Nikon Df

[kgcayenne]

I've been a little giddy since news of this gem was leaked and subsequently confirmed with the announcement on Nov 6. They're being released for sale on Thursday, is anyone biting and forking over $3,000? After all, vintage F Mount lenses will work, even the Pre-AI ones. It's got the same sensor as the D4.

[grammafreddy]

I've been a little giddy since news of this gem was leaked and subsequently confirmed with the announcement on Nov 6. They're being released for sale on Thursday, is anyone biting and forking over $3,000? After all, vintage F Mount lenses will work, even the Pre-AI ones. It's got the same sensor as the D4.

Although I am a dedicated Nikon shooter, I won't be biting. I am on my fourth D70, though - LOL. I buy them used on eBay from Henry's (a Canadian company) at around $120-150 and save my money for good glass. The shutters are only good for 80,000 - 100,000 clicks which is pretty high. I don't know what other makes are good for. Anyone know that?

[rekabis]

The day I have three grand for a camera is the day my retirement is fully paid for.

Unfortunately, that will be a long time in coming. I don’t doubt the sweetness of that camera, and I am a Nikon fanboy all the way, but wow. $3k. That’s a metric arseload of cash to dump on a single purchase that isn’t considered essential (unless you are a photographer by trade).

[hobbyguy]

Bear in mind that the lenses designed for the smaller sensors do not perform the same when put on a full frame sensor camera.

If you use DX lenses, you will get DX performance from an FX sensor camera:

"FX cameras can also use DX lenses, however to avoid vignetting, the DX crop mode is automatically selected by the camera when a DX lens is attached." https://www.nikonusa.com/en/Learn-And-Explore/Article/g588ouey/the-dx-and-fx-formats.html

So if you are going to fork out the big bucks for the FX sensor camera, you also to have to plan on buying new lenses, or you won't get the benefit from your purchase.

[kgcayenne]

The part appealing to us the most is not having to alter (read as file off parts of) our assortment of pre-AI lenses in order to upgrade to FX. As it stands now, upgrading to FX means new glass and more, much more, than $3000 to duplicate what we've already got. I regret going DX now from the get-go, the smaller sensor just bugs me: nope, that's not really 24mm, that's actually 36 mm, to get an 18mm wide angle, I need a 12mm (that's not a cheap lens), and so it goes.

Dammit, Nikon knew what they were doing this time. I'm givIng it a year to see if the pice drops. Maybe I'll just go back to film.

[kgcayenne]

They go on sale tomorrow; I am not getting one.

Using the vintage glass on the 3100 wins. No FX for me.

[hobbyguy]

By the way, I use point and shoot (good quality) digital, my favorites being a Panasonic Z-100 and a Fuji XS-1 for general purpose and not having to cart a bunch of lenses. For serious stuff, yup, film - after all DSLRs are just trying achieve what you can already do with an SLR unless you need/want instant gratification.

[JLives]

It's pretty sweet. I will be sticking with my D5000 for the time being though.

[Thinktank]

I have a broken Nikon FE that doesn't work.

[1nick]

[kgcayenne]

I downloaded the user's manual. I picture myself looking for correspondence courses on photography & graphic arts in the future.

[Thinktank]

...is anyone biting and forking over $3,000? ....

I wonder why anyone would pay that much for a camera?

[kgcayenne]

Professionals pay double and triple that. It can really depend on a person's habits, interests, hobbies. Why do people buy vacation homes, boats, ATVs, snowmobiles, $1000 ski passes and associated equipment?

People waste more than $3000 simply by purchasing a car new off the lot. People waste even more on top of that by paying interest on the loan.

This is about the release of a camera that stirs the old-school Nikon fan. For some of us, it's our primary hobby and very satisfying.

No, I haven't bought one, can't justify it... yet.

[underscore]

It's only a waste of money if the person isn't getting the benefits gained by purchasing that camera over a less expensive one.

[kgcayenne]

I was able to have some hands-on time with a Nikon Df on Saturday. It’s larger than I thought it would be, but nowhere nearly as large as the Nikon D4, yet they share the same kick-ass FX sensor. I was surprised at how light it is, and it felt comfortable in my small hands; my husband found it, despite much larger hands, comfortable to handle also. I did struggle to get my finger to naturally land on the DOF preview button, but my old Nikkormat FT2 film body (1970s) had it in a completely different position from later Nikons. I don’t mind the release buttons on the dials, after all, my shooting conditions are not going to change so drastically that I can’t take the time to change things. I really, really, like the dedicated aperture dial.

The viewfinder, a real pentaprism, is bright and easy to focus, which is surprising as I thought I’d be immediately wanting a split prism focusing screen, but with it so bright and spacious in there... wow. The information bar across the bottom for metering etc., is a little smashed together, but it’s got a rustic feel, which is charming and reminds me of the old manual cameras.

The black one the Nikon rep had with him as a demo was showing a patina on it which adds to its charm. The patina on an all-metal black painted body is quite beautiful; yeah, I’m that much of a nerd.

I would like one, just not yet. I think they missed the mark on their target customer and priced it too high with a few too many wingdingdoodads yet stripped down so that the hipsters don’t want it because it’s got no video, and the old-schoolers like myself don’t want to be paying for the computer portion when we won’t likely be changing menu settings after the initial set up, nor will we be doing in-camera editing. The online reviewer Fro Knows Photos really explained the ‘not the right market’ sentiment clearly. In short, when they drop in price, people like us will be snapping them up. (pun intended)