Are you rushing out...

[greypoint]

....to buy one of the new Nikons?! I suppose the new D300s will fairly rapidly drop in price to nearer that of the current D300 but, even so, it will be expensive compared to other models. Have'nt really looked at the specs of the D3000 - I assume it will also have to drop in price to make it the entry level option to make it competetive. I suppose the D300s sort of proves that they really have'nt managed to come up with really worthwhile improvements on the D300 [if you discount video] in the past two years. Reminds me of when video recorders came out - all we wanted was something that could record programmes for up to a few days in advance - once we'd all got one they had to keep coming up with improvements we did'nt need or want to try and make up spend more money. I wonder how camera makers ever survived in film days when we'd buy a camera that would last us years and years - many people just never bought another.
I'm not saying it's never worthwhile buying the later model [given my track record!] I've been using the D80 and D90 side by side and the D90 makes the D80 seem very very ordinary

[alan1572]

i got the d300 last year and know for a fact that unless it gets lost /stolen i will have it foe many many year's to come, i don't know enough to warrent having this camera so i won't be buying another. I love to use my d300 and i'm learning every time i use it...it's just a very slow process.

[greypoint]

I think the D300 is one of those cameras that the manufacturer just got right. I've had mine for a couple of weeks and I can't really think of anything much that needs improving - for the type of camera it is. I'm talking short term tweaks here rather than great leaps forward in the long term. Canon did the same with the 40D to a large extent. Both cameras have had long shelf lives - the D300 has even gone up in price with the currency problems and is still selling. For me the D90 also looks like being a classic [OK the metering can be a touch dodgy but you can work round that!]. I can really only see non D300 users or those who must have video buying the D300s.

[irv_b]

Damn from what you are saying you dont think that the D300 will drop in price d300s comes out then? I was banking on that and saving little by little till next year hoping that the price will plummet

[Bigbill]

Hello from Breezey Sheffy

The D300 is one AWESOME BEAST !!

shine on

[anglefire]

I'm in no rush to buy ANY Nikon!  

Well, only as a door stop anyway! And it would have to be flippin' cheap!

[alan1572]

I'm in no rush to buy ANY Nikon!  

Well, only as a door stop anyway! And it would have to be flippin' cheap!

cheap door?

[greypoint]

Yes, a door stop needs to be solid and reliable 

[Eileen]

Funny you should say that about film cameras Sue. I bought an Olympus OM1n as a student and never bought another for 20 years. I still have it and it works fine. But I replaced my first DSLR relatively quickly as I outgrew it. The D300 was a vast improvement on my D70, but I don't think the new D300s is much ahead of the D90 in terms of the quality of its output, if at all.

Adding a few bells and tweaks allows Nikon to keep their products in the magazines and forums for relatively little cost. It also gives those who must have the latest thing a new Nikon to consider. And as the D300 will remain on the stocks for a while yet, people who don't want to pay for the extras still have that option. I suspect Nikon can't not bring out new cameras while their competitors are, for fear of losing their market - got to keep up. Can't have all those reviewers only looking at Canon, Sony, Pantax and Oly models. It also allows them to eke a bit more value out of the sensor they spent a fortune to develop while they spend another fortune developing the Next Big thing.

I won't be rushing out to the shops. Though a nice new full frame wideangle lens that took filters would be worth thinking about...

[greypoint]

If the D300s forces down the price of the D300 then I think the D300 will continue to outsell it.

My first proper camera was a little Nikon FG but I did upgrade when autofocus came in

[anglefire]

This type of warming over has been going on for years.

The 1DNkIIN was a warmed over and tweaked 1DMkII
The MkIII was a all new camera - and they cocked the AF up on that initially.

The 40D was a warmed over 30D, which in itself wasn't a huge change to the 20D, and the 50D is not a huge departure from the 40D.

The 5D was a big change - the first of its kind really. The 5DII is an update to it (Ok a fairly big one)

The consumer end are all small changes. 350D and 450D are very similar. Just some bells and whistles.

I'm sure a lot has to do with the Japanese market, which seems to demand updates every year or so.

The problem now, is what can they do? Low noise is a given these days. Frame rates are strangled on some camera's, either mechanically or firmware (Or power! D700 springs to mind!). Some cameras are getting smaller - which is fine for some, but I find anything smaller than a 5D too small - my gripped 350D is just about ok. But my old A1 film camera is just a toy in comparison. Far too small!

So Nikon brought out the video in the D90 - which was almost immediately trounced by the 5DMkII. In fact the 5DMKII is a hell of a camera - there isn't that many that can match it all round. Equal or better in some areas, but not the package.

It will be interesting to see what comes out when the 1DMkIV is announced. Some say later this year, More likely next year - but who knows. But this probably worth a separate thread!!

[greypoint]

I think it's always been a case with Canon of being worthwhile changing for every other upgrade. 10D to 30D - 20D to 40D etc. Having used a 10D and a 30D I'd definitely say that was a worthwhile upgrade - the 10D drove me mad! Having said that, I much preferred the 40D - 10 months is a long time to keep a camera! Nikon upgrades in the past have been pretty gradual but the D90 is a helluva lot better than the D80 - others may disagree of course

[anglefire]

I must admit, I don't know much about the other makes - I've used a D700 to take one shot and if I'm honest I liked it a lot.

I bought my first DSLR almost on a wim - I went into Jessops one day to look and compared the 350D with the D70 and came away with the 350D - I suspect my judgement was coloured by having a Canon G2 P&S and the menus were similar on the 350D - and the D70 felt too big!

If I'd had gone to Nikon I'd have been happy I suspect.

Now I can't afford to change systems. Too much invested in gear! Total insurance value is around £8K - and I have cover to hire another £3500 of stuff!!

In my defence I've come down from a Audi A6 estate (was £25K new) to a 12year old Land Rover Defender! So have cut my car ownership costs down by about 2/3rds.! Mu-Lud

[greypoint]

I try to stick to second hand lenses - you can still lose a bit but I look on that as a hire charge.Rarely have more than 2 0r 3 lenses and don't use flashes etc. I'll probably stick with Nikon now the only real alternative for me would be Olympus and the lenses I'd want would be too expensive. I switched to the D300 from the D90 largely on account of the longer life it seems to offer. The shutter count on my D90 was 38,000 and rising rapidly. It's now with my friend who used to have a D50 - she finds it unbelievably good. It's really enthised her about photography I think.

[anglefire]

My 400mm f5.6 and 85f1.8 were 2nd hand - both mint.

The only lens I'd really like is the 300mm f2.8 and 135f2. The 135 is a realistic possibilty, but the 300 is hard to justify - especially as it is rumoured to be replaced soon. Mind you it might mean that there will be some around cheaper!!

Mind you another reason I didn't get Nikon was that they didn't do (and stated they weren't going to) a full frame camera. It wasn't a thought when I bought the 350D - but it was the reason that I only got EF lenses (Except the stunning EFs 60mm macro) very early on.