Nikon D4 arrived in the studio today

CJ, High ISO

ISO 12,800 lighted only by the screen of the iPad

As a professional photographer I am called upon to shoot a wide variety of subjects like High School Seniors, Weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, Bat Mitzvahs, Retirement Parties, Family Reunions, Wedding Anniversaries, Newborns, the list is almost endless.  The thing that all these events have in common is that you need to know your gear inside and out!  You can’t be fumbling with your Digital SLR when you should be capturing that special look or reaction.  I just received the New Nikon D4 so for the next week or two I will be testing every imaginable feature so I know how to get the most out of the D4 and can focus (pun intended) on my subject.

I teach photography lessons and photography workshops.  I constantly hear horror stories from attendees that choose their child’s high school graduation to try moving away from the auto mode on their Canon Digital Rebel or Nikon D5100.  Not a wise move.  Experimentation is a wonderful thing and I encourage it, but not when you are attending a once in a life time event.  A quiet walk in the woods is the time to experiment and play.  Attend a workshop, read a book, whatever you need for inspiration, then go to and give it a whirl.

The new Nikon D4 is capable if ISO 204,800.  That is crazy high and the test images I shot today at ISO 204,800 are marginal, but the image above was shot at 12,800 and with only minor adjustments in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4.0 it looks beautiful.  What this means is that as an event photographer I have many more options when it come to deciding how to best preserve the big day.

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