[kayasaman]

Amazing deal. Congrats!

---------- Post added 08-05-22 at 11:07 AM ----------



D750 was replaced by the D780, which some claim is the "most refined Nikon DSLR ever made".

Ah that's what it was!

It's interesting though how everybrand is very specific in their layouts and way of doing things. Of course unity and parts/machining are the major factors but it's interesting how there are so many different strengths and weaknesses in everything. What one person heralds as being *the ultimate*, another person will completely discredit it as being the worst.

It's probably easier to make a decision in things based on simply what works for what you need and close your eyes and ears to the rest of the world lol??

[hayavuk]

It's probably easier to make a decision in things based on simply what works for what you need and close your eyes and ears to the rest of the world lol??

I can't remember a single photography device with which I haven't had at least some fun. I've had as much fun on an Xperia Z1 Compact as I have had on a full-frame DSLR. But each device gives me different kinds of fun, and there's none that gives me all of those kinds.

[kayasaman]

I can't remember a single photography device with which I haven't had at least some fun. I've had as much fun on an Xperia Z1 Compact as I have had on a full-frame DSLR. But each device gives me different kinds of fun, and there's none that gives me all of those kinds.

Sorry for the late response. I'm preparing images to compare and contrast between my K1 and D500 now that I figured out how to get the images viewable here without the use of links. I'm gona pop up another post soon with pictures rather then long wording of what I think and how I feel.

I think a lot of what you say I agree with. Photography should be about fun and enjoying imaging the environment. It becomes a little different though when you are trying to image specific things. Having a manual lens or ill performing AF can get frustrating very quickly for imaging wildlife and sports. Especially if your in-focus rate is really low.

Walk-about photography is different though and then it's just about having a camera there in order to grab the shot. When I got my Samsung Ultra cell with 4x cameras, I initially tried it in the garden. Overall the image quality was good but for some reason it couldn't render my fence well and kept doing strange things with the AI processing which you can't turn off.
That drove me nuts as it was not an accurate representation of the wood at all.

In contrast though, I went travelling with an old Nokia N95 phone with Zeiss optics. In bright conditions it actually worked pretty well and I ended up with some nice shots with it. Sure my Pentax could have done better and especially adding a few grad filters and CPL would have helped even more.

With my Sony Cybershot (we are talking 20 years ago here), as a walkabout camera it was nice... what it failed at though was that it wasn't wide enough in some circumstances and not long enough at the top end in other circumstances. I didn't have a tripod at that time either so night time shots were spoiled by heavy motion blur.


Gota shoot now, as we have a clear sky so gona try imaging Andromeda M31, using the D500 and Sigma 105mm macro. No tracking mount so will try 2s sub frames and see where that gets me, provided I can nail the subject in the first place as light pollution is a nightmare in the center of the city.

[hayavuk]

That's why I said "at least some fun". Each device has something it's good at, some more than others. I still haven't found one that would do everything for me, but I guess a Fuji X100 with the performance of Nikon Z9, Olympus' IBIS and color rendition of a Pentax would be stretching it a bit too far. 😁

[kayasaman]

That's why I said "at least some fun". Each device has something it's good at, some more than others. I still haven't found one that would do everything for me, but I guess a Fuji X100 with the performance of Nikon Z9, Olympus' IBIS and color rendition of a Pentax would be stretching it a bit too far. 😁

I agree totally. The nice thing though is you can really learn about your needs from something that isn't 100%


With the OP's currently nabbed D700, I'm sure a lot of fun will be had. There are a vast amount of Nikon F series lenses out there both new and used. The camera can still hold its own under almost any circumstance unless you intend to push it to it's limits and beyond.

I am looking forward to @tonyzoc's images. Congratulations from me as well

[Jonathan Mac]

I dont'understand this kind of comment... I still see professional photographers using the D700 and the 5D mark II. How can it not be "serious". If you are in control of the light and can keep your ISO low, you can't say a D750 or D800 gives a "better image" if you make small or medium prints, or if you are looking on a monitor (even 4K which is only 8MP). Unless of course one is part of the "ISO is everything" crowd in which case only the latest and greatest will do, and they should probably shoot a Fuji GFX because everything else is not really good enough, and even that won't be enough next year when a new latest and greatest is out there. (Dan at 35hunter.blog calls it The Upgrade Parade)

I didn't say that the D700 wasn't, and isn't, a camera capable of professional results, even in 2022 when the D700 is fourteen years old. A lot has changed in fourteen years, and not just in image quality and resolution - autofocus, manual focus tools and many nice-to-have features which may not be present on older models and which we may take for granted now.

The other day I saw a used D700 for sale locally for under €300 and with only around 20K shots on it. I would consider getting that as a camera to play around with a bit with the (very) few F-mount lenses I have but that's not the same as wanting to move to a FF Nikon DSLR as my main camera. If I wanted to do that then I'd look for something newer and more capable (please note: more capable doesn't just mean improved resolution, dynamic range or any other factor essentially dictated by the sensor used and neither is it related to whether or not it was or is used by professionals).

From the OP's reply below it seems I judged the situation extremely accurately.

I wasn't looking for APS bodies...I have 3 Pentax ones. I wouldn't mind a K1ii, and I do have allot of full frame pentax glass, but I'd rather wait for a K1iii if I went that route. I have no interest in mirrorless or purchasing new (high priced) lenses so Z isn't in my future unless I win the lottery.

I was looking for a Nikon DSLR because I have some nice AF/AF-D lenses i use with my F4 and N90s...mainly the 20-35/2.8, 35-70/2.8 and 80-200/2.8. So I was looking for something inexpensive to play with. I narrowed my list down to the D700, D750, D800,D810 and D850... and further down to D700 and D750. I was following both camera and bid on a mint D700 with less than 7200 accusations. I only bid $260 and won at $242...$261 shipped. I expected to loose that as I saw other similar auction end near $400. But I got lucky. I was also watching D750 auctions and might have gone that route given the right circumstances.

---------- Post added 08-05-22 at 10:03 AM ----------



I didn't take your "toy" reference to imply the D700 wasn't a serious camera... rather I assumed you meant a "toy" for me to play with. And yes, that's what I'm looking for. After all...these are all toys, aren't they.

Yes, that's how it was meant.

I have film SLRs that, in their day, were considered professional but for me they're all toys. I wouldn't say the same of my S5, or even the older K-3 and X-T20 I still have.

I hope you enjoy the D700, it seems you got a great deal on a legendary camera.

[tonyzoc]

A little follow up...
The D700 I bought still hasn't arrived. I filed a refund claim with eBay and I'm now waiting until 9/24. Isreal Post has it tracked as "sent to US" which hasn't changed since 8/10 so I doubt I'll ever get it. I was tired of waiting and I bought another D700 for $208. It looked OK but no info in the description. I got it today...there's some wear, but it works fine. I check the shutter count and its over 336k. At least I won't have to baby it. And maybe the original purchase does show up someday...

[Jonathan Mac]

A little follow up...
The D700 I bought still hasn't arrived. I filed a refund claim with eBay and I'm now waiting until 9/24. Isreal Post has it tracked as "sent to US" which hasn't changed since 8/10 so I doubt I'll ever get it. I was tired of waiting and I bought another D700 for $208. It looked OK but no info in the description. I got it today...there's some wear, but it works fine. I check the shutter count and its over 336k. At least I won't have to baby it. And maybe the original purchase does show up someday...

Shame that one seems to have disappeared. If you bought the other one today it will likely arrive tomorrow...

336K is a very high shutter count indeed. I'm not sure I'd pay even $208 for any camera with that much use on it.

[tonyzoc]

Shame that one seems to have disappeared. If you bought the other one today it will likely arrive tomorrow...



336K is a very high shutter count indeed. I'm not sure I'd pay even $208 for any camera with that much use on it.

Yeah I bought it with very little in the description. The seller "didn't know" the shutter count so I took a chance. The camera works fine though. I've see D700s with over 400k. They are a tank. Looking at D750s I see allot more being sold for parts which is one reason I opted for the D700. I did get refunded for the original purchase ...maybe it will show up eventually and if so I'll repay the seller. Its been over 40 days so far so I'm not expecting it will ever arrive.

[tonyzoc]

Here's some "test" photos I took this week... Most of these were from this morning while walking the dog and smoking a cigar at the same time, so not optimum camera stability. The park is Onondaga Park in Syracuse NY. The lens was the Nikon 70-210/4-5.6 AF-D. "Vibrancy" was set too high... it's hard to tell looking at the back screen, but once on the computer monitor it becomes obvious. I did shoot RAW and JPG...these are the off camera jpgs with nothing done except resizing (and the goose pic cropped a little).

[Jonathan Mac]

Yeah I bought it with very little in the description. The seller "didn't know" the shutter count so I took a chance. The camera works fine though. I've see D700s with over 400k. They are a tank. Looking at D750s I see allot more being sold for parts which is one reason I opted for the D700. I did get refunded for the original purchase ...maybe it will show up eventually and if so I'll repay the seller. Its been over 40 days so far so I'm not expecting it will ever arrive.

Well the important part is that you enjoy using it, and may it last as long as possible.

[pimpim]

"Vibrancy" was set too high....

did you buy the Nikon from Ken Rockwell ?

Beautiful photos, looks like it's fun shooting!

Shame the low shuttercount camera didn't arrive, this is why I try to avoid buying anything that requires passing though customs, no joy in surprise taxes and tracking status getting stuck in "unknown" all of a sudden. One would think that international shipping would have figured this out dealing with customs by now, it's not like it's a new concept....

[tonyzoc]

did you buy the Nikon from Ken Rockwell ?



Beautiful photos, looks like it's fun shooting!



Shame the low shuttercount camera didn't arrive, this is why I try to avoid buying anything that requires passing though customs, no joy in surprise taxes and tracking status getting stuck in "unknown" all of a sudden. One would think that international shipping would have figured this out dealing with customs by now, it's not like it's a new concept....

Funny you should say that...I did try the vibrancy setting suggested by Ken Rockwell (+2 saturation) but I found it a bit too much. Luckily I shot raw also so I can reprocess those pics.

I never have any issue buying from Japan but they usually ship DHL or FedEx. I did get free shipping, but I should have asked the seller to send FedEx. Even paying $40 or $50 (plus the $240 I bought it for) would have been worth it for a mint D700 with 7100 shutter clicks. Oh well, the one I ended up with is working fine and I've seen and heard of D700s that are pushing a million clicks. If I get another 100k on it I'll be happy.

I do like the D700 and I can see myself getting a D800 or D850 someday. Ideally I'd like a full frame DSLR with fast aperture and fast focus... Even if Pentax puts out a K-1iii with the K-3iii AF ability and they replace all the SDM motors with PLM motors I'd probably be looking at over $5000 for the camera and lens... I can do a used D850 with a 70-200/2.8 VR for under $2000.

[UncleVanya]

I can do a used D850 with a 70-200/2.8 VR for under $2000.

That’s optimistic but possible. Most however would run more like $2500 and over $3000 with the newer VR II lens. The Nikon is a good lens but I think the D FA beats it from what I’ve read. The D850 is a nice body. I had no trouble using one the other day to take a group portrait using another photographer’s gear (he was in the picture).

[hayavuk]

Even if Pentax puts out a K-1iii with the K-3iii AF ability and they replace all the SDM motors with PLM motors I'd probably be looking at over $5000 for the camera and lens...

Heh, we can never be happy with what we have, can we? For me, the last thing I'm missing in my glass collection are a decent telephoto zoom (looks like FA* 80-200 would be too heavy for me, but maybe an 80-320; I don't need it for birds and critters, just some landscape and walk-around) and a ultra-wide shift lens (I'm eyeballing the Laowa 20mm shift, but it's sooo expensive!). And I wish I could find some affordable high-power flash with trailing curtain support. I have to admit that with Nikon it's so much simpler to find anything as stuff is readily available at most price points.

For me it's not so much the body features per se, but what the ecosystem unlocks. Even if a K-1 III came out with AF that makes Canon users want to switch, no noise in a Bic-lighter-lit scene, always bang-on auto exposure, cine-levels of video features, and a 80Mpx sensor, costing less than $2000, there'd still be reasons to prefer Nikon just for the extra glass and accessories options. )))