d800 is not for me

<p>i <strong>was</strong> i the market to purchase a d800, so i tried a friends d700. the d700 felt like a tinker toy in my hand and the specs say the d800 is smaller than the d700. the auto industry for the last 30 years or so have gone from designing cars for men to designing cars for women. it seems as if nikon and the rest of the camera makers have changed their designs to make cameras for small handed people who can't lift a feather. i can hike all day with a f5 and lense and hasselblad, roll film backs, digital back and lenses. i have large hands and the dinky d700 felt weighless in my hands and i couldn't hold it steady. i never have that problem with the f5. what nikon should have done was offer the d4 body with the 3 sensor options, d4,d800,d800e. similar to a car body with different engine options. yes i tried the d700 with the add on battery pack but it does not have the same feel as the solid body. i am sure there are other men out there who have the same complaint that i have trying to handle these tiny toys in their large hands.</p>

<p>Would you change your mind about the D800 if it came with a shift key?</p>

<p>I don't know about you, David, but I'd rather carry less weight around than more. I'm a 63 y/o guy of average proportions and in reasonably good shape. By the time I load up a pack with three or four f/2.8 zoom lenses, a camera (currently a D200 with an 800e on order), a Gitzo Series 2 CF tripod and head, and other miscellaneous items, I'm looking at 30-40 pounds. That's a lot for me to schlep around, especially if I have to go any distance. Call me girly, but I'm not getting any younger. I've thought about a D3x or a D4, but they're BIG! And heavy! If you're a large enough man for that not to be an issue for you, congratulations! If I can get the features I want in a lighter body, I'm going for it.</p><div></div>

<p>David, maybe there's grip for it? Do realize most people want a lighter more portable kit. This trend is hardly new, it has been going on since the invention of photography.</p>

<p>Buy a D3x or an H3D and skip the film</p>

<p>Wow Dave (may I call you Dave?) you're a real he-man. I'm in <em>todal awe</em> of your <em>awesomeness</em>. Next time I'm staggering up a mountain track with a backpack containing my D700 and a few 2.8 zooms, puffing and blowing (I'm only 64 years old), I'll try to remember that <em>I'm nothing but a</em> <em>panty-waist</em>.</p>

<p>Maybe - and I ask this ever so humbly - you could perhaps post a snap of one of these teeny weeny DSLRs in your enormous paws. I think we'd all be thrilled to bits.<br>

Thanks!<br>

Roy</p>

 

<p>I have big hands and I don't find the modern mid-size cameras (I'm including D300, D700, F100 in that category) to be too small. Granted, a D7000 with grip feels much better than without, but I'll still shoot that without grip and not feel uncomfortable.</p>

<p>I'm headed the other way. I think my D300 is ridiculously heavy and unnecessarily large and I'm moving toward mirrorless cameras.</p>

<p>I am 6'5", 240 lbs (too much) in good shape. Nikon V1 serves me well, though maybe I look a bit ridiculous :)</p>

<p>I can do with out the weight, but I have to admit that I like the feel and handling of my D3 much more than I do my F100. I would love a D4 but it is way out of my price range. </p>

<p>I use big heavy cameras. I use small lightweight cameras.</p>

<p>However, camera size and/or weight has never been as important to me as image quality.</p>

<p><a href="

<div></div>

<p>I don't know about weight, but I thought a D700/800 with grip is actually physically larger than a D3/D4.</p>

<p>I am sure there must be a way to add more weight to the camera..... a couple of bricks attached to the battery pack would do...... and they will serve as a tripod too.... Just an idea!! :)</p>

<p><< the specs say the d800 is smaller than the d700. >></p>

<p>Really? Oh great!!! (LOL LOL)</p>

<p>I was worrying that it would be too big. Last week I filled my bag (Guru Gear Kiboko 22L) with the equipment I would need for a photo trip. The bag was so jammed there was no more room for anything additional. Among the equipment were two D300s. And the filled bag weighted 37.6 lbs. Then... Ouch! ... I slung it over my shoulders, then walked my dog. The bag is well designed enough to be comfortable clinging to the back, but the weight felt like my ribs were pulling apart. Oh well, this too, will pass, I hope. I was thinking to do this a few times each week, then I would be ready for the next trip. Thank goodness the D800 will not be crazy big! :)</p>

I just wanna see what Leslie will say about it..... Hehe

<p>Well camera's come in all sizes and shapes. Just pick out one that fits your needs and go with it. I have a F100 and like the grip and everything a lot. Most of the times it's just perfect. However I bicycle a lot and it is to big and heavy to carry in my panniers. However right now I just carry it anyways. </p>

<p>Dear Dave, I doubt anyone cares. Is there some greater good to your bashing a great, new product designed for a particular segment of the photography market? Do you offer any sort of solution? Do you illuminate any identifiable problem or identify any issue that Nikon overlooked? No! Then what's the point?<br>

No haters, man! Life's too short. If you don't like the D800, don't f-ing buy it. Relax. Start wagging more and barking less.</p>

<p>Maybe you should give the battery grip another chance. I have a D300s w battery grip and it works well for me going from landscape to portrait, the only real difference (size/mass wise) from the D3 would be the seam between the two pieces and the thumbwheel.</p>

<p>i should have put my age also. i am 60 in june. i look at hiking and backpacking as twofold. one to get out and photograph and two to do cardio with nature in all its glory. i live next to yosemite and sequoia/kings canyon. my wife has a d300 and when i try to use it the camera in my hand moves as if the wind is blowing at 100 mph but put that same lens on my f5 and the camera is steady as a rock. my hasselblad with its heavy lens hand held is steady. i will not spend money for a d3x which is old tech. all i was trying to say for people like me with large hands a d4 body with d800 sensor option would be nice. the add on battery pack does not have the solid feel</p>

<p>My D700 is big and heavy, my 2001 Toyota MR2 spyder is small and light. I enjoy both at the age of 56. Yosemite is very nice, I was out there last Aug. Maybe you should add something to it if otherwise the D800 meets your needs.</p>

<p>Don't fret. Rumor has it that Nikon will release the D800S, the Sasquatch edition, later this year.</p>

Heavy light it is people preference. I am industrial man working in Aluminum smelter and I like heavy cams for stabity and

I like light ones for traveling I use 7d with battery grip but when I travell I remove the grip for lighter weight

As I mention it's people taste

<p>ha ha, (John H.)</p>

<p>Just for reference:<br>

Skilsaw Mag77 275.2oz<br>

Pentax 67 86.0oz<br>

D700 35.1oz <br>

D300s 30.0oz <br>

D7000 24.3oz <br>

D90 22.0oz <br>

D80 20.5oz <br>

D5100 19.7oz <br>

HTC Thunderbolt 6.2oz<br>

iPhone 4.9oz<br>

Pack what you can, but don't trust your smart phone for mountain rescues. Leave room for a first aid kit and some survival gear -- maybe a signal mirror. GPS batteries can fail. Weather happens.</p>

 

<p>Denali awaits your arrival.</p>