any ex-d700 now d800 owners?

Some of you may know I have been planning to get a D700 for a while. It looks like I am pretty close to that day but now I am wondering should i actually get a D800.

I would love to hear the views of current or ex-D700 owners/lovers who are now shooting with a D800. What do you think? Is it worth the move? How do they compare in the real life not just on paper?

Just for background I currently have a D300 and use it for shooting weddings, portraits etc.

Thanks

Simon

I owned a D700 and it is a great camera. I was able to buy a Nikon factory refurbished D800 for $2200 so I bought it. I then sold my D700 for what I paid for it. Is there a difference? Yes. The D800 is a great tool. You will buy one eventually, so you might as well get it now. Buy once. Cry once.

TedG954 said:

I owned a D700 and it is a great camera. I was able to buy a Nikon factory refurbished D800 for $2200 so I bought it. I then sold my D700 for what I paid for it. Is there a difference? Yes. The D800 is a great tool. You will buy one eventually, so you might as well get it now. Buy once. Cry once.

Click to expand...

Dont just tell me to do it, there is too much chance of me listening to you amd just buying one. I need to know why its better

I used to own a D700 but sold it to fund my D800. The D700 doesn't have the video capability, single CF card slot (no dual memory card option) and it does not have a 100% view finder. The D800 files are just enormous and required additional expenses to upgrade my computer and storage spaces.

The D600 might be a good compromise but if you are used to the feel of the D300, the D800 is your other option.

FX vs DX: In my testings, the FX is at least one stop better than any DX. What does that mean? If you shoot a wedding scene at ISO 3200, using a D700 or D800, the camera will be able to take the same settings at ISO 1600. Is that important with your work or requirement? I think it can be.

well, I have the 700 and 800,, love them both, I had gotten the D700 within the first month of issue with no remorse I had just gotten the D300 like 10 months before, but the D700 was just that good,

and well so is the D800, I was 4th in line the first day to put my name on the list, and once again no remorse, once a fantastic camera, which has taken over from the D700, and actually, I have put a fair amont of wear on it.

I did not sell my D700, I still use it, super camera.

When I am making shots that I want to maximise print size, and well bringing out the best gear, then D800 is my goto camera.

If you can afford, I would say D800.

I also sold my d700 to fund a d800 (actually sold it at the time for more than I paid). Knowing how the d700 handles in certain lighting situations, the d800 (and even the d7000 for that matter) just focuses better, more consistently, and the flash photos are always consistently good as well. Just consider how much more dynamic range the d800 sensor has over the d700 and you will notice a huge difference in the rendering of not only detail but the lighting of that detail (especially in dark areas or in low light) and even the color. You can push the d800 much more in low light without compromising as much in terms of added noise relative to the d700. You have to be more careful with the d800 in how you shoot to get the full benefit of its capability, but the rewards are certainly worth the effort. I miss the d700, yes, as it gave images a really rich character, but the lifelike nature of d800 images is just a step above anything else IMHO.

I use a D700 side by side with a D7000 and I'm sorry but I cannot agree with your statement re focus. My 700 constantly nails focus where the 7000 fails, particularly using long focal length lenses and in low light. Just my experiences using both body's.

Thanks guys. I am not decided but am leaning towards the D800. At the same time I will be buying a 24-70 Nikkor so it will all come down to money as the lens is a must.

From all those who have owned both, how does the low light ability compare to the D700 as I know it has a good reputation?

Simon

I have found the D800 to match my D800 in low light,, frankly, the d800 is a better machine. not that I am going to sell my D700.

I have both. My d700 is my backup, although I don't use it much. The big thing to me is it captures nuance of atmosphere better. I think it's auto functions work better. The mirror slap less, quieter. It is a much better camera overall. Also, the future is rapidly approaching. 4K and 5k monitors, and ultra high def screens will be in common use in five years... So that d700 image that seems so big now will not take up the whole screen... The D800 will barely. There is a huge revolution on how we look at pictures going on. The d800 photos are going to stand up a lot longer than the D700. The d700 was groundbreaking five years ago, the d800 is an awesome camera... Accept no substitutes... Unless it causes bankruptcy. JD

Epoc said:

I use a D700 side by side with a D7000 and I'm sorry but I cannot agree with your statement re focus. My 700 constantly nails focus where the 7000 fails, particularly using long focal length lenses and in low light. Just my experiences using both body's.

Click to expand...

What lenses did you use to compare? All FX? If I just used a 50 mm 1.8D lens, the 7000 just spent less time searching than the 700. Do you use the focus assist light in low light? I did extensive testing without the focus assist light and tried to focus on either pure white or, especially, a pure black background (with some minimal detail), and the 700 had more trouble than the 7000. I tried different focus modes as well. I did not test as much with longer focal lengths, but from what I recall with a 55-200 dx lens the 7000 still performed better. It was just quicker and more intelligent in terms of being able to pick out the right part of the subject. Often the D700 would miss someone's face in favor of a foreground object and the D7000 would always nail the face, never miss it. That's one of the main reasons I got rid of my 700 was because I knew the 7000 had more advanced focusing and I wanted the quality of the 700 with the focus ability of the 7000. The 800 is just more of everything one could want in a camera. Plus I missed having the ability of taking the odd video that the D7000 gave me when I was out shooting with the D700. But this is all just my own experience with the two cameras. My D700 had low actuations on it when I got it, so it wasn't an old beat up camera, it should have performed like new.

Thanks so much guys for all your input. I have been reading up on this and along with your comments its pretty much 50/50 between getting a D700 and D800 which has left me in the same position.

I managed to get along to my local Calumet store and have a wee try with a D800E (as thats all they had available) and a Nikkor 105mm F2.8. I even remembered my own CF card so have been looking at the photos on LR4 and am well impressed. I loved the camera, the focus was so quick and looking at the shots the colours are much better than my D300 (I always shoot raw). As I type this I am pretty sure I will go with a D800 as I can't see me being in the position to change again for a good few years and by that time the D700 will be well old. The big problem is that this will mean me having to wait on getting the 24-70 which i really didnt want to do but I guess I can hire one if i need it in the mean time.

I'll keep you all informed.

Simon