[philbaum]

Why are most people assuming that this photography caper is merely a hobby? From many of the great shots I've seen in these forums I assume that the involvement most people have makes it go much deeper than that. When something becomes a way of seeing everything around you, it's no hobby, it has become an intimate part of who and what you are.. not just 'something you do'.

Yep, i agree with that. If one is at all serious about it, it can definitely affect your life. One becomes more observant of their environment, and that is not a bad thing. One also will meet new people because of the photography. Several non-profits are glad to have volunteers wiht photographic skills to contribute to their effort. I've been working with a local live theatre group for over 3 years; its been a lot of fun and i've met some really interesting folks. When the local photo club wanted to hold a photography workshop, the director waived the normal $150 fee for their theatre rental because we help them out on a regular basis. Pretty nice of them. Course its a small town and a lot of that barter stuff seems to happen in a small town.

[monochrome]

I work with a guy who collects model train equipment and has built extensive tracks/landscapes, etc. He told me he probably has around $20K invested in the hobby. Where I'm from it's routine to buy $25,000 fishing boats that are used three times per year, even if that amount represents 50% of yearly income. Of course, the Harley's that stay parked in garages 95% of the time are everywhere.... And more power to all those folks - they own things that make them happy in their own way.

On my wife's laptop, she has downloaded every picture of our kids that I've ever uploaded to picasaweb for the extended family to view - thousands & thousands of shots. They cycle on her screensaver after the laptop has been idle for a couple minutes - she sometimes just lets the screensaver go, watching the pictures, many of which document events that have already started to slip the mind.... As a life-documentation project, with some creative asides, my photography hobby has already paid for itself.

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Heh. I started this hobby to avoid the model railroading and the 62 Morgan. I sold almost all the fly fishing gear and bought an entire kitchen rehab with the proceeds. This hobby is cheap from the money side for the amount of reward.

[the swede]

With all that sleep I don't suppose there's much chance of you wearing out your new bed. I thought you Swedes were better than that.

I didnt say how much or how litle i sleep But a good bed is hard to wear out, you break it in

[WerTicus]

if its real at all and if it has a d800 sensor and is cheaper than a d800 it will have my vote

[melander]

Would you guys and galls prefere a d700/d3s sensor or the d800 sensor. I would be pleased with 12 mp myself.

[ElJamoquio]

More megapixels for me. I prefer the better IQ overall rather than the smaller file size.

[deadwolfbones]

I see no need to upgrade my D700, but I'd be fine with either sensor in a Pentax FF.

[ozlizard]

A full frame with the D800 sensor?
I would sell my kids to have that.

[falconeye]

Would you guys and galls prefere a d700/d3s sensor or the d800 sensor. I would be pleased with 12 mp myself.

The best camera for 12MP is the K-5.

[jsherman999]

The best camera for 12MP is the K-5.

No way Jose! (Sorry, Falk.) D3s is the best 12MP camera body, followed by D700, followed by K5/D7000 and maybe a lot of other new choices, including perhaps even a NEX-7 downsampled to 12MP.

The DR is nice on the K-5, but the slightly higher MP on that aps-c sensor really doesn't amount to much in real world shooting, IMO. (At least If you value AF lock + tracking + better high-ISO performance + the FOV/DOF lens issue as much as DR at base ISO, that is.)

Judging a whole camera based a two-digit integer that DxO uses to distill its extensive sensor tests (and draw folks to it's site - very smartly) isn't the best way to allocate your photography budget as far as I'm concerned

(Now, if you were to consider the lenses available in size/price/IQ as part of the equation - K-5 + Limiteds closes the gap quite a bit.)
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[Fontan]

No way Jose! (Sorry, Falk.) D3s is the best 12MP camera body, followed by D700, followed by K5/D7000 and maybe a lot of other new choices, including perhaps even a NEX-7 downsampled to 12MP.

The DR is nice on the K-5, but the slightly higher MP on that aps-c sensor really doesn't amount to much in real world shooting, IMO. (At least If you value AF lock + tracking + better high-ISO performance + the FOV/DOF lens issue as much as DR at base ISO, that is.)

Judging a whole camera based a two-digit integer that DxO uses to distill its extensive sensor tests (and draw folks to it's site - very smartly) isn't the best way to allocate your photography budget as far as I'm concerned

(Now, if you were to consider the lenses available in size/price/IQ as part of the equation - K-5 + Limiteds closes the gap quite a bit.)
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I wholeheartedly agree, but around here, crucifixion follows a comment such as this.

[WerTicus]

Would you guys and galls prefere a d700/d3s sensor or the d800 sensor. I would be pleased with 12 mp myself.

I prefer image quality over anything else... megapickles being the least important aspect. But look at the dxo measurements of the d800... it has the megapickles AND the quality.

Its one killer sensor. in fact its the best sensor ever

I'm not afraid of 36mp images... my computer handles 40mp 645d files just fine

[WerTicus]

So you could run a D800 as a DX camera to control file size

Why? if you can afford a D800 you can afford the storage space and computer requirements to handle a 36mp file. $1500 computer will manage it easily. (trust me i did just that with 645d files)

[Chex]

If your worried about file size, shoot it in jpeg. I'm simply going to buy another a few more hard drives this fall.. just be more diligent on which shots are worth keeping.

[thibs]

Mmm something like sRaw would be best, a downscaled RAW. Less resolution, but otherwise, all RAW goodness.