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Digital SLR / DSLR Camera Question / DSLR Thread 2

Booyah. $500 buys a lot more camera than it used to. :teeth

p561650027-4.jpg
 
cycle61 said:
Booyah. $500 buys a lot more camera than it used to. :teeth

p561650027-4.jpg
Click to expand...


:banana :party :banana :party :banana :party

I'm so jealous right now. You'll have to tell me what you think about it. It's the likely upgrade target for me.

What made you choose the D200 over a D90?

(Or D80... D90s are probably not selling for $500)
 
JoshF said:
Just got some new gear:

Canon Eos 7D
70-200 2.8L IS
17-55 2.8 IS
50 1.4

Looking forward to documenting my riding adventures. Any recommendations on a pack sturdy enough to ride with while protecting my gear?
Click to expand...

Congrats on the purchase, that's quite the setup!

+1 on Baps recommendation. I have a Lowepro (200 AW) and love it. The one I have has a really well thought out design.
 
VeloceMoto said:
I'm so jealous right now. You'll have to tell me what you think about it. It's the likely upgrade target for me.

What made you choose the D200 over a D90?

(Or D80... D90s are probably not selling for $500)
Click to expand...

I used a D200 for a year and a half already; it was my main camera before I got the D700 last year. Probably the biggest advantages over one of the consumer level bodies are the direct controls, response speed, and much better autofocus system. I wanted to like the D40x, but really got tired of digging into menus for every adjustment, and waiting 2-3 seconds for anything I needed to change to register. Not acceptable for me. The image quality was fine, but it was just too damn slow to do anything. The 200 has both control wheels, one for aperture and one for shutter speed. ISO, WB, flash, exposure compensation, metering modes, and a host of other things are button push + dial turn, instead of wading through the menus. The top LCD display has a tremendous amount of information on it, and most of it is visible in the viewfinder as well. It’s raw, unfiltered feedback as to what the camera is set to do at any given moment, available at a glance. The consumer bodies simply don’t offer that.

The ergonomics are superior, I’ve got big hands and a larger size camera fits more comfortably, and balances with the bigger lenses. Also, having the flexibility of choosing a focus point over a large area, not just three points across the center, is a huge benefit. I know the D70 and 80 have focus motors, but I’m not sure if the 90 does, and I know the lower end bodies don’t, which makes any older (Non-ultrasonic focus) lenses manual focus only, which I’ve learned simply doesn’t work for me. Another advantage is that the D200, 300, and 700 all use the same batteries, which means that the five EN-EL3’s that I have in the bag will work with this camera and any other that I borrow or rent for a wedding, etc.

Drawbacks: The high ISO performance is not great. A newer body would be better; the D200 is almost five years old now. I’m going to have to go back and review some images, but if I recall correctly 800 is going to be my clean limit, 1600 in a pinch. The D700 really spoiled me with a perfectly usable ISO 3200, and 6400 if necessary.

As you’re coming from a D70, I can definitely recommend this as an upgrade for you. And from what I’ve seen, the 70’s are selling for $250 to $300 on CL, so your net cost would be fairly minimal. Careful though, once you step up to a (semi)pro body, it's tough to go back. :laughing

All in all, I’m stoked to be stepping back up. Need to start looking for a used 17-55, and I’m back in business. :party
 
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D90 does have the autofocus motor. It's sort of inbetween consumer and professional, smaller size but has all the external controls you would need.
 
BrassPremier said:
D90 does have the autofocus motor. It's sort of inbetween consumer and professional, smaller size but has all the external controls you would need.
Click to expand...

Ahh, cool. The prices on those, however, are higher than I'm ready to spend on a body yet.

D40x for sale (now that I'm done talking shit about it. :laughing)

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/pho/1493409014.html

http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=5468575

EDIT: I love Craigslist. Already got an offer. For $200. lolz, fuck no.
 
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cycle61 said:
I used a D200 for a year and a half already; it was my main camera before I got the D700 last year. Probably the biggest advantages over one of the consumer level bodies are the direct controls, response speed, and much better autofocus system. I wanted to like the D40x, but really got tired of digging into menus for every adjustment, and waiting 2-3 seconds for anything I needed to change to register. Not acceptable for me. The image quality was fine, but it was just too damn slow to do anything. The 200 has both control wheels, one for aperture and one for shutter speed. ISO, WB, flash, exposure compensation, metering modes, and a host of other things are button push + dial turn, instead of wading through the menus. The top LCD display has a tremendous amount of information on it, and most of it is visible in the viewfinder as well. It’s raw, unfiltered feedback as to what the camera is set to do at any given moment, available at a glance. The consumer bodies simply don’t offer that.
Click to expand...


Hey! My D70 has two wheels, a top side LCD and an internal motor! :p

I have been so happy buying the pro-sumer grade level, I may never buy anything less again. Just like you, I'd rather have older stuff geared toward the pro/semi-pro than brand new. These 4-5 year old cameras are really fantastic.

I read an article somewhere, some months back. An editorial by a photography professor. His new rule for buying bodies is, I think, buying something that is only $700 or less. I'll have to find the article. Then he goes into saying how the extra money is best spent on glass (duh).


cycle61 said:
The ergonomics are superior, I’ve got big hands and a larger size camera fits more comfortably, and balances with the bigger lenses. Also, having the flexibility of choosing a focus point over a large area, not just three points across the center, is a huge benefit. I know the D70 and 80 have focus motors, but I’m not sure if the 90 does, and I know the lower end bodies don’t, which makes any older (Non-ultrasonic focus) lenses manual focus only, which I’ve learned simply doesn’t work for me. Another advantage is that the D200, 300, and 700 all use the same batteries, which means that the five EN-EL3’s that I have in the bag will work with this camera and any other that I borrow or rent for a wedding, etc.

Drawbacks: The high ISO performance is not great. A newer body would be better; the D200 is almost five years old now. I’m going to have to go back and review some images, but if I recall correctly 800 is going to be my clean limit, 1600 in a pinch. The D700 really spoiled me with a perfectly usable ISO 3200, and 6400 if necessary.

As you’re coming from a D70, I can definitely recommend this as an upgrade for you. And from what I’ve seen, the 70’s are selling for $250 to $300 on CL, so your net cost would be fairly minimal. Careful though, once you step up to a (semi)pro body, it's tough to go back. :laughing

All in all, I’m stoked to be stepping back up. Need to start looking for a used 17-55, and I’m back in business. :party
Click to expand...

Yes, the one thing I wish I had is better ISO. Remember my post a hundred back? It can even be gross at ISO 400.

Pound for pound, I have the perception that Nikon has better ISO noise vs. Canon and the rest. Is this true?
 
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VeloceMoto said:
Yes, the one thing I wish I had is better ISO. Remember my post a hundred back? It can even be gross at ISO 400.

Pound for pound, I have the perception that Nikon has better ISO noise vs. Canon and the rest. Is this true?
Click to expand...

Nikon has (arguably) got the lead in this area right now. The 5DII is pretty impressive, but I think the D3/D700 still is a bit better, and the D3s is definitely a step above. Canon owned the race for quite a while though.

Exposure becomes especially important as you start cranking up the ISO dial, because if you underexpose at all, pushing things in post makes your effective ISO much higher than what you actually shot, with noise to match.
 
Lightroom, Photoshop, NeatImage, PhotoMatix if you do HDR images.

Well, that's what I use. Lightroom is good for most stuff, and is a handy RAW preview tool, as Vista doesn't support thumbnails previews for RAW (this simply confirms Vista as the POS it really is).

If I could have a do-over, I'd have got a Mac for doing work stuff at home :|
 
Couldn't find this elsewhere.....

[youtube]<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/H_H8TOKcfjg&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/H_H8TOKcfjg&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>[/youtube]
 
+1 for Lightroom. Definitely worth the ~$200 for me.

Also, the D40x is sold. Barf > Craigslist. :)
 
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Dammit. Had an invite to join a UE shoot at an abandoned/derelict research facility this Sunday, and now I have to work. :rant

Also: about to pick up a copy of the Nikon 35/1.8. I've read a lot of reviews, mostly positive except for some CA at wide apertures, but that plus the 85/1.4 that I held onto gets me back into respectable lens territory for only $200 or so. Sample shots and other junk to follow. Hell, maybe instead of the painfully expensive 2.8 zooms I'll just build a nice kit of fast primes. :)
 
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