Recommend me an upgrade!

[LakeFX]

I'm starting to think about upgrading my gear next year. Since I generally buy used as much as I can and only buy new when I can find a good sale, it takes a little while to piece together equipment. Instead of the typical thread where people ask "what is the best camera" or "which is better, camera A or camera B," I am going to take a different approach. I have done a fair amount of reading on what's out there and have some ideas of what I would go after, but since this is a pretty major commitment if I end up getting new glass I want to see what all of you have to say

The way I want to approach this is to write out what I have now and what I want to improve by upgrading. I am actually pretty happy with what I have, so if there isn't anything that meets my needs, I will wait until there is.

To start, what I have now is:

• Nikon D90
• Nikkor 70-300 VR
• Tokina 12-24
• Nikkor 18-70
• Nikkor 50/1.8 D
• Nikkor 55-200 VR (only still have it because it's not worth the effort to sell it)

There are really only 2 reasons I am considering upgrading. The most important reason is size and weight. I mostly take photos when hiking and the D90 is a bit heavy and bulky so it gets left behind more often than it should. The second reason is low light performance. Anything above ISO 800 is pretty much unusable on the D90 and 800 is pretty questionable for anything other than small prints or Facebook.

I am open to switching to a new system, which is part of why I'm asking for suggestions, but I'm also open to a smaller Nikon body if there is anything that meets my criteria.

I am only a hobbyist and shoot primarily in aperture priority and shoot mostly landscapes and wildlife, so the only two lenses that really get regular use are the Tokina 12-24 and Nikkor 70-300 VR. With that in mind, if I switch systems, I need one that has somewhat equivalent lenses and aperture controls on the body that are not touch screen/menu driven.

Finally, I will have some money to throw at this, but as it is just a hobby I'd like to keep my expenditure to less than $1500 on top of what I can get for selling my used gear.

So, suggestions?

 

[robbins.photo]

Well if you need lowlight really your best bet is going to be DSLR. I'd take a look at the D5100, it's about 1/2 a pound less than the D90 and has much better low light capabilities. I can get very usable photos even at ISO 6400. You can look into a higher end mirrorless of course with an APC sensor that would be smaller and lighter, but I guess it's a bit of a trade off, I've found that trying to do wildlife photo's with an EVF or using an LCD screen can be pretty difficult.

Two recommendations I can make if you do decide to stick with DSLR, I purchased a belt and some belt pouches to store my camera gear in, I find it a whole lot more comfortable to carry it that way on long hikes over uneven terrain. I also highly recommend a good shoulder strap, they are so much more comfortable to use and carry a camera with than the standard neck strap. Normally on my zoo walks I'll take the D5100, the 300 mm zoom attached, throw it over one shoulder and just have a microfiber handy in one of the little pouches on the strap. Works like a charm. I can throw a spare battery in there too if I think I'll need one, though I never have to this point.

 

[Braineack]

yeah, the D5100 is still usable well beyond iso 800. Here's one I took at 300mm f/5.6 and iso 1800 with it: Deer in Clearing | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I'd also consider the D7100 which I believe is the current model of the predecessor.

 

[LakeFX]

I'll have to get my hands on a D5100 to see how it feels. The weight is less the issue than the bulk. The note about wildlife and EVF is very useful. I haven't used an EVF in about 10 years and they were really bad back then.

I've been using a neoprene strap slung across my body, which is perfectly comfortable for hours of hiking, but not once I put on a backpack and can't swing the camera behind me. Living in Oregon, we have some great hiking, but it can get pretty technical and having 2 dogs running between my legs makes it a bit harder than it would otherwise need to be too!

I just picked up a Peak Designs Capture last week, which seems like it will help a lot, but I won't know until I use it for a while.

 

[LakeFX]

yeah, the D5100 is still usable well beyond iso 800. Here's one I took at 300mm f/5.6 and iso 1800 with it: Deer in Clearing | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Wow, that's so much better than my D90 can do! You guys have me just about sold on the D5100. If my Tokina would autofocus with it, I would probably go get one this week before going on vacation! Maybe I will anyway, there's one on Craigslist pretty cheap here...

 

[Braineack]

that's a big advantage of the D7100... The D7000 shares the sensor of the D5100--though the body is not much an upgrade from the D90--that is one of pluses.

They've been selling for a good price the last few weeks.

 

[LakeFX]

I just looked up the specs and the D5100 is only 2.2oz. I think for that small of a difference, I'd rather spend the extra on the D5200 or D5300 which are more like 4oz lighter than the D90 and have better autofocus.

 

[robbins.photo]

yeah, the D5100 is still usable well beyond iso 800. Here's one I took at 300mm f/5.6 and iso 1800 with it: Deer in Clearing | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Wow, that's so much better than my D90 can do! You guys have me just about sold on the D5100. If my Tokina would autofocus with it, I would probably go get one this week before going on vacation! Maybe I will anyway, there's one on Craigslist pretty cheap here...

Well, just to add insult to injury.. lol

20131130_ 024 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

D5100, ISO 6400, F4.5. You can spot some grain if you look close but all and all a pretty usable shot. The D5200 and D5300 have similar lowlight so neither would be a bad choice, from the sounds of your budget you might want to consider if onboard GPS would be something that would really float your boat, might be worth giving the 5300 a look if that appeals to you at all. Mention it of course simply because you mentioned that you do a lot of hiking and some folks really like the geotagging stuff.

 

[LakeFX]

Funnily enough, GPS doesn't matter to me at all despite having a PhD in Geography What you have convinced me is that I'll probably be doing an incremental upgrade before the mirrorless designs are where I would want with their viewfinders in a few years.

I think the big factor that will make me wait until February or so is the cost of replacing the Tokina 12-24 with a Nikon one. I'm still deciding if I want to take the 12-24 with me on our trip or if the 18-70 is the better option. Hard decisions...

 

[robbins.photo]

Funnily enough, GPS doesn't matter to me at all despite having a PhD in Geography What you have convinced me is that I'll probably be doing an incremental upgrade before the mirrorless designs are where I would want with their viewfinders in a few years.

I think the big factor that will make me wait until February or so is the cost of replacing the Tokina 12-24 with a Nikon one. I'm still deciding if I want to take the 12-24 with me on our trip or if the 18-70 is the better option. Hard decisions...

Well with your budget you could go with a D7000 - which would allow you to use the Tokina with the new body since it has the built in AF motor - but of course that also adds to size and weight which was one of your big considerations. But of course with a $1500 budget you could probably easily replace the Tokina lens with something close in an AF-S and still purchase whichever D5X model you wanted and probably have room to spare.

Lol.. I know what you mean about GPS - I consider it more GWB - Godawful waste of batteries.. lol

 

[amolitor]

I'd take a look at the D5100, it's about 1/2 a pound less than the D90 and has much better low light capabilities.

Where do you get this stuff? According to people who actually test this stuff, the 5100 is very slightly better in low light.

 

[LakeFX]

Well with your budget you could go with a D7000 - which would allow you to use the Tokina with the new body since it has the built in AF motor - but of course that also adds to size and weight which was one of your big considerations. But of course with a $1500 budget you could probably easily replace the Tokina lens with something close in an AF-S and still purchase whichever D5X model you wanted and probably have room to spare.

Lol.. I know what you mean about GPS - I consider it more GWB - Godawful waste of batteries.. lol

I'm actually thinking about the D7000. If I can't get both better low light performance and a significant size reduction at this time, I'm thinking it is worth a little money to get the better autofocus and low light performance of the D7000 for about the same size. There are 2 used ones in my area right now, but their asking about what KEH gets so I'm going to see if I can get them to come down in price. At around $200-$250 after selling my D90, that would be a great upgrade for me for a couple of years.

 

[Derrel]

Skip right ahead to the BEST APS-C sensor on the planet, AND the sensor that's in a camera well-suited to the lenses you already own...you can find your solution in the Nikon D7100. 24MP and multiple generations newer technology than the D90 has. The Tokina and the 70-300VR are reason enough to go with a 24MP APS-C sensor and a d-slr. That would make for a seamless, simple, true upgrade.

If you want to look at a pure "hiking system", you ought to buy something VERY lightweight.

 

[amolitor]

If you really want substantial low light improvements you've got to spend some serious money. Looking at individual pictures will tell you almost nothing about the overall performance of the sensor in low light conditions. Just because someone declares that his pictures are still "fine" at 6400 doesn't mean you're going to agree. Just because someone shows you one picture that looks great at 3200 doesn't mean that in your use cases you're going to get wonderful performance at ISO 3200.

Buying another stop of speed is cheaper on the glass side of the equation in most cases. Buying another stop of speed on the body side is expensive, and results in a very heavy body.

You might take a look at Sony, they're putting some very performant sensors into mirrorless (and therefore pretty light) bodies.

 

[runnah]

Skip right ahead to the BEST APS-C sensor on the planet, AND the sensor that's in a camera well-suited to the lenses you already own...you can find your solution in the Nikon D7100. 24MP and multiple generations newer technology than the D90 has. The Tokina and the 70-300VR are reason enough to go with a 24MP APS-C sensor and a d-slr. That would make for a seamless, simple, true upgrade.

If you want to look at a pure "hiking system", you ought to buy something VERY lightweight.

Agreed. No need to go full frame. But the weight is a non issue IMO. The difference in the weights between the APS-C bodies is about the same as a granola bar.