d300s vs d7000!???

[ShunCheung]

<p>Again, I would like to emphasis that for the information I was able to verify, I have already put into the comparison table in the preview. I think those are the significant differences.</p>

<p>Based on the images of the D7000 body from Nikon and DPReview, it is quite clear that the AF-ON button and the 10-pin connector are absent. Otherwise, little issues such as whether you can shoot RAW + JPEG basic, we'll just have to verify after the D7000 is available. Since both the D90 and D5000 can capture RAW + any type of JPEG compression, it is unexpected that if the D7000 does not provide all of those options.</p>

<p>Nikon is not going to rain on the D7000's parade. I would imagine that anything that replaces the D300S will be at least 6 months from the launch date for the D7000, perhaps a bit longer. Before, a lot of the technology on the D200 was passed down to the D80; the same between the D300 and D90. In this case, things are happening in the reverse order.</p>

[andylynn]

<p>Christian,</p>

<p>I remember your previous post, and you already have a D90 and you haven't gone pro. I think you'd be best served by waiting and seeing when the D7000 ships and there's more information than speculation, and in the meantime practice, practice, practice - build your technical skill set to the point where you can find the limits of your camera, then decide whether you need a new one and which one to choose.</p>

<p>While the particulars of the D7000's performance aren't clear yet, I think it's safe to assume that there will be areas where a D7000 would be preferable to a D300s and areas where it's the other way around, and you want to get to the point where you can differentiate those and prioritize which will be best suited to your needs.</p>

[frank_skomial]

<p>I am curious about what happened to the old and good AF-S, and AF-C switch on the D7000?<br>

Is it an improvement, or just a shortcut?</p>

[elliot1]

<p>Eric, how can you acquire focus a bit faster with AF-On?</p>

[wilsontsoi]

<p>Elliot, using AF-On button to acquire action separately from shutter release button (setting it to trigger only and without AF function) allows AF to continue working the target without any interuption as in the case of using only shutter release button to function as both AF and trigger (in which tripping shutter will interupt AF and tracking causing lost of acquired target.) AF may not be "Technically" faster, but in using AF-On as described above, but you will be able to track fast moving action and shoot at high frame rate in AF-C mode much more reliably than using default AF & trigger on the shutter release button alone.</p>

[wilsontsoi]

<p>If D7000 has an option to assign AE-L as an AF-On button (like the old D70 did with later firmware,) then I wouldn't have a problem using it as a back up for sports.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>I kind of doubt that the D7000 will be viewed as an excellent sports camera as the D3 and D300 are. The D7000 caps at 6 frames/sec and there are only 9 cross-type AF points, all in the very center of the frame.</p>

[photo5]

<p>Shun,<br>

Remember people used to shoot sports with the F4 and N90s, and the D7000 has far better AF than those cameras. It's all relative. I think technique goes before technology. Someone can have a very high tech camera like the D300, but know nothing about how to take advantage of it, or have the D7000, with slightly lower AF technology, but know how to use it to the fullest advantage. I never shoot sports, but sometimes shoot flying airplanes at airshows. Even with the D300, I felt like my technique for shooting moving objects is terrible, so I am sure I'll be fine with the D7000.</p>

[walterh]

<blockquote>

<p>BTW, it looks like the D7000 does not have the AF-ON button. Apparently that is an issue for some people. I do not use the AF-ON button unless I need to foucs in live view mode.</p>

 

</blockquote>

<p>I checked this at the Photokina.<br>

The Exposure lock button of the D7000 can be programmed to act as an AF-on button.</p>

<p>I checked since I dislike different AF-on activations between bodies. I could show you some of the reasons ^^ :-)</p>

<p> </p>

[ShunCheung]

<blockquote>

<p>Remember people used to shoot sports with the F4 and N90s</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Yes, I certainly remember the early 1990's. When the Nikon cameras with the best AF systems were the N90s and F4, professional sports photographers switched to Canon in huge numbers. Prior to that, Nikon was the undisputed market leader among professional news and sports photographers in the 1970's and 1980's. Canon took over the leadership almost overnight because of their superior AF. Since then, you mainly saw Canon white lenses in professional sports event for over a decade. Nikon finally managed to turn the tide with the D3. At the 2008 Brijing Olympics, you could see roughly half Canon and half Nikon.</p>

<p>If you are wondering, equipment does matter; at least it matters at the high end.</p>

<p>I have been using the Multi-CAM 3500 shooting sports and wildlife since its introduction in 2007 and I have developed the habit to mainly use its 15 cross-type AF points. If anything, I would like to see more cross-type AF points and have them spreaded out throughout the frame as on the Canon EOS 7D. The D7000 (Multi-CAM 4800) is moving in the opposite direction, but of course it is a much more affordable DSLR. So more realisitcally, I'd like to see the improvement on the successor to the D300/D300S.</p>

<p>Walter, thanks for the info. I am sure a lot of people are glad to learn that. As I pointed out earlier, it is hard to beat actual hands on experience.</p>

[eric_arnold]

<p><em>Eric, how can you acquire focus a bit faster with AF-On?</em></p>

<p>what wilson said. this observation comes from hands-on experience at shooting fast-moving action with a d300. when using the AF-On, the focus engages when you press the button and the shutter deployment is separate--there's no half-press/depress, just depress. this is particularly helpful when shooting a bunch of frames in rapid succession, since you dont have to refocus in-between each press of the button. in real-word usage, this proved to be a bit faster on the d300.</p>

<p>i suppose you can use the AE-L button as an AF-On button but i rather liked the fact this had its own dedicated button on the d300. having more cross-type sensors and AF points and faster fps should make the d7000 better for sports/action than the d90, but the AF module on the new model is apparently not as good as the d300's. the question is, will it be good enough for all but dedicated sports shooters?</p>

 

[john_hinkey]

<blockquote>

<p>but the AF module on the new model is apparently not as good as the d300's</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Where did you get this information from?</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>The D300S uses the same Multi-CAM 3500 AF module as the D300, D700, and D3 family. That has 51 AF points in total and 15 of the 51 are cross type.</p>

<p>The D7000 uses a new Multi-CAM 4800 that has 39 AF points and 9 of them are cross type.</p>

<p>I pay less attention to the total number of AF points, but the number of cross type and their distribution is important to sports and action photography. E.g. I think Canon has done a very good job with the 19 cross-type AF points on the 7D. Since the D7000's 9 cross-type AF points are all in the center of the frame, most likely it is not going to be that great for shooting sports. It is likely going to be a major step up from the D90, of course, but it is a step down from the D300/D300S. We'll find out for sure when we get to test the D7000.</p>

[walterh]

<p>When I played with the D7000 at the Photokina I noticed that AF was noticably slower than what I am used to from my D3 (which is probably as fast as the D300 but that is my speculation).<br /> Now the cameras that were available were all fitted with a consumer zoom lens. This could slow down the AF speed (there was good light available).<br /> The cameras were slow in focusing the lens not necessarily in finding the correct focus. So perhaps the D700 does not supply much power to the lens motor?</p>

<p>BTW: It might be of interest that the camera was very quiet when shooting - the sound was also less harsh than D3 and D700.<br>

At first I was not certain because of the high noise level at the Photokina hall. But after some shooting I was more certain that this is the case. Several photographers near me got the same impression. For those who want a quiet camera try to look into this but make certain you can verify this.</p>

 

[photo5]

<p>Quiet cameras are nice. I was disappointed with the loud thwack! made by the D700 after using my D300 for a year.</p>

[sjoerd_leeuwenberg]

<p>I tried the D7000 at the photokina as well,<br>

In the Quiet mode it is quite a bit more quiet. I think it did slow down a bit.<br>

But I didn't have much time to test it.<br>

I did not notice any difference between the D90 and the standard 'LOUD shutter' setting. But I also did not check for any differences.</p>

[jocelyn_smith1]

<p>I just read the five pages of responses to the D7000 vs D300s question and I want to thank all of the contributors for sharing your thoughts and experiences. I just bought the D300s, upgraded from my D80. I shoot mostly indoor available low light for sports (basketball) or school activities like plays and performances. I discovered only today Nikon's release of the D7000. I thought I had made a mistake after reading all the other reviews, but after reading your posts about the anticipated better AF module in the D300s, I feel much more comfortable that I have the right camera for my needs. Coupled with my new 85mm 1.8 lens, I think I'm good to go with the D300s for low light fast action shots.<br>

I'm planning to sell my D80 on eBay - I better do so quick with the new D7000 on the market! Happy shooting, everyone.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>Jocelyn, D300S vs. D7000 seems to be a tough call at this point, especially since the D7000 is not yet available for actual testing and comparison. For shooting sports, having 8 frames/sec with the MB-D10 (and right batteries) is still an advantage for the D300S.</p>

<p>The D7000 is already having an impact on new D300S and D90 prices. I hope you got a good deal. The D80 is from so far back in the past that only those who are on a tight budget will be interested in it. It probably has already lost most of the value it is going to lose by now.</p>

[greg_kowalczewski]

<p><em>Shun wrote "I pay less attention to the total number of AF points, but the number of cross type and their distribution is important to sports and action photography"</em><br>

Shun, what is the advantage of the "cross type" AF point over the "other type" of AF point?</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>A cross-type AF point is sensitive to contrast in both the vertical and horizontal directions and tends to provide much better focusing, especially under dim conditions. A line type AF point is only sensitive to lines in one direction; if your subject lacks contrast in the direction that AF point is sensitive in, you are out of luck.</p>

[deepak_chourasia]

<p>here are my thoughts on this:<br>

http://deepsforyou.blogspot.com/2010/12/nikon-d7000-vs-nikon-d300.html</p>