Had some good photography advice from her previously so … have a D70 which I’ve really enjoyed. Tend to use a 50mm and 18-200 zoom. Played plenty with it, but finding it not great in low light; the v small screen and relatively slow focusing a bit annoying now. Otherwise, it’s great, and way better than me!

Would a step up to the D70 make sense in terms of the above? Also, I’m guessing that the D90, being that much newer, would have other modest benefits, and hopefully assist me in capturing good pics. I’m no professional, but am enjoying trying to learn the art!

Ta

What lenses are you using in respect to the f number?

I went D40 to D90; not sure its helped me take better photos but the greater ISO range and motor in the body to drive my 50mm lens has been a great improvement that i’ve enjoyed. The LCD display on the top has encouraged me to play with exposure and white balance and bracketing more than I ever have so it was an enjoyable upgrade for me.

D90 is a good camera and has good low light capabilities, however, second hand they are fetching about £450 (or were when i replaced my stolen D90), depending on how much you are looking to spend, I’d be tempted to move up another notch, else there wont be that much difference between the 70 and the 90.

That said, I like your commitment to sticking to the camera mantra of only upgrade when your current camera is holding you back, and only upgrade to what you need.

If you’re going to use it, the HD video mode is nice, but its so rare that i use it!

thanks … I’m not expecting a change to make me better, maybe just to help me a tad more.

Don simon – both lenses are Nikon, 18-200vr and 1.8 50mm … I tend to seem to shoot typically with large apertures

meehaja … what would be your thoughts to the next step from a D70?

Cheers

I have both and the D90 is far more user friendly and versatile too.

Don simon – both lenses are Nikon, 18-200vr and 1.8 50mm … I tend to seem to shoot typically with large apertures

How large? f5.6large? f3.5 large? f2.8 large? f1.8 large? or f1.4 large?
Is the 50mm giving problems too? And what are you shooting? At what ISO?

I’d probably look at a D7000? I was going to upgrade when I replaced my first D90, but then figured I should stick with what I know for a bit!

Bodies tend to advance quite quickly in features and sensor technology, so compare lower end present models against the D90’s specs. Trickle down happens pretty quickly in camera bodies and especially sensor tech, so you may find a lower end model has all the abilities of the D90 and more. Invest in good glass (the 50mm f1.8 is a cracker, and the 18-200 very handy indeed) and expect bodies to depreciate pretty sharply.

don simon … 50mm 1.8, and 18-200 3.5-5.6. Above ISO400, the D70 seems to be a little noisy

The viewfinder on the D70 is a bit pants compared to the D80 or the D90.
That alone will probably make a difference to your shooting.

I went from a D3000 to a D90 at the start of the year and while the image quality isn’t much different at normal ISO’s I did find the usability to be quite a bit better, and the top display is quite nice too.

Also it might be worth noting that the D90 is quite an old model now, the D5100 is the new model at about the same price range – not sure how it compares though.

I was originally holding out for the D7000 to be released before getting my D90 but it was way too expensive for my budget – might be worth a look if the budget can stretch that far.