Nikon has just announced they will be offering a “buffer expansion” service for locally purchased D3 cameras. The increased buffer will allow photographers to shoot 14bit RAW 36 shots (from 16 shots) in FX format before filling the buffer.

Memory expansion available for the D3 camera 

Nikon Australia is pleased to announce the availability of a memory buffer expansion for the D3. Nikon’s D3 currently features the highest performance capabilities, however some users have a need for large continuous sequence photography.  For this reason the optional buffer expansion has been made available.

When buffer memory is expanded, the number of shots possible with a single burst of continuous shooting is increased. This increase in shooting performance will expand the range of shooting possibilities.  See the supplied information chart for details.

As this upgrade is sold as a sales item, upgrades will only be available through Nikon Australia’s Service Centre at Lidcombe, NSW. This upgrade does involve both hardware and software so is not possible by the end user.

Nikon Australia will be subsidising the price of this upgrade for photographers who have purchased their D3 camera’s through Nikon Australia authorised resellers. The subsidised price of this upgrade will be under $600, which will include a firmware upgrade to the latest version plus cleaning of the sensor.

Please direct any inquiries regarding this matter to the Nikon Professional Services team indicated below.

Thank you for choosing Nikon for your photography needs.

Nikon Professional Service

Ph:       02 8748 5200
Fax:     02 8748 5274
npsaustralia@nikon.com.au

Number of shots possible per burst of continuous shooting after D3 buffer memory expansion

Image quality	Image size	FX format		DX format
		Before	After	Before	After
NEF (RAW) (12-bit lossless compressed)	－	18 shots	43 shots	28 shots	68 shots
NEF (RAW) (14-bit lossless compressed)	－	16 shots	36 shots	25 shots	58 shots
NEF (RAW) (12-bit compressed)	－	20 shots	44 shots	36 shots	87 shots
NEF (RAW) (14-bit compressed)	－	16 shots	37 shots	29 shots	64 shots
NEF (RAW) (12-bit uncompressed)	－	17 shots	38 shots	25 shots	61 shots
NEF (RAW) (14-bit uncompressed)	－	16 shots	36 shots	22 shots	54 shots
TIFF (RGB)	Large	17 shots	35 shots	20 shots	46 shots
	Medium	19 shots	42 shots	25 shots	59 shots
	Small	25 shots	61 shots	41 shots	101 shots
JPEG fine	Large	52 shots	119 shots	130 shots	130 shots
	Medium	92 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
	Small	96 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
JPEG normal	Large	74 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
	Medium	98 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
	Small	100 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
JPEG basic	Large	79 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
	Medium	100 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots
	Small	100 shots	130 shots	130 shots	130 shots

 

Test conditions   See your camera’s reference manual for details.

High ISO NR set to Off, Active D-Lighting set to Off, Image authentication set to Off,

focus-mode selector set to [C] or [M], exposure mode set to [S] or [M], shutter speeds of 1/250 or faster, ISO sensitivity set to 200, release mode dial set to [CH] continuous high speed, Shooting speed set to 9 fps (FX format) or 11 fps (DX format), with 2 GB SanDisk Extreme IV (SDCFX4) memory card.

*All other settings at default values