D700 vs D3

[eclecticbuzzard]

What does the D3 have that the D700 won't?

[stwrtertbsratbs5]

This has been discussed. Try 'search'.

[elliot1]

Dual memory card slots, longer life shutter (probably rated at double that of the D700), built-in battery grip with extra display, faster processor, slightly higher frame rate (up to 11) to name a few. Overall image quality should be the same.

[photo5]

Snob appeal.

[dmitry_kiyatkin]

Not sure yet, but compared to D300, D3 is somewhat better made - more solid. For 95% people that should not matter but

for some people it will.

[penn10]

I've gone through the same debate and decided to go with D3. First of all, the battery grip is a must for me, so if I go with D700, that means extra $200. The dual memory card slot is essential for wedding photographers. Shutter life is tested as 300,000, double the life of D700; plus, at least one extra stop of ISO.

 

All these are very important for shooting weddings. Don't know what you shoot, but for extra $1,700 over D700, it's well worth it.

[frank_skomial]

Reversing your question and asking what does D700 have that the D3 does not have ?

 

VERY IMPORTANT:

 

Sensor cleaning system.

 

(dust off shaker, dust removal system ? - different sources use a bit different naming).

[bruce_margolis]

Also, the D700 is smaller and has a hot shoe.

[dan_brown4]

The D3 has a hot-shoe too, Did you mean pop-up flash?

[harvey_edelstein1]

D3 has 5:4 framing mode (direct 8x10 cropping) no post processing needed for cropping if you get it right when you press the shutter button. Also, the 5:4 mode is handy for lenses like the 70-200mm that have vignetting and fuzzy edge definition problems. This mode is a 1.2x crop so it still gives you most of the frame on wide angles yet cuts off the poorest part of most lens coverage. In view of the fact that many people make most of there large prints in 8x10 this may be for many a very good framing ratio.

[david_glad_nelson]

These two Nikon web pages should help you find a detailed answer to your question.

 

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25434/D3.html

 

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25444/D700.html

 

If you can line them up side by side on your monitor you can immediately see the differences between the two cameras.

[plavchak]

Dual CF cards are NICE to have but not essential to wedding photography or any other. It's strange to think any wedding pictures were ever taken before digital. All of this stuff only makes life easier. There are still many fine photographers out there with film camers (that only hold one roll of film) doing just fine. I will guess (I may be wrong) that most wedding photographers using Nikon are using something less than the D3.

[pankaj purohit]

Is the Dual memory card support means you have two copies of your captures>> I mean one as original written and other one is like backup copy to rescue in case of first copy curruption.......?

[edward_chow]

the dual mem slots allow for backup, or 1 raw 1 jpeg, or overflow

[RvdK]

Frank writes: "plus, at least one extra stop of ISO."

 

Where did you get that from? It's the first time I read that. Sensor and software for the D3 and D700 are the same, so one would expect exactly the same ISO performance.

[Davide Baroni]

Well, it seems to me that some of the most important differences are simply overlooked. :-)

D3, as the previous D2 series, is first of all a true pro-body: it's like a tank. Fully weather proof (BTW, you CAN'T have a fully weather proof flash pop-up, so the latter is hardly a plus... and it can break, too), exceptonally strong (you can use it as a hammer to build your home AND, when you're done building, to take photos of your new house...), with such a good balance that you would never say it's THAT heavy. All commands are easy, everything is at hand, so that when I tried my friends' D3 (as well as D2xs) it was easy to understand and use. AND all commands button an items are fully weatherproof too. To me, this only would be well worth the difference in price...

Plus, there are all the things others have already stated.

Ah, I would NOT count the sensor cleaning system as such a plus. First, as my grandpa used to say, "More things there are, more things can break". Second, I clean the sensor of my camera by myself, and it takes about 30 seconds, all included. I can afford that without feeling i waste precious time. :-)

And if you go through the comparison suggested by David Glad Nelson you'll find many more differences.

The "true" point is: do this differences make a difference FOR YOU?

For me, they do, But you may have different needs and/or goals. :-)

Bye,

Davide

[elliot1]

>> Dual CF cards are NICE to have but not essential to wedding photography or any other.

 

All it takes is the loss of images from 1 memory card to change your mind on this one. Like many others, it recently happened to me after a photo shoot (fortunately it was not a wedding). I lost a client over this. And thousands of dollars of future business. Imagine for a moment loosing all the images from a wedding ceremony. Or the critical moment of any other event. As technology has changed, so has the ability to protect ourselves and our clients. Memory card 'insurance' is now/finally affordable.

[dan_brown4]

I wonder what the probability of having a CF card fail and losing images is? I mean, as a statistical number, like 0.0XX% I still have

my first big fat 1GB CF card from my D100 days that cost over $400, and it is running fine.

[russ_konrad]

We have never had any card failures in the past - but all it takes is one time and you will have a HUGE problem on your hand in the wedding photography business.

 

Additionally - the dual card slots on the D3 is just ANOTHER reason that brides are hiring us. They realize that the entire process is relying on it's weakest link. What good is a $5000 camera (or $2000 or whatever) if your $100 CF card dies. We always bring the D3 with us to the first meeting with customers and just showing them the dual slots gives them more confidence in us and our equipment compared to other photographers using cameras with only one slot. Most brides are aware that some people have had horror stories with memory card failures in the past. You know how the internet is - bad stories seem to live forever online and most brides do alot of research before they even meet with their first photographer.

 

I also agree with the above posters that mention the 5:4 crop ratio. It saves time in post processing. The vast majority of the files coming out of the D3 need little or no post processing at all. And when working with 1000 to 1200 files after every wedding - post-processing time IS an issue.

[ShunCheung]

At least to some people, the 100% viewfinder on the D3 is an important advantage.

As far as I know, the D700's viewfinder only covers about 90% of the FX frame area (95% on each side).

I haven't actually handled a D700 yet so that I still need to look through the viewfinder myself.

That may or may not turn out to be an issue.

 

Size is another concern. The D700 by itself is smaller, which is an advantage to mose people. However, with the MB-D10 grip, the D700 becomes huge, much taller than the D3.

[stevenseelig]

For anyone who has touched a D700, I am curious as to the flexibility to adjust the file name. On the D200, you can use I

think 4 characters plus an appended number. It would be really nice to be able to do at least and maybe even 8 prefix

characters before a sequential numbering system.

[mitchfalk]

What the D700 has that the D3 doesn't is an A/F assist light. Its great to have ISO 12500 - but its no good if the camera cant auto focus in that dark an environment.

[laverephoto]

Mitch, you can turn the strobe off on your SB 800 and continue to use the AF assist lamp in many environments. You

don't need it on the camera as long as you have it on the flash.

[pat_cashin]

I have both the D3 and D300. Overall I prefer the handling of the D3. I prefer the review (zooming in on preview etc) menu much better, the location of controls etc. The D300 with the grip just feels awkward to me and the D3 much more natural to handle. Also my bodies get used a lot in the field and the D300 controls are already showing some wear and tear. Focus despite the same CAM seems smoother and more responsive on the D3, and from my experience the metering and white balance much better on the D3. Advantages of the D3 also include faster frame rate, 2 card slots, tough glass screen, 100% viewfinder, much better higher ISO performance. Though the D700 should be close in terms of noise at high ISOs.

 

Advantages of the D300 and a reason why I got one is that focus points on the DX format are not so centric around the middle area of the frame. Quieter shutter, D3 is a loud clunk! Smaller size (without grip) is sometimes useful, and crop factor and pixel density. Having said that I would like to get another D3 (maybe the D700) to keep consistency for work flow, but the D300 does over me flexibility.

[condrup photo]

Everything... and then some