New Camera time.

Phil White

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Looks like my Trusty old Nikon D90 has finally bit the dust and I am now looking for a replacement. I have a budget D3300 at the moment and only have 1 dedicated DX lens so I am considering the following options.

1/ the D500 as that has various options that might help with my wildlife and bird photography, namely the crop factor for my 400mm lens.

2/ the D810 as my lenses are mor compatible for FX use and the wider angle I will get with this camera.

3/ get both as my budget would stretch to that.

4/ final option, just go all out and get the D5.

What would you do?
 
What would you do?

I'd go mirrorless.

Or, in your shoes I'd think about what you shoot and the final output you want to achieve and pick the kit most likely to help achieve what you want.
 
If your buying the D500 mainly for the crop factor, I'd buy a D7200 and save some cash.
 
I shoot mainly wildlife and sports so the D500 might be the best option for me then??
 
If you were to buy two, I'd agree with the D500 and D810, simply because the layouts are very similar so would need less thinking about when swapping between them. Would you need a D810 though if you mainly shoot wildlife and sport?
 
I have both. I use the D500 for wildlife photography, the IQ is exceptional, as is the AF and subject tracking, the 10fps shutter is good too. I was going to sell the D810, however, when it comes to landscape, portraits etc, it's the one to have so I've kept it. Basically, if it moves I use the D500, if it doesn't...the D810 is best.
 
I've had the D810 it's an exceptionally good camera with loads of cropability too, I now have the D500 and that's really impressive for focus speed and accuracy, I'd say start with D500 as will suit your current style and if you still feel you need it get the D810 but have a feeling you will stick with the D500
 
I have decided to just purchase the D500 for the time being and enjoy that which should be a leap forward from my dead D90!

I will be getting a battery grip for it and i see there are several available at a much cheaper cost than the genuine Nikon model. Are they any good and if so which one to go for??
When i bought the D90 brand new in store i got the genuine grip for that at the same time and from memory it was nowhere near the cost of the one for the D500.
 
Personally, I'd go for the D810 as a single body solution. My reasoning being that you can crop into the images the FF body provides to get a Dx crop but it's less easy to merge 2 shots from a Dx body to get the FoV available from an FF body. For sports, there's the added advantage of having a wider view through the VF, allowing you to see any action as it's coming through the outside of the view.

Not a real fan of any grips but IIRC, Meike are reasonable in terms of quality and cost.
 
Well I've not yet bought a new camera as I'm still deciding and the time is almost here for me to choose. As I have already said my D90 is dead and I'm currently using a D3300 budget body that my daughter gave me.
How does the D500 compare to the D90 in terms of IQ for example is one of my thoughts.
 
I was in a similar dilemma a few weeks ago. I already have a D300/D3, with my shorter lenses covering dx and the longer stuff fx. I do like the option of carrying 2 bodies so in the end went for the D500 to have the option of dx/dx and dx/fx. The D500 I've had for a few weeks and its a fantastic body. You could go for the 7200 but it's down to personal choice, back when I bought the D300 the D90 was a popular cheaper choice but I liked the more pro spec/build quality of the D300.

Good luck or as someone has already said buy both.
 
If I had the money for both, i'd get both.
I do have the d500 and imo it's better in the hand for me than the d7200.

Look around for the grip, i'm sure I've seen the original at more normal prices.
 
Phil, I use both. They are very different machines. If you had to get just one, I'd recommend the D500 since you're used to DX and probably have an array of suitable lenses already. Also, for most wildlife work, speed and reach are often desired. The D810 is a little slower, both in terms of AF speed and FPS, but the file and dynamic range is hard to beat. If you're not bound by DX lenses, having both gives you a wide range of possibilities. My last two recent posts in the wildlife section were made with D500 should this be of interest.

Hope this helps.
 
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