted with a system camera from Fuji and that was goorbye Nikon for me, never a DSLR again. Nikon switched too late and imo certainly won't make it if they don't drastically lower their prices
Translated from Dutch.

Martin wrote on Tuesday 7 January 2020 at 14:48 | reply
Mirrorless? My Z6 is a gem, but eye AF lags behind Sony. There are quite a few fervent Nikon shooters who are now switching to Sony after all.
Does Nikon have a future? Is this 'hybrid' D780 the way forward for this company or should Nikon now go all in on the Z? And us Nikon users? What should we do now? Abandon ship or will Nikon come up with a magnificent update?

Anyone here with a crystal ball or simply more knowledge about this than I have?
Translated from Dutch.

Paulussie wrote on Tuesday 7 January 2020 at 17:47 | reply
Mirrorless or DSLR, it makes little difference, at most the weight. For me, the mirror still has the advantage that you see reality, and not an already manipulated/edited image. Especially with evening and night shots, that really works more pleasantly. I always find those screens far too bright under those circumstances. Give me my 500.
Translated from Dutch.

Cor Van der Wilk wrote on Tuesday 7 January 2020 at 21:44 | reply
System cameras are proportionally still quite a bit more expensive when it comes to lenses, and offer less choice in lenses.
Translated from Dutch.

Elja Trum wrote on Tuesday 7 January 2020 at 22:18 | reply
@Cor; with a cheap adapter you can simply continue using all your existing lenses. Without any loss of quality.

@Paulussie; There are certainly moments when a DSLR has advantages. But the same applies to the mirrorless camera.

I really like that in the electronic viewfinder of a mirrorless camera you can in many cases already see the photo live -exactly as it is going to turn out- before you have taken the photo.

That gives you even faster feedback about the settings needed for a good photo.

@Martin; Personally, I think Nikon (and Canon) now need to fully commit to mirrorless cameras. I also expect them to do that. However, for the next few years they will still 'play nice' with a number of new DSLRs.

Eye AF can probably already be improved even further with software updates. And certainly in subsequent models. Sony may currently have advantages in some areas, but in my eyes the gap is already much smaller now than before the Nikon Z6 and Z7 were announced.
Translated from Dutch.

Paulussie wrote on Wednesday 8 January 2020 at 00:02 | reply
@Cor: an adapter is included with the mirrorless camera.
The advantage of the mirrorless camera is that the mount is larger, allowing lenses to be. (much) faster. Whether that also happens, and remains affordable, remains to be seen.
Translated from Dutch.

Martin wrote on Wednesday 8 January 2020 at 09:01 | reply
@Paulussie; in terms of photo quality, it makes little difference and, although cameras get a little better with every generation, I think you can still take excellent photos with a ten-year-old DSLR.
An important difference lies in ease of use.

@Cor; The mount, that's it, I hadn't thought of that anymore. It's bigger, so edge-to-edge sharpness, but also closer to the censor. I'm not a physicist, but apparently that is also a huge advantage. I believe the people who do know about it.

If Nikon follows through (and why wouldn't they) then they have a good starting point with that new mount. The rest is, as Elja says, software.

@myself; the question of whether to stay with Nikon or not has been answered.

@everyone, it's nice how your reactions help me answer this question, which had been on my mind for a while. Thanks for that.
Translated from Dutch.

Henk Hulshof wrote on Wednesday 8 January 2020 at 13:15 | reply
Interesting! A DSLR that you can also use more or less as a mirrorles camera!
Whether mirrorless is the total future remains to be seen; even a mirror has advantages!
But the future itself will tell...
For weddingphotographers it is at least nice that you can shoot to two card slots.
Translated from Dutch.

SteGo wrote on Saturday 18 January 2020 at 23:26 | reply
And 2 SD card slots and no XQD? Apparently you can't mount a battery grip either, which I also consider a disadvantage...
Translated from Dutch.

Paulussie wrote on Sunday 19 January 2020 at 00:39 | reply
@stego:
Those XQD cards are terribly expensive, and unnecessary in 999 out of a thousand cases. My D500 does have such a slot, but, as I wrote, actually useless, because how often do you have dozens of photos as a sequence? And for video it’s also overkill, SD cards can handle that just fine. No battery grip is oddly old
Translated from Dutch.

Paulussie wrote on Sunday 19 January 2020 at 09:24 | reply
In my comment it should indeed say, not old
Translated from Dutch.

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