So on Friday I collected my new super sweet new Nikon D300 from Calumet in Euston. Now strictly speaking I didn’t need to upgrade, I’ve been doing well with the D70 I think and enjoying using it but it is around 5 years old and technology has moved on since. I got some money returned from HSBC from a PPI insurance claim and thought that I’d make a bit of an investment in a decent camera body. It’s not like I’m not going to get any use out of it is it?
So first thoughts compared to the D70? Well, everything seems to be in a different place but it hasn’t taken long to get used to that. It’s bigger, heavier and that screen is massive! I can actually check whether an image is sharp and in focus with it. The auto focus system is infinitely more complex and I’m still getting used to that. The whole thing oozes quality and even the sound of the shutter just sounds much nicer. Other little bits I’ve been playing with are the high speed shooting at 6 frames per second which is insane – writing 6 x 11MB RAW files a second! I’ve also had a bit of a go with the Liveview settings which will be great for landscapes or architecture shots on a tripod. The quality in low light is much better than the D70. I was shooting at ISO 1600 on Friday with less noise than the D70 at ISO 800! However this better sensor has it’s drawbacks, it chucks out a 11MB RAW file which is huge. I’m having to be a lot more selective about what images I keep and bin on my laptop.
The evolution of the cameras I’ve been using over the last few years.
