[LRflex] Re: For Kevin: Choosing Nikon bodies for Leica Glass
- From: "Axel Collier" <axel.collier@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2011 09:05:37 +0100
Hi all
I have a Nikon D300s and am very happy with it. I own only one Angenieux
70-210 (no other Leica glass) that i had Leitaxt and am happy with the
results on my Nikon, but hey, I am just an amateur.
I think Aram and others have a point when they say the D7000 or D700 are
superior to the D300s on image quality because they are more modern cameras.
But when I go take pictures in bad weather (not often, but it happens) the
D300s was built for this. But for wide angle of course, D300s is no option
for Leica glass.
I think manual focus should be easier on a D700 if that is important for you
! (the D300 has only one dot for focus confirmation and it works but is not
ideal, Live view of cours is a great help even on the D300s)
It depends on what you want to do with it.
You might even wait some time because the successors of the current
generation (D4, D400 etc) should come "soon" .
A good source for Nikon is Rockwell. He compares the different cameras you
talk about. He has strong opinions but somethimes he contradicts himslef.
See :
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/reviews.htm
or for one of his comparisons :
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/comparisons/2010-11-08-d7000-d300-5dmarkii-d3-iso/index.htm
A more professional source is Hogan , see
http://www.bythom.com/
He knows a lot about coming products , look also at his Nikon gear page.
Have fun reading and taking pictures,
greetings, Axel
----- Original Message -----
From: "Aram Langhans" <leica_r8@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, December 12, 2011 5:54 AM
Subject: [LRflex] Re: For Kevin: Choosing Nikon bodies for Leica Glass
> David, Kevin and all. Here is my take. I own a D7000, and my
> father-in-law
> owns a D300, not the S model.
>
> If you want/need full frame, then the D700 is probably the camera for you.
> If you have/want Leica wide glass, they will behave like they were
> intended
> on this camera, as far as focal length goes. I have not used one, but did
> handle one. Nice camera w/o breaking the bank as much as the upper lever
> FF
> Nikon bodies.
>
> If you are more interested in the telephoto end, then I would recommend
> the
> D7000. In many ways it is superior to the D300, and is some ways it is
> not.
> Read the specs as far as AF sensors and such to see if these differences
> are
> meaningful to you. As far as other people's remarks that the higher MP
> sensor in the D7000 is a hindrance, let me tell you that the high ISO
> difference between the older D300 and newer D7000 slight, but definitely
> in
> favor of the D7000. My camera at ISO 3200 is superior to his at ISO 1600.
> Si I disagree with David in this. Maybe he as seen other results, but my
> experience with the both of us shooting side by side is that the D7000 is
> superior. The smaller pixel size is offset by a more modern technology,
> evidentially. And the D7000 is cheaper, has a better viewfinder, and,
> important for me, smaller and lighter.
>
> I am sure the D700 is superior to both, however, as far as clean results
> from high ISO. By how much, I do not know. Since weight was very
> important
> to me, and since most of my work at the time with Leica did not include
> much
> in the way of wide angle work, I did not even give the D700 a second look.
> But that is just me and my use and my collection of Leica glass I had at
> the
> time.
>
> So, I would raise the D7000 much higher on the list.
>
> Hope this helps.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Young
> Sent: Sunday, December 11, 2011 8:32 AM
> To: leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [LRflex] For Kevin: Choosing Nikon bodies for Leica Glass
>
>> David,
>>
>> I'm in a similar dilemma, although I never had a DMR, and I am
>> years behind you skill-wise. I have a R8 and R6.2 and 5 R-lens
>> which I too highly value. If money was not a deciding factor, in
>> which Nikon body would you invest? I am looking for a long-term
>> solution and am willing to pay more up front. I'm just back from 9
>> days in Thailand, and while I enjoy shooting film, I am envious of
>> the great raw images my wife gets from her Leica X1. I'm shooting
>> primarily BW film, however. It's just the wait and scanning routine
>> with my Imacon 343 that I am finding prohibitively time-consuming
>> and hence impractical.
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> Kevin
>
> Good Morning, Kevin!
>
> I envy your 9 days in Thailand. Rose and I were lucky enough to spend a
> month there, in 2002. Like
> you, I shot film, and scanned the images with a Nikon Coolscan V. An
> excellent scanner, which I
> still use, on occasion. However, like your Imacon, painfully slow, even if
> the results are superb.
> Equivalent to a 24mp image!
>
> If money were no object, I'd still not buy top-of-the-line. The financial
> loss in digital cameras
> is simply to great, compared with film cameras. Look at an M3 ... sells
> today, in good condition,
> for more than was paid new. Meanwhile, an M8 now sells, used, for half
> it's
> 2006 price. And
> Leica's hold their value better than most! (I sadly miss my R8+DMR. But,
> financially, having Leica
> buy it back from me, without loss, was perhaps the best financial move I
> could have made.)
>
> I'd be torn between 3 models, and I'll tell you why.
>
> The D700 offers 12mp with a Full Frame sensor. This means photos
> virtually
> devoid of noise, even at
> very high ISOs. Which means no need for flash. (I learned at the foot of
> Dr. Ted, and *hate*
> "Twinkie-lights".) I need no more than 12mp ... at 300dpi and only very
> little interpolation, an
> 11x14" print is readily made, and I rarely make anything bigger. In
> fact,
> the biggest prints I
> sell, are 12x18" prints and they look bloody marvelous, out of both the
> 10mp
> Oly and R8+DMR. My
> best selling print in this (or any) size is a Hummingbird, taken with an
> 8mp
> Canon 20D (and 80~200
> Vario-Elmar).
>
> So Megapixels is not the issue. I see little advantage in super high
> resolution sensors, other than
> the ability to crop a shot and still have lots of MPs left. Of course,
> with
> these sensors, there is
> always a noise problem.
>
> So, my other choice would be a D300s. Cheaper, and with about the same
> Megapixels. Thus, my 400
> Telyt "grows" to around 600mm, in "effective" focal length. For me
> (although not everybody), this
> is a HUGE advantage in my wildlife work, as I can forego extenders
> (converters). When your max
> f-stop is 6.8, this is a good thing! The other advantage of the smaller
> format, is that the Telyt
> suffers some curvature of field. Using only the "sweet spot" in the
> middle
> of the image makes the
> superb Telyt even better!
>
> Of course the FX series cameras have a problem with w/a lenses, but so
> does
> every other smaller
> sensor camera. Oly's 12~60mm zoom cured that, for me, as I rarely shoot
> w/a. Not sure which way to
> go, in Nikon glass.
>
> One of the things which sold me on the Oly. was the in-body image
> stabilization. I meant my 40+ yr
> old Telyt 6.8 gained IS!!! Not so, on any of the Nikon bodies; which
> means
> purchasing new, VR
> lenses. (Ugh!)
>
> I suppose the D7000 would also be in the running. At 16.2 MPs, it has
> room
> to crop... but, I fear,
> more noise than in the D300.
>
> You'll note I did not give any weight to weather-proofing. It's nice, to
> be
> sure. And the Oly has
> some of the best. But, in my youth, living in the Yukon, I used my Nikon
> F
> in the snow, at -40 and
> colder. I've shot all my Leica R's in the snow, at -20 and -30C without a
> problem, even if Leica
> won't guarantee they work below 0C. Personally, I try to avoid shooting
> in
> the rain (I'd
> dissolve!), but when I do, I put a bread bag over the camera and away I
> go.
> Never had a problem in
> 50+ years.
>
> Over the years, dropping gear has cost me thousands in repairs; but none
> of
> the brands have
> drop-proofing built in! :-(
>
> I hope this analysis helps. My reasons need not be your reasons, for we
> all
> have different
> requirements of our gear. If we didn't, we'd all be happy with just one
> camera brand & model.
>
> YMMV. LSMFT, etc, etc.
>
> David.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ------
> Unsubscribe or change to/from Digest Mode at:
> http://www.lrflex.furnfeather.net/
> Archives are at:
> //www.freelists.org/archives/leicareflex/
>
> ------
> Unsubscribe or change to/from Digest Mode at:
> http://www.lrflex.furnfeather.net/
> Archives are at:
> //www.freelists.org/archives/leicareflex/
------
Unsubscribe or change to/from Digest Mode at:
http://www.lrflex.furnfeather.net/
Archives are at:
//www.freelists.org/archives/leicareflex/
Other related posts:
