Nikon D3 - am I being a fool?

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ruvor

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Hi, I'm totally fed up with my useless backfocusing (AF and MF) D2X, I need my pro body for use in 7 days time so service is probably not an option.

Am I being foolish if I were to go into town this afternoon and buy a brand new D3? (£2699 + a slight loyal customer discount)
In all honesty I can't really justify the cost, but have the cash spare. Is this a big mistake?
 
Only you can answer that but you could consider a D700 with the same sensor as the D3
 
If you have the spare cash go for it, you know you want to :D
 
If manual focus lenses are backfocusing, you have a severe alignment issue.
 
TG. said:
If you have the spare cash go for it, you know you want to :D
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Spoken like a true Capitalist :p

If it's driven you this far, and it seems that money is aching to be set free, then sure go ahead and spend it; but maybe the D700 and a few other things you need / want would be a more viable option, as has already been suggested.
 
puddleduck said:
If manual focus lenses are backfocusing, you have a severe alignment issue.
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yea so I've heard. It's hardly going to be worth the cost to repair, hence the D3.

a D700 is not a great deal of use to me as the batteries run dry pretty quickly at -20˚C. add on a grip and door and the price difference isn't looking so much.
 
Does the 4a battery last that much better in the cold then?

Have you thought about adapting some motorcycle heated grips to keep the batteries warm? or one of those fisherman's hand pocket warmer things that use chemical heating?
 
desantnik said:
Does the 4a battery last that much better in the cold then?

Have you thought about adapting some motorcycle heated grips to keep the batteries warm? or one of those fisherman's hand pocket warmer things that use chemical heating?
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The battery last much longer than my hands. I am a DIY fan, buy I do have to hike with all this gear in my pack.
 
Maybe the heated battery grip might be a good idea for you then.... keeps your hands warm and the battery warm too :)

http://www.chasesmith.co.uk/Camping/Camping_Accessories/sc1413/p2015.aspx

Mind you, 45 mins long might not be long enough and 50-55ºc might not be good for your camera if taped to it :D

Although, having said that, if your hands don't burn on it, its not going to effect plastic is it?
 
Hmm, enough chit chat. Next time I post in this thread I will have a nice new D3. Gotta live for today and all that. I'm not going to regret it until the bailiffs are hauling my HiFi out of my house.
 
why not go the whole hog and get the D3X? :-)
 
AndyB said:
why not go the whole hog and get the D3X? :-)
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Not so sure i would bother with that just yet, it seems a lot more money for not much better features :(
 
Any good camping store will have chemical warmers for palms and feet. I am sure these can be used to keep the batteries warm, to help retain their charge :shrug:. They're about £2 for a pack of 2 and last8 hours.
 
Its got to work hasn't it? I've never tried it, but cannot see why it wouldn't work. The low temperature is the problem and nothing more or less than that.

I suppose a £2 solution is not as good as buying a D3 though...
 
I love this sort of post. It's like saying "I'm going to get this superb, but rather expensive camera body... but I'm feeling a bit guilty about it, so if I discuss it briefly with fellow photographic chums I wont feel so bad about it". Let's face it, once you've come this far the money is as good as out of the account and a big gold box is in your hands and a huge smile is on your face :woot:
 
I had a look around and couldn't find anything about enl-4a's and performance in cold temperatures... can you show me where you found it?
 
Yea, I've got a pretty odd lifestyle, work and save for a whole year, then travel (with the photo stuff) for a whole year. It's awesome! (no long term prospects though)
 
ruvor said:
Yea, I've got a pretty odd lifestyle, work and save for a whole year, then travel (with the photo stuff) for a whole year. It's awesome! (no long term prospects though)
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Nothing odd about that, sounds great to me :thumbs:
 
i had the money and am spoilt, by myself, so i bought 1dmk3 brand new and 35mm f1.4L last week, so am biased, go for it. ......
 
Xup said:
If you need a hand warmer, get one of these, they really do the job, to hot to hold with out the cover on, and last 20 + hours.

I use mine all the time up high in the mountains of Snowdonia in winter, sitting/standing around for 6 hours at a time, in sub zero temps.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/HANDWARMER-S-...photoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262
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Nice find Xup - that looks a great way to stop my pinkies going numb - the chemical ones are great but only last about 3/4 hr and once you activate it thats it. Thanks :thumbs:
 
I would go for the D700 and the trousered balance would buy an awful lot of battery warmers!
I have had my D700 just under a month, it is my eleventh Nikon SLR and it is stunning!:thumbs:
 
Lucky git :( :p

Enjoy it!
 
yea, I would have gone for the D700 if it didn't have the onboard flash (which I believe is a serious compromise to weather sealing) and it could do 8fps without the grip. I like the handling of the D700 without the grip, but don't really get on with standard sized bodies with grip attached.

Either way I'm more than happy, this is easily one of the most incredible pieces of hardware I've ever had the fortune of using. If you want to save yourself some money, don't ever let yourself have a play with one.

Also, I just stuck my dk-17m on it changing the viewfinder from huge to enormous.
 
Congratulations on pulling the plug.

The best side of what you've done is that you already seem to have a plan to recoup the fund spent :thumbs:
 
GoAN.jpg


Go ahn go ahn go ahn go ahn go ahn go ahn...

GO AHN!!!!!!!

Ahem...

I went from D2Xs to D3 - you will be in heaven :)
 
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