D70

thebigbillybob

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hey im new to the DSLR age and i just wanted an opinion from someone with experience with both the canon digital rebel and the Nikon D70 i hear the D70 is worth the extra hundred bucks and i will prob end up with this cam but i just was wondering is there really a big drawback to make the dif between a digital rebel and the D70? also is it worth saving more money for like the D1X? or a higher end canon? thanks
 
It might be hard to find someone with experience with both the Rebel and D70 unless they had enough money to buy both of them. It's really hard to get a sense of how good a camera is until you've used it for an extended period of time. Those quick snapshots at the local camera shop probably won't tell you much.

I was actually in the same position as you about a month back and spent way too much time researching my options. My choices came down to the Canon 300D rebel, Canon 10D, or the Nikon D70. The 300D didn't have some of the features I wanted and from reading some other forums it looked like someone users "out grew" the 300D and ended up buying the 10D after all. That was only a handful of 300D users because there are quite a bit of 300D users here and from the looks of things they are perfectly happy with their camera.

I was actually all set to get the 10D until I heard about the D70. It wasn't as limiting as the 300D and for only $100 more I thought what a good deal. Also being about $500 less than the 10D my decision was basically made. Although it really depends on whether you will use or miss the features not present in the 300D. Also other factors like how each camera feels in your hands and how the controls are laid out plays almost and equal role in your final decision.

The image quality from all 3 cameras are pretty close, at least from what I could tell. Don't make the mistake I did by going to photogalleries and comparing pictures. You'll quickly see that even a $5000 will produce horrible pictures if taken by someone new to photography. If you really want to compare pictures go to professional review sites. Although I can save some time because from what I could tell the picture qualities were very close. Of course, some cameras were a little better in some categories but on average it was pretty hard to tell the difference.

If you are going to get the D70 I would say just get the body and pass on the kit. From my own testing the kit lense was too soft for my liking. It was sharp around 50mm but soft at anything under that. My other Nikkor lense is a lot sharper. Although the nice thing about the kit lense is that it's very smooth, quiet, and fast focusing. I just wish it was sharper, but it is a kit lense. I'm happy with my D70 but it's a personal preference as to which you would be happier with.
 
k awsome thanks a lot ofr ur coment i cant wait to get my d70 (wont be til mid to late summer) and if i dont get the kit what would u suggest would be a good lens to buy with the cam cuz the lens i have on my 35 mm are cheap cuz im a hs student who must fund photography completley and soley on my own... im looking for something in the 100-300 dollar range and i would like to also pic up a decent 200 maybe even 300mm zoom what are ur choices? within a decent budget cuz the cheapo one i got off ebay doesnt even focus ne more but what do i expect for like 25bucks hahaha

edit: also whatr would be a good flash for shooting portrait shots? i dont use flashes on ne thing else i primarily use availible light and i use the built in on the rare time i actually think ill need a flash and what the hay while im at it next winter i plan on shooting snowboard shots from anything to my friends and i goin big to guys in comps goin big i doubt i will want a flash cuz ive always been a fan of availible light but i know sometimes in sport action stuff peeps use a flash i dont see how it will help but even on a bright ass day at the grand prix last weekend i saw pros using a flash on the cars as the went by i didnt understand why they would do that... specially when the car is 15+ feet away... so what im reallt asking is there a flash that will help me in sport/action photography? thanks again
 
You could check out the Canon 10D too!

:)
 
Flash helps to freeze the motion of a fast moving object. It's also used to fill-in light for another main light source (in this case, the sun). On-camera fash as a main light source does not work well, as all the light is coming from the same direction as the camera. The image will look rather flat as there will be no defining shadows on the subject. For portraits, it's best to use either window light, a set of strobes or hot lights, or if you have to use a flash, have it mounted off the camera and off to the side.

Most flashes don't have much power, so you still have to deal with light drop-off which will make part of the sibject too bright, but leave some of the subject too dark. To prevent harsh shadows, you also need to difuse them, which will make the drop-off even more pronounced since diffusers will sap some of the flash's output.

They are great for fill, and they put a nice highlight in the eye (though often too centered).
 
k thanks but i also have the lens qeustion... just want a few model recomendations
 
thebigbillybob said:
k thanks but i also have the lens qeustion... just want a few model recomendations
I've only use a few lenses myself so hopefully some other Nikon users will also give you some recommendations. If you are on a budget and can only get one lense, you can get the 28-200mm Nikkor. It's actually sharper than the kit lense and in my opinion I think this is more of "kit" or beginner range anyway. The broad range let's you experiment and find which zoom you use the most so that you can then save up to get a better lense in that range. The problem is that with the convenience of a broad range some people get kind of lazy and never invest in better lenses. Although if you already know what ranges you use the most then just invest in good lenses in those range.

My best lense right now would have to be my 50mm prime but an 85mm might be better if you do a lot of portrait work. I try to use my 50mm when I can but since it's a prime lense that means it's fixed at 50mm and can be impossible to get some landscape nature shots. The 28-200mm is also a bit short on the telephoto zoom side but it works in most situations.

If you are planning on taking a lot of sports actions shots, you'll be happy to know that the D70 has 3 useful features that will help you. The first one is a continous auto focus feature. This means that when switched on all you have to do is hold the shutter button halfway down and the lense will constantly refocus on the subject. It's a great feature for action shots because you usually miss some of the action while waiting for the lense to focus normally. The second useful feature is that the D70 has a good size memory buffer which means you can you can shot about 3 frames per second for about 12 images in jpeg. This means that you can pretty much get the whole snowboard jump at roughly 3 fps without a slowdown. The third useful feature is that when you turn on the camera it can be shot instantly. There's no waiting for the camera to startup. This helps you save battery lifetime while not missing any action shots. If you get really good at it you can turn on the camera and bring it to your eyes in one motion and then fire away like normal.

As for flash, I use the built in flash as a last option. The D70 does have the option to manually reduce the power output so the light isn't as harsh. You then just have to adjust the exposure to match the reduced light power. The problem is that you still have the effect of light shooting straight at your subject. As markc said the picture will look rather flat. It's better to use a speedlight and bounce the light if you can't set up additional lighting. Just make sure the speedlight you are getting has the option to rotate the light upwards so you can bounce it. I almost never use the built in flash but if you have to you can always diffuse the light more with a white tissue paper if you don't have a diffuser.
 
k thanks yea i would aim a flash up to bounce it like i said i rarely use a flash i jsut have seen pros doing action shots with it and i figured it would be a good ting to have... thanks a ton for sharing your knowledge of the D70 you seem to be very satisfied with you camera... i basically plan to save up a few grand over the summer and buy an outfit that i will get me through my college photography classes then once i graduate i will upgrade :) i just got one qeustion though is the d1x just more expensive cuz its a pro model? cus the mega pixels its less than the d70 i believe... i geuss its like what someone said in another thread its 50% cost for 90% quality and 50% more for the extra 10% haha
 
thebigbillybob said:
... thanks a ton for sharing your knowledge
Sure, no problem. The people on this forum are very helpful and friendly. I'm just trying to do my part. :wink:

thebigbillybob said:
i just got one qeustion though is the d1x just more expensive cuz its a pro model? cus the mega pixels its less than the d70 i believe... i geuss its like what someone said in another thread its 50% cost for 90% quality and 50% more for the extra 10% haha
Your last sentence is a good way to think about it. I haven't researched the higher end DSLRs as much because they were completely out of my price range, but from the few reviews I've read it looks like you'll be paying a lot more for what some would say are only slight improvements. For some people like professionals it's worth the cost but not for me. I would rather just wait for the improvements to trickle down to the rest of us. The high end models will always push the boundaries of technology but the question is if you are willing to pay the cost?
 
Harpper said:
The high end models will always push the boundaries of technology but the question is if you are willing to pay the cost?
exactly why i will most likely be getting the D70 for college then afterward when i have my degree and i actually can do full time work in the industry will i step up to pro equipment!
 
Hrmm... I actually think the kit lens is sharp for it's price. It's a hell of a lot sharper than the kit lens on the digital rebel. of course it costs 3 times as much. And if you want anything wide angle you'll need that 18 side with the 1.5 crop factor. I have no Nikon glass besides the kit lens which will have to get me by for a little while.

My first lens purchase will be the 50mm 1.8 cause it's so dang sharp and fast. And with the crop factor it makes it a very good portrait lens. After that I am going to get a Sigma 105mm macro, then something to zoom on the upper end. like a 75-300. Not sure yet.
 
voodoocat said:
Hrmm... I actually think the kit lens is sharp for it's price.
Most people probably won't notice the difference unless they compare the lenses against another one. I actually thought the kit lense was pretty sharp at first until I was bored and curious one day.

Below are pictures taken of the D70 instruction manual. I cropped out most of the manual in order to make the files smaller but these are at 100%. Both pictures were taken at 1/100, f8, 50mm, and about 3 feet away from the subject on a tripod. Lense used were the 17-80mm kit lense and 28-200mm Nikkor.

1. 17-80mm kit lense:
d70_t4.jpg


2. 28-200mm Nikkor:
d70_t2.jpg


The 28-200mm is also about the same price as the kit which is why I was disappointed. I could have saved myself the money. Although I do miss the wide angle of the 17-80mm and its smooth and quiet motor.
 
The wide angle is really the only reason they made that kit lens, and made it as a cheap alternative. Certainly much cheaper than a better Nikkor wide angle. I have the digital rebel, and the same goes for it's kit lens. You can't buy an 18mm Canon lens for $100, so it was worth it. I don't know the prices of Nikkor lenses, but I'm sure that you can't get one that wide that cheap. Correct me if I'm wrong though :)
 
Yeah, an 18mm lens is going to cost $$$ which is why I got the kit lens. By the time I have the money to buy a nice 18mm lens, they will have a nice full frame sensor DSLR out which I'll probably get. Then 28=28.
 
You guys do have a point about the value price for a super wide angle lense. I really didn't look at it that way but then again I usually don't find myself needing a super wide lense all that much. I usually stay above the 28mm mark even with the crop factor but the extra wide angle is useful for some of my shots.

So I'll take back my statement about the kit lense not being worth it. The kit lense is decent enough for the price of a wide angle lense.
 

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