Looking for some advice on a new D850 purchase

djt

New member
I’m just getting back into photography and getting ready to purchase a D850. My last Nikon camera, that’s still in mint condition was the D200 that I purchased brand new in 2005.

I’m looking for some advice on what to do about lenses to go with the D850. I still have a Nikon AF NIKKOR 35-70mm 2.8D and a Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D that I was using with D200. Would these lenses work ok with the D850 or am I better off selling them and putting the money toward new lenses?
 

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
I’m just getting back into photography and getting ready to purchase a D850. My last Nikon camera, that’s still in mint condition was the D200 that I purchased brand new in 2005.

I’m looking for some advice on what to do about lenses to go with the D850. I still have a Nikon AF NIKKOR 35-70mm 2.8D and a Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D that I was using with D200. Would these lenses work ok with the D850 or am I better off selling them and putting the money toward new lenses?

Both should work fine on the D850. Since I haven't used either lens, I'm not sure of their optical quality compared with newer lenses. The thing is your D200 has a 10.2mp sensor while the D850 has a 45.7mp sensor. What that means is any flaws such as a lack of sharpness will be even more noticeable on the D850 due to its sensor.

Hopefully others here will be able to give you additional information on those lenses while mounted on the D850.
 

djt

New member
Both should work fine on the D850. Since I haven't used either lens, I'm not sure of their optical quality compared with newer lenses. The thing is your D200 has a 10.2mp sensor while the D850 has a 45.7mp sensor. What that means is any flaws such as a lack of sharpness will be even more noticeable on the D850 due to its sensor.

Hopefully others here will be able to give you additional information on those lenses while mounted on the D850.

Thank you for the response.

Some quick research on-line turned up favorable comments about the quality of these two lenses (some calling them tanks as far as build quality goes). I guess this could also be seen as a problem due to the weight of lenses when mated to a newer camera body.
 

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Optically, I doubt that the 35-70 will be adequate with the D850. I had one with my D700 and as soon as I got the 24mp D600 it started to show weakness. Specially backlit shots would be unusable. If I was you, I would replace both with more modern lens designs. The 24-120 f4 and the 70-200 f4 would work much better than what you have.

Don't forget that with the D850's definition, VR (vibration control) lenses are almost a must if you plan any hand held shots.

There are great deals for the D750 and the cost difference would allow you to upgrade your lenses. 24mp is plenty for a semi-pro level of photography.

Good luck with your decision.
 

djt

New member
Optically, I doubt that the 35-70 will be adequate with the D850. I had one with my D700 and as soon as I got the 24mp D600 it started to show weakness. Specially backlit shots would be unusable. If I was you, I would replace both with more modern lens designs. The 24-120 f4 and the 70-200 f4 would work much better than what you have.

Don't forget that with the D850's definition, VR (vibration control) lenses are almost a must if you plan any hand held shots.

There are great deals for the D750 and the cost difference would allow you to upgrade your lenses. 24mp is plenty for a semi-pro level of photography.

Good luck with your decision.

They just took another $200.00 off the price of the D850 today so maybe I can purchase a Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR Lens with the body. This could hold me over until I make another trip down to B&H and see what they would give me for the two lenses I have.


Thank you very much for the info!
 

Bikerbrent

Senior Member
Welcome aboard. Enjoy the ride.
We look forward to seeing more posts and samples of your work.

I own and use the Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D which was a holdover from my film days. It is one great lens and should work great with a D850. The only real shortcoming is the lack of VR. But we worked around this issue without any problems during the old film days.
 

STM

Senior Member
The D850 still retains the screw coupling so it should work just fine with the D series lenses. It also works superlatively with all AI and AIS lenses, which are all I actually have. You may initially be disappointed with the resolution of your images with the D850. This is not the fault of the camera, it is revealing potential shortcomings (which we all have) in technique. Any unsharpness due to camera shake or any mis-focus by the lens will be painfully obvious.
 

STM

Senior Member
Optically, I doubt that the 35-70 will be adequate with the D850. I had one with my D700 and as soon as I got the 24mp D600 it started to show weakness. Specially backlit shots would be unusable. If I was you, I would replace both with more modern lens designs. The 24-120 f4 and the 70-200 f4 would work much better than what you have.

Don't forget that with the D850's definition, VR (vibration control) lenses are almost a must if you plan any hand held shots.

There are great deals for the D750 and the cost difference would allow you to upgrade your lenses. 24mp is plenty for a semi-pro level of photography.

Good luck with your decision.

24MP is sufficient for any level, including professional level, photography. The D5 is only 24 MP. If your enlargements will not exceed 11x14 or at most 16x20, 12MP is sufficient. I have 16x20 prints taken with my D700 and they are still very sharp.
 

djt

New member
Welcome aboard. Enjoy the ride.
We look forward to seeing more posts and samples of your work.

I own and use the Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D which was a holdover from my film days. It is one great lens and should work great with a D850. The only real shortcoming is the lack of VR. But we worked around this issue without any problems during the old film days.

Both the Nikon AF NIKKOR 35-70mm 2.8D and the Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D were originally purchased back when I was still using a F100.

For the most part this camera will be used for landscape photography, can I get away without VR by using high shutter speeds?

 

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
For the most part this camera will be used for landscape photography, can I get away without VR by using high shutter speeds?

Part of that will depend on your technique. Because of the high mp of the sensor, any slight shake or movement will be much more obvious with this camera than one with a 10mp or 12mp sensor.

Since you aren't sure whether or not to keep your existing lenses, unless there is a lens sale that has a great price now, just hold onto your existing lenses and try them on a D850. If you aren't happy with the results, then plan to upgrade.

Or...wait until later in November to get a D850. Usually Nikon has combo body/lens sales - at least here in the USA.
 

djt

New member
Or...wait until later in November to get a D850. Usually Nikon has combo body/lens sales - at least here in the USA.

Thanks for the heads up on the body/lens combo sales, that would also allow me more time to get money together and see what I can get for the lenses I have now.


The other side of this is that I’m going to the end of 2019 with this purchase and wondering what is going to happen with mirrorless cameras in 2020, lol
 

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
The 35-70 is plenty sharp above 5.6. It's at 2.8 that backlit scenes get foggy. I don't know about the 80-200 but it used to be a top of the line lens at some time.

If your main use is landscapes AND you use a tripod, VR is not that necessary. But shutter speeds around 1/125s that used to be safe with your D200 won't cut it with the D850's high resolution. You'll get a slight blur from mirror slap or camera movement that will haunt you.

Both the Nikon AF NIKKOR 35-70mm 2.8D and the Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D were originally purchased back when I was still using a F100.

For the most part this camera will be used for landscape photography, can I get away without VR by using high shutter speeds?

 

Bikerbrent

Senior Member
Both the Nikon AF NIKKOR 35-70mm 2.8D and the Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D were originally purchased back when I was still using a F100.

For the most part this camera will be used for landscape photography, can I get away without VR by using high shutter speeds?

Small world. I also purchased my 80-200mm for my F100 as well and do a lot of landscapes. And yes, higher shutter speeds are the answer to no VR. If you hold your camera steady, 1/200 should work, otherwise you might want to go to 1/250 or 1/300. Finally, I don't actually use this lens for a lot of landscapes as I usually want something wider than 80mm (120mm on my D7200). My Tokina 28-70mm f2.6-2.8 was my go to landscape lens for my F100.
 

TwistedThrottle

Senior Member
I’m just getting back into photography and getting ready to purchase a D850. My last Nikon camera, that’s still in mint condition was the D200 that I purchased brand new in 2005.

I’m looking for some advice on what to do about lenses to go with the D850. I still have a Nikon AF NIKKOR 35-70mm 2.8D and a Nikon ED AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 2.8D that I was using with D200. Would these lenses work ok with the D850 or am I better off selling them and putting the money toward new lenses?

I recently purchased a used D800 (36mp)and couldn't drop a bunch of money on lenses right away, so I went to the used market and picked up a 35-70 2.8D and 80-200 2.8D both push pull versions both in remarkable condition. I love the 80-200 but find the 35-70 lacking. I don't really enjoy shooting with that lens on the D800 because of the short zoom range and the flare issue. It sure can crank out some sharp images though. I do enjoy the 24-120 f4 VR even though its not as fast (aperture). Speaking of fast, that's what both of these lenses are not- fast to focus. Instead of the 35-70, I break out the 50mm 1.8 and zoom with my feet, otherwise its the 24-120 VR or the 15-30 2.8 Tammy(v1). Below is a shot I got with the 80-200 on the D800 this last weekend. Bottom line, yes they will work better than ok on the D850 and there are options once you want some. (look into Tamron 15-30, 24-70 & 70-200, V2 especially if you want to eventually use them on the Z cameras with the FTZ adapter.

DSC_3414sm.jpg
 

Chucktin

Senior Member
If I was in the market now I'd have to wait til Spring next year to see what the reality is behind the rumors of the next gen Z coming out.
The '6 and the '7 were steps backward IMHO but the new lens mount is something Nikon should have done 10 years ago so that it could get passed any acceptance problems. Should a new body be a D850 equivalent I'd be sorely tempted to sell mine in favor of a lighter package.
 
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