D700, D800, or Other??

<p>Looking for some advice on a few Nikon camera bodies. I currently own a D70S and I'm ready to upgrade to more of a "pro-level" body. Mostly shoot weddings (so, lots of low-lighting situations) and fashion/portraiture.<br>

Currently looking somewhere in the range of either the D700 or the D800. Quite frankly, I can't afford the higher level models. Have some good, prime lenses (which probably are not being fully utilized on my D70S at the moment).<br>

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!</p>

 

<p>I have a D200 and recently acquired a D700. Use the latter with primes and have never been disappointed. In addition to the cost I cannot see why a stills photographer would like video on the D800 it's a waste of money. I would go with the D700, the price of them might fall, and stick with primes as they work very well with the full frame D700. They also work very well on the smaller sensor. Good luck.</p>

<p>Video for weddings these days is handy, and in some cases, a must... It depends on your clientele.<br>

<br /><br />Can you wait for the Dx00 that is no doubt coming soon? Or do you have jobs lined up and need to have an update now? </p>

<p>Frank, the D800 video may be a "waste of money," but considering that the D800 is the same price as the D700 was selling for about a month ago, you aren't paying a premium for those video options. In fact, the additional video buyers that the D800 attracts seems to be what is keeping the price down, due to Nikon expecting to ship a high volume of cameras. Even from a pure still photography standpoint, many buyers will find the advantages of the D800 to be worth $800 more than the D700.</p>

<p>Jessica, if you're currently working with the D70s successfully, would you consider taking a "baby" step up, to the D7000? It is noticeably improved in every way compared to the D70s (colors, dynamic range, high ISO performance, controls, etc), and will meet your needs for a long while to come. You'll need to switch to SD cards, but they are so cheap today that it doesn't matter. You will effectively be paying half of the D700's upgrade cost, and in addition any DX lenses you have now will continue to work.</p>

<p>Jessica,<br>

The video mode is not a waste of money, its groundbreaking. Even for a moment if you completely disregard the video mode and pretend you'll never use it, the improved AF, metering system, sensor, viewfinder, additional card slot, and ergonomics easily justify the cost, if you are working pro. You said you shoot weddings in low light, the D800's alleged 1 stop AF system improvement in low light is probably worth the upgrade cost all by its little self. Also 100% viewfinder will be a plus if you shoot all day for money. Even an additional card to back up all your shots in camera can be critical for wedding work (one never can be too careful). Really if you shoot weddings and you get paid, go with the D800. If you need high FPS or can't afford it, the D700 will treat you well and you'll have no complaints. You are limited to 4 FPS with the D800, but honestly I have a hard time seeing where that would be a deal breaker at a wedding (at least for most people's shooting styles).</p>

<p>I wonder what lenses the OP has. If the current camera is a D70S, a D7000 would be a huge improvement with dual memory cards and video, and you should have plenty of budget left over for some good lenses. That may be a better upgrade path than going for one expensive camera body.</p>

<p>I do see the benefits of the D800, but I don't see the need for video usage in my business. The main attraction is that higher ISO performance, but even at $2,999 it's a bit out of my price range and it doesn't come out for another few weeks.<br>

I do have several weddings, portraits, and fashion sessions lined up in the upcoming months and need to upgrade relatively quickly. The switch to SD cards won't be a major issue. I'm considering doing a 4-day rental from Lens Rentals (I use them for specialized lenses here and there). They both run around $120 for that time and it would give me a better sense of just how much of a step up I'd be going to.<br>

Even with my prime lenses, using them on my D70S in low-light churches during the ceremony, my images are super grainy. I know that a bit of that is to be expected and can be improved in post-processing, but I also know that it can be greatly improved with better equipment. While I've had some great years of use out of my D70S, my main complaints would be a relatively low quality ISO performance and a few focusing issues.<br>

Wouldn't it just be lovely to just have a spare 15 grand to upgrade to all new bodies, lenses, and studio lighting?<br>

Thank you to everyone that has contributed a response so far. The input is appreciated!</p>

<p>Ariel and Shun,<br>

I will take another look at the D7000 per your feedback. I did look into that model briefly and ruled it out because I would like to make a sizable upgrade now and know that I would be content with that camera for at least a few more years. My worry is that with the D7000, I would outgrow it too quickly and need to upgrade again next year. </p>

<p> The D700 seems optimum to me in every way. The price recently dropped also. </p>

<p>Are your primes at reasonable focal lengths for use on FF? The D700 is seemingly a bargain right now. And even if the lens kit you have isn't as good a fit for FF, it's still cheaper than the D800. The D700 doesn't hold two cards but that's no change from the D70s.</p>

<p>The D7000 is a big upgrade from the D70s, and it's much more afforable than the D800. If you have your heart set on a FF camera, the price of the D700 has come down. You could also look for a good used one or a refurbished one.</p>

<p>The cost of switching to FX f2.8 zoom lenses from my current line up has given me great pause to go that route so far. I know I won't be making more sales if I were to buy an FX camera and the required lenses for it. SO, I sit tight, waiting to see what else Nikon releases this spring & summer. A replacement for the D300s is overdue. I would think video would be huge for weddings now.<br>

Kent in SD</p>

<p>For DX, the D7000. However, the D800 will be the best value for dollar of any FX DSLR made by anybody. There will be a vast difference between the D800 and D700, far outweighing the price difference. Consider the video virtually free, since the price of the camera would have been no lower without it.</p>

<p>The D7000 is a HUMONGOUS upgrade from the D70s. Heck, even the D90 is a huge upgrade. If you're currently enjoying the D70s, I can promise you that the D7000 will keep you engaged for at least the next 4 years. The D70 is Nikon's first consumer SLR; ancient by today's standards and expectations.</p>

<p>I do think the D7000 would be a huge upgrade. The one reason I would hesitate to recommend it, is I've found its AF to be shaky at best in low light. A used D300 would also offer a huge upgrade with a far better AF system, buffer, weather sealing, and ergonomics. In my opinion though, I hear Nikon plans on announcing a new DX camera in August. I would wait and hold on for that.</p>

<p>Jessica, <br>

If you have several weddings and fashion sessions set up, you should be a be able to charge enough out of them to take some of the funds you receive and invest in a D700 or D800. The D700 is a very good camera, which I use for event photography, but the D800, which is not much more expensive offers a larger file size--good and bad with that however. Good that you can get extremely sharper photos than ever with a Nikon; bad in that you're talking over 150MB per RAW image--that eats up a LOT of hard drive space! You can use a lower resolution setting of course, but the D800's high megapixel capability may be overkill if you wouldn't use it. The D700, while a few years old as a model, may be more manageable when it comes to downloading and editing those files on your computer. <br>

Depending on your geographic location that you work in, I would believe, depending on your experience, you could command a rate of anywhere from $1,500 to $5,000 for full wedding coverage. My point being that a few weddings should more than cover a new body. Also, think about buying a used D700 if money is the issue. I'd think people will be trading them in who lust for the D800. </p>

<p>D700 is great for weddings and is fine for portraits/ fashion though D800 is going to be better in the studio especially if the photographs are aiming towards high end publication where the extra megapixels can be helpful. D7000, D700 any of these you will see a huge improvement over your D70.</p>

<p>Robert, you are correct. The weddings would easily cover the cost of the new body but I would prefer to upgrade before actually shooting those. I've been weighing all the options over the past 2 days and thanks to the great advice here and several online reviews/comparisons, I have decided to purchase the D7000. I figure it will be just what I need to get through this year, produce fantastic wedding images and the plan will be to upgrade to one of the BIG BOYS in a year or two.</p>

<p>Jessica:<br>

The d7000 will serve you very well. It is a superb camera. With the exception of the d800 I have shot with all of the cameras mentioned in this thread and I can assure you that the d7000 will serve you well. I would advise you to invest in the battery grip to give you a bit more stability. I have used this camera a good deal and love it as I am sure you will. There may be things down the road like a d400 but you will not be making a mistake with your decision.</p>

<p>-Cheers</p>

 

I made the upgrade from the D70s to the D7000. It is not a small upgrade. It is a generation upgrade. High ISO

performance, sensor, weather sealing, AF, everything. Plus you won't need to change lenses if you have DX lenses for

your D70, you'll need new lenses for the FX format of the D700 or D800. I do plan to add a D800 in the future for high

pixel wide landscapes, but that is at least a year out.

<p>A D700 is going to feel like a brick in your hands after a few hours of shooting, especially if you attach one of the f/2.8 lenses. The D7000 will be smaller and lighter, and it won't require you to spend thousands right away on new lenses.</p>

<p>Which is a good reason to be a D800, its lighter than the D700, according to Nikon's website, 3.3ozs.</p>

<p>Looks like D7000 vs D700 is being decided...<br>

Either the lighter, less expensive crop-sensor D7000, or the full-frame D700. D7000 has probably focusing points throughout the frame, while they are closer to the center on the D700, something that can make a difference during off-center focusing.<br>

I would pick D700 for its full-frame nature, bigger sensor = better in low light, better image quality generally speaking, since the sensor is bigger. I had a crop-sensor D200/D300 for years and it was fine, but I wished then and now that it had been full-frame - mostly for reasons of landscape photos.</p>