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Old 03-30-2007, 06:07 AM   #1
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Nikon D80 D40

Ok you camera experts. I need a new digital, my fuji is living in error mode. My film camera is a nikon, so I am looking at a D80 or D40, unless someone what to buy my a D2X. Any experience or rumors with these would be helpful. I am looking forward to using my lenses again.
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Old 03-30-2007, 06:15 AM   #2
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You might look at the Canon SLR. Last year I looked at both the Canon and Nikon and chose the Canon (Rebel XT EOS). One of the features that seemed a little better was shutter frequency - when trying to take multiple shots quickly, such as action shots in sports. Not that this really matters, but when we were on vacation last fall in Death Valley, I must have seen 80% Canon frames on peoples cameras, and maybe 20% Nikon. That may mean absolutely nothing, but I found it at least interesting.

You'd have to check, but I would imagine the lenses you have would transfer to either the Nikon or Canon. I have since found a great 20 - 200 m lens as well as a great wide angle lens from Canon - a 10 - 22m lens. Good hunting!
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Old 03-30-2007, 06:16 AM   #3
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Good morning!

You can forget selling off any 35mm stuff you have. I had placed all my 35mm Nikon equipment up on EBay with a tiny reserve of $1200 and had only one bid! I had listed, 2 F3's [just back from Nikon for service $315 each] Nikon FE and a FM, MD4, 50mm 1.8, 28 - 200mm, 20mm 1.8, 2 Sunpacks, 500mm, all caps, chargers, remotes etc, all Nikon and Nikkor.

Right now I am shooting D70S's and have been very happy with them. I have tried using my other Nikkor lenses on them but not worth it. I have been replacing all the lenses with new digital ones. One of my favorit is the new 80mm - 200mm VR 2.8. Excellent lens but a bit expensive, worth every penny since I do need the stuff. You should check out the new D80 which is selling right now for around $1,000. Excellent camera at a very good price!
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Old 03-30-2007, 07:45 AM   #4
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Rick and Sandi,
I have an N90 that I planned to replace with a D200 or D80. If I understand you correctly my lenses and flash will not work with the digital body?
Thanks,
Mike
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Old 03-30-2007, 08:00 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hammer
Rick and Sandi,
I have an N90 that I planned to replace with a D200 or D80. If I understand you correctly my lenses and flash will not work with the digital body?
Thanks,
Mike
Good morning Mike-
The problem I have found is the elctronics/auto-focus with the lens along with aperture settings. The lenses do fit the cameras and will shot but I had to go to manual on all accounts and was getting to be a hassle. Plus, my lenses are all pro and the consumer lenses are set up differently. I would bring a lens with you to the camera shop and test it out that way.
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Old 03-30-2007, 08:28 AM   #6
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Thank you Rick, Nikon told me they would work fine together.
I'll take your advice at the camera shop.
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Old 03-30-2007, 10:47 AM   #7
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Camera

I have been using a Nikon D100 for a couple of years and am very happy with the performance. It's best to convert to digital lenses due to the electronics of the camera making adjustments from/to the images via the lenses, unless your going to shot all of your photos in the manual mode. If you have an older Nikon flash, that should be upgraded also. I just purchased an 80-400mm VR ED zoom lens and will be using for my trip to Yellowstone this year. To view some photos taken with my D100 check out a blogspot that I created last year:

Our Vacation West

IMHO the D200 is a step up and I think that the bigger LCD preview screen on it is a plus.
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Old 03-30-2007, 10:59 AM   #8
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There are a few digital's that use the same sice sensor as the 35 mm film.
If I recal correct that are the polaroid and the ??? both based on a nikon F5
with this camera's jou ca keep your existing lenzes.

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Old 03-30-2007, 11:09 AM   #9
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I don't have experience with either, but I do have a D100 and am very happy with it.
It's only 6mp but it's plenty for 99% of most shooting.

Good Luck.

P.S. BH Photo Video in New York has the best prices in my opinion.
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Old 03-30-2007, 12:02 PM   #10
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Hi,
I've been shooting the D100 for at last 3 plus years now and enjoy it. As said before the 6.1 mp is enough for almost anything you might want to do. I often have enlargments printed to 16x20 for gifts, etc and the image quality is excellent. Plenty of data to work with for photo shop if you're so inclined. You'll find affordable used D100 bodies at better camera shops.

Have been a Nikon user for many years started with the F1, went to FE2, F100 and like most digital converts have nikon lenses that don't work easily with the D100. Now own a few newer lenses (28-70, and 80-200) that match up to the D100 and find them good investments. Still miss the old 50mm f1.2 (now gathering dust) but the quality and ease of the new lenses out weighs the loss and for that matter the expense.

Any way back to the issue at hand, unless you're going to shoot hundreds of images at a time I suggest you look at the D40 with a new lense. There's a pro photogarpher, Ken Rockwell, who does Nikon/Cannon camera and lense reviews and I suggest you take a look at his web site. He spends alot of time on that subjest and seems to be very objective. KenRockwell.com
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Old 03-30-2007, 01:26 PM   #11
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I use a D50 with the 18-200 AF-S VR lens, which I highly recommend. I have a 12-24 as well but I almost never get around to using it - the 18-200 covers just about everything I want to do and the vibration reduction compensates for my unsteady hands. It's vastly better than the 18-55 kit lens that came with the D50 and I think comes with the D40 (if you buy the kit). I haven't tried the 18-70 kit lens that I think comes with the D80, but I hear it's better.

If I was buying new right this moment, I'd get a D80, and probably skip the kit lens and get the 18-200. However, the D40 is way, way cheaper and in general a little better than the D50 I have, so I certainly wouldn't turn one down. The main thing about the D40 is that it has no internal autofocus motor, so you need to use AF-S lenses with their own motors with it. So, if you have old lenses you intend to use that rely on camera autofocus, the D40 probably isn't a good choice. Most of the new digital lenses seem to be AF-S though.

Using old lenses isn't a bad idea if they're particularly special, but I'd suggest reading around the Ken Rockwell site linked before to get an idea of how they work. The sensor on most digital SLRs is smaller than on a 35mm camera, so a 50mm lens on a digital SLR is equivalent to a 75mm lens on a 35mm film camera (if I recall correctly). The Ken Rockwell site is also good on setting up the cameras once you get them.

Now, the DX lenses (specifically designed for smaller digital sensors) can be smaller and lighter for the same size lens. A 50mm DX lens will be a lot smaller than a 50mm lens for a film camera, which is another good reason to get a new lens with the camera.

Canon is definitely cheaper for about the same image quality as the Nikons, so if existing lenses aren't a big deal, definitely take a look at their cameras too. There are other differences in interface and handling between the brands. Personally, I like my Nikon, but I have friends who take much nicer photos than mine with their Canons.
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Old 03-30-2007, 01:39 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Over59
Ok you camera experts. I need a new digital, my fuji is living in error mode. My film camera is a nikon, so I am looking at a D80 or D40, unless someone what to buy my a D2X. Any experience or rumors with these would be helpful. I am looking forward to using my lenses again.
Go here for all the information you will need.

Nikon D80/D70/D50/D40 Forum: Digital Photography Review
I check this site every night to view some of the great pictures which are posted for CC.

Your lenses will mount but you will not have the auto features, plan on new lenses. I have a D80 and it is the best Camera I have owned. I also have the SP600 flash, while you are on Ken's site check out the flash info.

Thanks Jim
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Old 03-30-2007, 02:02 PM   #13
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Just looked through the Ken Rockwell web site and saw a good basic discussion relevant to the original question.
Comparison: Nikon D200, D80, D70, D50, D40, Canon 5D and XTi

Think this will help as it compares bodies and discusses lense compatability.
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Old 03-30-2007, 04:04 PM   #14
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I got the D80 in January. I LOVE it!

I was seriously close to getting the Canon Xti but after physically holding both of them, the Nikon was a better fit for me. The Canon was a little smaller. Either camera is excellent.

Mine came with the 18-135 F3.5-56 zoom.

I didn't have any legacy glass to worry about but I already bought a 50mm and a 70-300 zoom with vibration-reduction.

The D80 uses SD memory cards. I have a high-speed (150X) 4GB and it can hold over 1,000 jpg's at full resolution.

My understanding is for ALL Nikon digitals, you have to multiply the focal length by 1.5 when using lenses because of the difference in the sensor size vs 35mm film. So the 18-135 is equivalent to a 27-200 35mm lens

Also, the D80 can use any of the Nikon lenses where the D40 can't.
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Old 03-30-2007, 04:55 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cosmotini
The D80 uses SD memory cards. I have a high-speed (150X) 4GB and it can hold over 1,000 jpg's at full resolution.
My understanding is for ALL Nikon digitals, you have to multiply the focal length by 1.5 when using lenses because of the difference in the sensor size vs 35mm film. So the 18-135 is equivalent to a 27-200 35mm lens
Dennis- you got it right on the lens factor. Also pre-digital flashes won't work. I have the SP600 and the SB800. I was a little bummed when I found out the card difference for the D70 & D80, just a minor pain. Having been a Nikon shooter all my life I saw no reason to look at the Canon. True, out in the field I see a lot of them but Nikon is still my favorit plus as a Nikon Professional I always have compete access to their locker so I can borrow anything before I decide to buy.
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Old 03-30-2007, 05:11 PM   #16
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I shoot with the D70. I bought mine two years ago. I thought I would use my old lenses, but, the new lenses work so much better, as previously stated. I don't think you can go wrong buying Nikon or Canon, because, either way, the suggestion is, upgrade your lenses too.
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Old 03-30-2007, 05:12 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Over59
Ok you camera experts. I need a new digital, my fuji is living in error mode. My film camera is a nikon, so I am looking at a D80 or D40, unless someone what to buy my a D2X. Any experience or rumors with these would be helpful. I am looking forward to using my lenses again.
Lots of choices for you. I shoot Nikon and I think you would probally like the D80. I shoot the D50 and love it. If I were buying today, I would probally go with the D200, but only because it would be better for photographing birds. The big questions you need to think out are: what are you planning on photographing, and how are you going to be presenting the images. For example, if everything is going to be on the web or small prints, a 2 MP camera would be fine. If you are going to be making larger prints you will want a camera with more MPs. I agree that for almost everyone 6 MP is fine. The eagle headshot on the main page of my website (link below) was taken with a D50, a 6 MP. I have a 16x20 of that above my office desk that I am quite satisfied with. Check DPreview for what I think are the best reviews of nikon equipment on the web.

One really good option, would be to buy a used D70 from a reputable dealer (say keh.com) to get your feet wet in the DSLR world. They are fine bodies, but there are a decent number of them on the market now as people are upgrading to the 10MP cameras.
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Old 03-30-2007, 07:06 PM   #18
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I'm shooting with my fifth Nikon (second digital). It's a D50. A buddy had a D70 and then the 50 came out and was cheaper and same specs, nearly. He has since gone up to the D100 but he thinks that he is Ansel Adams and prints giant landscapes. Not me, I don't need anything bigger than 8x10. I've been very happy with this one. Uses all my previous, non-digital lenses. The LCD was always getting smeary from my noseprints. I got a "Hoodman" to cover it, protect it, and act as a sun shield. Cheap investment to protect the big-money part.
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Old 04-01-2007, 09:57 PM   #19
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So my SLR lenses will not work on the D80 or D40 because the exposure will be wrong or the image will be out of focus or both?
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Old 04-01-2007, 10:40 PM   #20
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Quote:
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So my SLR lenses will not work on the D80 or D40 because the exposure will be wrong or the image will be out of focus or both?

I found this in the D40 & D80 manuals.
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