I'm about to drop a ridiculous amount of money (good old Aussie dollar...) on a D700 and 24-70 so I have a camera capable of shooting low light conditions (ie weddings and a big indoor classical music festival I've been asked to cover), and also so I have a good camera (my D300) as a backup and for the 70-200 at weddings.
I'm feeling quite legitimately nervous about it as I may also have to shell out for a new computer very soon as my mac seems to be a lemon (fixable, but I can't keep up with the work while it keeps breaking down, the logic board is faulty for the second time etc etc). But re the camera, I'm prepared to do it as long as I'm convinced I'm doing the right thing. I am planning on taking a 4 hour drive on Sunday to pick it up, so any answers tonight would be fantastic.
Could any D700 owners who have upgraded from the D300 (or D200 perhaps) please tell me exactly what they have found to be the major differences between the two cameras, what they're happy with, and if there are any drawbacks?
I upgraded to the D700 recently from the D200. I love that I can now take photos at iso 400 and above without massive amounts of noise (I don't think you will notice the difference in noise as much going from the D300 to the D700 though). The auto WB seems to a lot better, the over saturation in the reds seems to have improved and my photos are looking crisper too. The full frame is nice too, especially indoors. I do miss the extra reach my lenses got on the D200 outdoors, so I am still using my D200 with my 80-200 lens in those situations.
I have not found any significant drawbacks to upgrading to the D700 yet. The only thing I was really surprised about was the weight. I thought my D200 felt heavy at times, but the D700 is even heavier.
If you can afford it, I don't think you will be disappointed in upgrading and from everything that I've read, the D700 and 24-70 lens is a great combination (it's one of the lenses that I'm debating about getting).
I don't even own one but I'd give a left nut in a second for that kind of ISO performance. And the fact that I've been shooting 35mm recently has kinda spoiled me with an actual 24mm FOV with my 24mm lens. Like I said, I don't own one and I've only messed around with them a few times, but they're awesome.
I have shot with one for two days, still cant publish the pics because of a contract.... But it was the perfect tool. The weight, the size, the VF....
Oh and yeah, Image Quality!
Thanks everyone for your encouragement - I'm off to the Gold Coast to pick one up tomorrow! I may be poor forever, but rich in what I will be able to do!
Really? When I got mine I almost ran home to open it up!
When you have to drive so far and be bullied by so many trucks on the way, its almost like a birth of fire. The thought of finding that there was something wrong or missing was too terrifying....
however.....
I have put it together now.....
I can not believe how amazing it feels in the hand, and the 24-70 is SO elegant and incredibly fast - faster than the 17-55 for some reason (perhaps thats the camera). I've been running around taking photos of all sorts of boring things in the house at INSANE ISO's, and it really is true! JUST INCREDIBLE :-)
I see you've already bought it so the only thing I can add is a suggestion to get the MBD10 battery pack which turns the D700 almost into a D3 at far lower price. Incredible speed and battery life and it attaches without removing the camera battery, which will automatically kick in when the battery pack is exhausted.
I bought the D700 primarily to take advantage of my old manual Nikkors without the crop factor of my D200. The D700 lets you store info on up to 9 non-CPU lenses compared with only 1 for the D200. Those old lenses still carry their weight because of lower distortion than zoom lenses. (I don't use any modern professional grade zooms so I cannot compare with them.) I would love to hear how the 24-70 compares with equivalent old Nikkor primes.
Its funny, when I got mine I was at work. My boss looked at me and said "you're not gone yet? Go home and get it." So I did. My wife thought I was freakin nuts but what the hell. Congrats on the gear and have fun.
