Video with DSLR

With the release of the Nikon D90 which has JPEG video capability, I wonder what others think the future holds for this. I think that this is the next great thing in digital still cameras, even though the first iteration as released in the D90 is obviously quite limited. As I mentioned in the D90 thread, I think the ability to ultimately capture high quality RAW images at video speed in a DSLR can really open the door to new possibilities for sports and action still photography, and other possibilities such as hand held and even conceivably slow action HDR. Interested to know what others think, or if there are other possibilities you can think of.

For U/W use, it remains to be seen. It would require manual focus knobs on the housing ports to be very effective. However, two things are very exciting:

1) The low light/low ISO capabilities of a DSLR are superior to most Video Cams on the market. Video in low light with a magic filter should be really nice.

2) Having the capability to switch between still photos and video on the same dive will be a real boon. Let's say I have my Sigma 17-70mm lens on which will actually take near-macro closeups and is excellent on fish shots. I've taken a few shots of a frogfish and maybe a cleaning station or too when BAM! a school of Eagle Rays comes flying by. Video mode would be *perfect* for that!

A lot of people are probably going to poo-poo the video capabilities, but I think it will open up new doors for creativity.

John Pierce

...I think the ability to ultimately capture high quality RAW images at video speed in a DSLR can really open the door to new possibilities for sports and action still photography, and other possibilities such as hand held and even conceivably slow action HDR.

Hi, this is happening *right now* still frames from Red footage (12MP) are outstanding, easily as good as consumer DSLRs (as mentioned not quite the lighting versatility) but we're not far from digital photo and video convergence, and it's coming from both directions - DSLRs adding video, and digital video cameras that have stills that rivals a pro DSLR... By the end of 2010 there will be sensors in video cameras that have the quality and dynamic range of film (we're much further along with pixel counts than with d-range) which you'll be shooting at 30+ fps. I think that the D90 is an early salvo in a sensor tech war we'll all benefit from! Canon and Nikon have major competition coming from both directions. BTW, while sensors are improving rapidly, uptake into imaging systems is going to be limited by computing issues at every step from processors to storage media...

Eventually you will see video that lets you get a high res frame that will make poster-sized prints that outshine today's SLR cameras. That's my prediction. And, of course, it will be in 3-D. We'll still have people saying, "I only shoot with film" though.