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My new camera...

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Sherlock

Sherlock

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I'm about to take delivery of this beauty...

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My first dSLR, and I'm rather happy! This should push my photo work to a higher level, theoretically /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif we think /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

My lenses to start with will be Nikon 50 1.8 lens plus the Nikon 28-80 F3.5-5.6 (courtesy of a friend), along with the Nikon SD600 flash... I'd like a zoom lens but that will have to wait for now, I'll just have to rent one whenever the need arises...

And the nice thing, the memory cards from my Lumix will work in the D70s, no immediate need for a new memory card
 
NICE!... Just remember that the camera is only a tool and that the true ability is with the person, not the tool. That being said... nice equipment sure makes the job easier. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif
 
Yes master... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I have come to realize recently that the Lumix will only take me so far, especially in terms of image size for any sort of future publishing plus overall camera qualities... But I must say it served me well however
 
Yes, in the digital world the megapixel is an important consideration.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cheers.gif heres to bigger and better!
 
That's what I use, you'll like it. I usually shoot with an SB800, although I'm finding fill-flash is less needed when shooting RAW and using some of the software out there now

The CF cards are cheap as heck now. I'm carrying a 4gb 150x Ridata card, 1gb SanDisk Extreme III and a 1gb SanDisk Ultra II. All work very well, the 4gb will shoot around 700 raw images easily. The 2gb Ridata cards have been going for under $40us and I got the 4gb for $55 after rebate (not sure if they're still around or not). By the way, I just shot an airplane fly-in, about 850 images total - and didn't run down the battery (I still haven't charged it), just FYI.

Keep an eye out for used equipment and don't waste money on cheap lenses just to get them. There's lots of garbage glass out there that make lousy images with an otherwise good camera. I lucked out and got an extraordinarily sharp Nikkor 70-210D-AF from a friend for $100. It's kind of slow for the track, but it's tack sharp with no CA/fringing. It pays to research and keep an eye on the local used market!
 
I know the Nikon is highly rated, why I purchased this one. It was really the only one I considered...

As for memory cards, they're so cheap now, I'm amazed how little they are selling for now compared to one or two years ago. And besides the SD cards I had for my Lumix will slot right in for the time being (1.5 Gigs of memory), as I'm still in budget mode here, what's new there /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif
 
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And besides the SD cards I had for my Lumix will slot right in for the time being (1.5 Gigs of memory)

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A D70s uses CF cards though, not SD. The D50 and D80 use SD.

Are you going to use an SD/CF adapter? If so I'd be interested to know how well you succeed with them, I've never heard of anyone doing that with a D70/D70S.
 
Maybe I didn't research enough, but I was led to believe (through conversation with a pro photographer friend) that my SD cards would work fine... Hmmm...
 
Scott wrote:
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Keep an eye out for used equipment and don't waste money on cheap lenses just to get them. There's lots of garbage glass out there that make lousy images with an otherwise good camera.

[/ QUOTE ]

Amen! Good glass still makes the image.
 
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Maybe I didn't research enough, but I was led to believe (through conversation with a pro photographer friend) that my SD cards would work fine... Hmmm...

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Nope. The D70 and D70S are CF only.

NikonUSA says, "Storage Media: CompactFlash(TM) (CF) Card (Type I and II ) and Microdrive (TM)"

You can get an adapter card that will probably work, but they cost about what you can get a slower 1gb or even 2gb CF card for. Looking at newegg.com the ridata 1gb gold CF cards are $21, the 2gb are $35.

It looks as if they're going to keep with the CF cards on the more "pro" equipment, but the last two SLRs aimed at the consumer market (D50/D80) use SD. I wish they'd just stick with one or the other!
 
The "standards" for storage media are so frustrating... you KNOW it's gonna change every few years, no matter WHAT...

I used to use 35mm MoPic films cut and rolled into cassettes in still cameras once in a while for FUN! Now it's a MAJOR expense to use different media... they're gonna get a LOT of people upset as this all plays out. My original FTN and F-2S work just FINE after bein' used as PULL-TOYS around the globe for years... But that's another issue! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
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I'm about to take delivery of this beauty...

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Oh, and James - in your budget be sure to add in a little something for cleaning tools. Depending on how you use the camera, where, and how often you change lenses, you'll without a doubt start to get dust on the sensor. Seems like every new dSLR owner on the forums goes into shock when they find out there might be dust on their sensor. I guess some of them just resort to sending the cameras back to Nikon for a cleaning, but it can happen quite often (and sometimes the sensors have dust from day-one).

I bought into the idea of using "sensor swabs" and their suggested cleaner (ordered all the stuff with my camera a couple years ago). The first time I had to clean the sensor I found I was just adding more garbage to it with the swabs. There's probably a technique that works, but I couldn't master it.

I ended up saving the constant expense of sensor-swabs and bought a specgrabber wand. They work great, and they're cheap. Some people use sensor brushes that are "energized" with canned air. If the specgrabber didn't work I'd probably have bought one of those brushes, but they're also pretty expensive (although some people swear they're just $2 makeup brushes, there's still a lot of discussion about it).
 
Clean, really? You mean you are supose to clean them. Must look into that.
 
I'm kind of talking apples to oranges here, but my mother-in-law just gave me her Nikon N8008. She has another higher-level film SLR and may be about to buy a D50 or D70. It's amazing what an improvement the N8008 is over my old Zenit 12SD. I got some good pics out of the Zenit, and Soviet glass is sometimes hard to beat for the money. But the newer Nikon seems to make it easier to make a good picture. It's also more versatile with regards to shutter speeds.

Soviet lenses aren't without fault, but I've found alot of the trouble comes from neglect. Soviet cameras other than the Kiev 4 rangefinder and a few other exceptions used horizontal cloth shutters, which are hard to control over 1/500 sec.

Now, it's just a matter of tracking down some good, useful lenses that won't cost an arm and a leg. Nikon may take The World's Greatest Pictures, but you sometimes pay for that name on the equipment. It would be nice to have a good telephoto lens to take pics at the Head of The Hootch regatta this weekend.
 
Excellent choice......

I'm still a bit behind the times.
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Just like my cars /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
A zoom that I found quite useful was the Sigma 50-500. Couple that with a D70 and a monopod and you have quite impressive reach out and touch someone ability. It's still not bargain basement, but waay cheaper than a Nikon tele. I know its not in the same league but I got some decent animal pics in Africa out of it.
 
@William

It's all good, enjoy that camera, and remember what Swift6 said right at the beginning...

@WhatsThatNoise

I have a few old ones too, like this beautiful Anscoflex II box camera

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@Aerog

I am well aware of all the little extras that go along with a camera purchase, I learned awhile back that it's not just the camera you're buying...
 
The purchase of a long zoom is more of a budgetary item right now, lens rentals will have to do in the meantime.

My first serious test of the new camera will be on Remembrance Day on November 11th (gulp, 10 days to half decently figure out the new camera), I always photoshoot that day and am working on tracking down a long-zoom I can rent that day
 
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A zoom that I found quite useful was the Sigma 50-500.

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I was really set to buy one of those for the range, but after a lot of really careful consideration I decided to get a Nikkor 300mm f/4 and a TC14 (1.4x teleconverter), giving me 420mm total at f5.6. A little big sharper image and nearly instant focus speed were the two selling points. If I didn't have a 70-210 already I probably would have gone with the Sigma. If you don't need a fixed/prime lens the Sigma is a pretty good deal, especially with that range!

My next lens is going to probably be a Tokina or Nikkor 12-24 and that'll be it until I hit the lottery /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
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