Nikon D800......

I've read so many posts from people abut the battery drain problem with the Meike grip I didn't see saving £20 or so was worth the risk. Apparently there are 2 problems that seem to be too popular to be a myth, which are batteries will self drain when the Meike grip is installed, and also reports of the internal battery not working at all when the grip is installed with no battery in it.

The finish on the bottom of the Meike is poor compared to the Pixel as well. The plastic seems shinier too.

Here's a shot of the genuine Nikon one against the Meike.

TMnol0X.jpg


Here's the Pixel

lOp4Ws4.jpg


That alone is worth the extra £20ish for me. A tripod plate will grip the Pixel better than it would the Meike by the look of it. The Meike seems to be the same thin rubber the hand grips are made from, whereas the Nikon and Pixel are a thick, ridged rubber plate. On the Meike the rubber doesn't extend all the way to the command dial like the Pixel and Nikon one either... nor does it extend all the way along the back.

If you want one that looks as close to the Nikon one as possible, then the Pixel Vertax seems to make more sense.


Excellent pictures of the Pixel Vertax MB-D12 here..

http://www.frescoglobe.com/2012/07/17/pixel-vertax-d12-grip-for-nikon-d800/
 
Last edited:
Looks interesting. I really only use my grip when I'm doing a wedding otherwise its usually in the camera bag. Like to keep the camera as light as possible!
 
David how are you finding the D600? Is that a D800 or D600 in them pics?
 
That's the D800 in the pics. I like the little D600. I've had no issue with the narrow AF point spread as many have, but that's because of the way I work I think. I have it as a second body, so to be honest.. not really used it a great deal. I tend to use it as a walk around camera more due to less weight and smaller size.
 
I had considered getting one. The smaller form factor is appealing and the AF wouldn't bother me as I'm mainly shooting portraits. The other half doesn't like the ergonomics of the D700 so have been looking at other options for her.
 
Not much else gives high resolution, full frame and a smaller form factor. If the tightly packed AF area doesn't bother you I can't see much else going the job for you really. What doesn't she like about the D700? The D700 has more in common with the D800 in terms of ergonomics, whereas the D600 shares more with the D7000 in terms of layout. No rear AF-ON being the biggest difference.
 
The grip and weight she doesn't like. Although she had asked me about 6 months ago to buy her a 5D LOL I think the D600 could be a good solution.
 
David, have you got a Meike Grip because mine isnt like that one, for a start theres a large gap on your photo where the battery door fits, mine is as flush as a flushing toilet.
 
the grip that is shown in the photographs above is a meike grip. Just had a look at mine this morning! The one minus any writing etc
 
It's probably not just clipped in properly in that shot. The battery tray fit didn't even cross my mind. It's the cosmetic differences that made me choose the Pixel. On the Meike, there's no rubber grip right up to the command dial. and a lack of rubber around the thumb grip on the rear. It just doesn't look like the Nikon grip.
 
Last edited:
Very pleased with the resolution on the D800.
Using an old Nikon 35-70 f2.8 - The Harbourmaster...


RJB_0143-1_zpsaf8ef67f.jpg




RJB_0143_zps0b85c5c6.jpg



Is that a fair example or am I being overly positive?
 
No that's a fair example. It gets better with quality prime lenses too... although that old 35-70 is a good lens! I used to have one, and loved it. I only ever used it with 35mm though, but it seems to be doing a great job.
 
I have been flat out with the sigma 85mm on mine. Also be weary of that dot tune AF adjust, I "tuned" mine and it said I needed -7. I scrutinised shots taken over 2 days with this adjustment dialled in and whilst they looked fine when viewing 100% it's a tinnnnny bit out. Spent all day yesterday with the AF adjust switched off and the results are better. Perfectly focusing where I aimed. So the dot tune actually was wrong! Done some other tests last night of charts and shots around the house with and without AF micro adjust, turned off on this lens is pretty much perfect. Just a caution to people thinking it may be helping!
 
Pookeyhead said:
No that's a fair example. It gets better with quality prime lenses too... although that old 35-70 is a good lens! I used to have one, and loved it. I only ever used it with 35mm though, but it seems to be doing a great job.
Click to expand...


Good to know, I haven't used it with the 24 f1.4 or 85 f1.4 yet so will test those out soon.

TonyNI said:
I have been flat out with the sigma 85mm on mine. Also be weary of that dot tune AF adjust, I "tuned" mine and it said I needed -7. I scrutinised shots taken over 2 days with this adjustment dialled in and whilst they looked fine when viewing 100% it's a tinnnnny bit out. Spent all day yesterday with the AF adjust switched off and the results are better. Perfectly focusing where I aimed. So the dot tune actually was wrong! Done some other tests last night of charts and shots around the house with and without AF micro adjust, turned off on this lens is pretty much perfect. Just a caution to people thinking it may be helping!
Click to expand...

Saw somewhere that Nikon reckon that over 90% of lenses returned for re-calibration don't need it and I'm not convinced that micro-adjust does anything more in most cases than pander to paranoia.
 
gramps said:
Saw somewhere that Nikon reckon that over 90% of lenses returned for re-calibration don't need it and I'm not convinced that micro-adjust does anything more in most cases than pander to paranoia.
Click to expand...


That doesn't surprise me.
 
gramps said:
Good to know, I haven't used it with the 24 f1.4 or 85 f1.4 yet so will test those out soon.



Saw somewhere that Nikon reckon that over 90% of lenses returned for re-calibration don't need it and I'm not convinced that micro-adjust does anything more in most cases than pander to paranoia.
Click to expand...
Never wanted to, more importantly never needed to calibrate any of my gear, if i did it would be sent back, simple really
 
I got the Pixel grip, posted pics of it way earlier in this thread - fits snug but there is a wee gap as I pictured, on one side. It's merely a cosmetic thing though, I've used it on the Black rapid, with D800 + 70-200 attached and wasn't worried. In saying that, I rarely use it, which is why I went for third party over Nikon's over priced one. If I was a pro I'd probably have gotten the original.
 
I've got the Nikon grip, never had any problems with it. Feels much better having a gripped body when walking about with a bigger lens like the 200 f/2.
 
I'd probably use it more if I used bigger lenses alright, or if battery life was a major issue. But I find the D800 is pretty damn good with battery, I only have 2, and very rarely need to swap them. The only time I can think of when I had to was when shooting my sister's wedding, and it was at the reception when I did. The flash batteries were running out long before the camera's. So the only real reason to use a grip, for me, would be for vertical shooting, but I've no issues just turning the cam sideways and still feeling comfortable.
 
Gary Coyle said:
Get the Meike grip gramps, renown for their quality and only £42
Click to expand...

I was looking at the Pixel one but put a .99p bid on a Mieke one a few days ago ... just got the email to say I got it ... .99p!
It's marked as for a D800S but I'm assuming that as no such beast exists and I've seen others marked for D800S/D800/D800E that it's irrelevant anyway.

So assuming the seller (100% positive private seller) doesn't renege on the sale I may have got a bargain. :)
 
Bargain central!

Gramps how are you finding the D800?
 
Last edited:
gramps said:
I was looking at the Pixel one but put a .99p bid on a Mieke one a few days ago ... just got the email to say I got it ... .99p!
It's marked as for a D800S but I'm assuming that as no such beast exists and I've seen others marked for D800S/D800/D800E that it's irrelevant anyway.

So assuming the seller (100% positive private seller) doesn't renege on the sale I may have got a bargain. :)
Click to expand...

did the seller advertise it as new? That is a bargain as normally they are advertised under the 'buy now' option for a fixed price.
 
TonyNI said:
Bargain central!

Gramps how are you finding the D800?
Click to expand...

I like it Tony but it is challenging my handheld technique - I've just received my 'L' bracket so will be able to use my monopod now and hoping that will help.

architectfadi said:
did the seller advertise it as new? That is a bargain as normally they are advertised under the 'buy now' option for a fixed price.
Click to expand...

Yes advertised as New but with marked box - I'm guessing that it had no other bids as it's marked as D800S. If it was from a supplier I would think it would have been cancelled but as it was a private sale and I donated to their nominated charity, I'm hopeful :)
 
Can any D800 users add some meat to the following line in the camera description?:
Light source identification for auto white balance
Does auto white balance perform differently/better to say the D700 or D3s?
Am looking to sell my D300s + a couple of lenses and get a D800 to go with the D700. Lot's of things to weigh up (2nd hand D3s option). Cheers.
 
Ady N said:
Can any D800 users add some meat to the following line in the camera description?:
Light source identification for auto white balance
Does auto white balance perform differently/better to say the D700 or D3s?
Am looking to sell my D300s + a couple of lenses and get a D800 to go with the D700. Lot's of things to weigh up (2nd hand D3s option). Cheers.
Click to expand...

Yeah the white balance is much better from my experience
 
How does the dynamic range of the D800 compare to the D3s? I thought the DR of the D600 was very good.
 
Last edited:
TonyNI said:
The DR IS the best out of all current SLRs. It's not even debatable
Click to expand...

I own both the D600 and D800. The DR of the D800 is better than that of the D600 but not by a huge difference.

If you want to use the DXO sensor rating as a guide line:

Nikon D800 DR: 14.4
Nikon D600 DR: 14.2
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top