D500

Dave Semmens said:
Gramps - I think the problem we both faced was coming from the D810 to the D500. We could open up D810 files and crop right into them and still come away with large files.

Do that with the D500 and it will disappoint to some extent.

What we probably forget is that the image is already so much closer than we could have got than with the D810 due to the crop factor.

Not sure if that makes sense - but it did cause me concern until I got my head round it :)
Click to expand...

Even with my short trial last night with the D500 i can relate to this, was really disappointed with noise coming through but need to re-train brain!
 
Osmo said:
Even with my short trial last night with the D500 i can relate to this, was really disappointed with noise coming through but need to re-train brain!
Click to expand...

I agree, I'm quite disappointed with the noise at 100% crops tbh. I expected better. I've had good results at 1600 but poor at 800. Fixable in post, but still, I thought it would be better controlled (and looked it from all the tests I saw before buying one).
 
htid said:
I agree, I'm quite disappointed with the noise at 100% crops tbh. I expected better. I've had good results at 1600 but poor at 800. Fixable in post, but still, I thought it would be better controlled (and looked it from all the tests I saw before buying one).
Click to expand...

Of course we need to remember that the D500 is 20.9MP compared with the 24MP D7200 or 36MP D810 and the difference will of course show up in large crops ... however, the type of noise in the D500 is much finer than in the other two, which is quite blotchy, and therefore much better to deal with in conservative noise reduction. :)
 
Absolutely. Additionally, what im also experiencing is that my subject matter is still too far away for the lenses and TCs that I can afford and consequently I am finding myself cropping far too much that what i would like! Can anyone lend me a tame sparrow hawk please?
 
Are the D500's bought from the likes of Panamoz/HDEW OK for registering with Nikon Professional Services even when they are greys?
 
Osmo said:
Absolutely. Additionally, what im also experiencing is that my subject matter is still too far away for the lenses and TCs that I can afford and consequently I am finding myself cropping far too much that what i would like! Can anyone lend me a tame sparrow hawk please?
Click to expand...

We all have that problem!
I have a 500mm and 1.4 & 1.7 TC's but it's still never enough! :D
 
shapeshifter said:
Are the D500's bought from the likes of Panamoz/HDEW OK for registering with Nikon Professional Services even when they are greys?
Click to expand...

I registered my D500 bought from Panamoz with Nikon UK and didn't get an error message or anything. And they knew I had the D500 registered when I had to phone them for a repair, as the chap on the phone offered to fill in the return form for me over the phone. I chose to fill it in online though.
 
gramps said:
I've never found 3D to work on any Nikon I've had!
Click to expand...

Some people are saying the full 153 focus points works very well. I was about to try it when I broke my camera. :( :rolleyes:

I'd mostly been using the 25 point AF, and occasionally the Group AF for birds and pics of Cricket matches, which is mostly what I have been taking pics of up to now.
 
After getting the quote for my repair on Tuesday, and checking the status of my repair every couple of hours, to read that "your equipment is awaiting repair", I phoned and asked today whether they had a timescale for the repair, to be told about 4 weeks. :eek: :confused: :mad: :rolleyes: They then said it is a very busy period and 3-4 weeks. :( Not what I wanted to hear of course. Fingers crossed they can get it done quicker. I don't think I will torture myself in checking their site, and wait till they ask for money. I assume they will be quick enough doing that when they have done the repair. ;) :LOL:
 
redhed17 said:
After getting the quote for my repair on Tuesday, and checking the status of my repair every couple of hours, to read that "your equipment is awaiting repair", I phoned and asked today whether they had a timescale for the repair, to be told about 4 weeks. :eek: :confused: :mad: :rolleyes: They then said it is a very busy period and 3-4 weeks. :( Not what I wanted to hear of course. Fingers crossed they can get it done quicker. I don't think I will torture myself in checking their site, and wait till they ask for money. I assume they will be quick enough doing that when they have done the repair. ;) :LOL:
Click to expand...
Timescale seems very long to me. I use Sendean for my repairs. Pentax and Nikon all repaired within a week. You can see the man who is repairing your camera sat behind the counter. I would not have anything to do with Nikon repairs or Fixation. There are other repairers that are far more effective.
 
shapeshifter said:
Timescale seems very long to me. I use Sendean for my repairs. Pentax and Nikon all repaired within a week. You can see the man who is repairing your camera sat behind the counter. I would not have anything to do with Nikon repairs or Fixation. There are other repairers that are far more effective.
Click to expand...
I've never heard of them. I may give them a ring tomorrow and see what they say. Thanks.
 
redhed17 said:
I've never heard of them. I may give them a ring tomorrow and see what they say. Thanks.
Click to expand...

http://www.sendeancameras.co.uk/ I have used them for over 30 yrs. They used to do a lot of the Fleet Street Togs cameras. It probably takes about 2 hours max to change a screen.That means your camera is sat on a shelf for 3 weeks 6 days and 22 hours. That's not acceptable. find someone else. Nikon and Fixation are both really poor.Fixation last year took a day to examine my camera and quoted £400 pound for the repair which included a new sensor being fitted. I took it to Sendean they examined it and quoted £250 telling me it did not need a new sensor at all as there was nothing wrong with it. Sendean got the job as usual. I thought I would see what Fixation had to say but I got bad vibes from the onset on visiting their establishment ( full story posted else where on TP). Nikon are just arrogant and in short time wasters don't use them unless their is no alternative. Also the guy who set up Fixation came from Nikon.
 
Where can I buy an additional battery for the D500? Wary of buying one from Wex etc and getting an 'old' model battery.
 
WWA said:
Where can I buy an additional battery for the D500? Wary of buying one from Wex etc and getting an 'old' model battery.
Click to expand...

Unlikely but why not ring them up and stipulate Li-ion 20? :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: WWA
Harsh light/shadows again today and constantly fiddling with exposure compensation, with the inevitable (for me) forgetfulness ...

Exposure1.jpg




However the recovery process with the D500 file worked very well (Photoshop) ...

Exposure2.jpg

 
Last edited:
gramps said:
Harsh light/shadows again today and constantly fiddling with exposure compensation, with the inevitable (for me) forgetfulness ...

View attachment 69608




However the recovery process with the D500 file worked very well (Photoshop) ...

View attachment 69609
Camera​

NIKON D500​

Focal Length​

500mm​

Aperture​

f/6.3​

Exposure​

1/800s​

ISO​

3200​
Click to expand...


That's actually recovered quite well.
 
Had some issues with Lexar professional 1000x SDXCii cards. Not recording images. Card read Error. Will update firmware over the weekend and report back.
 
trevorbray said:
Had some issues with Lexar professional 1000x SDXCii cards. Not recording images. Card read Error. Will update firmware over the weekend and report back.
Click to expand...

That's what I am using and I haven't has a card problem (yet!) either before or after the firmware update :)
 
gramps said:
That's what I am using and I haven't has a card problem (yet!) either before or after the firmware update :)
Click to expand...

Used them in the D750 with no problem. I've got a couple of the 32 and 64. Problems with both. I'll keep you informed.
 
So as i said above its new camera day today and I've been rather excited. Went out tonight but the weather was rubbish, mostly rain and dark clouds in-between so no light to get a real feel for the D500.

So far I'm loving it, the ergonomics and the lay out/ customisation of the buttons is awesome. The grip is so comfortable compared to the D610 I'm coming from. The FPS is crazy fast, I have a san disk SD Extream Pro 280 mb/s and it's by far the largest and quickest FPS and buffer I've ever experienced.

Hopefully the weather will let me get some pictures to share with you all soon.

I was confused about if I should be using group or dynamic focus for moving things? Had some BIF to shoot and a slow moving Roe fawn?
 
Last edited:
Also which RAW mode should I use? Compressed or not and 14 or 12? Any advice great fully received.
 
WWA said:
I was confused about if I should be using group or dynamic focus for moving things? Had some BIF to shoot and a slow moving Roe fawn?
Click to expand...

I find group to be the most useful as it will almost always snap on focus quickly ... I've also programmed the Pv button for single focus point so I can easily switch to single point when I've got focus with Group :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: WWA
WWA said:
Also which RAW mode should I use? Compressed or not and 14 or 12? Any advice great fully received.
Click to expand...
I use RAW, 12bit lossless compressed. Compressed because I want smaller files, lossless because I don't want to lose any data, and 12bit because I think for most scenes I don't think there would be that much difference between 12 and 14bit. If and when I have a scene that has a large dynamic range, I may change to 14bit.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WWA
Took my new D500 out for an exploratory session this evening, most enjoyable, despite only my second 30 minute session. Wow, I love it. I took a risk when buying it rather than hiring, like my much more sensible friends here on TP!

Please allow me to explain...my DSLR history is as follows: from a Fuji bridge (something or other) save save save, and then,...first DSLR - D300. Loved it and then I was just sucked into the hype of FF. The next 'natural' upgrade considering how I very much appreciate innovation and technological evolution was to move to the 'all conqureing FF', was a D3S, never mind this nonsense - you guys refer to it as GAS. I was actually only in the market for a D700 at the time but when a D3S came along at the right price (I'm sure no one here would criticise me for going for it!), as it was a non-optional camera-technology convention after all! Despite my good fortune of acquiring a D3S from a friend (awesome tog) I then made a bit of a mistake. A mistake only, and I can't stress this enough, mistake only due to what I loved the D3S for (e.g action - of any kind, wildlife or motorsport) I foolishly (for me, this is only my opinion after all) I sold it to enable the purchase of a D800. Oops! My shots took an enormous, to my eye, plummet in quality. :( After about a month of trying the D800 in different conditions and trying to improve my technique knowing about the 36mp showing up any flaws in technique (shakey-hand-man) in a shameless and insulting manner, I decided that my mistake was going to cost me!

Next came a D810, at more expense, this was much better, ergonomics alone made this a more natural fit (sorry!)....but, for my purposes, something still was wrong...enter the D500. Thank you Nikon!

As much as I fully appreciate the benefits of the D810 FF (or D8XX) camera as illustrated by @BillN_33 early in this thread, which I still do, the camera was still not right for my intended subjected matter (action, wildlife, BiF) despite its awesome croppability. I purchased the D500 to have in addition to the D810. Without having any examples to show you (too embarrassed to show my shots on here with so many great photographers) and as much as Nikon had said from the initial launch of the D800, different cameras for different subjects...they were so right. Again, welcome D500...for what I like to take shots of.

At this time, due to my love of macro and landscapes, I feel very fortunate to have both a D810 and a D500 but only because each camera is focussed (sorry) on very a different subject matter, or at least it is in my, most amateur of enthusiast hands.

For anyone considering a D500, please stop and consider what you like taking shots of! Considered shots, landscape (tripod, low iso) macro (in good light), immense croppability great, go for one of the D8XX range otherwise lose the DX/FX snottiness and definitely consider the all-round capability, albeit expensive, of Nikon's high-end APS-C D500. I haven't even tried it with anything other than a 300mm f/4 PF +1.4 Mk III TC and its ability to give me sharp BiF is incredible. This may say more about me than the camera but, 'oh well'.

What do I love about the D500 so far? (bearing in mind less than 60 minutes of use!):

1. AF speed - and accuracy. This is number one by far.

2. Customisation, the sub selector AF-ON, alternate AF mode, genius. So simple but genius. Nikon, how have you not always had this???
This has been mention by @Dave Semmens and @gramps and others previously but this nice article explains its importance,
https://www.flickr.com/groups/393420@N25/discuss/72157669060554191/

3. Articulating, great resolution, touch screen.
4. Light weight (although not great balance if using a heavy lens).
5. Great low noise high ISO ability for a APS-C sensor.

I can't wait to get out with this camera again for BiF...... but the D810 is still a brilliant camera for the correct purpose and for once I took the expensive gamble of having both rather than embarking on a part/ex arrangement.

Thinks for reading and sorry for the long post!

Please bear in mind that all of the above ramblings are just my opinions.
 
Thanks for the advice again guys. I hope to get out with the camera again later today. Is it Sod's law that new camera weekend is always grey overcast and wet?!? Hope to add some pictures to this thread soon.
 
So far my only issues are 2 x lock-ups, resolved by removing the battery (a real pain if I was using a battery grip and annoying as my older universal 'L' bracket covers the new battery cover position) ... hopefully this well documented issue (Thom Hogan) will soon be resolved by a firmware update.
 
Sorry to hear about lock ups and memory card errors. Hope they are resolved soon and easily.

The memory cards im using are:

Xqd: lexar 32gig 2933x professional compact flash card

Sd: sandisk extreme pro 32 gig sdhc ush-I/u3 95 mb/s

Both appear to be working normally.... At the moment!
 
Last edited:
I'm looking for a new Nikon body soon, I currently have two DX format Nikons and was thinking of going FX but this D500 sure looks good. The problem is I also want to do wildlife shots so have the 600mm f4 in mind but will I have any issues using such a lens on the DX format. I have read various mixed opinions on this already. I don't want to end up with a none compatible combination if you know what I mean.
 
Phil White said:
I'm looking for a new Nikon body soon, I currently have two DX format Nikons and was thinking of going FX but this D500 sure looks good. The problem is I also want to do wildlife shots so have the 600mm f4 in mind but will I have any issues using such a lens on the DX format. I have read various mixed opinions on this already. I don't want to end up with a none compatible combination if you know what I mean.
Click to expand...

600 f4 will work fine on the D500 and give you extra 'reach' to boot :)
 
Thanks gramps, what's your opinions on teleconverters on supertelephotos as I was also considering the 400 f2.8 as an alternative just in case I was in a situation where the 600 was too close to focus as that will give me a bit more flexibility.
 
Phil White said:
Thanks gramps, what's your opinions on teleconverters on supertelephotos as I was also considering the 400 f2.8 as an alternative just in case I was in a situation where the 600 was too close to focus as that will give me a bit more flexibility.
Click to expand...

I use a 1.4 and a 1.7 on my 500 f4 VR and get great result, I would hesitate to use a 2x though as IQ does take a bit of a hit.
I've had a 400 f2.8 and it is probably the best IQ of any super-telephoto, it will take all three TC's very well but I would still hesitate to use the 2x regularly ... although it is the best, if you are going to use it for wildlife, particularly small birds, you will regularly yearn for more reach.
 
trevorbray said:
Had some issues with Lexar professional 1000x SDXCii cards. Not recording images. Card read Error. Will update firmware over the weekend and report back.
Click to expand...

trevorbray said:
Used them in the D750 with no problem. I've got a couple of the 32 and 64. Problems with both. I'll keep you informed.
Click to expand...

Firmware updated. Shot 250 family shots today. Used one of my Lexar cards. No problems.
 
gramps said:
I use a 1.4 and a 1.7 on my 500 f4 VR and get great result, I would hesitate to use a 2x though as IQ does take a bit of a hit.
I've had a 400 f2.8 and it is probably the best IQ of any super-telephoto, it will take all three TC's very well but I would still hesitate to use the 2x regularly ... although it is the best, if you are going to use it for wildlife, particularly small birds, you will regularly yearn for more reach.
Click to expand...

I've heard the 800mm f5.6 E is another level above the 400 2.8 but who can afford that? ;)
 
As some of you may know from previous posts, I've always been a bit frustrated with my BiF shots using the D810. As other, far more talented, photographer's on TP are able to get great shots of BiF using the aforementioned camera I have no problem admitting my frustration may lie with 'user error'.

Bearing in mind my frustration with BiF using the D810 I wanted to share with you a typical example of something else that you may agree represents a greater challenge still, DiF. Dragon flies in Flight. The key point for me here, in that this is a 'typical' shot of these gravity defying beasties. I took about 25 shots of this migrant hawker (female, please correct me if this is wrong), at quite considerable distance and all but 2 were in 'focus', not pin sharp but pretty good considering the following challenging conditions. In my hands, with the D810, the success rate would have been inverted - at best!

Please appreciate that I know neither of the following shots are great and there is nothing at all scientific in what I'm about to show, and the cropped image is cropped and processed too much, but this is what Ive been able to achieve on my third short outing with the D500.

Camera: D500
Lens: 300mm PF f/4 VR on
TC: 1.4x Mk III

Handheld.


Aperture: f/5.6
Iso: 400
Shutter speed: 1/6400
Metering: Centre Weight
Aperture priority
AF: Group AF assigned to sub selector.

SOOC other than resize in PSE


Extreme crop and processed to bring up some detail in the dragon fly - wasn't trying to create a masterpiece.



Another example of AF accuracy and speed, not IQ!

If you consider how small the dragon fly was in the frame (despite the lens+TC+DX sensor), the challenging background the AF system needed to deal with to track and lock on to the very fast hunting dragon fly.

Same lens and camera as above.

Handheld.

Aperture: f/5.6
Iso: 400
Shutter speed: 1/4000
Metering: Centre Weight
Aperture priority
AF: Group AF assigned to sub selector.

SOOC just resized for convenience in PSE


Extreme crop and PP.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top