[KungPOW]

With the release of the D300s, there are plenty of D200 showing up used.

I'm pondering picking one up to see if I like the Nikon way of doing things. I have an F100 that I REALLY like. I don't think it is too far off to consider the D200 as a digital F100.

Right now for digital, I shoot a K10D. Overall I like the camera, but there have been times where I have felt let down by the K10D's autofocus and metering. I am happy with the image the sensor produces. I understand the sensor in the D200 is the same as the K10D, and I am not expecting much of a change with regard to image quality.

Has anyone come to Pentax from the D200? Any D200 users that have an opinion?

[Samsungian]

Nikon D200 uses CCD sensor and i'm not a fan of CCD.

A few months ago BestBuy was selling nikon refurbs D200 for $500ish. What are the used ones going for that are tempting you? You might check bestbuy to see if they have any D200 refurbs. They had them then sold out then had them again ...

With D300s out in stores now maybe D300 will drop in price. I know nikon raised it after my friend got his early on for $1359 new.

[alexeyga]

Gosh... and I've got one with 15k actuations with the original Nikon grip for 500$CAN last year... (from a friend though)... Re-sold it shortly after as i coudn't afford Nikon glass at the time... but i'm back with D300s from a K10 and again, no cash for lenses....!!!

That being said, D200 is a great camera if you're planning to shoot low-iso only... Actually there have been numerous posts people prefering D200s over D300-s for the low-iso landscaping photography... But, the moment you'll hit ISO800 and over, you'll understand why D300 is worth it's price... High-iso noise on D200 is really weired-looking and rather unpleasant... You won't see much difference in IQ from K10, but in usability and overall camera feel and speed, D200 will be a big step up... K10/K20/K7 is still just a camera for advanced amateurs... D200(300) is a tool...

D300-s are dropping in prices like rocks thise days and there are quite a few for sale on FM forums... So it might be worth the stretch... I wasn't really planning to switch brands, but I kinda had a bad experience with K7... so as a result, I'm hanging around in the Off-brand section...

[KungPOW]

Thanks for the input.

The K10D is also CCD, and it does not bother me. I like the images a little better with CMOS, but to me the CCD image is fine.

I'm really looking for three things here. Improved auto focus, improved metering, and I want to see if I like how the camera handles.

If I like shooting Nikon, I would move up to the D300. But without selling most of my gear, the best I can do is try out the D200 before I make the big move.

And if the D200 doesn't work for me, well then, I'll resell it and give Canon a try.

[Jack Simpson]

I'm really looking for three things here. Improved auto focus, improved metering, and I want to see if I like how the camera handles.

.

Considering what you are looking for, have you tried/considered a K7?

Cheers,

Jack

[KungPOW]

I tried a K-7 in the store a while ago. It is still a consideration, and it does have some great features I would not find elsewhere.

But there are other things I am considering in addidtion to just the body. I would like a FF camera some day. So I would like to be buying FF lenses, so when I can afford the FF body, I already have the lenses I need. I am concerned about Pentax's quality control, and a two year warenty on the DA* lenses is just not enough. There are other reasons I am looking at other brands, but I don't want this thread to become a "bash and defend" type thread.

Anyhow, in about an hour I should know if I'll be using a D200 or not.

[reeftool]

From what I have read in many reviews on the D200 and K10D is they both have the same sensor. When I made my switch from film to digital I checked out both cameras as I had both Nikon and Pentax film cameras. The K10D at that time was considered comparable to the D200 and was about half the price in the stores. That pretty much sealed the deal plus I really liked the physical layout and feel of the Pentax better. I've considered a used Nikon digital myself because I still have a couple of lenses kicking around and I'm really not shooting film anymore. If I didn't already own some Nikon gear, I wouldn't bother. While I will admit their AF is a little better, it isn't twice the price better and if anyone reads some Nikon forums you will find some of the same AF gripes there also.

[woof]

Has anyone come to Pentax from the D200? Any D200 users that have an opinion?

I am a K20D/K10D user that also has an F100 and an F80 and who is also considering pulling the trigger on a D200.

Nikon D200

Of this review Rockwell writes:

January 2008: The D200 has been superceded by the far superior D300, even though you [can] certainly buy all the new D200s you want. This review is now an historical artifact, mostly written back in 2005. 2005 is ancient history in digital camera years.

Read these as well.

Nikon D3, D90, D300 and D200 ISO 3,200 Comparison
Nikon D3, D90, D300 and D200 Sharpness Comparison

After all of this, I'll probably pick up a used D90, though there is an odd feature that I will miss from the D200.

woof

[KungPOW]

Well, I now own a used D200.

I'll post my impresions over the next couple of days.

Right now, I have a manual to read, and settings to play with.

[k100d]

when i used to lurk on DPR, i remember seeing a small minority that liked the results of their D200 better than the D300, i think the CCD might produce nicer results in lower ISO settings

[AM2]

I have a lot of experience with the D200, it's a nice camera but I wouldn't recommend buying one now, it has some flaws that were removed in the D300. I'd wait until the D300s are in wide circulation and then get a D300.

D200 still has some hideous noise in anything above ISO 640. It has one of the worst vertical grip designs I've ever seen, the battery compartment door on the grip is very prone to breaking and when you hold the camera in portrait mode using the grip the thumb will NOT be able to reach the 4-way controller. In order to zoom into an image you have to press a 2 or 3 button combination, and a few other problems I can't recall right now. These problems are gone now in the D300.

[KungPOW]

I have a lot of experience with the D200, it's a nice camera but I wouldn't recommend buying one now, it has some flaws that were removed in the D300. I'd wait until the D300s are in wide circulation and then get a D300.

D200 still has some hideous noise in anything above ISO 640. It has one of the worst vertical grip designs I've ever seen, the battery compartment door on the grip is very prone to breaking and when you hold the camera in portrait mode using the grip the thumb will NOT be able to reach the 4-way controller. In order to zoom into an image you have to press a 2 or 3 button combination, and a few other problems I can't recall right now. These problems are gone now in the D300.

Thanks for the input. I don't expect to ever get the grip, so I'm safe from that flaw.

I concure, the zoom function is REALLY goofy. It is a multi button press with a dial spin. Pentax has done a far better job with zoom. It also apears to eat batteries like there is no tomorrow.

The big differance I have noticed so far is the on board flash. I can get results that I expect and that I want. I am really impressed with how easy using the flash is.

Tomorrow I plan to get out and do some shooting to really get a feel for the camera. I suspect the D200 has better autofocus, but I won't know until I gaive the camera a good workout.

[hotrod]

Well, I now own a used D200.

I'll post my impresions over the next couple of days.

Right now, I have a manual to read, and settings to play with.

Here's a user's guide to the d200. http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d200/users-guide/index.htm
I have a d90 i couldn't be happier image quality is way better then a d200 but the d200 is built better

[SuperAkuma]

Thanks for the input. I don't expect to ever get the grip, so I'm safe from that flaw.

I concure, the zoom function is REALLY goofy. It is a multi button press with a dial spin. Pentax has done a far better job with zoom. It also apears to eat batteries like there is no tomorrow.

The big differance I have noticed so far is the on board flash. I can get results that I expect and that I want. I am really impressed with how easy using the flash is.

Tomorrow I plan to get out and do some shooting to really get a feel for the camera. I suspect the D200 has better autofocus, but I won't know until I gaive the camera a good workout.

Looking forward to your review, especially on the AF part. Can you do a test on the AF in low light compared to your Pentax?

I thought the K20D AF in low light was good until I tried the nikon D70s A 4 years old camera. It locked on a lot faster then my K20D. I would assume the D200 would be better than the D70s.

Right now I am debating to see if I should switch or not. If I do switch, I may go with the D200 for about $650 or the D300 for about $1,000 more.

[alexeyga]

I'd love to see the comparative review too...

As far as the zoom goes... you can call it goofy, and my-self, i still try to zoom with a dial once in a while... but on the other hand, you can browse through images while being zoomed in 100% in a certain part of the frame... the "ok" button is just below the zoom-in, so it's easy to reach... (at least on my D300s.. don't really remember the D200) though I'd still prefer browse with the rear dial, zoom with the front and change the display mode with the "info" button...

That being said, i'll restrain my-self from any deep reviews of D300... it's just so much of a different league in comparison to whatever i had before... AF is so fast you just don't notice it anymore, it's just there and it just works and it's spot-on all the time...
As KungPOW noted, flash photography is another story... on-camera flash, of-camera flash.... even the built-in thingy, they all work in a way that you can count on 'em from the fist shot...

The meter seems more accurate, and thus, somewhat less forgiving for user errors...

Colors out of the camera are flatter than from Pentax... But again, before making such judgments, one has to realize that all Pentax bodies are optimized for JPEG output, so are the lower end NiCanons (At least on low-end Nikons colors just pop-out)... Top-end NiCanon bodies however are designed for a slightly different auditory and different workflow in mind...

But what a really miss is the damn "green button" in the manual mode... it was so easy (in my case) to dial in the desired f-stop and than just shift the shutter-speed with one push of a button... now i'm stuck turning the dial while trying to keep the AE-meter happy...