D200 Owners what accessories to you have?

[roy tangen]

Hello everyone. I thought an interesting discussion might be the accessories

you have purchased and why. I just purchased the D200 camera and was surprised

by the number of "MUST HAVE" accessories the salesperson suggested. What is

everyones opinion?

[warrenlewis]

MB-200, another set of batteries, lots of cards. More lenses, a bigger harddrive. <p>sb800 and sb600 and, yet another new camera bag.

[ShunCheung]

I suggest completely ignore the "must have" accessories the sales person suggested. His/Her sole objective is to make money from you, regardless of whether what they sell to you is useful to you or not.

 

I assume that you have at least one memory card. An extra EN-EL3e battery can be useful. Otherwise, use your D200 for a few weeks. You should be able to figure out what else you really need.

[timberwulf]

Shun's got it right IMO. The farthest I'd go with a new camera initially would be an extra battery and/or memory card. Everything else you need will become readily apparent as you use the camera in the ensuing weeks/years. :)

[d_gillespie]

Ditto, ditto. You made the choice to purchase the D200, don't be SOLD on extras. Battery and a few cards sure, but you are the master here.

[marshall]

Shun and the others have got it right. What did they want you to buy?

 

The only thing you might want to buy right away is an extra battery. It's good to have lens cleaning cloths and maybe an air blower (for dealing with dust). But pretty much after that the accessories you need are driven by what you do, not what the salesperson does. E.g., the MB-200 is an oft-suggested early accessory. For some people, it's a wonderful addition that never leaves the camera. For others, it never goes on the camera (haven't used mine in 6 monhts...).

[paul_sokal___dallas__tx]

The only thing I needed was the vertical grip and extra batteries for weddings. O/W nothing.

[joseph_smith3]

sb-800, extra batteries, cf cards. If your photography needs demand it, an off camera flash bracket and flash cord, and p, for vertical shots. Joe Smith

[joseph_smith3]

I meant to add an L bracket for vertical shots. Joe Smith

[gator1999]

I tried MD-D200 in store and found it's somehow too heavy and bulky to work with D200. Plus, the combo will then hard to fit in a casual bag. Batteries are the neccessities which you should get at least one for backup.

 

I still use my old SB-28DX for flashing (in A mode) and getting good result. But with the prevision that I don't like flash photo that much.

 

Get several AF-D single focus lens would be a good thing to add. They produce quality photos with much lower price tag (on ebay). I get a 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, and a 135mm f2 and like their brilliant result. I would say putting your money on the glass is a choice.

 

As for sales person, they meant to push the SALES as they been named after. Most time they want us to believe their broad knowledge in the system, but I would suggest them to read more on-line to make their comments really worthwhile.

[aaron l]

How about the 200-400mm f4? That's certainly a dream accessory.

 

More reasonably priced - spare battery, sensor cleaning kit, bigger cards are must haves. I like the MB-200 when I need to shoot a bunch of verticals or will be chimping like a mad monkey.

[eric friedemann]

Swithcing from D100 bodies:

 

 

1. The MB-D200 adds little weight to the D200, but provides an excellent vertical grip on the camera with a second shutter release and controls under your fingers as you're holding the camera vertically.

 

 

2. I was using SB-80DX flashes with my D100s. I bought an SB-800 and will probably get a spare soon.

 

 

3. Bigger, faster memory cards- I upgraded from 512MB 40X cards to 4GB 133X cards.

 

 

4. Spare EN-EL3e batteries- the D200 drains batteries much faster than the D100.

[eajames]

I bought a remote release; your MUST HAVEs will depend on what and how you shoot - for me I needed the release. As others have pointed out, from the salesperson's viewpoint, "the best accessories are SOLD accessories".

[Dieter Schaefer]

Depends on what the salesperson was pushing on you and what you already have. I would go with Shun's advice here; find out the "must haves" while shooting. I purchased the D200 with the MB-D200 because I like the better handling and balance it provides me, as well as the additional shutter release and the fact that it holds two batteries (I managed to empty one on several occasions, but never both). I also had to eventually buy a CCD sensor cleaning kit. Unless there is a good deal to be had while you purchased the camera, I'd buy memory cards, batteries and whatever other accessory online.

[marike1]

I wanted longer battery life and not to have to raise my elbow way up in to air to shoot

verticals, so I got the MB-D200. You might not want the extra weight of the grip.

 

Since the files sizes are much bigger than my D70, I had to get larger memory cards, 2

and 4GB.

 

An extra battery for the vertical grip was necessary. And lastly, I'm waiting on a new Really

Right Stuff QR plate for so I can use my tripod with my lenses that don't have a tripod

collar.

 

Everybody's "must haves" are different, but bigger compact flash cards are not really

optional.

[richard_cochran]

I got the MB-200 right away, and an extra battery and 3rd party remote release shortly thereafter. The SG-3IR is something I use almost as much as any of these, but that's because I use a lot of slaved off-camera flash. The SG-3IR is a cheap and easy way to trigger the slaves using the built-in flash, but without having the built-in flash be visible in reflections.

[wisp]

My 'Must Have' was something I had to build myself: a GPS adapter for my D200 - yes, I could have bought it, but it would have been a less than optimal solution and not nearly as much fun. (separate post on this if anyone is interested)

 

My other 'Must Have' was a wide angle zoom - as cost was a factor, I got the Tokina 12-24. I would never have considered a 'DX' lense for anything except wide angle, but in some ways, I am a luddite.

[bosse de nage]

Its true Shun, we salespeople really are the scum of the earth. There is nothing we care about more than milking every penny we can from the poor sap standing on the other side of the counter.

Having said that Roy, you should be aware that the salesperson most likely does make a considerably higher commission off of the accessories he or she sells you than the camera itself. Unless the manufacturer has placed some cash incentive on the camera, there is virtually no individual profit in the body itself. Dont buy the piece of garbage 49 dollar tripod if its offered to you - save your money for another day.

UV Filters are a personal choice; I dont use them on my lenses because I feel the hoods afford me enough protection from the miniscule scratches that will never effect image quality anyway. An extra battery is a good idea, but I would try the Mb-D200 on the camera before I invested in it. I personally hate it, and removed mine from my camera. I hated having to constantly re-tighten the screw that clamps it to the body, and reaching across the span between the shutter release and the focus point selector on the back of the camera. Trust me, after lugging around a D2Xs, 17-55 combo for a day or so, a nice, sleek D200 feels pretty good in the hand.

[klix]

In addition to those already mentioned, add a REAL eyecup:

 

(FM2 diopter + DK-22 + DK-3)

[lilly_w]

<What is everyones opinion?> Ample cynicism.

 

More germane to your question, a real eyecup.

[roy tangen]

Thank to you all. I have been a photographer for many years and yes I did sell cameras when studio work was slow. I have several Nikon F3HP's with most likely every accessory possible, but they were purchased on a job by job basis. I purchased a D70s about a year ago along with several Nikon lens (I have about 30 AIS oldeer Nikon lenses) and two SB800 (great flash). I don't think this salesperson was trying to "upsell" me. I did purchase the D200 with the MB-D200 grip becaulse I have hugh mitts and keep moving the controls on the D70s. As usual every one here has been most helpful and knowlegeable. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart!

[bob_s__n.e._mass_]

If you don't have one yet consider the SB-800- it's a beast of a strobe and Nikon's iTTL system can't be beat (take that, Canon fans!). I'd also get an el cheapo electronic cable release on e*ay from China- great with a table-top tripod for outdoor night shots. And don't forget to put the camera in mirror-up mode!

[jim_upchurch1]

Hi all, my first post here. Good suggestions, for me the must haves are:

extra battery.

 

extra cards(I like more 1 gigs instead of less larger sizes in case something goes wrong with it).

 

cheapo remote cord because I sold my expensive one with my F5 and it works good so far.

 

one thing I haven't seen mentioned is an eFilm LCD shade/protector.

That's a very nice addition, makes daylight viewing much easier and closes up to cover the panel when not in use.