oh no

just played with a d80. its nice.

so now theres: auto bracketing as mogrim said, better results at ISO 1600, LOTS more steps in ISO (200, 250, 320, 400 instead of 200 and 400) quicker access to controls, kelvin wb setting AND it feels nicer in the hand. oh god

Heh heh.. it really is quite a step up.

If you like shooting in Manual mode then having two control wheels makes the ergonomics easier – one controls aperture, the other shutter speed. Much better than messing about in menus.

yup. damn.

gf not impressed (bike obsession + existing debts = not chuffed)

tho is the d80 better in low light than d40 or comparable? thats what would really swing it for me

I’ve got a D80 and it’s lovely….just need an SB800 for it now, a 105mm Sigma macro and one of those cheap 50mm Nikon prime lens’ and I shall be sorted! Hmmmm.

The two controls wheels do make it very easy to adjust things.

tho is the d80 better in low light than d40 or comparable?

Never done a direct comparison myself, but looking at the DxO Mark comparison of Nikon D40 vs D80 Signal-to-noise ratio then it looks likes the D80 is a bit ahead.

(Note: this is based on the RAW files, you may find the D40 performs more consumer-friendly aggressive image processing if you shoot JPEGs)

gf not impressed (bike obsession + existing debts = not chuffed

Simply apply woman logic: getting the D80 would mean you could get the cheaper non-AF-S 50mm lens, instead of the expensive AF-S one – so it is actually saving you money.

Oops sorry – I read that wrong – actually the D40 is ahead of the D80 on that chart – which is surprising.

yeah id heard the d40 pips the d80, i wouldnt use 2 wheels at the mo as my 50mm is a fully manual so aperture is adjusted on the lens itself

and gf isnt impressed by my spending more cash, ah well ill cut my teeth on the d40 and start saving for a d300

Ah the D40 is 6 megapixel and the D80 is 10.
So I think that means the D80 has more noise but the noise is smaller. Or something. 😕

lol! lookin at results of that test i dont feel as drawn to d80

which is a good thing…

now to take some pictures 🙂

Thanks for the DXO Mark link! I use DXO for all my pics, but I’d never come across that

yeah id heard the d40 pips the d80, i wouldnt use 2 wheels at the mo as my 50mm is a fully manual so aperture is adjusted on the lens itself

If it is the Nikkor 50mm then you should be able to set it to the aperture marked with an orange dot and lock it there with the little switch.

The camera will then control the aperture. This is a “good thing” because it means the lens is fully open until you take the picture – so you get the brightest possible viewfinder image with an exaggerated focus.

no its not the af-d either, its an old e series ie proper fully manual never an autofocus 🙂 it doesnt even have a meter reading (tho would on d300)

i love it to bits tho, metal body and best of all lent to me by a friend, the real question is whether i get an af-s or af-d f1.4 when the time comes…

Forgot about the motor in the body bit, another good reason to upgrade…

Ah fair enough.

Well the Nikkor 50mm f1.8 D AF Lens is around £89 new.
the Nikkor 50mm f1.4 D AF Lens is £209 new.

Personally I think £120 extra is a lot to pay for two-thirds of a stop.

(having said that, the f1.4 with AF-S is £259 and I would think about paying that for AF-S if I had a D40!)

The Nikon 50mm 1.8 is great. Super sharp!

I bought mike’s D70 and love it. Next stop a D300 when I can afford it… I’ve already collected too much kit in 2008

As for a prime this has just been released which is the same focal length as the old 50mm on the smaller sensor on the D300 and below.

which is the same focal length as the old 50mm

“same field of view”

the lens motor issue is bothering me less and less as i dont use auto on the 50 and at times frustrating its not the end of the world. plus the lenses id prob want are af-s or i wouldnt use af-s (like on a wide angle)

think 50mm 1.4 is a case of diminishing returns and also i think it may be a metal body and dif construction. id seriosuly consider one seein how much i use a 50 but ill prob get 24 maybe trade in the 17-55 and get an 18-105 vr just so have somehting bit longer and then start saving for a beastlier body

Apologies simonfbarnes. I forgot where I was for a second and was typing in a rush. pedantworld.com

Anyway, what I meant to say is nicely summed up by this chap from Nikon

The majority of lens systems have offered 50mm lenses as the most accessible way for new DSLR users to experiment with fast prime lenses (a legacy from 35mm film cameras on which they acted as ‘standard’ lenses). Yet Nikon has decided that its new offering should be a 50mm equivalent.

More here

pedantworld.com

I was trying to be helpful, it seemed to me you weren’t clear about the terms. A lens has a focal length which does not depend on what it’s connected to – it’s just a measurement of where it projects a sharp image of an object at ‘infinity’. The field of view depends on the size of the sensor/film frame…

Sorry, more pedantry:

– it wasn’t Nikon that said that, it was dpreview.

– sfb is quite right, the focal length is 35mm. That doesn’t change.

– 50mm is usable as a portrait lens on a DX body, 35mm is a bit wide.

ok, thanks for clearing that up chaps

yeah id find 35 bit wide for portrait, ok im def going to keep a lid on my body buying-first a 24 old school manual lense then something with a bit of length maybe sell 18-55 and get 18-105 VR or ideally something fast and then look at the ever so sexy f1.4 50mm 😛

then a d300

then a wide angle lense…..

if you are properly into your old school prime lenses then the D700 would be a better option, plus you wouldn’t have to argue with sfb about focal length pedantry

yeah but tbh the d300 is a pipedream, the d700, well the d700 is something to think about when i have alone time

i may steal my mates d700, totally worth it

btw mr wright im planning on selling the 18-55 and getting prob an 18-105 if youre interested

sorry, too late, shiny bike things got in the way (well a whole shiny bike actually!)

then the D700 would be a better option, plus you wouldn’t have to argue with sfb

go for a plate camera and I might vanish into thin air with a pop…

Spend the money on glass unless you need something specific that the D40 cannot do. A much better investment.

i concur mr conker, now which glass…..