With dynamically moving subjects, as in sports, whether or not the camera is able to capture the exact moment the photographer desires has a crucial impact. For the professional’s all-round camera, the D3, the mission was to achieve this continuously at high speeds. If high-speed continuous shooting could be realized with the large-frame Nikon FX format, then the frame that captured the decisive moment could be cropped to meet a diverse range of needs, broadening the possibilities for final photographic results.
The D3 has, in fact, achieved high-speed continuous shooting of 9 frames per second (approx.) with the Nikon FX format. With every single frame, autofocus, metering and Auto White Balance are controlled with exceptional accuracy. Moreover, the D3 maintains its speed of 9 frames per second (approx.) with even the smallest aperture settings. In the past, when shooting sports indoors or at night, due to the insufficient volume of light, photographers had no choice but to select an aperture setting other than maximum. Now, given that the D3 offers a standard ISO setting of up to ISO 6400, photographers are able to use small aperture settings, enabling new and innovative photographic expressions with deeper depth of field than previously possible. All the while maintaining high-speed consecutive shooting of approx. 9 frames per second.
And if an even higher speed is needed, move up to 11 frames per second (approx.) with Nikon DX format. When shooting with Nikon DX format, although focus remains fixed on the position detected in the first frame, it is highly effective for situations where there is little change in the subject’s position.
High-Speed Continuous Shooting is meaningless if it’s not accompanied by accuracy. The time allocated for a shot at approx. 9 frames-per-second continuous shooting in Nikon FX format is about 111 milliseconds. With Nikon DX format at approx. 11 frames per second, this is further reduced to about 90 milliseconds. Within these minuscule windows of time, the D3 has to operate a series of movements, from mirror up to shutter running, mirror down, damping the mirror bounce and stop.
The first technological hurdle was how to deliver the speed. Nikon precisely located the charger mechanism so the time required for charging the power for activating springs could be efficiently minimized to move the mirror and shutter. This also accelerated the mirror up-and -down movement. At the same time the mirror is up, the newly designed stepping motor located on the body controls the aperture by moving the diaphragms of the NIKKOR lens. The role of the stepping motor in achieving approx. 9/11 frames-per-second continuous shooting at all aperture settings is immensely important.
The second technological hurdle was to improve the accuracy to match. If the rapid movement of main- and sub-mirrors could be stopped in a quick, assured manner, the accuracy of autofocusing and metering could be significantly improved. Nikon first achieved 8 frames-per-second continuous shooting with the F5, in 1996. Since then, we’ve spared no effort in researching reduction of mirror bounce. Nikon’s unique mirror balancer quickly and accurately stops bounce of the fast-moving mirror. This allows the camera to start metering for the next frame more quickly, leading to improved auto exposure results.
Nikon’s mirror balancer has to stop the mirror quickly, but if stopped by force, it loses durability, thus leading to a change in the mirror position, and reduced auto exposure accuracy. To avoid this, Nikon designed a mirror balancer mechanism that reduces mirror bounce in a natural, rational manner. The same idea is also used for the sub-mirror catcher that quickly stops the sub-mirror bounce, contributing to autofocusing accuracy.
Within an extremely limited time-span, Nikon efficiently balanced the time for calculating autofocus, metering, Auto White Balance, the time required for charging and driving each mechanism, orchestrating them all to work harmoniously and continuously with the utmost speed and accuracy. All are essential elements of Nikon’s high-speed continuous shooting.
The quick-return mirror, swinging down after the shutter release button is pressed, is caught by a balancer with nearly the same inertial mass as the mirror. This balancer absorbs the impact and consistently brings the mirror to a halt. In addition to contributing to the precision of the AE and AF controls, this mechanism provides a shorter viewfinder blackout time and ensures a stable viewfinder image in high-speed continuous shooting.
The efficiently shaped sub-mirror catcher supports quicker stopping time and improves focusing precision.
