Posted by Nathan Buck on November 10, 2006 at 12:59 AM
Hi all.
I am still using my cracked up D70, and for now it seems to be working OK. I have been trying to decide how seriously I should look at the new Nikon D80. Does anyone have experience with the D70 and D80?
Second hand only, Nathan. A good friend had the 70 and recently upgraded to the 80. His only regret is not doing it sooner. I haven't seen any of his work with it, but I know he is extremely demanding of himself and his images. I don't think he has ever enlarged any digital image past 8x10, so he's not the authority on ultimate image size.
Nathan,
I'm one of those who moved to Nikon recently. I always wished to get 5D but the prices are sky high for me. D80 is a superb little camera imo. I have printed a couple of images done with D80 upto A3 (30x40cm) for the exhibition and it is one of the most popular image at the exhibition (last one).
My only nit is the 'famous' matrix metering overexposes but then I rarely rely on camera meter (so do you, I guess). Some people say it is the sensor, am not an expert.
Posted by Chuck Beatty on November 10, 2006 at 9:54 AM
Hi Nathan,
I've been using my D70 for a couple of years now and have been pleased with the results. My challenge, as with most, is not being able to output larger prints. (I go as large as 11 x 14 on some images, but it's a stretch.) I've been coveting a D200, but when the D80 came out, it seemed like a good, less expensive alternative. I haven't heard of any major problems with the camera, but can't speak from experience. The next time I find a $1,000 bill on the ground, that's probably what I'll buy.
If you are going to spend that kind of money, get one that won't crack. Buy a D200. Thing's built like a tank!
Posted by Darren White on November 11, 2006 at 3:51 PM
I am surprised you are not getting quality prints above 11x14....I have printed many images in the 16x24 range and they come out just perfect......
Posted by Nathan Buck on November 12, 2006 at 1:17 AM
Thank you for all the repsonses. I honestly do not print much at all at this point. I will do more in th future (and I know that I should do more now). For now I mainly just enjoy my shots on the computer (and I really do enjoy them there).
Good suggestion on the D200, I am guessing if I watch for a second hand one, maybe I could get one for not much more than the D80 new.
Thanks again.
Nathan
Posted by Kent Staubus on November 15, 2006 at 2:24 AM
I've been looking at it very carefully (LOL!) and ahve decided on the D80 instead of the D200. My thinking is that the D80 uses the same sensor and for the $500 difference in price I can put it on something that WILL make a difference in my photos--on a lens! With cameras dropping in value so fast and capability increasing so quickly it doesn't make much sense to me to drop any more money into a camera than is needed. That said, I think the D80 is the best DSLR value out there at the moment. Another thought is to see if the coming Fuji S4 or whatever it is will be any good, and how much it will cost.
Fuji got such a black eye with their S3 that they will hopefully rebound with the eventual S5. Their "release" of the S5 at Photokina in September brought them more grief, because no working model was available to go with their spiel. Not much additional info yet, but lots of speculation. This thread at dpreview summarizes current knowledge/speculation. Basically it's a variation on the Nikon D200 with a unique, but technically still 6mp, sensor at a speculated price at or above the D200.
We have been dedicated and enthusiastic Fuji users and have three of the S2's (a 4th failed after many years of extremely heavy use and abuse). My wife still relies on the S2 almost exclusively in our studio and can demonstrate the superiority of the sensor in that model over many of its contemporaries. The S3 offered further sensor improvements, but with terribly clunky mechanics and slow performance, so we didn't even bother to buy it. If the S5 comes in at the same price as the D200 we'll probably pick it up on behalf of the great sensor, but only if they overcome the buffer and write speed issues.
I'm kind of stuck in a time warp because I have an S2. It's been dandy for getting into the digital SLR game and it still works. From what I've seen, the newer 10 mp Nikons offer a little more than the S2...I like that the D200 will meter with some old manual lenses...I've seen prints from a D80 and I think they were better than my S2 could do, but maybe it's the carpenter not the tool. I'm still waiting for the price drop (in the D200). If the D80 took CF cards, I'd probably have it now. Its cheesy plastic body can't possibly be any worse than the S2's cheesy plastic body that has served me well for more than one obsolescence lifetime. Camera bodies are becoming disposable items. Maybe that's good. We might start to see them as irrelevant as an artist's brush rags.
Pete D.
Posted by Kent Mearig on December 7, 2006 at 9:53 PM
I've had a D70 for about two and a half years, and I've run the gammut of loving it, being totally unsatisfied with it, and back again. I recently took it on a major trip while my D2x was in the shop, and my main gripes were veiwfinder size and lack of focus points and mirror lock-up. I handled a D80 in a Costo the other day, and the viewfinder was large and bright and there were several more options for focus points that with the D70. I don't know about MLU, but it felt like a solid step in the right direction from the D70, and the D70 is already a very sufficient camera.
Discussion
10 repliesI am still using my cracked up D70, and for now it seems to be working OK. I have been trying to decide how seriously I should look at the new Nikon D80. Does anyone have experience with the D70 and D80?
Just wondering on your thoughts between the two.
Nathan
I'm one of those who moved to Nikon recently. I always wished to get 5D but the prices are sky high for me. D80 is a superb little camera imo. I have printed a couple of images done with D80 upto A3 (30x40cm) for the exhibition and it is one of the most popular image at the exhibition (last one).
My only nit is the 'famous' matrix metering overexposes but then I rarely rely on camera meter (so do you, I guess). Some people say it is the sensor, am not an expert.
I've been using my D70 for a couple of years now and have been pleased with the results. My challenge, as with most, is not being able to output larger prints. (I go as large as 11 x 14 on some images, but it's a stretch.) I've been coveting a D200, but when the D80 came out, it seemed like a good, less expensive alternative. I haven't heard of any major problems with the camera, but can't speak from experience. The next time I find a $1,000 bill on the ground, that's probably what I'll buy.
Good suggestion on the D200, I am guessing if I watch for a second hand one, maybe I could get one for not much more than the D80 new.
Thanks again.
Nathan
Kent in SD
We have been dedicated and enthusiastic Fuji users and have three of the S2's (a 4th failed after many years of extremely heavy use and abuse). My wife still relies on the S2 almost exclusively in our studio and can demonstrate the superiority of the sensor in that model over many of its contemporaries. The S3 offered further sensor improvements, but with terribly clunky mechanics and slow performance, so we didn't even bother to buy it. If the S5 comes in at the same price as the D200 we'll probably pick it up on behalf of the great sensor, but only if they overcome the buffer and write speed issues.
Pete D.