Looking for a sturdy DSLR

[mongoose]

Hello, it's been a while since I've posted. It's time I changed to a DSLR and I'm looking for suggestions. I need a simple but sturdy DSLR that I can take with me in the outdoors. Something that can stand up to freezing temps (-20F), shaking around and all the general abuse that comes with climbing in rough conditions. I used to use a Nikon F3 which is bombproof. I've done so many bad things to it and it's never had a single problem. I'm sure no digital will ever be able to take the abuse that it's been through which is why I'm reluctant to buy one.

Features are not a big deal to me, I've never had an autofocus camera and I've always used center weighted metering. I've always been a Nikon user, but I'd be willing to switch to Canon since it looks like I'll need to buy all new digital lenses too. Does anyone have any suggestions? Does anyone else here have the same issues with their photography?

[Franglais]

What lenses do you have? Many older Nikon lenses are compatible with some current DSLR bodies. Of course the view you get is not the same - multiply by 1.5 to get the equivalent focal length on a Nikon DSLR (a 28mm on Nikon DSLR gives you the same view as a 42mm on your F3).

Is this for professional or amateur use? If you are selling landscape images to a picture library you might find that they refuse images from some DSLR's

[mongoose]

It's for personal use, although when I get some vacation time the next few months I may use the free time to sell photos and promote my work at art shows. So I'd like to have a good camera. Some of my photos are at http://www.mongeese.org

For lenses I have: 18-35, 70-300, 50mm Nikkor lenses. I heard that to get the best image on a digital camera, you need to use digital lenses due to lower amounts of chromatic abberation, the light hitting the sensor straight on, etc. Do you think it really matters? It would be nice to be able to reuse all my old lenses. Probably 80% of my photos are shot with my 18-35mm lens. I think the D50 can use my old lenses, but not the new D40?

Some other questions:
What's the battery life like in really cold temps?
Do LCD's work when really cold?

[Franglais]

It's for personal use, although when I get some vacation time the next few months I may use the free time to sell photos and promote my work at art shows. So I'd like to have a good camera. Some of my photos are at http://www.mongeese.org

For lenses I have: 18-35, 70-300, 50mm Nikkor lenses. I heard that to get the best image on a digital camera, you need to use digital lenses due to lower amounts of chromatic abberation, the light hitting the sensor straight on, etc. Do you think it really matters? It would be nice to be able to reuse all my old lenses. Probably 80% of my photos are shot with my 18-35mm lens. I think the D50 can use my old lenses, but not the new D40?

Some other questions:
What's the battery life like in really cold temps?
Do LCD's work when really cold?

I see we do the same sorts of landscapes (waterfalls, etc). The 6Mpix sensor is enough (D50, D40, D70, D70s) but the 10Mpix sensor is better (D40x, D80, D200). It has more resolution and less tendency to burn out the highlights (in my opinion).

With digital sensors you need lenses with excellent resolution and the rest. If you want to use lenses designed for film this means sticking to ones that are really excellent. My experience:

- my pro f2.8 constant film zooms are even better than my designed-for-digital lenses
- my (budget-priced) 28mm f2.8 prime is fine on my 6Mpix sensor but lacks resolution on the 10Mpix sensor
- my 24-85 AF-S also lacks resolution (it looks smeary) and I don't use it any more
- my 70-210 AF-D is fine except at the telephoto end (same with film)
- my 50mm is fine but it's the equivalent of a 75mm and I hardly ever use it. The 28mm has replaced it

I've seen tests of the 18-35 and 70-300 and both seem to turn in respectable results. I would stick with your existing lenses to start with. You'll have to add a true wide-angle to replace your 18-35. The Nikon 12-24 is the best but it's very expensive. I'm quite happy with my Tamron 11-18 which was much cheaper.

All your lenses will fit the D40/D40x but not autofocus. You would have to focus manually and rely on the green focus-is-OK light to know when to stop because the D40 has a horrible little viewfinder that is a big step down after the F3. The D50 will autofocus but it has the same viewfinder.

I would say your minimum camera is the D80 which has a nice viewfinder and the 10Mpix sensor. The D200 is like the D80 with a nice metal body and weather sealing - probably the most "reasonable" solution. But if you really want to replace your F3 then it would have to be the D2X which is certainly out of my price range.

I have no idea about batteries and LCD's in the cold. I would keep a second battery in my pocket in cold conditions.

[mongoose]

The D200 is too much for me. I'm aiming for something around $500. I could justify something a littler under $1000 if it's a big step up from the lower end cameras. I sold 1 photo with that paid of my F3, so I'd be happy with a camera that could do that again.

My lenses I have now are most likely lower end lenses:
18-35mm f3.5-4.5
50mm f1.8
70-300mm f4-5.6

Maybe I could use the old lenses and buy a new digital wide angle lens since that's what I use the most.

How easy is it to focus using the "green focus-is-OK light" on the D40? On my F3 I used a split screen. Most of my subjects are still life and scenery, although I'd like to do some action photography (mountain biking, mountain climbing...).

I hate small viewfinders, especially since I wear glasses...

[Xia_Ke]

... I think the D50 can use my old lenses, but not the new D40?

Some other questions:
What's the battery life like in really cold temps?
Do LCD's work when really cold?

I have a D50 and several older lenses. I've used an A-type 13.5cm/3.5 Nikkor Q and I use my K-type 300mm all the time. The 135 they stopped making around 1960 and the 300 is from the late 70's. Both work excellent. Only problem is no metering with either lens which I'm slowly getting used to. I take my D50 hiking with me all the time but, I'm am super anal about packing it well when I go out so no problems so far (knock on wood ). I have used it no problems down to about -5F with no problems. The LCD is a little slow and not fully accurate color wise at those temps but, is perfectly fine after it warms back up. One thing to keep in mind with cold temps like that is going from the cold outside to the warmth inside. This can cause condensation inside the camera. I keep a couple freezer bags with me to take care of this. Before you go back inside, put your camera into the freezer bag and release any excess air. When back inside, let the camera fully warm up to room temperature before taking it out of the bag. The D50 is a great camera, if you have any more questions regarding it, let me know and I'll see if I can help

Aaron

[mongoose]

Only problem is no metering with either lens which I'm slowly getting used to.

Is that only a problem with the really old lenses? What about the current Nikkor "film" lenses?

[Xia_Ke]

Shouldn't have any problems with those either. My two everyday lenses are a Tokina 20-35mm f/3.5-4 (older 72mm version) and a Nikkor AF 35-135mm f/3.5-4.5. The Nikon is from the mid-late 80's. The Tokina I think is early-mid 90's. Absolutely no problems with the Nikon. I get an occasional problem with the Tokina. Sometimes the chip will glitch and you will lose AF and aperture control. This is a chip issue and the lens can be sent back to Tokina to update the chip but, all I need to do take off the lens and put it back on to reset it. It happens once every blue moon and there is no rhyme or reason to it. I have not heard of this problem with any other lenses. Other than that, no problems at all.

[Xia_Ke]

Here's a link to a lens compatibility chart that will give you a breakdown of Nikon lenses with different Nikon cameras and what functions will/won't work:

http://www.nikonians.org/nikon/slr-lens.html

[Franglais]

The D200 is too much for me. I'm aiming for something around $500. I could justify something a littler under $1000 if it's a big step up from the lower end cameras. I sold 1 photo with that paid of my F3, so I'd be happy with a camera that could do that again.

My lenses I have now are most likely lower end lenses:
18-35mm f3.5-4.5
50mm f1.8
70-300mm f4-5.6

Maybe I could use the old lenses and buy a new digital wide angle lens since that's what I use the most.

How easy is it to focus using the "green focus-is-OK light" on the D40? On my F3 I used a split screen. Most of my subjects are still life and scenery, although I'd like to do some action photography (mountain biking, mountain climbing...).

I hate small viewfinders, especially since I wear glasses...

I almost bought the 18-35 - I wouldn't call it a low-end lens. I guess your 70-300 is the ED version. I've seen quotes from professionals who are very satisfied with it. The 50mm f1.8 is famous as being top quality at low price.

I just tried the green-focus-is-ok thing on my D200 and it's quite easy to use. You're looking at the green light outside the frame rather than at the center of the frame, but that wouldn't matter for landscapes.

You won't find a D80 for $500. The D40 is close but only seems to come in kit with the 18-55. I found the small viewfinder on the D70 very frustrating and that plus the compatibility of the AF system with your lenses plus the 10Mpix sensor would make me choose the D80 if I were you.

[mongoose]

Thanks for all the info everyone. I'm leaning towards the D80 now. The D80 and the D200 look very similar, except the D200 advertises that it has extra weather sealing and a sturdier body which is what I really want. The D200 is almost double the price of the D80 though which is too much for me. I might goto the camera store tomorrow and check them out.

[Franglais]

Thanks for all the info everyone. I'm leaning towards the D80 now. The D80 and the D200 look very similar, except the D200 advertises that it has extra weather sealing and a sturdier body which is what I really want. The D200 is almost double the price of the D80 though which is too much for me. I might goto the camera store tomorrow and check them out.

The D200 came out first. It has a specific version of the 10Mpix Sony sensor with more output channels to allow it to do 5 frames/second. Like the D2 series it also supports most older Nikon lenses. It has a nifty (optional) battery pack that allows you to use two batteries or AA cells. It has the same 1005 pixel metering system as the D2X. The default image optimisation settings are moderate to please professionals which makes some people say the images are soft.

The D80 was derived from the D200. It doesn't have the features I just mentioned but it does have the same viewfinder and focussing system. It has the simplified 450 pixel metering system as the D50 and D40 so it's perhaps less accurate than the D200. It seems to have the same image optimisation settings as the D50 and D40 so the results look punchy and pleasing for amateurs.

Try them out. I think you'll regret the feel of the D200 but the D80 should suit your needs.

[mongoose]

I just realized today that the the "digital" lenses from Nikon still need the focal length modifier applied to them. So to get a wide angle lens equivalent to my 18mm (35mm) lens, I need a 12mm lens? Do you people have any suggestions for a cheap lens around that length that I can use with the D80? All the 12mm zooms I've found are very expensive.

[Xia_Ke]

Good luck but, if you find any anything that wide for cheap, PLLEEEAAAASSSSSEEEEEE let me know

[mongoose]

The least expensive lenses I can find are:
Tamron 11-18mm f4.5-5.6 $470
Sigma 10-20mm f4-5.6 $499

I've heard good things about the Sigma, but I've never heard anything about the Tamron.

[Xia_Ke]

I meant cheap like $100...LOL

All joking aside, here's a comparison test you should check out.

[mongoose]

Nice comparison. Maybe I should start ebaying all my old camera equipment and get that Tokina.

B&H has a used D80 for $800. Item condition is a 10. I'm so tempted to buy it right now. I guess I could learn to live without an extreme wide angle for a little while.

[Franglais]

The least expensive lenses I can find are:
Tamron 11-18mm f4.5-5.6 $470
Sigma 10-20mm f4-5.6 $499

I've heard good things about the Sigma, but I've never heard anything about the Tamron.

I have the Tamron 11-18mm and I use it with my D200. I'm pretty happy with it - it makes me wish I used a wide wide-angle more often. Unfortunately the 18mm is the widest I usually go (=28mm in film terms).

I think the Tamron is a fairly conservative design. The zoom range is fairly small, as is the maximum aperture. The result is a lens that doesn't have light fall-off at the corners and where the center is pretty sharp all of the time. There is some loss of sharpness at the edges at wider apertures. There is some chromatic aberration visible on big enlargements in extreme conditions. But as I said I'm happy with it. I almost always use it with a tripod anyway.

I've never tried the Sigma. I've seen that lots of people are happy with it. I checked out the photo librray on another web site and it looked to me like all the Sigma pictures had light fall-off at the corners whereas the Tamron didn't so I went with the Tamron.

BTW the Sony/Minolta 11-18mm is the Tamron rebranded

[mongoose]

How long will the battery last on the D80? I rarely use a flash. I go on multi-day backpacking trips which means no recharging for a few days. I get 2-3 years out of my F3's battery before replacing it.

So many questions... Thanks for answering them all.

[Franglais]

How long will the battery last on the D80? I rarely use a flash. I go on multi-day backpacking trips which means no recharging for a few days. I get 2-3 years out of my F3's battery before replacing it.

So many questions... Thanks for answering them all.

I have the D200 not the D80 but it uses the same battery and much of the electronics. I get maximum 400 shots out of a battery (sometimes less). And the power you can get out of a battery drops drastically in cold conditions.

I could say get one or even two spare batteries and keep them warm.

One handy thing on the D200 is the battery level indicator. It says how many shots you've already taken and precisely what % of charge is left. It's pretty reassuring. I don't know if the D80 does the same.

[mongoose]

If I replace the viewfinder diopter with a higher powered one (-5.0), will that work with the diopter adjustment? So instead of having the base diopter adjustment of -2 to +1, it would become -7 to -4 right?