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Old Nikonian seeks dslr advice

nws56

nws56

pfm Member
Returning to photography after 15 year layoff ; ready to buy my first digital body to use with existing AF and MF lenses. Have neither desire nor computer to do any post processing , just want to run cable from camera to 65" tv and view jpegs as is. Or maybe stop off on the way via a PS3. Have been looking at D3 bodies , but need your experience before I do anything rash on flea bay .
Thanks, Nicholas.
 
Sorry, forgot to mention that I'm looking at big bodies ( ! ) because I've got large hands and love the feel of my F5.
 
How are you going to store your images? Or share them? Or rescue an otherwise great pic? If you're determined to avoid any post processing I'd just buy a £400 compact and forget about it. You need some sort of computer/tablet, seriously.

Or just use a 35mm slr.
 
If you want a D3, you probably actually want a D3s, as it adds a few bits, and most usefully an anti-dust vibration system for the sensor - if you aren't planning on post processing, then dust in the sky can be very annoying.

You can also get cameras like the D700 and add a battery grip to them, which gives you the same resulting size camera, but with the benefit of being able to remove it if you want something lighter for travel.

I have the equivalent age canon cameras, the 1D Mark II and 1Ds Mark II, and these are great to use, but are bulky. I've a more recent 5D Mark II which gets more use.

I can see the appeal for some 'just view it on the TV' style photography, and avoiding computers as much as possible, but it might be sensible to plan to have some sort of workflow to upload the images to a web photo hosting service (still with no processing) since this gives you much more flexibility (viewing without the camera) and an effective backup mechanism too. Look at flickr or one of the equivalents, and see how easy it is to get images from camera to service (might be as easy as one click in an application with the camera attached to the computer).
 
Are you computer phobic? I am struggling to think why you don't want to use one.
I guess you could use a fresh card each time you shoot but how will you store them?

Limiting your shooting to jpg only would not be using a D3 to its full potential a D300 and grip would be much cheaper option.

Nikons free editing software is easy to use much less complicated than photoshop etc.
I use it for 99% of my editing.

Pete
 
Another option is a DF, it'll probably cost you more and I don't know if it's large enough for you. The DF should I believe have better jpeg processing than the D3. You may or may not like the controls on the DF - I do as I grew up with an FE.
 
Thanks for replying Tony. I plan to store pictures on the PlayStation 3 ; it's a superb media device and much quicker and easier than any of the computers I've used at home. I find compacts unusable because of my hand size. The only film camera I was ever really comfortable with was - and still is - the F5, hence the attraction to D3 .Sharing stuff online has no appeal. Sorry. Rescuing photos? Never done it. I shot slide film; if it wasn't perfect it went in the bin. That's my idea of workflow.
 
Cesare, thanks for that. Yes, I've been wondering about 3/s/x . Reading up on the dust thing suggests that the sensor shakers don't cure the problem. Always disliked the add on grips for small bodies. My F90x creaked everytime I picked it up. Maybe I was just unlucky.
Can not see the point of sending pictures into cyberspace first before viewing them later on a tv screen. Why not just view them straightaway on the tv screen?
 
Hello Pete,
no, not phobic, just not interested. The small screen sizes have always put me off for photographic purposes . I was accustomed to viewing slides on a 7 foot screen, so crowding round a laptop with the family to look at photos has never had any appeal. The advent of large HDTV has changed all that. Storage is taken of by the PS3.
With only 2mp possible on the display device, you could say that I won't be fulfilling the potential of any dslr, but I'm ok with that.
 
Thanks Clive. I may be old school but that thing is just too old school, even for me ! And yes, its smaller than I want. But thanks for replying.
 
yep, the world's moved forward. A little deft editing on Lightroom can provide the difference between average image (or even woefully under-exposed) and great (or even good) with a digital source such as D700 or D3 (or later kit). Particularly shooting RAW. Then you export your image for output; you'd tailor them for projection from your PS onto your TV.

I'd second D700 and grip, Nicholas. They can be had for peanuts, handle well, lovely sensor, and will make good use of your existing glass. What lenses do you have?

Backing up your images is essential. When the projector broke down you still had your slides. With digitial, they're gone forever of they're not backed up.

HTH
 
I'm sorry, but I just can't see the point of gathering the family around the TV to look at poor photos. Where's the joy in that? More like purgatory.
 
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