Should I buy a Nikon D800 now in Aug 2017

[erik_christensen3]

For family and vacation images, I think the D7100 can already do an excellent job. Any D800, D810 and certainly the D850 will be way an overkill.

Agree :)

Yes with these 3 models it will be an overkill, however, I am positive, that the interest for other types of photos than family and vacation will appear, as soon as you find out, what can be done with any of the 3 models

[manuel_garcia5]

The D8xx series camera are geared towards landscape/portrait type work, that said they can do so much more due to the high pixel count. If you want to venture into either then I'd say buy one. If you want a great portrait camera then look at a D700, only 12mp but love the colors. HTH.

[Andrew Garrard]

See also D800. Even for portraiture I'd take the D800 over D700 given the choice; colours are easily fixed in post (or by tuning in the camera). The D700's "advantage" for portraits is that it has a very strong low-pass filter, which hides blemishes a bit (same argument as using a slightly soft lens); I'd always rather have sharpness in the capture and apply some softening in post-processing than the other way around, since blurring doesn't introduce artifacts in the same way that sharpening does, but if you like smooth skin out of the camera and aren't achieving it with lighting or lens (or filter), the D700 has an arguable case.

 

For what it's worth, I had a D700 and kept it as a backup when I got my D800e. I barely used the D700 once the D800e was available (partly, I admit, because "+" and "-" got swapped and this made chimping very frustrating if switching between cameras) and traded them both in for a D810. The D800's biggest weakness is its speed (although 1.2x crop helps), where the D750, D810 and D850 are better.

[heimbrandt]

I did what you consider doing. I bought a used D800 earlier this week and I am currently testing to see what I make of it.

 

My first impression is that I do not regret buying it, but it depends on what you are used to, what you will use it with and for. There was a D800 for sale at such a price that reselling it at a notably higher price would not be a problem (in fact I was offered more for it today as part exchange that I gave for it), so ”I had nothing to loose”.

 

I have the D610 and its smaller AF sensor area coverage has never bothered me and I really liked its IQ and high ISO performance. In fact, coming from the D7000, I am very pleased with the D610 in all aspects. I like its weight and IQ. Its build quality is OK, so I should be happy.

 

Some observations with when comparing my D800 to the D7000 I had before and D610 I have:

• Build quality sure is better with the D800
  
• The viewfinder is equal to the D610, both are much better than the D7000. The viewfinder cover is better on the D800 and I prefer its implementation of virtual horizon.
  
• Yes, there is a difference in IQ from the D610’s 24 to the D800's 36 MP, but given the fact that the D610 already produces such great images it is not that big a deal when you actually print something (unless you print really large prints of course). The biggest difference in IQ was that from the D7000 to the D610 so the jump from a D7100 would be smaller, but still noticeable, both in tonal range and high ISO performance.
  
• The D800 is heavier but that does not bother me and if you already carry FX 2.8 lenses, I suspect that would not be a huge concern to you either.
  
• AF is maybe a tad quicker on the D800, but I am not really sure if it is faster than the D610. AF sensor area coverage is much better, which may be a deciding factor for many. I started out with manual focus and a Canon EOS600 was my first AF camera, so I got used to limited AF sensor area coverage.
  
• The D800 has an AF on button, which apparently is crucial to some, but I do not care for it.
  
• If four FPS is slow, then, the D800 it is slow. However, I got great action shots with the N90 back in the day, so timing is more important to me than spray and pray. That said, I find the D800's 4FPS quick enough for show jumping but the higher frame rate of the D610 may well compensate for its smaller AF area and produce more keepers at the end of the day.
  
• The D800 has a usable DX mode (roughly equal to a D7000). I suspect I will use it sometimes when I need more reach. The D610 (and the D750, I suspect) is far behind, should you ever consider using it. Even with the 70-200/2.8 VRII, I think the DX mode of the D610 is more of a marketing gimmick than something I would resort to.
  
• When you shoot video, you can change the aperture when you record on the D800. On the D610, you need to stop the recording, exit live view before you can change the aperture and resume live view and your recording.
  
• I miss the main program selector wheel and its U1/U2 modes on the D800.
  
• I am still not used to the button layout to the left of the D800’s LCD. I keep pressing OK for a while before I realize I should move my finger upwards… The D800 and D7100 have the same layout so you need not think of that.
  
• I miss the Qc advance mode from the D610 on the D800 and Q mode is much louder on the D800 than it is on the D610.
  
• WiFi is not an option on the D800, if you want to transfer an image or two to your mobile phone. The Nikon part is extremely expensive and not an option. I use and like the affordable WU-1b on the D610, even though it should have been built in. If you use SD cards in a D800, getting an adapter for your mobile is a viable option. The D750 has WiFi.
  
• I would have preferred the D800 to have two SD card slots rather than one SD and one CF card slot.
  
• The D800 requires faster memory cards than the D610 even though it does not create as many files in the same amount of time. I use 14 bit Nef lossless compressed+jpg fine small. Memory cards that I was very happy with even when shooting 6FPS suddenly felt unbearably slow in the D800 compared to even the small (read: old) CF card the previous owner included in the sale. If i keep the D800, I need to get SDXC cards with a write speed in excess of 60 MB/s rather than the about 40 MB/s of my current Sandisk cards (albeit their read speed is excellent with the D610 though).
  

 

A large dealer here in Sweden has the D750 currently on sale and I really do not need two cameras. I am therefore open to the idea that a D750 may be the best of both worlds; better video and AF than the D610 but the size/weight, high ISO performance and frame rate of the D610 - camera already good enough for me. I also love the main program wheel and its U1 and U2 settings on the D610/D750. The D750 was really nice to handle. I noted that I am so used to a large top LCD that I baffled byt the small LCD on the D750 (nitpicking, I know) and I am not really sure there is a real-world improvement in IQ over the D610. DxOMark suggest there is not, I do not know. Thus the biggest advantage would be the better AF system.

 

Given the fact that you already have some FX Nikon F2.8 lenses, I suggest you take the step to FX. I would not advice against the D800, I have come to like it even though I just got it. Sure, the D10 and D85 are undoubtedly better, but they are in other price brackets too. Why not have a look at the D610 and see if that is for you? The D750 may also be an option D750 as several D750 owners will likely start to look for the D850.