Originally posted by kenyee Has anyone seen print 30x40" prints from the D800 and compared them w/ prints from the 645D? I'm curious if there's less dynamic range and smoothness w/ the D800. From what I've seen, the D800 is essentially the D7000's photosites (which have great dynamic range in the shadows as we've seen w/ the K-5) at much higher resolution so you can downsample to get "equivalent high ISO" to the Canon 5DmkIII and D700.
And does Whats_Edoo print large sizes? i.e., what do you do w/ your images? That's a big part of "do you really need this?" too...unless it's more a question of "do you want this?" ;-)
I agree w/ the high-end audio comparison at this level. At a certain point, performance doesn't increase that much more for the extra you pay (or you get tone deaf as you get older, I forget :-) so you just have to figure out your point on the curve that you want to be...
Need and want......Isn't that a question. Concerning many things?
As far as the need part, I sell my prints. I never know which image is going to be requested in a large size so every thing I shoot is with the intent of printing as large as possible even if the bulk of what I shoot never make it over 20 x 30. And then the fact there are usually pictures within pictures when one shoots this way. Which can allow for the unexpected and very nice crops from these large images that can still be blown up fairly decently on there own. I wish I could claim more skill but the truth of the mater is most of my best shots occurred in spite of my best planning. The luck factor where would we be without it
I had a conversation with a friend in the audio field years ago and we came to the conclusion that money is no longer a guarantee of quality. One can quite easily spend a fortune on something that should rise above the pack in it's field only to be sorely disappointed. And as you point out when one gets to the upper echelons in many fields it's no longer about better which suddenly becomes an esoteric term it's more about differences on that level. And I think that's true in this particular discussion.
So I think this conversation has matured to the point where the discussion of money has become secondary.. yes .. no ? ( Regardless of the amount of money one has or doesn't have. There can still be choices made. ) to expression and use differences as has been mention by other knowledgeable and experienced folks earlier. One should choose tools that best fit one's intent and style if you will. Like a painter choosing a specific brush for a specific task or effect. The Nikon is a more general tool. The Pentax is a more specific one. Perhaps the choice is simple after all....