Beginner NIKON D70s

Oldbones

Oldbones

Suspended / Banned
Messages
422
Edit My Images
Yes
What is the best flash card for this camera I need to get on but there is so many choices, as long as I can take a decent amount of photographs in raw format.
Thank you
 
Pretty much any CF card will be enough for a D70(s). 6MP and no video as well as a relatively slow frame rate. IIRC, the biggest you can use in a D70 is 32GB - but check!
 
when looking at memory cards it is not just the size that matters, ie 64GB but also the transfer speed in MB/s is just as important. so what happens if you have a slow MB/s card? the camera might take a series of photos and start to send to the menory card, but the card can't keep up so you get what is called "Buffering" a pause in the transfer until the card can accept more date from the camera.
the anwser is to not only get a card with a decent capacity such as 128 GB but also a fast transfer rate of around 160MB/s. the instruction book should say with the max speed /size is.

hope this helps
 
Last edited:
I think a 16Gb or 32 Gb should be fine, the D70s is only a 6MP camera, and I wouldn't worry too much about transfer speeds if you are shooting RAW. Older Nikons, in my opinion, had a tragically poor buffer when shooting raw, especially when you were also recording JPEGs onto a second card. Given CF card have given way to CFast or CF Express there should be an abundance of 8/16/32 Gb Sandisk Extreme/Pro or equivalents to buy at reasonable cost.
 
realspeed said:
when looking at memory cards it is not just the size that matters, ie 64GB but also the transfer speed in MB/s is just as important. so what happens if you have a slow MB/s card? the camera might take a series of photos and start to send to the menory card, but the card can't keep up so you get what is called "Buffering" a pause in the transfer until the card can accept more date from the camera.
the anwser is to not only get a card with a decent capacity such as 128 GB but also a fast transfer rate of around 160MB/s. the instruction book should say with the max speed /size is.

hope this helps
Click to expand...
Those figures are pretty irrelevant for a camera of this vintage. Just think in terms of a couple of 8 or at the most 16 Gb CF cards & you should be fine. If you're lucky somebody'll be along shortly to donate you a couple. I looked in my cupboard & it seems I no longer have any ...
 
droj said:
Those figures are pretty irrelevant for a camera of this vintage. Just think in terms of a couple of 8 or at the most 16 Gb CF cards & you should be fine. If you're lucky somebody'll be along shortly to donate you a couple. I looked in my cupboard & it seems I no longer have any ...
Click to expand...
Spot on. No need for a super fast card on these older cameras. I've just tested a Sandisk 32Gb 120MB/s card and a Lexar 1Gb 80x speed card (80x is 12MB/s !!) in my D70s and there's no difference in write speed to the card in the camera or buffer clearing. Copying from the card to your computer will be quicker on the faster cards but I'm not sure you will notice it that much.
FYI if it helps - a 1GB card will give you space for 257 full size JPEGs or 175 RAW files. 32GB has space for 9,000 full size JPEGs or 5,500 RAW files!
 
It must nearly 20 odd years since I had the Nikon D70 camera. Don't make the same mistake I did and continually get the next one up. I went fron that to the D200-D300-D800 eventually ending up with the D810. now ditched the D300 and the D810 Plus all the lenses and gone over to P M43 range with the G9 and G9ii.
 
Last edited:
It was the release of the D70s that caused enough of a price drop for the D70 so I could justify the cost. It came with the 18-70 lens rather than the 18-55 that came with later D70ses and D50s.
 
The prices vary a lot, but I have looked and looked, and read all of the posts, thank you all so much once again.
I have decided to get this one

SanDisk Extreme III CompactFlash 2GB Memory Card​

Its £30 and is on the Nikon list of cards for the D70, so I hope it will be ok and if it is I will get another as a spare..
The camera arrives in a few days,, I only bought it because of price and reputation of the seller and the camera.
Watched loads of YouTube stuff about them and I am looking forwards to the better weather to get on with my photography.
I am not a camera collector, just want to have a few options and most of all a bit of enjoyment with the hobby
 
FWIW, the 3100 will give better results than the 70s but the 70 felt better in the hand. My local shop lent me a D3100 when I wanted a crop body for an air show - I had just traded my D70 in against a D700 (IIRC).
 
Oldbones said:
The prices vary a lot, but I have looked and looked, and read all of the posts, thank you all so much once again.
I have decided to get this one

SanDisk Extreme III CompactFlash 2GB Memory Card​

Its £30 and is on the Nikon list of cards for the D70, so I hope it will be ok and if it is I will get another as a spare..
The camera arrives in a few days,, I only bought it because of price and reputation of the seller and the camera.
Watched loads of YouTube stuff about them and I am looking forwards to the better weather to get on with my photography.
I am not a camera collector, just want to have a few options and most of all a bit of enjoyment with the hobby
Click to expand...
I hope that is supposed to be 32gb and not 2gb
 
The cheapest place for used CF cards I have seen is CEX. Watch out for the postage costs if you order multiple items.

32GB £15 plus about £3 in postage

 
realspeed said:
Hang on a minute before you buy. I have several CF cards no longer need you are welcome to themView attachment 446490
Just PM me you address if in the uk And I will post them to you
Click to expand...
And would I be right in believing the cost price of the 4Gb cards were more then than the 64Gb card was recently? I remember the day 1Gb cards dropped below £100 :LOL:
 
The price of 32GB cards jumped a lot in the last year when SanDisk stopped making them.
 
Reelspeed, I will do that, thank you again, and I will post a few pics on here when I get organized.
 
The D70 can shoot pretty goo infrared photos without being modified. You do need a proper IR filter and the exposures will need a tripod, but it works pretty good
 
That's interesting to know, thanks.
I will look into the filters, I have a couple but not an infra red.
 
Realspeed, cards have arrived, initaly the camera said it could not use the cards, so I run the format and after a couple of attempts it worked.
Now all the cards are working fine.
Many thanks and what a kind gesture indeed.
Thank you.
 
Pleasure to help you and glad they are working. Knew you would have to format first . Thanks for letting me know they arrived ok. Many years ago before I was married I visited Scotland(about 60 yrs ago) and the warm welcome I got I have never forgotten.

little story for you
A pal of mine and I went up the Rutherglen glasgow area and stayed in a hotel called the Mill house. We went up there from Surrey where we used to live because we met a couple of girls who were cousins and one lived in Scotland. So we arranged to go up and meet them saying where we were staying. Booked in at reception and asked if we could use the phone in the hall. So my mate gave them a ring as tfhe cousin in Surrey was up there as well. Within 5 minuite the girls were with us. The barman said he thought Scottish lads were quick to pick up female company, but this was the quickest pickup he had ever seen. We hadn't the heart to say it was pre arranged.
Also went into a local pub and the guy behind the bar gave us 2 tickets free to see a Rangers v Celtic football match. ticket were like gold dust to get.

Yes I love Scotland and the people there so kind and generous, and these were just two of several instances
 
Last edited:
First little play with the D70s.
Lots of, buttons and options to play with, got it so I can understand enough to get a shot.
To download the pics is a little different than the D3100.
Not brilliant, but its low light and in the house.
Going out to the shore in the morning.
First D70s samples.jpg
 
welshwizard645 said:
And would I be right in believing the cost price of the 4Gb cards were more then than the 64Gb card was recently? I remember the day 1Gb cards dropped below £100 :LOL:
Click to expand...
Irrelevant, but when I first got into digital photography storage cost was £1 per megabyte - a 512 mb card used to cost over £500
 
  • Like
Reactions: Nod
realspeed said:
It must nearly 20 odd years since I had the Nikon D70 camera. Don't make the same mistake I did and continually get the next one up. I went fron that to the D200-D300-D800 eventually ending up with the D810. now ditched the D300 and the D810 Plus all the lenses and gone over to P M43 range with the G9 and G9ii.
Click to expand...
I hope not to make that mistake, I have done it with fishing gear in the past, but I still own it all and use it from time to time so its not all a waste.
Yes I have two DSLRs now, but both of them take the same lens etc.
Hope to do with what I have for a long time now, I retire in two years, might treat my self then. but for now its all about learning, will a £1000 camera make me a better photographer than a £35 one, at the moment I don't think so.
I might never be one, so the investment is not breaking the bank, and its fun seeing what I can do with what I have.
 
The D70 (and, I'm pretty sure D70s) can use the older, screw driven AF lenses that some newer bodies can't.
 
Yes it is screw driven, I have a1.1.8 D 50mm lens on it at the moment, works great, where as the D3100 has not got the screw drive.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Nod
I've been tempted to "upgrade" my 50/1.8D to an f/1.4 version but been talked out of it by 2 different shops.
 
Nod said:
I've been tempted to "upgrade" my 50/1.8D to an f/1.4 version but been talked out of it by 2 different shops.
Click to expand...
Did they say why not to upgrade, it would be handy to know what they said, for future reference.
 
Nod said:
I've been tempted to "upgrade" my 50/1.8D to an f/1.4 version but been talked out of it by 2 different shops.
Click to expand...
What reasons did they provide, I ask because I don't have the 1.8D I went straight to the 1.4D I have a couple of the 1.8G as well.
 
Oldbones said:
Did they say why not to upgrade, it would be handy to know what they said, for future reference.
Click to expand...

Basically just not worth it unless I wanted/needed the extra 1/3 stop or so of light gathering or the extra shallow DoF. Apparently, from f/2.8 it's at least as sharp as the much more expensive option and I very rarely use it wider than that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top