I'm ready for D700 replacement

Patrice

No longer a newbie, moving up!
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I've been quietly assembling a full frame lens collection in anticipation of a replacement for the D700. When that happens I hope the D700 will become more widely available on the pre-owned market. In the meantime this is what I now have for lenses, some of which were purchased new over the years and others were acquired second hand. A particular find was my 35-70 2.8 AFD which was found in a pawn shop for $10 and is in EX+ condition.

Zooms, all nikkors:
20-35 2.8 AFD
35-70 2.8 AFD
70-200 2.8 AFS VR-I

Primes, all nikkors:
28 1.4 AFD
35 1.4 AIs
50 1.8 AFD
85 1.4 AFD
300 4.5 ED-IF

Until I get an FX body I'm really enjoying these on my D200's and D70.
 
Nice lens selection, it's such a shame to use those on a crop frame body. Take the leap and buy a d700 now, the price won't drop more then a couple hundred when the next one is announced, and in the meantime you're not realizing the full potential of thousands of dollars worth of glass.

Ps. You need to add a 20mm prime and a 16mm fisheye (full frame only) to your kit.
 
$10 for a 35-70 2.8D?!?!?!!?!?

FUUUUUUUUU......

I'm not sure how attached you are to your 28D, but you could probably ebay it and get the 24G and pocket some change. The 24G on the D700 is just incredible.

I've heard the 35 f1.4ais is pretty funky towards the sides on FX, never used one in person, but have heard alot of mixed reviews. many say it's amazing, but soft wide open and has about the worst coma you can imagine outside the DX frame.

I owned the 20-35 2.8 for 2 weeks, it's OK on a D700. There's alot of CA that never goes away, and never gets sharp in the corners. However distortion at 20mm is almost non-existent. I never was able to get a good jive with it, which is why i sold it.

I used to own the 35-70 2.8, i've never used it on FF digital, but i have a friend who owns it and likes it.

The 85 1.4D is soft towards the sides and the corners never really get sharp when stopped down. Beautiful lens for portraits though, on FF and the closer working distances it just obliterates the backgrounds.

The 50 f/1.8 is pretty uninteresting compared to everything else. super sharp when stopped down, but soft wide open and has lousy bokeh.

Never used the 300mm.

The 70-200VR vignettes alot for how expensive it is and the corners only get OK at 200mm. Than again, who puts the subjects in the corners on a 200mm? this lens is awesome on FF.


The biggest thing you'll notice (besides noise and DR) is the D700's per-pixel output might be a little softer than the D200 and is alot softer than the D70. The D70 has a very weak AA filter, the D700 is a bit too aggressive IMO. It initially threw me off when i first got mine (i upgraded from a D70). It will need more sharpening that what you might be accustomed to, which is sad because it brings up more noise. Luckily on the D700 you can stack 10 images at once in the camera making an ISO 3200 image clean and an ISO 200 image immaculate to the point where you can push the exposure in post by 3 stops and see almost no consequence.
 
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Very true what Sw1tchFX has said, his observations are precise and to the point.

Every one of my full frame lenses, except for the 50mm, has been updated. The latest equivalent optics offer better optical performance incorporating the latest in coatings, electronics and lens design. However the price of admission to play with these is a not inconsequential $13,850 (Nikon Canada). Except for my 85mm and my 70-200 which were at the top of the heap when purchased new, all my others were acquired at substantial reductions from their list price when new.
20-35: $200
35-70: $10
28 : $350
35 : free
50 : $55
300 : $150
So I feel that I got very good optical value for the money spent. It would be nice to get the best there is but income from photography will not support that at this time.

And, no doubt that continued advancements in the science of lenses will relegate these modern optical stars to the pile of 'once was good, but ....', very likely in the next 10 to 15 years.

(My furniture fabrication business also only gets capital investment when such investment is supported by increased revenue. Same goes for the income properties.)
 
Sw1tchFX, thanks for all that first-hand knowledge. It's a breath of fresh air, especially with all the dpreview-fueled nonsense that goes on around here.
 
YOU HAVE NO IDEA!!!! I was pissed that Nikon wasn't at CES (Canon showed up with their full range of L-series lens). I am more than ready for a FX with HD video capability. I have two Ai-S lens that I want to use on a FX body, and try video techniques as well. I am just jealous with those incredible videos that Canon users have done.
 
And, no doubt that continued advancements in the science of lenses will relegate these modern optical stars to the pile of 'once was good, but ....', very likely in the next 10 to 15 years.

I wouldn't be so sure about that--some of the sharpest lenses I own are 30+ years old.
 
old lenses can be great lenes... depending on what you use them for and what you shoot.
 
old lenses can be great lenes... depending on what you use them for and what you shoot.

totally agree... I like the new fast focusing lenses for every-day use lenses--but older lenses are great specialized uses like macro, ultrawide, fisheye, and super-telephotos.
 

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