Dennis Peek

Look for the Nikon MH-19 charger (Product Number 25259). It charges two batteries and

comes with a 12VDC car adapter. Look at Nikon tech support website and query for the

MH-19. Quote from Nikon's site:

 

"MH-19 battery charger is also a charger for an EN-EL3 series battery, but features dual

battery charging positions. Only one EN-EL3 series battery at a time can be charged, when

the battery in slot #1 has been fully charged, the battery in slot #2 will begin to charge.

The MH-19 is also multi voltage supporting a range from 100-240 Volts AC/50-60hz and

is supplied with a cord to connect it to a vehicle's DC power port (cigarette lighter). This

makes the MH-19 ideal for photographers who travel frequently to different countries and

use Nikon cameras powered by EN-EL3 series of batteries.

 

With the addition of an optional adapter cord set, the MH-19 has the ability to charge

additional batteries types. Supported batteries are: MN-30 (for the F5), requires MC-E1

adapter cord or the MN-15 (F100), EN-4 (D1 series) and EN-3 (E2) which require the MC-

E2 adapter cable.

 

The MH-19 features a battery refresh option, which discharges the battery before charging

to ensure the maximum charge is achieved. Using the refresh option with the MN-30,

MN-15, EN-4 and EN-3 batteries prevents any 'memory effect' problems associated with

NiCad rechargeable batteries. Note this refresh option cannot be used with the EN-EL3

series of batteries.

The write speed may not be in issue as long as you are not shooting very fast. At high

speed rates, the D200 buffer will fill up faster than it can write. You are then waiting on

the camera to begin shooting again.

 

Reading a card in-camera is limited to the USB 2.0 speed or the card speed, whichever is

slowest. Most people use an external card reader as they can transfer images easily at 4 to

8 times the USB camera port speed. Rob's site lists multiple readers with Macs and PCs.

Readers are preferred to in-camera. After all, on in-camera mode, you will have a thave

afully charged battery or AC charger. If power is interrupted during the transfer (battery

fails), the files could be corrupted or lost.

Check out http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=6007. Select the D200

from the camera list, or a reader and computer, on the right drop down box and you'll find

very detailed info on Canon and Nikon as well as in-camera results on most cards.

 

The difference in your needs depends upon your shooting style. If you do a lot of high-

speed bursts (think sports action), a faster card may be required. Quite a speed boost of

the Extrme III over the Ultra II but less so between the Extreme III and IV. Also look at the

PC read. The Extreme IV with the new Firewire reader from SanDisk on a FW800 Mac is

astounding compared to others.

Tony -

Let us know how it does on the 20" 2.0 GHZ iMac G5. I have the same machine and have held off on Aperture as I am concerned about speed issues. I'm using Capture NX (love the point tool) and iView but I'm very interested in Aperture. Alas, Apple offers no download trial and the Apple Store machines are all the latest and greatest Intels. Give us a report after you have tried it. Thanks...

You can purchase a Nikon 2-year warranty extension for $149.

 

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?

O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=413132&is=REG&addedTroughType=search

 

You may be thinking of Nikon Professional Services. You have to join. Search photo.net.

 

http://www.nikonpro.com/ has some info for renewal.

I stand corrected - Bibble is available for Mac OS X. I have never heard any Mac users mention

it or their experiences with it so I assumed there was not a version and we all know what

assume does.......

 

So you have another option on the Mac!

iView Mdia Pro is very good and is available for Mac and PC - I have used it for years.

Catalogs are interchangeable. However, Microsoft bought the compnay so long term use on

OS X could be iffy.

Hala -

 

What software you can use may depend on your camera. For example, as a Nikon user you

have Capture and NX available for your work but they will not handle Canon. Likewise,

some software recommended here, like Bibble, is Windows only and not available for the

Mac. Or Apple's Aperture is Mac only.

 

The Nikon and Adobe products are available for Mac or PC. Again, try the free downloads

availble that will work on your computer and are compatible with the RAW files generated

by your camera.

What are your computer and camera platforms? That may affect your software selection.

I use Nikon Capture NX on a Mac and find it is adequate for 95+% of what I do. Works equally

well on a WIndows XP machine. I have Photoshop CS on Windows and CS2 on a Mac but find

them difficult and cumbersome with a steep learning curve and 3-4 times the price of NX.

Apple's Aperture is a software tool that may be useful. iView Pro is better at file management

than Adobe Bridge or Lightroom but it has been acquired by Microsoft so who knows what

will happen. Suggest you get the free demos and try them to see what works best for you.

An easier link is

http://www.photo.net/neighbor/subcategory-index?id=2

If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. On some of the very low prices, check out

the deal.

 

At CCI, where the body is $755, the battery is $695 (B&H sells the battery for about $45),

the charger is $399, and a memory card is over $500. At reputable firms, the $1699 price

includes the body, battery, and charger (as packaged by Nikon). A high quality 1GB CF

card (Lexar or SanDisk) is under $100 vs. their $500+ offer. Do the math. They may not

sell the body without the battery and charger, at inflated prices, and they may not even be

Nikon!.

 

Stay with reputable firms. Look at the ratings. Check out http://www.photo.net/

equipment/caveat_emptor on this site. Read some of the horror stories on the bait &

switch con artists that pose as camera stores.

 

Personally, never had a problem with B&H, Adorama, J&R, KEH, Wolf (now Ritz), but check

out other's experiences on photo.net.

I had a similar problem with NX on a G5 when I first installed it as a demo - the print,

save, and preferences did not work. I installed it on a backup drive with an operating

system and it worked fine. I also tried it on an old dual 450 G4 at my office and it worked

just fine. I concluded it was a conflict but was never able to isolate. It may have been a

fluke or something that occurred because all processes were not shut down during the

install. Tried uninstalling and reinstalling to no avail. Finally reinstalled the system,

installed NX and all my other software and it has worked flawlessly. The 1.01 update also

worked fine.

 

The download is free from Nikon. When you purchased your copy from Nikon Mall, they

emailed you a license number as well as provided it online with the receipt.

You can download a free trial from Nikon. Google for Capture NX Review and you will find several good demos of the control point technology.

I shoot with a D200 and tried using Capture (on a Mac G5) initially. I found it slow and

difficult. Tried the NX demo and bought it after two weeks of trial. Much faster, much

more intuitive than Capture. I find that, for me, NX is much easier to use than CS2 for

nearly all my work.

 

I recently processed some shots from my grandson's Christening - available light, strange

mix of fluoresecnt and other sources with a persistent yellow hue, green walls. I tried

correcting color using CS2, NX, Capture, and Lightroom. Found that NX was the easiest to

use and the control point technology was great.

 

The Mac interface is still clunky but not as bad as Capture. Could be improved though.

I have used iView for several years and find it much better than iPhoto. I use it on both my Mac (home) and a Dell notebook. Good cataloging program but it has limitations. As a Mac user primarily, I am concerned about long term support and usability since Microsoft bought iView. MS track record in photo apps and media is not impressive. Not a good development in my book. Too many other apps used on Macs have been bought and killed by the new owner.

Nikon has a great online interactive tutor at

http://www.nikondigitutor.com/index_eng.html

 

You may find it useful

 

Happy shooting!

I have primarily used iView Media Pro and CS2 but found PhotoShop clunky and difficult to

use - way more than I need. With the acquisition of iView by Microsoft, I don't hold much

hope for its future as a Mac user.

 

I have used Nikon View to download images but found it to be too slow for library

management. Capture is a bit difficult with its interface and slow to use but handles NEF

nicely. I like the new NX but have a few questions/observations.

 

On a Mac G5 iMac, it is much faster than Capture. The control point feature is very nice

and easy to use. Really like it.

 

NX does not have the organization / workflow of Lightroom that I really like. Too bad.

Aperture does not really fit my needs either. It would be nice to see the features of NX

coupled with Lightroom.

 

There does not appear to be any transfer function like in Capture. Nikon on-screen help

says it works with PictureProject 1.6.4 or later, but the latest version I find is 1.6.1. So

maybe there is more to come.

 

There is a 30-day limit on the trial copy. The preferences window will not open and

printing is disabled. I guess this is a function of the trial version but I would like to use the

full program before I buy.

 

Hopefully we will see more dialog here as others start using these new apps and will see

some more finished products as Adobe and Nikon refine their offerings.

I second what Bill Fouche just said. We wiil not buy Dimension models - we use the workstation models (engineering firm, do fair amount of graphics plus CAD and PS). The hardware in workstations (Dell Precison) is more suitable for the heavier use and workstations have more expansion capability, including added RAM slots.

 

You get what you pay for.

Max the RAM - 2 GB minimum. XP cannot handle more than 4 GB in the 32-bit iteration. Not sure what PS limits are but probably 2 MB. If you are running multiple apps, you'll need the RAM for them plus PS.

 

Two HDs internal should be more than adequate - go with at least 160 GB with 16 MB cache. A pair of 320 or 500 GB drives is a lot of space if you are not doing video. If you need more storage consider an external array ( FW, not USB, for speed). With FW, you can easily daisy chain without hubs. External storage/backup gives you a copy of your files you can remove for safe storage elsewhere. Using an external drive for processing will be slower than the internal drives.

 

A 128 MB ATI or Nvidia graphic card is more than adequate for most users. You don't need a $1200 card for PS. Unless you are doing 3D rendering or CAD or some gaming, the high-end video cards with high frame rates are not required. Depends on the monitor(s) you want to drive. Multiple monitors or large monitors like Apple's 30" may require special consideration.

As there are no known viruses on Mac OS X, I suspect you have another problem. Suggest you

head over to the Apple.com support section. Probably an iPhoto problem. Can you check it in

any other software? Perhaps Adobe Lightroom or iView Media Pro - free betas or demos are

available.

I stand by my statements - for a new or novice user, without an IT staff on call and who is

not a techie, OS X makes a better platform with fewer problems and setup difficulties.

 

I am responsible for IT at the corporate level in an engineering firm and speak from

experience. I can shift between the two platforms easily and Windows has some strong

applications but is not the end all, be all of software. Try deploying AutoCAD 2006 Civil

3D - it has been a disaster. We are now trying to deploy AutoCAD 2007 because it corrects

the bugs of 2006! And Windows accounting software is better than anything I've seen in

the Mac world. The only atmospheric air dispersion modeling software is Windows based

(actually compiled from Fortran code with a Windows face on it). Windows is THE platform

for hydrogeological modeling.

 

But we are talking about a new photgraphic user.

 

As a starter, the iLife applications that come with the Mac just simply work well, especially

for beginners - nothing close in Windows. iPhoto will work. If you want more powerful

functions, you can add applications. iView Media Pro and the Nikon apps (Nikon View,

Nikon Capture, and Nikon Scan) are all very usable on the Mac as is Adobe PhotoShop or

Creative Suite. In addition, for business needs, you can use Microsoft Office 2004. And

Apple support has been top-rated by Consumer Reports. Apple's hardware has also been

top rated by Consumer Reports.

 

Go with Windows if you want - Windows 2000 support is being phased out - I believe

October 2006? XP has the clock running. Vista has been delayed 5 years and major

features have been removed? We have upped our servers to Windows 2003 at a major

expense. Viruses and security patches are a MAJOR problem. We have 1999 vintage Macs

that perform printing tasks on an HP DesignJet plotter that our expensive, high-end CAD

workstations cannot do (print 42" x 84" display graphics for presenatations from a PDF

file).

 

I could go on but the important point is that new users need something that works well

with minimal support and that is OS X, not Windows.

PS -

On the DVD/CD burner, the internal burners are OK for occasional use but you can expand to

an external unit for higher duty use. This is when FireWire is definitely better as you can dasiy

chain devices on FW and the sustained throughput is higher. I use FW on three external drives

and two external DVD / CD burners (dual FW/USB cases allow them to move between my Mac

and Windows machines). My slide and flat scanners are USB. Card reader is also USB.

I use both Mac OS X and Windows XP Pro. I use Windows and Macs in the office and at

home and travel with a Dell D800 Latitude laptop. The easier and more reliable is

definitely the Mac. I do not recommend Windows for new computer users. Any Windows

laptop you buy today will probably not be able to run the next Windows system due next

year. Any Apple laptop you buy today will be good for the next five years or more - Apple

promises to support its products for five years.

 

The newest laptop, the MacBook, is a very inexpensive laptop for the power available. The

MacBook Pro is larger with more features. I have found the Apple laptop screens and LCD

screens superior to the Dell and IBM laptops for photo work (color and brightness). For

photo work, RAM is most important - 2 GB preferred.

 

Storage (hard drive size) depends on what your needs are but 80 GB will do for a start as

you can always add a FireWire or USB 2 external hard rive for extra storage (FireWIre is

faster than USB2!). You should also get a DVD/CD burner (Apple's SuperDrives are usually

Pioneer or Panasonic). Video should be at least 64 MB of dedicated DDR SDRAM. Cheap PC

laptops will "share" RAM from the main memory and performance suffers. You will need a

USB card reader (about 20-50 USD). At least one FireWIre port and two USB ports should

be included.

 

One thing on portability and ease of use - using a wireless connection and new network

setups on a Mac is simple. Doing the same thing on a Windows machine is difficult and not

for the novice. Even using BlueTooth for cell phones, PDAs, and keyboards and mice on a

Mac is simple and works easily and reliably. On Dell laptops, we have given up on

BlueTooth use at the office because it is so difficult and fails frequently.

 

The Mac OS is not going away - about 25 million users worldwide confirm that. Apple

continues to provide the most innovative software systems that just work well. Every major

publication (Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Time, Newsweek, and several PC

publications) has raved about the new Apple MacBook and MacBook Pro.

Check out Nikon's digital tutor on line at

 

http://www.nikondigitutor.com/index_eng.html

 

Really quite good if you have broadband.

Addendum to previous comment:

 

DAT Optic is an importer of the Speedzter drive enclosure. The manufacturer is Deltron.

 

http://www.deltrontech.com/Enclosure/E3/E3.htm

 

The thermal test data for these enclosures is at

 

http://www.deltrontech.com/PDF/0901/ThermalTest.pdf