Need help on body choice

[John_Scarpa]

Good evening everyone,

I'm currently trying to figure out which direction to go with a new body. My D300 is really starting to show its age, and is in need of an update. Its currently my only body right now so it would become my second body to shoot with.

My shooting style is nearly 100% photojournalism. So anything from sports, music, town hall meetings, and features. My D300 keeps up fine with everything I do, but above 1600iso is kicking my butt since I started shooting for a magazine on the side.

The real hang up I'm encountering is on my current lenses. Right now I have a 70-200 2.8, 17-55 2.8, and a 50 1.4. If I make the swap to a full frame, that 17-55 might just have to be permanently attached to the D300 since its a DX lens.

Budget is also a concern as well. My budget is probably going to be around 1,000-1,500 when I make the purchase which should be towards the end of the year unless I find a screaming deal somewhere.

What I've been eyeing so far is a used D3s, D500, or just maybe a D4. My thought process is that the D500 would probably be the best choice mainly due to the 17-55. I really don't have the money to sell it and attempt to pick up a 24-70 right now. The D4 would be great once they drop in price, but if I had to throw the 17-55 on there it would still produce something useable. The d3s would be an issue with the 17-55 dropping down the image size too much so my 70-200 would live on the D3s and 17-55 would live on the d3oo till it finally goes down on me.

So what are everyone else's thoughts on this dilemma?

Thanks!

 

[Derrel]

D300...ancient sensor technology compared to ANYTHING made weith a Sony EXMOR-generation sensor...the D3s was decent..the D3x super...the D800 super..the D600 or D60 suoper, the D750 super...

YESTERDAY, the D750 + free grip went on sale for $1499...dfantastic 25-million pixel sensor in FX; PLENTY good enough with a DX lens in crop-mode if needed....

The dynamic range and the Full-Frame angles of view make me prefer FX to DX...plus the newer, better sensors make FX finally usable in crop or 5:4 aspect mode...

 

[goodguy]

D300...ancient sensor technology compared to ANYTHING made weith a Sony EXMOR-generation sensor...the D3s was decent..the D3x super...the D800 super..the D600 or D60 suoper, the D750 super...

YESTERDAY, the D750 + free grip went on sale for $1499...dfantastic 25-million pixel sensor in FX; PLENTY good enough with a DX lens in crop-mode if needed....

The dynamic range and the Full-Frame angles of view make me prefer FX to DX...plus the newer, better sensors make FX finally usable in crop or 5:4 aspect mode...

What Derrel said! The D750 is now very cheap and its an amazing camera!!!
A lens I would recommend is the Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC, very good and compared to Nikon very affordable.

 

[coastalconn]

D300...ancient sensor technology compared to ANYTHING made weith a Sony EXMOR-generation sensor...the D3s was decent..the D3x super...the D800 super..the D600 or D60 suoper, the D750 super...

YESTERDAY, the D750 + free grip went on sale for $1499...dfantastic 25-million pixel sensor in FX; PLENTY good enough with a DX lens in crop-mode if needed....

The dynamic range and the Full-Frame angles of view make me prefer FX to DX...plus the newer, better sensors make FX finally usable in crop or 5:4 aspect mode...

What Derrel said! The D750 is now very cheap and its an amazing camera!!!
A lens I would recommend is the Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC, very good and compared to Nikon very affordable.

This deal seams too good to pass up, I've been trying to pull the trigger for a week now. Just can't decide.. For the price seems like it would be a good back up camera for me though... Probably the best "deal" in the Nikon lineup at this price point..

 

[John_Scarpa]

I thought about the D750, but I didn't like the way it felt. It just felt really plastic like and quite cheap. The other issue with it is the frame rate that I would be getting.

My plan as of now is to pick up a D500, then a 24-70, then a used D4s over the next few years.

 

[Destin]

BH has the Nikon D500 for $1,796 and it includes a free Nikon brand battery grip, spare battery, shoulder bag, and an SD card.

This is a super good deal man, I've thought about jumping on it for a second D500 body and would if I had the money.

Going from a D300, I don't know if you'll like the D750. You're used to the bigger D300 body with its more professional build and controls. The D500 is the natural progression from the 300, and it's an amazing camera in every regard.

If you've never missed full frame up until now, you won't miss it when you get the D500.

For me the build and feature set of the D500 makes it the obvious choice over the D750, despite the sensor size. Photographers shoot micro 4/3 cameras and are extremely happy. Going to FX is not always the best choice, unless you drink the marketing kool aid that Nikon is trying to sell you.

 

[pixmedic]

I thought about the D750, but I didn't like the way it felt. It just felt really plastic like and quite cheap. The other issue with it is the frame rate that I would be getting.

My plan as of now is to pick up a D500, then a 24-70, then a used D4s over the next few years.

the D500 is a fantastic camera. you will not be disappointed im sure.

 

[Derrel]

I thought about the D750, but I didn't like the way it felt. It just felt really plastic like and quite cheap. The other issue with it is the frame rate that I would be getting.

My plan as of now is to pick up a D500, then a 24-70, then a used D4s over the next few years.

Yes, agreed, the D750 feels plastic-y, and it is a high-end consumer FX camera; the fit and finish and build quality of the round eyepiece camera bodies has long been a Nikon unstated design statement; if a Nikon SLR or d-slr camera body has a round, threaded viewfinder eyepiece, the build qualkity is aimed at the semi-pro/professional level buyer. Period. The D500 has a round, threaded eyepiece; the D600-series and D750 have the rectangular eyepiece design. That tells you a lot about the build quality, right there!

If a Nikon uses the rectangular, slip-on eyepiece accessories (eyecups, magnifying eyepiecs, low-ange finders, etc) then that camera was designed for the consumer/hobby/enthusiast market and its buyers, and has abuikld qualkity appropirate to the expectations of that segment of the market.

Buuuut,since the mid-1960's, Nikon;'s highest-level "enthusiast" cameras have been used by many,many professionals. At times, the high-end "enthusiast" camera has real advantages over the "pro Nikon" of the era! The FE-2 was wayyyyyyyy better as a flash in daylight camera than the F3 was! The D750 is a super-popular wedding pro camera!

Yes, the D750 feels plastic-y...I agree...I am a D1-D1h-D2x-D3x Nikon guy...the D750 feels cheap, but its technical image quality is better thjan the D500's is, but the camera body feature set of the D500 is aimed more at the action/PJ/sports shooter crowd, whereas the D750 is aimed at higher image quality/wedding/portrait/event shooter type of crowd. The D750 does better in low light than the D500 does, as astroNikon's tests show, but still...the D500 is designed for sports/action/fast-shooting stuff.

One is an FX-format camera; the other is a DX-format camera. The lens choices for either one are different, and neither uses the same lenses in the same way! If you have a 17-55 and want to use it, then buy a D500, by all means.

 

[jaomul]

The d500 is the natural replacement for the d300. However if you don't need more than 6 frames per second the d7200 does a lot very well.

I like that d750 price with grip, but where I live it's 2000 euro without a grip.

If you are used to using your current lenses, just beware that the 70-200 for example is much different on a full frame, you lose a bit of apparent reach etc