Great Nikon D700 12.1MP Camera Material

Full frame (FX) in a DX-size body. As easy to use as a D300 and really excellent image quality, especially in dim light. Very good for street photography when you prefer to keep a low profile. High ISO shooting without the noise of a DX sensor is the main reason that I purchased this camera body. I have a D3s body for REALLY low light/High ISO, but you aren’t going to EVER be inconspicuous with a D3. This camera is virtually the same size as my D300s and even shares the MB-10 grip. Excellent. I have to look/touch closely to tell which body I have in the dark.

I’ve had my D700 for over a year, and used it for 12,500 exposures. It is simply the best camera I’ve ever owned. I’ll give a bulleted list of the high points:

The sensor is full frame, meaning old film lenses and newer ones no longer have a crop factor built in. Ultra wide angle on this camera is 19-20mm, not the 12mm of a DX lens. My 19-35mm cost me $100 and is as good as a DX format lens 12-24mm costing four times that.

The ISO range is huge, in good light ISO 6400 is usable, in dim light you can go up to ISO 5000. There’s a maximum of ISO 25,400 but it’s pretty much useless. The dynamic range (going from how dim the light is in an image to how bright) is fantastic, pictures taken with an ISO under 2500 have bright, clear colors and and good rendition.

Up to ten older manual focus (non-CPU) lenses can be specified in the menu. Why use old lenses? How about a Russian 1100MM mirror lens, or a 300mm F4.5 lens? As long as it has the right mount you can use it, that includes almost every Nikon lens back to 1977 (1959 to 1976 can be converted) and a host of lenses from other manufacturers. The only ones that won’t work are the IX-Nikkors and a few exotics. Manual focus still has a place, especially for dim lighting or scenes that have a difficult composition.

It’s built like a tank, and has a big, clear LCD screen that can be seen from almost any angle.

I’ve used this camera at numerous conferences, airshows, and other events. The only demerits I have against it are minor, such as:

It’s big, heavy and expensive. 8 frames per second is possible (normal is 5), but you have to use the accessory battery grip AND the large EN-EL4A battery AND the correct battery door cover. That’s expensive and makes it larger than a D3. However this high frame rate came in handy at an air show where I honestly shot 3,2000 frames (one quarter of my entire use of the camera) on a single charge. Is it worth it? For catching an F-15 going Mach 0.95 yes it is.

It has no movie mode, which is now the rage on DSLR cameras. There’s a Yin and a Yang to that. The Yin is a DSLR gives you an interchangeable lens feature that previously only expensive movie cameras had. This lets you get wide angles, zooms, low light, narrow depth of field, and so on. The Yang is the movie mode is much more primitive than camcorders have, without the full manual controls that are needed. I just bought a dedicated camcorder for when I need it.

It uses Compact flash in a day when SDHC is all the rage, but Compact is faster.

Sensor cleaning–all DLSR’s will get dust on their sensor (or more properly the cut-off filter in front of the sensor). The CCD has an electrical charge when the camera is turned on and therefore attracts dust. It happens when you change lenses, and nothing short of being in a clean room will stop it. Cleaning the filter is not for the faint hearted and takes a lot of patience. The D700 has a “sensor clean” option in the menu that jiggles the sensor to shake the dust off, but it always seems my camera has more dust when it finishes as it’s loosening up the dust at the side of the sensor. Regardless, it’s the one real chore in using a DSLR.

Lastly is the simple truth, the camera takes only photos as good as you are. I’ve become a much better photographer from my experience with the D700, and I hope it lives out it’s projected life of 150,000 frames, but unless you have the drive or need for a camera like this you’re better off with something else.

No complaints at all. Sold my D200 to get this and I have no regrets. One fine camera. The upgrades in the feature set from the D200 are well thought out and highly functional. I really like the tethered caps. Nikon has a winner.

One of the unique aspects of the D700 is that you may use DX or FX lenses – it can recognize either and accommodate them. This allows you not to have to reinvest with specific lenses. Of course the 2.8’s are so tantalizing that I have bought a few and look to add to them in the future. It handles nicely and the pictures are stunning.

First — I love this camera. I haven’t had a dSLR that has behaved exactly like my old Nikon film cameras until the D700 — it works with all my old Nikon lenses, and the full frame format is excellent. It is 99 percent of the D3 with only half the price.

Second — I got the kit through Amazon only because the camera with the kit lens was cheaper than anything being sold locally for the Body Only. As prices drop, and if it becomes available on Amazon, purchase the Body Only and get your own lenses. The Kit lens is basically unworthy of this camera body. It has a nice range and the VR is nice — but it is soft across the entire focal distance range, and there is severe vignetting at 120 — some of the worst I have seen in a Nikon lens.

Finally –for those of you upgrading from a D200 or a D300, you hopefully know by now that your old DX lenses will work on the D700, but it will crop them to 5.1 megapixels (even the D40 has 6!)…unless you already have a lot of FX lenses (G-series lenses and the like) you are going to be spending additional money on lenses for the full format camera. I am surprised how many people don’t do their research, but the D700, and then are upset that they have to shell out more money for additional lenses. As to lenses, my personal suggestions without breaking your bank: The Nikon 50mm 1.4 G lens – it’s sharp and works great on this body. It becomes a walk-around lens. The Tamron 28-75 2.8 lens — a fantastic zoom lens at 1/3 the price of the Nikon equivalent and possibly better IQ — and either the Nikon 70-300 VR G lens or the Tamron 28-300 VC lens (That’s what I have, and it is sharp and wonderful for large focal length situations). In a pinch, the old Nikon 28-80 G (the one that starts at 3.3) that came on old film bodies of the early 2000’s creates awesome sharp photos and is a steal for 60 bucks from resellers.

Anyway — the D700 has become my best friend — the lens I eBayed right away…