Considering an upgrade...

barfastic · Oct 21, 2009

Hey guys,

ok, so atm i have a Sony a350, with 5 lenses (50mm prime, tamron 90 macro, tamron 12-24, 18-70 kit lens, and a 70 - 300 zoom), HVL-F42AM flash, and a battery grip. (yeah i went on a spending spree).

Now, Ive been into photography for a while (dating back to my fathers Pentax K1000), and i had a film SLR in highschool, and used it daily for a couple of years. Then i went to college, and left it locked in the closet.

Last year i went a bought the above mentioned camera, and i kept buying gear for it (as you can tell)...

Now though, a year into photography again, i find that my camera does not have a lot of functions i would like it to have. (mirror lock up, high iso performance, high burst capabilities), and more over the lack of lens products provided by sony kinda let me down.

Im not saying it was a bad camera, infact i was quite impressed, but i feel that i am missing on some of the "Good" stuff.

So without further delays, ill ask the questions i came to ask.

1) Should i go with the "simple" solution and go buy the Sony a900/850 ? - Although this seems like the best solution, i would have to get new lenses again, as the ones i have dont work with a full frame camera, and well, im not really impressed with the line up at the current time. its either 10000euro Carl Zeiss lenses, or 50 euro cardboard lenses.

2) In comparing the Canon 5d mark ii, and the nikon d700. the features that stand out and bum me in each are as follows:

98% viewfinder on canon vs 95 on nikon - Canon wins

5fps (8fps with grip) on nikon vs 4 on canon - Nikon wins

51 selectable AF points - vs canons 9 - Nikon wins

Is it worth giving up a possible 8 fps, and 51 focus points for 3% larger viewfinder? (i dont really care about video, i have an hd handycam for that)

Should i bother looking at smaller cameras? d300s or 7d ? i just think it is a shame that for an extra 400-500 i can get a full frame if i buy a aps-c camera and get some better results in lower light conditions

i want this to be an informative discussion. If your gonna do the whole "canon man, nikon are for puftas" or vice versa, id rather you not comment at all. its a serious amount of money, and i want to make sure i get whats best for me, not for my online ego.

Sorry for the huge post, but i feel that by giving a brief history and more details, one of you guys can sort of direct me in what i need.

Regards,
Mike

icassell · Oct 21, 2009

One thing to consider is the type of photography you're interested in. If you are looking at sports/action-photography, you might steer away from the 5D. I can't rule on the 7D yet -- I just got mine 2 days ago.

barfastic · Oct 21, 2009

oh snap forgot to add that am into macro photography, landscape and action photography. mostly macro and landscapes though.

chip · Oct 21, 2009

either one will do the trick. If you are into macro photography Canon has a new 100mm 2.8 macro lens with IS.

grafxman · Oct 22, 2009

I keep my Canon 50D set for a center focus point most of the time. I'm not sure how important 51 selectable autofocus points are. I often have to manually focus for extreme macro. I'm not a pro or anything like that and I don't do action photography but I do like to photograph animals. At least for my purposes, having the center in focus is what I usually look for. I did have all the focus points engaged when I photographed the Starship Farragut open house in St. Marys GA. That's the only time I've ever used all of them.

barfastic · Oct 23, 2009

So, i finally decided on the D300s.

now i have a few question about lenses. (im not aware of the lens codes they have (AF-S, D, HSM, DC, etc) what does everything mean?

Im looking into a macro lens. And having had experience from the tamron 90mm, im leaning towards a tamron again. but i figured i would get the 180mm f/3.5 instead this time round. amongst the tamron im thinking of either the sigma 150mm f/2.8 (which is apparently a Nikon D mount... is that compatible with the d300s?)

I would also like a general purpose lens "walkaround lens" something along the lines of a kit lens - wide to zoom sorta, ive been reading reviews about the 18-250 sigma, and people seem to really like it. any ideas?

Montana · Oct 23, 2009

barfastic said:
oh snap forgot to add that am into macro photography, landscape and action photography. mostly macro and landscapes though.

The files produced by the 5DII are fantastic for landscape work. NIkon has better FPS and AF, but for landscape and studio work, the 5DII is a perfect fit.

Derrel · Oct 23, 2009

Yes, the Sigma 150mm HSM macro is wonderful lens,and it will work well with the D300, or any other modern Nikon camera. I've seen some work done with the 150 Sigma EX MAcro, by several shooters, and the lens does create a definite "look" to its images. I have macros in the 60,90,100,and 180mm lengths...I do not own a 150mm. When I bought my last macro lens, the 180, the 150 was not on the market, but I an truly understand why a person would select a 150/2.8 macro over a 180 or over a 105mm model.

If you are a pBase member, you can search for photos by lens, same on other sites. A number of mostly Singapore and Malaysia fashion shooters seem to favor the Sigma 150 as a beauty/outdoor fashion lens--it's a very popular lens over there, and it delivers nice bokeh.

barfastic · Oct 29, 2009

ok... so to add further confusion to my want to upgrade. i found a good deal on the d300 (non s version) with a 18-200 Sigma lens. for 1150 euros (new camera). If i went with the d300s + 50mm f/ 1.8 nikon lens i would be paying 1550 euros.

What do you guys think? is paying 400 euros more and limiting myself to 50mm better than paying 1150 and having a larger range while i gather up money (about 2-3weeks) to buy some decent lens?

Wolverinepwnes · Oct 29, 2009

go for the D300, and then save up and get a good lens. its a great camera!

barfastic · Oct 30, 2009

Im off to the store, to see how much my current gear will gof or, and paly around with the d300/d300s and d700.

wish me luck

who knows, i might be returning with a d300s if all goes well

ErectedGryphon · Oct 30, 2009

To summarize what I just read; long story with a couple questions with no discernible qualifications (budget, intended use) on what your really looking for, and close the post with a condescending statement. A few people start to make some suggestions, and you decide on a camera that hasn't even been mentioned yet. Then you ask about lenses, and finally specify a budget, and before anyone discusses lenses it off to the store, thinking your about to get offered what you think your current system is worth.

Sure, I'm game, since you asked for it... Good Luck!

CCarsonPhoto · Oct 30, 2009

ErectedGryphon said:
To summarize what I just read; long story with a couple questions with no discernible qualifications (budget, intended use) on what your really looking for, and close the post with a condescending statement. A few people start to make some suggestions, and you decide on a camera that hasn't even been mentioned yet. Then you ask about lenses, and finally specify a budget, and before anyone discusses lenses it off to the store, thinking your about to get offered what you think your current system is worth.

Sure, I'm game, since you asked for it... Good Luck!

QFT

barfastic · Oct 30, 2009

<---- new D300s owner.

I traded off all my gear and got a shiny new d300s and a nifty fifty 50mm f/1.4G + 200 euro worth of store credit! Turns out the guy working at the camera store was a sony user himself, and half the gear he wanted for his own personal use, else he told me i would have had GREAT difficulty selling them.. i sorta believe him considering ive put up ads for it on many greek auction sites.

I must admit i was sad to see my sony leave, but i was even happier to welcome the nikon into my life!

the camera feels extremely sturdy, and the buttons seem to be placed in perfect locations (maybe me having huge hands helps a bit)! i am bit lost with the commands, buttons, etc, but i felt that way once i got my sony too, im willing to invest in it

ErectedGryphon, im pretty sure i confused u, along with others in this post, its just the way i think. my brain jumps from one topic to another and i totally forget about the previous :S

Ok, at first price wasn't an issue, hence why i was asking about the d700 and the 5d markII. things changed after i got drafted into the military, and i had to leave my part time job, thus leaving me in a "tight" spot, funding wise. That is why i started to consider the d300/d300s. Sorry for the confusion, and lack of a clear train of thought

other than that, i am EXTREMELY happy, and cant wait for tomorrow to get some shots off! the nifty fifty is RAZOR sharp, although at 1.4 its DOF its also extremely small, and its kinda hard to get concise focus while in manual mode. practice makes perfect they say.

Thank you guys for your ideas, comments!

now the budgeting of a lifetime begins to acquire the holy trinity. :meh: