Upgrading from D50, Advice

[Sl300]

Hello Everyone!

I started with my D50 in August 2005, I feel like its about time to move on plus a good friend of mine has offered to take the D50 off my hands.

What I felt I was missing with the D50 are additional focus points, and off camera flash. I've looked at the D80 and the D200, but I am not sure which one to pick up.

I have approximatly $1000 to spend (although this doesent mean I have to spend it all in one place). I am leaning towards the D80 just because I dont know if i'll fully use a D200.


You can take a look and in my flickr page to see what I like shooting, but really I dont favor anything.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wreecha/
I am by no means a pro at all, I'm in my last year in Uni, and photography has slowly grown on me.

Opinions? Questions? Concerns?

[2000fordfocus]

Hello Everyone!

I started with my D50 in August 2005, I feel like its about time to move on plus a good friend of mine has offered to take the D50 off my hands.

What I felt I was missing with the D50 are additional focus points, and off camera flash. I've looked at the D80 and the D200, but I am not sure which one to pick up.

I have approximatly $1000 to spend (although this doesent mean I have to spend it all in one place). I am leaning towards the D80 just because I dont know if i'll fully use a D200.


You can take a look and in my flickr page to see what I like shooting, but really I dont favor anything.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wreecha/

Opinions? Questions? Concerns?

I won't get a d80~ before going out and buy new dslr... do you have any decent lens or flash to pair it off to say a d200??

[Sl300]

I won't get a d80~ before going out and buy new dslr... do you have any decent lens or flash to pair it off to say a d200??

I should have mentioned what I have
10-20 sigma
18-55 nikon (kit lens)
50 1.8 nikon
80-200 2.8 (will be selling most likely for a macro)

sb600

buying some cheap used flashes shouldnt be too much of an issue I dont think


To me it sounds like the D80 will do what I need perfectly fine though. I'd like to try my hand at some macro work and cheap studio style photography. Is there anything significant I would miss out on if I get the D80 vs D200?

[sfu_engineer]

DON'T GO WITH A D80!

People may say "D80 is just a D200 that is cheaper". But they will be wrong. Today I shot an event with my D200 and compared it to a friends D70s and I realized that my buddy was missing shots because a lot of the settings he needs to change are hidden DEEP inside menus. On the D200 you just flick an external switch. It makes things SO much easier and you will get the photo compared to the other guy.

Image quality is only one characteristic to measure a camera with. Speed and ease of handling is another VERY important one that people often forget about. Don't get the D80. But the D200. As you were interested in purchasing mine you already know that this camera can be had for dirt cheap. Everyone is now upgrading to D300. Here is how I would rank the 4 cameras (D50, D80 D200, D300):

Worst Best
D50-------------D80------------------------D200------D300

As you can see the D200 would be a VAST improvement over the D50 whereas the D80 is only a minor improvement. You will probably see image quality improvements over your D50 with a D80 but you will not experience the TRUE ease of use and professional handling of a "pro" camera until you hit the D200 or D300.

Have fun finding a camera and just remember it is the photographer and not the camera that takes the photos!

:D

[craftsman]

D80? D200? D300?

Here is my take on the subject. Please keep in mind that I own a D200 and have shot seriously for the past 18 years or so.

When I got my D200, I wasn't really look for a new DSLR. I bumped into the local Nikon Rep (who I have known for about 15 years or so) and he asked me what I was shooting with. Up until that point, I was happy with my F90 and F90x. He suggested I get into digital. I did some research and was looking at the D80 or the D200. I thought that the D80 was all I needed. The rep suggested the D200 because knowing how I shoot and what I have shot with, I would be happier not necessarily with the result but the experience.

Experience? Let me explain....

I'm a very logical person. My view of things is to shot pictures of how the scene was and do little or no post processing. So, I tinker with the settings. The D200 allows me to tinker quicker than the D80 or most other DSLRs (Canons included). For example, change the ISO - one button and turn the knob, change the exposure comp - another button and turn the knob, or change the metering pattern - turn another knob.

Are the picture I take with the D200 better than the D80? Could be but I can't say because I don't have a D80 to compare it with. Can I tinker quicker with the D200 than the D80? Yes.

Now, the question you need to answer is - do you need to tinker? Or are you happy with shooting and post processing later?

If you don't tinker, get an D80. If you do, get a D200/300.

BTW. The D200 is heavy.

[najibs]

Consider also that you can pick up a used, but mint D200 for about the same price as a new D80 these days.

Even though it may be used, it's built to last longer than a D80. Used D200's can easily be had for $1k and slightly under.

[Sl300]

Consider also that you can pick up a used, but mint D200 for about the same price as a new D80 these days.

Even though it may be used, it's built to last longer than a D80. Used D200's can easily be had for $1k and slightly under.

Yep I'll be buying used for sure. I posted the same thread here
http://flickr.com/groups/nikondslr/discuss/72157604056465165/
and their also leaning for a used d200

[looniepincher]

Good points brought up so far.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the metering issues of the D80. The D200 supposedly has more consistent metering leading to a larger percentage of "keepers". OTOH, if you take the time to learn how the D80 meters you'll get more consistency.

I'm going D80 myself, but that's for portability.

Spend some time at dpreviews....this question is asked all the time.

BTW, if you don't mind the size I'd go with a used D200

[goofball]

Hello Everyone!

I started with my D50 in August 2005, I feel like its about time to move on plus a good friend of mine has offered to take the D50 off my hands.

What I felt I was missing with the D50 are additional focus points, and off camera flash. I've looked at the D80 and the D200, but I am not sure which one to pick up.

I have approximatly $1000 to spend (although this doesent mean I have to spend it all in one place). I am leaning towards the D80 just because I dont know if i'll fully use a D200.


Opinions? Questions? Concerns?


Why not just use AF/AE Lock and recompose?
For off camera, you can get an su-800 + flash or SB-800 and use it in SU-4 mode.

[craftsman]

Good points brought up so far.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the metering issues of the D80. The D200 supposedly has more consistent metering leading to a larger percentage of "keepers". OTOH, if you take the time to learn how the D80 meters you'll get more consistency.

I'm going D80 myself, but that's for portability.

Spend some time at dpreviews....this question is asked all the time.

BTW, if you don't mind the size I'd go with a used D200

I'm not sure you can mark it down to consistency. A light meter should give you the same readings in the the same conditions. It's probably user misunderstandings on what the camera will do. A semi-pro camera like a D200 is more likely to attract an user that has more experience.