Budget upgrade from D70?

I have a D70 and a few lenses to go with it. I’m about to leave for a summer vacation, traveling to several countries. I’d like to bring back some great pictures from this trip.

 

If memory serves correctly, the D70 was below a thousand dollars when it was first released. If I’m due for an upgrade, then I wouldn’t want to pay more than the original camera cost for a replacement. However when I begin looking into my options, it seems like mirrorless cameras are the most capable technology in that price range now. Unfortunately a mirrorless camera would render my lenses useless. So I don’t know what to do now.

 

Would upgrading to a budget DSLR be a poor investment considering how mirrorless is taking over the budget market now? Are the files made by a D70 still good enough to meet the standards of modern post-“development” work? If so, then maybe I’ll just stick with what I have.

 

Or are there clear benefits to upgrading, and viable options out there that would fit my budget? If yes, then which affordable camera is likely to stay relevant the longest in today’s rapidly changing market?

Edited June 30, 2018 by William Michael

D70 that You have might be just fine. When travelling check travel insurance coverage, it is easy to by latest and greatest and fall out of coverage in case accident or theft. I would not worry about mirrorless, technology moves on but tried and tested set has its value. D70 files may require little more post processing than ones that modern bodies produce, but some prefer smaller filesize and so on.

 

Yes, there are clear image quality improvements when upgrading to more recent body. If You look at D7200, it is kinda peak of now mature DSLR technology. My guess would be that D70 is still relevant, if it has not yet reached end of life phase when operation is unreliable or allready gone.

Sold my long time owned D70S a couple of years ago and 'upgraded' to a D7100 (I use full frame for my 'real' pictures)

 

I constantly ran into the relative slow AF, limited high ISO and small problem, and the difference between the menu's of

the D70S and my more recent D3/D800/s/DF were driving me crazy

While the D710 similarly only has a 5 RAW buffer (although that can be doubled when only shooting compressed 12 bit

RAW's) the IQ, faster AF, improved high ISO and menu's were a big step upward (and away from frustration)

 

That said, in all honesty my 'upgrade' was rather based on a luxury 'problem' then on having real working life issues with

the D70S

The IQ is actually quite good for 'only' 6 megapixels, just like the IQ if you stay below ISO 800

Similarly the AF is still well up to the job under good light, and under bad light still holds its ground surprisingly well

(used it for catwalk, which often is under only so so lighting, and even at one time found myself shooting a wedding

with it, including the 'church' shots)

 

As far as a 'new' camera is concerned, plenty of (also Nikon) alternatives around under $1000

Eg a 24 megapixel D3400 kit (body plus kitlens) will only cost as little as Eur 399 where I live (In the Netherlands)

and around US 400 at B&H.

While the UI is simpler, it has as mentioned more pixels, better IQ, video and all the goodies

that have become kind of standard on DSLR's

For Eur 739 you can get the very recent D5600 brand new with a kitlens over here, and there even a big photo chain

has a special deal on the D7200 (after Eur 200 cashback and depending on the price for a trade in body possibly as low as Eur 732)

 

So plenty of options: keep the old workhorse, it's quite up to the job within its limtations, or buy a new Nikon, quite possible while staying

well under the max $1000 you have in mind (leaving enough money for eg a mirrorless, although I never would

go on holiday, or a job, with a new camera I not used to yet/am not sure about yet)

If the lenses you want to carry on using are of the screw focus type, make sure that any replacement camera has the necessary focus drive. Otherwise they won't auto focus.

 

If you are considering used equipment, think about the D200. It has a metal shell, much bigger and better LCD, 10MP, and more dedicated controls than the D70.

I'm sympathetic to the "I'm going somewhere I'll probably not go again and want the best pictures I can" argument for a camera upgrade - it's why I bought a D700, back in the day. You'll absolutely be able to get more detail, handle low light better, and capture images with a wider dynamic range (details in shadows in a very bright scene) with a modern sensor compared with something of D70 vintage. The camera will also be faster to use, and be able to focus on moving subjects (such as wildlife) much better. Technology has come a long way. There's nothing wrong with a D70, and it can still capture very good images, but the newer cameras will capture more and under more taxing conditions.

 

That's true whether you stick to Nikon or switch to another system. Note that you can adapt Nikon lenses to most mirrorless systems, but they'll become manual focus, and it's a bit of a pain. I wouldn't say mirrorless is clearly "better" in this price range, but there are certainly different trade offs - typically you'll get a somewhat smaller camera especially when used with wide angle lenses, but the experience with longer lenses tends to be a little worse. The details depend highly on exactly which cameras we're considering, though. While both Nikon and Canon are expected to produce new mirrorless systems this year, I'd be astonished if the SLR systems disappear rapidly - they currently still outsell mirrorless, so if you prefer a dSLR I'd not be scared of getting one.

 

Which lenses do you have? Bear in mind that the quality that can be captured by a modern sensor may show up limitations in older lenses, and you might want to factor in some upgrades there as well. If they're screw focus, as John says, they won't focus with the D5x00 or D3x00 series.

 

In your price range, sticking with Nikon, the D7200 is a lot of camera for the money. It was Nikon's high-end crop sensor system for a while, and doesn't miss out much (and actually has some advantages) compared with the latest D7500. That said, the D7100 isn't far behind, mostly missing out on buffer size if you want to shoot action sequences, and can save you a bit. If you don't mind a grey market camera, B&H will sell you a D7100 with an 18-140 travel lens inside your budget, for example.

 

For less money (and a lighter body), if your lenses are at least AF-S, the D5x00 range are capable, although you'll be down to a single dial interface that may frustrate you, and you'll have a dimmer pentamirror - the D7x00 series is the more direct successor to the D70. Stood you go this route I'd suggest a D5500 over a D5600 (to save money) unless you actively need to stream your images to social media.

 

But if you can I'd visit a store and see how they feel. Just don't be put off a D7200 because you find the D5600 too lightweight!

D7200 is a lot of camera for the money.

Strongly agree - recently acquired a used one - very satisfied with mine.

If the OP would tell us what lenses they have, we could give more informed advice. Some older lenses may just show their age on something like a D7200 and not have the image quality to make best use of a 24 Mp sensor. Plus the point about 'screwdriver' AF is very valid and might limit the choice of camera body.

 

Disregarding those limitations, I'm pretty sure that even the lowest priced current Nikon DSLR would easy better the performance of a D70, and the D7200 completely blow it away.

Would upgrading to a budget DSLR be a poor investment considering how mirrorless is taking over the budget market now?

 

I wouldn't complicate your decision by considerations like this. Yes, mirrorless has caught up with DSLRs for a lot of uses, and gains marketshare. DSLRs loose marketshare. None of this means that DSLRs will go away any time soon. None of this means a mirrorless makes a better choice for you or me.

 

If you change systems, consider the full cost and implications. Maybe your lenses can be used on a mirrorless with an adapter - so factor in the cost of an adapter (that supports Nikon G-type lenses) too. Try a mirrorless - are you comfortable with a smaller body, do you prefer a LCD screen over an optical viewfinder?

What I'm trying to say: yes, it might be good to explore other systems, and see what advantage they may bring you, and what disadvantage. But not because of overall market trends, but because you may believe it's a good step for you.

If you like the way your D70 handles and works, good chance you end up wanting a newer DSLR. You can stick with the D70 too, but you will see some serious improvements with newer bodies. Not because the D70 is bad, but because technology evolved. If you're willing to spend up to a $1000, you can make a massive leap forwards.

 

Like the rest, I'd say the D7200 is very good value at the moment. What lenses do you have? Because given the choice between a D7200 with mediocre lenses, or a D5600 with a lens like the 18-140VR, getting a slightly lesser body with a better lens may be the better deal.

The D70 was my first dSLR, I enjoyed using it, and got some shots I was very pleased with. But even at the time it was necessary to be aware of its limitations. Reviewing photos isn't ideal on the tiny LCD, the outer AF points aren't great, the noise starts to come up above ISO 400, there's not much latitude for cropping a 6MP image, and it's easy to blow the highlights. The D300, only 3 years later, seemed like technology from another world, and sensors at least have only improved since then. Something from the D7xxx series seems like a good choice - as others have pointed out, anything less and you lose the sub-command dial and screwdriver AF compatibility. A D300 would also be a big step up, and as a higher end camera is still in some ways superior to a D7200, though it doesn't have the high ISO performance of the later bodies. If you have FX lenses, there are of course further options.

I'm going to repeat a few points already posted by others because they are important enough to warrant repeating. (Long post - I really got rolling on this one!)

 

You already have a certain comfort level with you D70 - what kinds of controls the camera has, where control knobs and buttons are placed, mounting/demounting lenses, etc. Changing to an entirely different system (like a mirrorless) will leave you with zero familiarity as you start your summer vacation. Learning a new camera system takes time and leads to missing shots as you learn. I suggest you consider this when choosing - replacing your D70 with a new (or new to you) camera that has controls very much like your D70 has distinct advantages.

 

If your lenses are AF-S types lenses, each with a focus motor inside the lens, any DSLR camera body Nikon offers will autofocus with such lenses. If you have older, screwdrive type lenses, they will not autofocus with D3xxx and D5xxx bodies (any of them, regardless of how new or old the model is). If you have the older lenses and are happy with how they have performed for you with your D70, you'll likely be happy with them on a new generation body so long as you display your images at the same sizes you have displayed your D70 images. A newer body with many more pixels allows for more post processing options, including cropping images. It's that cropping idea that can easily lead to dissatisfaction with an old lens - enlarging a portion of a 24 mp shot can yield quite acceptable pixel resolution, but may show limitations in the lens resolution you never encountered with the D70.

 

Newer bodies will give you better results at higher ISO settings. I didn't like the noise levels I got from my D70 even at ISO 400. At lower ISOs, the images were great - I've had 16X20 prints of D70 images hanging in my home and none of them had pixelation issues - 6 MP was plenty at low ISO. On your vacation, if you care to shoot indoors in places like churches or museums, you'll need to shoot at higher ISOs because flash is commonly not allowed - that's where higher ISO becomes an issue for your D70.

 

Controls - when you start out with a new camera, you'll be looking for the controls to adjust parameters you are used to adjusting. On D3xxx and D5xxx bodies, you'll have to make some adjustments by digging through the menus on the LCD to accomplish some things you could do with buttons on the D70. The D7xxx series of bodies will be very much like your D70 for controls - newer bodies will offer more controls, and button positions on the bodies may not be identical to the D70. Switching to a different manufacturer (whether mirrorless or DSLR) will entail learning new terminology for many of the functions you are used to, and learning entirely new systems of controls and how they work to do what you want to do. Not unlike learning another language. It will certainly slow you down when you want to take some shots until you build experience with the new system.

 

Viewfinders - the viewfinders on the D7xxx models and all full frame bodies are pentaprism-type. The viewfinders on the D3xxx and D5xxx models are pentamirror-type, and are not as bright as pentaprism models. That becomes an issue in low light shooting. It's a deal breaker for some folks and a no-nevermind for others. I suggest you go to a store that has both types for sale and look through the viewfinders before making your choice - make an informed decision.

 

My ultimate recommendation? I think you'll be happiest with a D7xxx body. The controls will be familiar to you and the viewfinder is what you are already accustomed to. Your lenses WILL autofocus with a D7xxx body. The D7200 is an awesome camera and you'll be happy with all it can do. A D7100 will also keep you happy - the biggest features you give up with D7100 compared to the D7200 is the buffer capacity for rapid fire shooting and some sophistication in the autofocus system - but you've never had these D7200 advantages, so you are unlikely to miss them. I always recommend people buy for the future - if you see yourself getting into sports or wildlife photography to a degree larger than you've done with your D70, the D7200 would be a better choice for your future. If you don't expect to shoot sports or animals, the D7100 will work just fine for you.

 

New? Used? Refurbished? I think you could quite well with any of these options. It comes down to your personal feeling about risk. I prefer have some amount of warranty coverage, so I've only bought new gear, plus some used gear from KEH with their warranty (and never had a problem). Others buy used gear from complete strangers via resale web site and have been perfectly happy with their results. This aspect is a personal choice only you can make.

I think "about to leave for a summer vacation" is the wrong time to buy a new camera for use on that vacation.

Meh, it doesn't necessarily take that long to get the hang of a camera. I got my D700 a week or two before a big holiday, and I was coming from a Canon 300D. Going from a D70 to a D7x00 shouldn't be much of a shock, except in a good way. And better than going and wishing you had the camera you get just after. (In my defence, the holiday was very shortly after the D700 actually appeared in stock.)

 

Now, if you'd said "just before shooting a wedding is a bad time to buy a camera," I'd absolutely not argue.

Someone above suggested a D200.

 

While the D200 was a great camera and is a step up from the D70, IMO it's really starting to show its age. The oldest camera I'd consider as a main camera these days is a D300 or preferably a D300s. The "s" doesn't offer any image quality improvements, but has some other nice touches like dual card slots. These cameras are, IMO, 2-3 stops better than a D70s but still are pretty poor when compared to modern cameras(D70s at 400=D300s at 1600=D800 at 6400 from my experience).

 

With that said, I'd agree with the D7200 being a nice camera and an ideal replacement for a D70s at the given price point.

 

I'd like to see a list of the OP's lenses, though. If the OP has enough FF lenses already, a D800 could be a great upgrade :)

Meh, it doesn't necessarily take that long to get the hang of a camera. I got my D700 a week or two before a big holiday, and I was coming from a Canon 300D. Going from a D70 to a D7x00 shouldn't be much of a shock, except in a good way. And better than going and wishing you had the camera you get just after. (In my defence, the holiday was very shortly after the D700 actually appeared in stock.).

 

I don't recall any difficulty going from the D70 to the D300, or from the D300 to the D800. You can always take the D70 as a backup, and carefully review the first photos from the new model to make sure you aren't making any obvious mistakes. The basic camera controls of any '2 dial' Nikon will be familiar to anyone who has used an F5 or later. The PASM modes work the same way, though AF has got a bit more complicated. You might not be taking full advantage at first of the more advanced digital features when you upgrade, but the basics will be pretty similar. There will be more menu options than before, but a D300 or later has pretty comprehensive help built in. I think I just fiddled with the camera for an hour or so when I upgraded just before a trip, and everything was fine.

And for what it's worth, having shot Nikon for almost exactly ten years now (happy birthday to me, now I think about it), I still look on the wrong places in the menus (yesterday I was changing the joystick behaviour in image replay - guess whether that was under "controls" or "playback"? - and I always look in the wrong place for ISO settings). And I can never remember with way to spin the dials until I'm doing it. So familiarity doesn't always help.

 

Although a) I am an idiot, and b) I do want Nikon to organise their menu options better (ideally for the benefit of customers rather than the tech support staff who have to remember where the options were on a model from 2006). So take that into account. :)

 

For what it's worth, I find deciding whether I can live with a camera, and learning its capabilities without marketing hyperbole, is best done by skimming the manual. You don't have to remember how to do everything, but it'll tell you what abilities are in there somewhere. And as Richard says, the recent cameras have a "?" button to tell you what a menu option does when you're in the field - not that you should need to change settings all that often, at least in a hurry (so don't be intimidated by how much is there). Nikon manuals are all available on their support pages, so it doesn't cost anything to look. The same is typically true of other manufacturers.

The OP doesn't say what lens or lenses he has so it's difficult to recommend. Back in the D70 time many used it with full frame lenses.

Yes - and, although it's a little bulky, the used D800 suggestion is absolutely not a bad idea if there are only full frame lenses under consideration. Although it'll show the limitation of older zooms even more than a D7200. And, not being a crop camera, might mean thinking about a longer lens - though the DX crop of a D800 still contains a lot more detail than the full image from a D70.

Meh, it doesn't necessarily take that long to get the hang of a camera

 

I don't recall any difficulty going from the D70 to the D300,.

 

How long have each of you been shooting? How many DSLRs have you owned since the D70 was available as a new body (introduced at 2004 PMA)?

 

The OP is shooting a D70 in 2018. It's probably reasonable to assume that the OP's experiences and skillsets are different form yours, so gauging how easily you adapt form one body to another is comparing apples to oranges. Now, the OP may very well have an easy time transitioning from one body to another but you should not assume that based on your own vast experiences. It's probably safer to assume that the OP has less experience and it's safer to minimize any learning curve (which could be substantial) JUST BEFORE a summer vacation.

 

Cheers!

When I switched to the D700, my 300D was the only dSLR I'd used; I'd used several Canon film cameras (after I got the 300D), but never shot Nikon at all. So I went from a one dial Canon system to a high-end prosumer Nikon after about four years. Did I make the occasional mistake? Sure. But it's still a box which aperture, shutter speed and ISO controls. I concede that I'm a geek, and not hugely scared by the technical side, but it's not like I had decades of dark room work behind me either.

 

I don't promise that Hduriejbdhdu would find the experience as painless as I did, and obviously more time to get familiar with the camera would be nice, but I also don't think I'd be so scared of confusion that I didn't dare upgrade shortly before the holiday. These things are designed to be easy to use, sometimes successfully.

 

I'd rather have the camera a while before a big holiday, but I'd rather buy it in the airport than come back wishing I had better photos. Down time during a holiday isn't necessarily a bad time to play with a camera.

Down time during a holiday isn't necessarily a bad time to play with a camera.

 

I admit to being a bit of a geek also, but I have to absolutely agree with this.

 

My purchase of my first SLR was motivated by a trip to France in 2005(I was in high school). I bought a Canon A-1 about a month and a half before and did shoot about a dozen rolls before leaving. Still, that trip, and the 30 rolls of film I shot, were my first real outing with a camera. After searching high and low, I also finally found some slide film(Elite Chrome 100) in a photo lab in a small town in the French countryside. I had to convince the clerk that I knew what it was and that it wasn't "normal" film before she would sell it to me.

 

In any case, I used the camera almost exclusively in shutter priority(Tv) and ended up with a few hundred photos that were at least properly exposed(if not lacking a bit in technical merit).

 

These days, I'll often take a known reliable camera on a trip with me, but have been guilty of even spending a pile on overnight shipping at KEH to get a new piece of equipment here in time. The last time was last August when I was waiting on getting my D800 back from repair and bought a D300 and 12-24 f/4. I had issues with the D300 and had KEH replace it after I got back(although I did use it on the trip), but also had my trusty D2X along.

I agree that the D7200 is the best choice at your price point. The improvement over the D70 is huge, in autofocus, handling, resolution, and low light performance. As to starting out on a vacation with a new camera, a couple of hours with it should be enough. It's not like in the days of film, when you had to wait for processing to learn if something is wrong.

The D70s was my first DSLR, bought for me by my father before a big family vacation.

 

About four years ago, I found a good price on a used D200, and bought one.

 

About two years ago, a good price on a used D700 so I bought that.

 

All three are reasonably similar in how the controls work, cards used (CF),

and battery needed. That makes the upgrade a little easier.

 

I believe today that the D300 is a better upgrade choice than the D200, but if the

OP has full frame lenses, a used D700 is a good choice.

 

I bought both used cameras from the same store, a big local camera store.

They told me the shutter count for both, and had a store warranty on them.

(Short, but long enough for the usual failure modes.)

 

I have some AI and older Nikon AF lenses, which was one reason for not

choosing a camera that doesn't work well with those. I might have forgotten,

but I think the D7200 doesn't have the AI follower.

 

I haven't tried it, but the D700 does have the ability to use DX lenses,

using only the DX sized part of the sensor. That might be close to D70

resolution, though. The D700 goes to higher ISO values than the D70, which

might be an advantage, even for DX lenses.

 

While I like to pack light for long trips, the OP could bring along the D70, just

in case he has problems with its replacement on vacation.

The D7200 (like the D7100 and D7000) does have an AI follower, and is as compatible with lenses as the D700 is - in fact, more so, because the D700 doesn't support AF-P lenses. The latest D7500 is the first of the D7x00 range not to have an aperture follower ring - for that I'm in same vintage as the D7500, you need a D500 or an FX body.

 

I had and enjoyed my D700, and I'm using an IR converted D90 (same sensor as the D300) successfully. But their sensor technology is very behind the current state of the art - arguably even the D7200 isn't the latest and greatest. Unless highly constrained by budget, I'd not recommend going older than the D7100, D800 and D750. The D7000 might just pass, but the resolution increase for the D7100 along with the better autofocus make it a strong option to decline.

 

The D700 does have a DX crop option. Bear in mind, though, that it's only a 12MP camera in the first place, and that with a strong AA filter. A DX crop from the D700 is lower resolution than a D70!

$1000 can get you a huge upgrade from the D70 nowadays. Disclaimer: I have only briefly used a friend's D7200, and read the specs, but that does seem like a very good bang for the buck. If you are interested in FX and your lenses are compatible, a used D700 is also good in my opinion. The D700 may be an outdated camera, but it has a better (in my opinion) user interface, much bigger viewfinder, and just in general I find it more pleasurable to use than most DX bodies. My first digital body was a D80 in 2006, then I moved to the D700 in 2012, and recently to the D850. The step from the D80 to the D700 was huge in terms of image quality. In fact, I think it was bigger than the step from the 12 mp D700 to the 46 mp D850. If sensor size or the prosumer layout is not a priority, the more modern D7200 is probably the better choice, though.

 

As for getting a new camera right before vacation, I'm not sure what kind of pictures you take during your vacation, but most likely if you know how to use single servo auto focus and set the exposure, you're good. This assumes you shoot raw and don't have to fiddle with white balance and picture control settings in camera.

While I was very fond of my D700, I'm still concerned that there was quite a big sensor improvement (especially for dynamic range) in what I consider "the D7000 generation", which included the D800 but was after the D700. Other than a few moved switches, the D700 does handle vaguely like the latest cameras - but if you're going FX and taking it on holiday, I'd strongly lean towards a D800 (which KEH has under the $1000 point) over a D700. The D700 is a fair bit cheaper for a reason.

 

That said, the others are right - even a D700 is a big step up from a D70, and when it comes to my image quality concerns, you don't miss what you never had.

 

But I do have, at home, a large picture of the Grand Canyon taken with the D700 and my 14-24, shortly after acquiring both (this one, in fact). I found the raw file recently, and DxO does get some better per-pixel sharpness out of it, and pulls back some of the corners - but it would still have been nice to put more pixels on it. And I have Antelope Canyon shots with my D700 and with a D810, where the latter handled the dynamic range (from a hand-held shot in a hurry) and the D700 didn't. It depends what you're doing, but for a holiday camera, I'd definitely take the D8x0 bodies over the D700 - it's not always mattered for some other things I've shot, but the kind of things I shoot on holiday benefitted from it. I'd feel I missed out less with a D7100 or D7200 than with a D700 - but that's just my opinion.