Just bought
- Thread starter SacrificeTheory
- Start date
You bought a D5 after using a D800 for your type of shooting (landscapes and people) and now you wanna know what settings to use for the type of stuff that you have been shooting all along.
That is what I find odd. I wouldn't call it bizarre.
Personally I thought you were just kidding around at first myself. No disrespect meant at all.
Nikon D5 Review
I believe just follow that.
I believe just follow that.
I have a hypothetical question. I've just won £10,000 and I want to buy a new Nikon body for shooting mostly portraits and landscapes. Money isn't an issue I just want the best camera for the job. I've done some research and narrowed it down to a D5 or D810. Which camera would you all recommend and why?
My personal opinion would be that the D810 would be the better option. Those sample shots here are really good, of course the D5 will take excellent shots, but would they have been better with a D810? ISO was low so no advantage for the D5, it can't be that tough to focus on a stationary model and I don't here of D810's just falling apart. Didn't Scott Murray's D800 survive his mega car crash?
As for Ken Rockwell, I'd take what he says with a pinch of salt or two.
My personal opinion would be that the D810 would be the better option. Those sample shots here are really good, of course the D5 will take excellent shots, but would they have been better with a D810? ISO was low so no advantage for the D5, it can't be that tough to focus on a stationary model and I don't here of D810's just falling apart. Didn't Scott Murray's D800 survive his mega car crash?
As for Ken Rockwell, I'd take what he says with a pinch of salt or two.
If you don't print large and money isn't an issue, I'd go for the D5.
The larger sensor pixels will always collect more photons and thus always have an edge on the D810 when it comes to noise. I shoot the D810 and even for portraits, without flash, you quickly starve the sensor. Sure it can handle it (to a degree) but it'll never outperform a D5.
It's a bit like my D7200 vs D810. The main difference is that I can shoot the D810 more often, more hours and in more diverse situations. If I'd have a D4S/D5, the same would be true for those vs a D810.
The larger sensor pixels will always collect more photons and thus always have an edge on the D810 when it comes to noise. I shoot the D810 and even for portraits, without flash, you quickly starve the sensor. Sure it can handle it (to a degree) but it'll never outperform a D5.
It's a bit like my D7200 vs D810. The main difference is that I can shoot the D810 more often, more hours and in more diverse situations. If I'd have a D4S/D5, the same would be true for those vs a D810.
Last edited:
Scott Murray
Senior Member
Awesome purchase.
Just regarding your question
my understanding is that the D5 is a Pro level camera with a Pro level price tag, yet you ask the most basic question of all no matter what camera it would be!? What settings to use? My answer to that is use what settings suit what you are photographing and white light available you have eg speedlights, natural light, strobes, sunlight etc.
If you do not know what settings to use then I would suggest doing some classes to get the most out of the beast you now own.
Interesting [MENTION=31330]J-see[/MENTION] so for low light portraits without flash D5 will be the better performer. I can also see how smaller file size would be an advantage for some folk.
Typical landscape photography off of a tripod, surely D810 outperforms? Most portraits with flash or good light, D810 better?
Typical landscape photography off of a tripod, surely D810 outperforms? Most portraits with flash or good light, D810 better?
The D810 has more pixels but that doesn't necessarily translate into a "better" shot if you're not printing large or cropping. I didn't see any hard data for the D5 yet but I expect it to do at least as well if not better when it comes to dynamic range/colors. That's something that does make a difference.
Sure you can put both cams on a pod and increase shutter duration but it doesn't change the fact that the D5 will collect more photons (per sensor pixel) during that duration which will result into better and more accurate colors. Signal noise is proportional to the photons collected by a pixel.
Last edited:
Cool, well I hope to see more side by side tests done as I suppose we're all speculating to some extent. Personally I'd want to be able to print big as I think landscape photos shoot be printed large and put up on a wall somewhere.
I don't know really know why I'm concerned by this at all because I won't be buying either.
Good luck to the OP and enjoy the D5 and keep proving any detractors wrong, perhaps you can tell us from your own experience why it's better for what you do than your D800 and would be better than a D810?
I don't know really know why I'm concerned by this at all because I won't be buying either.
Good luck to the OP and enjoy the D5 and keep proving any detractors wrong, perhaps you can tell us from your own experience why it's better for what you do than your D800 and would be better than a D810?
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
Yes, it's a bizarre question. But not nearly as bizarre as the responses from people who, a) have never held the camera in question in their hand, and b) make completely untrue generalizations. "Best settings" are always situational, and portraits and landscapes would require completely different sets of them - which your camera will support, but no one went there. No one even asked you what kind of portraits you're doing - studio, natural light, street - and you didn't tell them.
It's not an invalid question, but yes, it's bizarre, and also the kind of question I'd expect from someone moving from a D3xxx or D5xxx to a pro body with all its new functions and not from a D800 to a D5. I'd expect anyone whose spent any amount of time with a D800 to know how to get most of the way there and then, perhaps, ask something more specific. But again, my comment wasn't so much about your question as it was about the amount of "advice" offered with no basis in fact or experience. Anyone coming onto this forum looking for sound, logic and reason and stumbling onto this thread needed to at least read from someone that there's not much here to base any decisions on the D5 on.
Going back to the basics.
The wonderful thing about photography is that photographers do different things and thus get different results, which are equally interesting.
So you can ask someone what settings they use to get a certain effect (freezing the wings of an insect, panning, pictures with motion, etc...), this is independent of the camera, the camera where you can probably try most effects is the D5 since it is so capable.
So the question is only bizarre in the sense:
- not sufficiently specific for what you want to reach, e.g. this is my issue, how do I get this better ...
- it seems to hold the answer, try things out, go crazy, do your own thing, see what you like, never stop learning.
Anyway SacrificeTheory, your set of pictures shows you are using your D5 well.
@BackdoorHippie whatever people believe they do it for a reason (even without experience), debate and when needed prove them wrong (I believe you are pretty good at that).
I got that impression as well. Why on earth would some drop 55 Benjamin's on a new camera and use it "auto everything"? That absolutely boggles my old school photography mind.
Horoscope Fish
Senior Member
Well, I'm a tad surprised but apparently I need to explain my initial post in this thread in order to clear up some confusion; so here goes...
My opening comment, the one about using the D5 in "Full Auto"? ...
(Are you sitting down? Good.)
Because yes; as many of you cleverly ascertained, that comment was meant to be humorous. Alright, I'll grant you it's not exactly a knee-slapper, not my best work, but a big clue should have been that the D5 doesn't have a "Full Auto" mode. By way of further explanation I thought the opening question was a little absurd, the equivalent of asking, "What are the best settings for this shot?", hence my attempt an equally absurd response. So yes, the response was in jest. Those of you wound a little on the tight side, can relax now.
To anyone legitimately confused my initial post, I sincerely apologize.
...
My opening comment, the one about using the D5 in "Full Auto"? ...
(Are you sitting down? Good.)
Because yes; as many of you cleverly ascertained, that comment was meant to be humorous. Alright, I'll grant you it's not exactly a knee-slapper, not my best work, but a big clue should have been that the D5 doesn't have a "Full Auto" mode. By way of further explanation I thought the opening question was a little absurd, the equivalent of asking, "What are the best settings for this shot?", hence my attempt an equally absurd response. So yes, the response was in jest. Those of you wound a little on the tight side, can relax now.
To anyone legitimately confused my initial post, I sincerely apologize.
...
Don Kuykendall_RIP
RIP :(
My head just exploded in total relief. I have been worried about you since this thread stated.
I would have trouble believing anyone would think HF Pauls post wasnt in jest 
As for D5 vs D810 for portraits and landscapes, we dont know what the images will be used for, so its only speculation which ones the best. If I was shooting pics for National Geographic, I would pick the D5 anyday over the D810.
As for D5 vs D810 for portraits and landscapes, we dont know what the images will be used for, so its only speculation which ones the best. If I was shooting pics for National Geographic, I would pick the D5 anyday over the D810.
Scott Murray
Senior Member
Yawn, I forgot my popcorn
Rio Tinto still supplies cream biscuits dont they ? They did when I worked for themYawn, I forgot my popcorn
Scott Murray
Senior Member
Rio Tinto still supplies cream biscuits dont they ? They did when I worked for them
I could have a hot Milo