The best SLR never-made...

The Nikon D3
coming soon....
Maybe

Another day has gone by and Nikon has not yet made an official announcement regarding their latest flagship professional digital camera the long anticipated D3. Nikon has reportedly come close to releasing the camera at least twice, but has pulled it back for "re-tuning minor items" or perhaps a major overhaul.

The latest word is we can expect an official announcement sometime during summer 2007. A re-tuning might be a good sign that Nikon wants to do things right with this camera, especially considering the trouble Canon is in with some who feel they released the EOS 1D Mark III with autofocus issues. ( The latest report on 1D Mark III AF issues)

The current Nikon D3 is expected to be of modular design very similar to the F and F2 system cameras that made Nikon famous and beloved by pros. The Nikon partnership/merger with Sinar that was talked about in 2006 seems to have gone nowhere since it was announced although it is possible Nikon is holding back on releasing any big news until the D3 is ready.

When that will occur is anyones guess, however current predictions suggest a big announcement to coincide with Nikon's celebration of 90 years of making camera equipment on July 25th.

As for those of us anxiously awaiting news of the mythical Nikon D3 we can track the announcements, leaks and outright rumors reguarding the history of the D3 on the Photography Bay Blog, A History of the Nikon D3

Current hinted at specks for the Nikon D3...

• Modular body (interchangeable finder, back, and storage modules); the body is the host camera brains and control system, power source, lens mount, mirror box, shutter, and support system while everything else gets added on:
• 10-12mp APS High Speed Back (10 fps DX crop, 12 fps HS crop)
• 24mm FF Low Speed Back (3 fps FF, 5 fps DX crop)
• 12mp Black and White Back
• Prism finder with real time displays (e.g. histograms)
• Card storage module (2x CompactFlash or 2x SecureDigital)
• Drive storage module (40, 80, 120GB hard drive)
• Wireless module (1x CompactFlash for backup, WiFi)