Oh bloody hell 2 (camera related)

[Noodley]

I'd love to Noodley but my little brother (who is bigger than me) has already got in with that idea!

Damn!

 

[simonali]

You've got to know which button to press...

You just have to get stuck in...

Don't put your fingers in the cake....

Always bring a present...

Don't fall over drunk

Don't mistake her for her mum... etc etc

Make sure you've got a good rigid tripod.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

Make sure you've got a good rigid tripod.

Or at least a monopod.

 

[Kirstie]

My other half has a D300 and loves it. To get really good results from it you have to really play around with lots of the settings and be prepared to experiment lots. He also has a collection of lenses: a macro, peleng fisheye, and a great big telephoto jobby as well as the one that comes with it. You can see some of the results at www.flickr.com/photos/mrmichaelwright
His wedding candid shots are pretty good...

 

[John the Monkey]

...so I ended buying the D300 - it just seems like a proper "pro" camera, its alot faster, seems alot more polished, its built in post photo processing doodad is great, the camera is more ergonomic than the 70....I love mine

The one thing I really fancied on the D200 (that the D70 didn't have) were the "banks" of settings - it'd be nice to have different tone curves available in camera at the touch of a button. Not £300 worth of nice though

 

[alecstilleyedye]

Make sure you've got a good rigid tripod.

and a big lens

 

[Keith Oates]

I'm really a Sony fan but the Nikon looks OK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[abchandler]

I'm about to make a first foray into the world of digital SLR, and the Nikon D80 looks reasonable at the kind of price I'm willing to pay. Any experience with this model?

 

[Crackle]

I'm about to make a first foray into the world of digital SLR, and the Nikon D80 looks reasonable at the kind of price I'm willing to pay. Any experience with this model?

I'm probably biased but I always advise people to look at Pentax as well. Same quality, often better feature set and cheaper. You pay top dollar brand name on Nikon and Canon and you'll pay more for accessories/lenses too. Only if you are a pro photographer or have very specific needs will you gain from going the Canon/Nikon route. The only reason not to consider them is if you already posess Nikon lenses but are they backwards compatible? All Pentax lenses are. I don't think any other manufacturer can say that. The 10d is the equivelant and the 20d is the pro version. Though to be honest, once you get to 10Mp you really won't need better unless you plan to print above A3, in fact 6Mp will do. I have the 1st Pentax digital, the *ist D. I already owned Pentax lenses, so it was a no brainer for me.

 

[Melvil]

Now I have much more of an interest in this thread than previously because...I flippin' broke my SLR at the weekend!

It was on a tripod when we were at this beautiful castle in Clackmannanshire:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Campbell

When the tripod just literally fell over when I was looking the other way and camera and lens flew apart at a rate of knots. Several shards of plastic scattered on the road also served to illustrate the catastrophic nature of the breakage.

It's now at Nikon getting looked at but I don't think I have a spitball's chance in hell of getting the repairs covered under warranty (and repairs from camera companies are generally ultra-expensive) so I'm thinking I may well have a reasonable excuse to shell out for a new camera.

Thing is, if I stuck with Nikon, there's a huge leap up in terms of price from the D80 to the D300, which is more than my wallet could stand. So I'm thinking D80, but it is an old model, soon to be superseded and...oh the choices, the choices...

 

[andyoxon]

Now I have much more of an interest in this thread than previously because...I flippin' broke my SLR at the weekend!

It was on a tripod when we were at this beautiful castle in Clackmannanshire:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Campbell

When the tripod just literally fell over when I was looking the other way and camera and lens flew apart at a rate of knots. Several shards of plastic scattered on the road also served to illustrate the catastrophic nature of the breakage.

It's now at Nikon getting looked at but I don't think I have a spitball's chance in hell of getting the repairs covered under warranty (and repairs from camera companies are generally ultra-expensive) so I'm thinking I may well have a reasonable excuse to shell out for a new camera.

Thing is, if I stuck with Nikon, there's a huge leap up in terms of price from the D80 to the D300, which is more than my wallet could stand. So I'm thinking D80, but it is an old model, soon to be superseded and...oh the choices, the choices...

Ouch... Accidental cover? I'm considering my first dSLR. I own a Nikon FE2 and lenses, but for the last few years have used a lumix Panasonic superzoom. I thought about the D80, but was put off to some extent about reports re. the metering being a bit 'tricky'. But... I suppose you just have to get used to the camera, get it to work for you... The D300 is my aim but it's a question of priorities at the mo, and I may wait a bit...

 

[fossyant]

All abit complicated for me - I can just about handle my Fuji S9600 and that's an 'enthusiasts' compact (compact my ass - it's the same size as a SLR)

 

[andyoxon]

Melvil/abchandler - have a look at this other discussion...
http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00L4Px

There isn't a *problem* with the metering in the D80 and D40. ... The cameras were designed to meter this way, to favor the center of the frame. It should be called "center-weighted Matrix metering" for sure, Nikon should communicate it more clearly."

It most definitely is a problem for ANYONE who was used to the way ALL the rest of the Nikon film bodies and other digital bodies meter. As I mentioned in a different thread - we were unable to use a D80 as a backup for our wedding photography business because of the INCONSISTENCY of the matrix metering. Taking three formal shots in a row of the groomsmen resulted in three totally DIFFERENT exposures because the very center of the frame moved slightly from the black tux to the maroon vest. The D200 and D70S that we use will matrix meter those shots ALL the SAME. So - YES - the metering of the D40 and D80 can easily be considered a problem.

For casual shooters who have the time to take the shot AGAIN after the first shot overexposed, adjust exposure compensation, and reshoot - the D40 and the D80 are fine cameras. But for anyone shooting within time constraints and for critical shooting - I would highly recommend using cameras with more consistent and repeatable metering systems.

 

[John the Monkey]

Ouch... Accidental cover? I'm considering my first dSLR. I own a Nikon FE2 and lenses, but for the last few years have used a lumix Panasonic superzoom.

Arg - the FE2 is a lovely camera - get out there and shoot with it!

Ahem. The plus of going Nikon for your dSLR is that you'll be able to mount the old lenses on the new camera (unless they're non-ai) - there may be some restrictions on metering/shooting modes, but if you have, say, the 100 f/2.8 Series E (one of my favourites on 35mm or digital) those may be worth putting up with.

I'm fairly sure the D200 could mount and meter with AI lenses, not sure about the D300...

Pentax have a great system, and the K10D was a camera I seriously considered - it will mount and meter "old" lenses without restriction, although when I was looking this was driving the prices of old glass on eBay etc up to quite stupid levels. I've heard less positive things about succeeding models, but have to say I've not been watching such things closely.

On D80 metering, I've not followed that controversy, but my experience is that all cameras meter in a slightly different way - part of the task of taking the photo is to be aware of that and adjust accordingly (or so I've always thought). Olympus' metering (in their OM 35mm bodies) seemed to be the system that most closely matched the shot I had in my head, I found - everything else tends to need a tweak here or there.

 

[andyoxon]

Arg - the FE2 is a lovely camera - get out there and shoot with it!

Ahem. The plus of going Nikon for your dSLR is that you'll be able to mount the old lenses on the new camera (unless they're non-ai) - there may be some restrictions on metering/shooting modes, but if you have, say, the 100 f/2.8 Series E (one of my favourites on 35mm or digital) those may be worth putting up with.

I'm fairly sure the D200 could mount and meter with AI lenses, not sure about the D300...

Pentax have a great system, and the K10D was a camera I seriously considered - it will mount and meter "old" lenses without restriction, although when I was looking this was driving the prices of old glass on eBay etc up to quite stupid levels. I've heard less positive things about succeeding models, but have to say I've not been watching such things closely.

On D80 metering, I've not followed that controversy, but my experience is that all cameras meter in a slightly different way - part of the task of taking the photo is to be aware of that and adjust accordingly (or so I've always thought). Olympus' metering (in their OM 35mm bodies) seemed to be the system that most closely matched the shot I had in my head, I found - everything else tends to need a tweak here or there.

I do have a 75-150 F3.5 E, which is good - though has a tad of zoom creep now. Others are 50 F1.8 AIS, 24 F2.8, 28-70 F2.8 - Sigmas, 500 mirror. But yes, using my old lenses for a while would soften the financial blow. IIRC, D80/D200/300 MF+meter, D40/D60 MF,no meter (use Sunny16).

I may try some Provia 100F in the FE2 for old times sake: £7.99 from Jessops plus processing, and I think you can get the slides scanned as well.

You do get the feeling that film is very much part of history now, the great thing about digital is the flexibilty to experiment to heart's content, at no extra cost, well apart from the camera upgrades every 1/2/3/4* yrs (delete as applicable)

On Pentax..there is definitely a place in my heart for them - my first SLR was a ME Super...