Nikon D3X

The D3X is a professional full-frame DSLR that Nikon released in 2008. It is a big, heavy body at 1260g, built for photographers who work deliberately rather than quickly.

Its 24.5 megapixel sensor and Nikon F mount make it a natural fit for studio, landscape and commercial work, where detail matters more than burst speed. The optical viewfinder suits that same considered style of shooting.

Owning one means carrying a substantial camera and managing CompactFlash cards rather than modern wireless transfer. There is no video mode, so this is purely a tool for still images.

At 24.5 megapixels, the full-frame CMOS sensor offers high resolution, and it still provides plenty of detail for large prints and tight crops. The Expeed processor handles those big files.

Its optics score of 65 rates as good and sits around the middle of cameras in our database for Optics. The strengths centre on resolution; the points lost show up when light drops or subjects move, reflecting the limited ISO ceiling and modest burst rate.

The ISO range runs from 100 to 1600, which favours daylight, studio flash and tripod work over dim interiors. Continuous shooting at 5fps is steady rather than fast, so rapid action will stretch the camera even with 51 autofocus points to place focus and a 1/8000s top shutter speed for bright scenes.

There is no in-body stabilisation, so handheld sharpness depends on technique, a tripod or the lenses you choose. The optical pentaprism viewfinder makes framing and timing straightforward in any light.

The D3X does not record video in any form. There is no movie mode at any resolution or frame rate, and no recording limits, crops or codecs to weigh, because the option simply does not exist. Anyone needing motion capture alongside stills must look elsewhere.

What the camera does offer is a built-in interval timer. You set it to capture a sequence of frames over a chosen period, and the output is a run of still photographs you can assemble into a timelapse on the computer afterwards.

Motion therefore enters your workflow only after the stills are assembled in software. Interval choice, frame count and playback speed all become planning decisions made at capture time, since the camera records no motion of its own.

The body is weather sealed against dust and moisture. Together with the large dimensions and optical viewfinder, it makes a comfortable camera for outdoor and location work.

The 3-inch LCD carries 920,000 dots, detailed enough for checking focus and composition. It is fixed in place with no touch input, so settings change through buttons and dials. Live view is there when you need precise framing on a tripod.

Modern conveniences are absent: no Wi-Fi, no Bluetooth and no GPS, so images leave the camera on the cards. Flash must be external, since there is no built-in unit.

That mix is reflected in the features score of 54, modest on our scale: weather sealing, live view and the screen score well, while the missing touch input and Bluetooth contribute nothing. Transferring images also takes extra steps without wireless.

Two CompactFlash slots accept Type I or II cards with UDMA support. Two slots mean you can carry twice the storage before pausing to offload, which matters when a long shoot produces many 24.5 megapixel files.

The EN-EL4a battery is rated at 4400 shots, a figure at home on a professional body. That rating is a big part of why this section scores 87, exceptional on our scale, and the dual card slots contribute to that result too.

There is no USB charging, so the battery cannot be topped up over a cable in the field. Photographers working far from mains power for extended periods should plan for a spare.