Nikon D850, Early Impressions

...and some people may actually want to see what is happening just outside of the selected field of view while shooting, in the viewfinder.

I know, that is how I use my D800E when shooting birds. All other things beeing equal, I prefer DX mode on an FX camera to a DX camera for that reason since I do not use a zoom..

For action photography, I not only would like to see what is happening just outside of the area I intend to capture, but also would actually like to capture additional scene just outside of the object. With moving targets, it is not always easy to capture exactly what I would like to get. I much prefer to capture more and then crop in post processing to get the exact composition I would like to have.

I almost always try to shoot a little wide (when I remember) exactly so I can crop in post. It's useful for stock photography too, of course. I sometimes forget, or get limited by the AF positions, which is why the tail is missing from one of my Nikon Wednesday squirrels this week.

I much prefer to capture more and then crop in post processing to get the exact composition I would like to have.

My thoughts exactly. My problem simply is that I need to shoot wildlife on DX because I can't afford the lenses that would allow me to do it on FX. And even on DX, I often still have to crop later.

 

Given the rather narrow range of focal lengths in the 180-400, I wonder how many will leave the TC engaged at all times out of "convenience" (paying for f/4 but not getting the benefit)? Or forget to disengage when it's no longer needed? It's clear when you need to engage it - if you need more reach. But when zooming back out, it's not that obvious when to disengage the TC (at the 285mm setting) when its presence is no longer needed and may actually degrade image quality. Of course, if one disengages at the 285mm setting one would then have to zoom in to 400 to get back the same framing; not the most convenient solution I think.

 

The lens could have cost a lot less if instead of f/4 it was designed as an f/4.5 (pushing the front element size below the magical 100mm size that seems to be what warrants exorbitant pricing). 1/3 of a stop less and 1/3 of the price. Or heaven forbid, try to make it more useful at shorter focal length and design it as variable aperture (f/2.8-f/4.5).

Well, so far I am really liking the D850 which replaced my trade-in D300s and lenses, and the D700.

 

And just like the two previous cameras (and many years' of use of them) I STILL cannot seem to train my finger to locate the shutter button.

 

Ergonomically the Nikon's shutter button locations are a pain for me (haven't tried a Canon, so no comparison there for me.)

 

My finger always "finds" the front-panel Sub-Command Dial instead. Oh if that were only where the shutter button was .. . ...

 

:rolleyes:

Keith (I approve of the avatar, btw...): What were you using such that your shutter finger is naturally on the command dial? I understand it hitting buttons on the top plate of you were used to an early film body, but falling low is new to me. I've had trouble finding the shutter release on a Rolleiflex, but that really is in a funny place...

 

Just being nosey.

For action photography .... I much prefer to capture more and then crop in post processing to get the exact composition I would like to have.

A good example is a mandarin duck in flight image I captured in late December. I was using a 600mm lens on a gimbal head and an FX body, but I wasn't able to keep the duck in the center of the frame as I followed his flight path. This turns out to be one of my favorites from the sequence, but I was definitely not using the sweet spot of the lens.

 

Unless the DX crop can give me a faster frame rate on the FX body or I am really short on memory card space, I think I am usually much better off capturing the entire FX frame. One exception is perhaps something totally static such that I can easily place it in the center of the frame.

 

 

on a gimbal head ... I wasn't able to keep the duck in the center of the frame as I followed his flight path.

I am always amazed when someone can actually follow a bird in flight when the lens is on a gimbal mount. I tried it once at an air show and soon gave up in utter frustration. Especially since every time I moved, I had to level the rig again; grew old rather quickly. Even more tedious when out in the field chasing birds. I have not mounted the 200-500 on a tripod/gimbal at all so far (aside for securely mounting it on a ballhead for AF fine-tuning).

Hi Andrew. I have been using various types of film cameras since the mid-1960's, and still do to this day. (About 90% of my shooting.) With that extensive experience, I am certain the 'finger memory' I developed must have everything to do with the inability to operate the modern digital shutter buttons. With any old (35mm) film camera, my finger just seems to naturally fall into position. Geez I have a heck of a time FEELING one of those flush-mount digital buttons once I even find it!

Thanks, Keith. It's just that most older film cameras I can think of have the shutter release on the top plate (or, in the F5-and-later, where it is on a dSLR). If you said you were finding the top dial on a Canon body, I'd understand, but the Nikon front dial usually falls under my middle finger - I was just struggling to think of a film body with a shutter that low.

 

No doubt the shutter release in modern designs is relatively low-profile, though (I think to minimise the risk of accidental firing in a bag). Have you tried a Df?

The discussion about in-camera crop leads to another image I would like to show. The D850 has more in-camera crop modes, such as the 1:1 crop option.

 

I am always amazed when someone can actually follow a bird in flight when the lens is on a gimbal mount. I tried it once at an air show and soon gave up in utter frustration.

An air show is probably not the right environment to use a big lens on gimbal head, as some of those fighter jets tend to make sharp and unpredictable (at least unpredictable to me) turns. You are much better off hand holding something like a 300mm/f4 or 80-400 AF-S. For birds, in most cases the flight path is more predictable without sharp turns, and when I use a huge lens such as a 500mm/f4 or 600mm/f4, a big tripod with a gimbal head is the only realistic option. Yes, I have seen people hand holding a 500mm/f4, but that is not for me, and some birds do make sharp, unpredictable turns.

 

And Andrew, don't overuse that middle finger. :)

How many pages is the Nikon D850 instruction manual? Thanks.

How many pages is the Nikon D850 instruction manual? Thanks.

 

Depends on the version. To save anyone who hasn't already seen it hunting:

 

This is the source for downloadable PDFs. (Note that there's a separate menu guide.)

 

This is the online browsable version (which for this forum is mostly useful because you can link to specific sections).

And Andrew, don't overuse that middle finger. :)

 

I will be careful how I use it, and with which aperture. :-)

 

such as the 1:1 crop option

 

"such as"? :-)

How many pages is the Nikon D850 instruction manual? Thanks.

Nikon | Download center | D850

 

About 374 pages

Nikon | Download center | D850

 

About 374 pages

 

Jeez... My F3HP manual is 46 pages LOL.

Jeez... My F3HP manual is 46 pages LOL.

 

Well yes, but it doesn't describe the auto-ISO, playback zoom or AF fine-tune options. :-)

 

That said, neither does the F5, and that manual is 170 pages long. Would it help if Nikon used smaller text?

Well, you can take up painting instead of photography and probably don't even need a 46-page manual. However, how to become either a good painter or a good photographer will require a lot more work, though.

That is most true, Shun. The camera is just a tool, something easily forgotten in our hobby/profession.

 

But nonetheless interesting to talk about.

Some 30+ years ago in the 1980's, I used to say that I could just picked up any Nikon camera and used it. After all, I bought an FE in 1978 and then an FE2 in 1987 after I got out of graduate school (with degrees in computer science) and I got my first job. The differences between the FE and FE2 were quite minimal.

 

Of course a few years later, the AF era began and there were some totally new features to learn, but I really had to read a lot when I bought my first digital camera, the D100 in 2002. Even with my computer science background, I found that learning about digital photography somewhat overwhelming. Finally after 2, 3 DSLRs, most controls are intuitive again. In these days I pick up new Nikon DSLRs without reading the manual again. Essentially there is only one (new) feature on the D850 that I needed to look up: focus shift shooting.

I usually leaf through manuals for expensive things before I buy them - in the case of the D850 I've only done some, but it's largely spot the difference with predecessors. I'd probably have noticed things like missing quick ISO if I'd paid attention. But it's true, camera changes are incremental. Plus there tends to be the "?" interactive help if absolutely necessary.

 

On the other hand, I've always found large format a bit scary, I couldn't get my F5 open at first until I did some online research (I certainly can't modify custom functions from memory), and I've been thrown by the film load of a Rolleiflex even when I was warned about it. Just because dSLRs are more complex doesn't necessarily mean they're harder to use.

I got the MB-D18 grip for the D850 and I am pleased to report that the joint of my camera and lens have no flex and it really feels like one piece when attached. I read elsewhere some earlier reports of flex between the grip and camera and was concerned about it, but my copies do not exhibit this tendency. Perhaps I just tightened it better, or Nikon could have made a change since the earlier units. I am very happy with the vertical grip it feels just right in my hand, and makes the camera more pleasing to use with e.g. 70-200/2.8.

Thank you for reporting back, Ilkka. That's good to know, even if I'd love it to be cheaper.

 

I'd be interested to know whether the (presumably) reduced mirror black-out time has an effect on shutter noise or AF performance, if you're able to do any (subjective) comparisons.

Right, I didn't find the sound at 9fps too bad, it is about as you'd expect from a DSLR at such speed. The mirror seems snappy and gives a good view of the subject at 9fps. Interestingly I shot some bursts with VR OFF and flicker reduction off vs. VR SPORT and flicker reduction ON and I could hear the difference, in the former case the burst was very regular and in the latter case there was subtle irregularity. I love to use flicker reduction for event work in flickering artificial light (it results in brighter (on average) and more consistent exposures in situations where there often is little light to work with, so in practice I have to do less post-processing adjustments to match the shots and there is also a bit less noise on average).

 

I will be testing the AF with EN-EL18a battery in place outdoors this weekend. However, I don't expect to reach much in terms of firm conclusions since subjects and sequences will not be repeatable. I am looking to get a feeling of what kind of reliability of AF I get with subjects walking towards the camera using a few telephoto lenses. My main interest is to see if I still have to shoot a few images and pick the sharpest (as often was case with previous high resolution cameras) or if it is like the D5 so that I can expect almost all images to be visibly in focus even wide open. :) I'll be turning all extraneous features off (i.e. airplane mode ON, flicker reduction OFF) so that they don't interfere with the performance of the camera.