I just switched from a D70 to D80, really like the bigger viewfinder, larger display, better/faster focus... Since I take my camera on the trail, on mountain bike rides, I didn't want to go with their more expensive and larger/heavier models...

(low light situation)

 

I have countless hours in and out of the the saddle of my TTitus RacerX. My name "SpiderX" comes from mountain biking... I used to have an Intense Spider and the RacerX..... on the mt bke board I went as SpiderX..... I am leaning toward a refurb D80......

thanks for the input... where do you carry the camera and do you keep it in a case on the rides?

 

nice bikes (my geared bike is a turner 5 spot)... I use a camelbak hawg and put the camera in the outer most pocket. Not any protection from crashes but that has not been an issue. Dont like using any special cases or camera packs... Btw if you like MTB pics follow my link to flickr, I've got a good selection :-)

 

Spider,

You mention wanting to publish. Your best bet might be to talk to someone in the business to gain their opinion of what guidelines you should follow to produce photos that are able to be published. One source might be the editors of MC2 magazine. They are MINI friendly and might even publish some of your work. Their web site is www.mc2magazine.com. Check it out. If nothing else you would probably be able to get some basic parameters to follow.

 

ahem! see my first post in this thread. the people you want to speak to are not the publishers but the people who take the crap the publishers put together and have to make it look good in actual print. graphic design for the web is quite different than design for printing and you'd be surprised how antiquated most publishers are when it comes to the software they work on.

most printing these days is through a digital workflow BTW

 

I am planning on self publishing..... I was concerned about the technical quality from the camera.... seems like all of them will be fine.... I just got back from the Camera store and now I am lusting for the D300....

 

I probably wasnt clear with my post. What I was trying to say was that I have seen many people buy expensive cameras and they still take lousy pictures. I have a friend who made a pin hole camera, from card board and her pictures are incredible, because of her ability to select the context of the picture, see the light, frame the shot, etc. My suggestion to talk to someone who publishes is just to gain insight into what makes a "good" picture, especially for a picture that will appear in print. Such insight can help you to take better pictures, regardless of your camera. Some pictures are great viewed in person, or on the net, but wont work nearly as well when published. More information cant hurt since you can always choose to ignore advice which you dont like. Like this post!

 

I got it.... I am planning some classes etc. I have pretty good eye and have been artistic my whole life. The pictures will support rather than be the focus. Your advice is appreciated...... I am curious on the technical end...... i have a rule with equipment..... it has to be good enough that I am the limiting factor not the gear..... I like that on the D300 you can choose to view through the lcd screen rather than from the view finder..... I also like that the sensor is a cmos rather than ccd.... this is the stuff that i am trying to understand

 

Today's electronics allow for the ability to correct so many "errors" that years ago would have ruined a picture. I learned with a film camera, often in black and white, developing and printing my own pictures, trying to make corrections during the printing process. Probably the greatest benefit of cameras made today is simply the ability to look at your pictures right after taking them to make sure they are what you wanted. I believe the best tool you can have after your camera is a laptop. Unfortunately, the picture often looks fantastic through the small screen on the back of the camera but when viewed in a larger size isnt as good as it looks. Having a laptop to view your pictures will allow you to be more discerning of your work and will help you make sure you have the shot you wanted and intended. It sounds like you are comfortable with your "eye" for photography. If you feel that way then I would guess that any of the camera's you have mentioned would suit you just fine. My two cents, and worth about that much, including inflation.

 

Here's my 2 cents worth: Get the D200 if you can afford it, otherwise get the D80. I appreciate that you've already got Nikon glass, but you really may not be happy with their performance with a digital body if they aren't "digital" lenses. Certainly get a vibration-reduction lens if the budget will allow!

 

can you elaborate on this.. I have AF Nikkor 70-210 1:4-5.6 and a 1:3.3-4.5 35-70.... I thought I had a 3rd but I must have loaned it years ago.... I thought these would have some value

 

Both of those are AF lenses, so they'll work just fine with any of the modern Nikon DSLRs, as long as you stay away from the D40/D40x.

VR lenses are great because they allow you to shoot handheld at much longer shutter speeds than you'd be able to with a conventional lens. So, some pictures that would ordinarily require a tripod or a high ISO setting can be shot handheld with a lower ISO.

 

Thanks...... I just put my hands on my 8008 with all the options and am pissed it is obsolete.....

 

An N8008 is not obsolete by any means. If you want to get hyper-technical, you're better off going with a full 35mm frame than a 1.5x crop sensor.

To really differentiate between the D80, D200, and D300, can you give us an idea of what sorts of situations you'd be shooting in?

 

Moved thread from Off Topic to MINI Camera and Video.

 

I own a D70...it's an awesome camera. Many professionals prefer the 70 to the 80...but they are both great camera's. You may be able to still find a D70 at some of the larger camera stores at substantial discount) I'm no professional but have used some of my own photo's for marketing material for our business (HVAC-Florida)

One word of caution with SLR Diggies....dust/particulate is your enemy One spec of dust on the camera's "chip-lense" will show up on every picture. Be careful when changing lenses....and find a good repair shop that will do cleaning locally. If you send it back to Nikon...its 5-8 weeks + $150 minimum. I found a local camera repair guy....$35...in out the same day. I purchased my D70 for same reason...had 3 lenses I wanted to reuse...since then I've purchased 2 new Nikons (12x24 and 70x200). One other thing...Nikon has an excellent Nikon Digital School that travels around the country....take advantage if it...its awesome. Good luck....post some pics!

 

I've got a D200 and my mom has the D80. Either of those will fit the bill. The D200 has a more robust body, but obviously costs more.

Go with whatever your budget allows, the money goes into lenses anyway (my 17-55mm f/2.8 costs more than a D80 body)

 

I have had the D100 and now own a D200. Love that Dd200. I budget allows go for the D300 Looks like a great camera. If not the greatest deal would probably be a D200. Many Pro features.

 

Spider, try not to get too hung up on the technology side of things. If your only goal is for support photos in a book, you'd be fine with any of the cameras mentioned so far (excepting A/F issues with the D40 and your lens set). I've printed 12"x18" photos from images taken with my long obsolete 4MP D2h that are nice and sharp. I doubt your support photos will be printed that large. Go with whatever your budget can swing, but until you've learned more about photography, any of the Nikon DSLRs are plenty of camera for you and won't limit you.

If you are comfortable telling us a bit more about what you intend to photograph, we could make further suggestions and possible supporting equipment that will help.

Token photo taken by my obsolete 4MP camera...

 

Nice HDR. Which brings up an important point. And that's how you take the shots (RAW vs JPG for instance) and what you do in post processing (or pre with HDR). I went from a D70 to a D200 and appreciate the difference between the two. But with Photoshop involved the difference is not night and day the way it was between my Coolpix 5700 and the D70.

 

+1,

Also from an obsolete (I rather call it an old faithful) 4MP, D2h.

 

WOW... thanks to everyone....please keep it coming....

 

Been shooting a D80 since it was released and its been very good to me. Feel free to browse my Flickr site http://flickr.com/photos/stevenplace/ for examples. I will be moving to a D300 this spring in order to get a higher frame rate for shooting action.

Here is a good technical comparison of all the Nikon models.
http://www.bythom.com/currentdslr.htm

As it has been said before, it more about the person then the gear.

 

What's the scoop on the D40? I've been seeing a lot of ads for this camera lately. Anyone own one?

 

You're probably seeing a lot of ads for it because right now, it's Nikon's "entry-level" DSLR, so it's probably their most popular, especially at the big-box stores and local camera shops.

Here's a writeup on it from Ken Rockwell's site.

I put "entry level" in quotes, because by all accounts, it's still an extremely-capable camera.

The only case where I wouldn't recommend it is if you already have some non-AF-S autofocus lenses that you would like to keep using. The D40/D40x doesn't have an autofocus motor in the camera body, so it will only autofocus with AF-S lenses, since those lenses have their own autofocus motors in them.