A used D700 may cost me how much?
www.keh.com
Here in Europe a very clean D700 will go for about 1400 Euros
Is the viewfinder OK for low light shooting with manual focus lenses as is, or will I have to get a better focusing screen ... is the said screen easily replaced?
The standard focusing screen is clear and not very good for manual focusing. It is very fine and doesn't 'pop' in to focus like the coarser screen in something like an SL. You get focus confirmation, but it's really no good for anything but static objects. You can't focus on a moving subject and keep your eye on the green dot at the same time.
I've read that this is the best focusing screen and will not screw up the metering system, unlike some others. Installation seems pretty easy.
http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/item--Nikon-D700-Focusing-Screen--prod_D700.html
I would also give Nikon a call and check if they have a split focus screen available.
The viewfinder itself is very bright and has excellent contrast. Not quite as good as an R8/R9, but what is? You also get that nice, big, round eye piece. It's not as big as on the F3, but much better than most cameras out there.
Are the files at 6400 or higher as good as I hear ... feel free to post some examples please. I would prefer samples shot in similar conditions to my working environment ... at 320 ISO and f1.2 I am often reduced to 1/8 and occasionally 1/4 sec shutter speeds!
I used to shoot mine between 1600 and 3200asa with a Zeiss ZF Planar 1.4/50. 1600 is astonishingly good. It looks like 400 asa from cameras of the previous generation. 3200 is very, very good, but I could notice some loss of dynamic range. 6400 was perfectly useable. Above that things got interesting. 25000 asa was very grainy, but had an interesting look. Imagine TMAX3200 in color.
Keep in mind that this camera will see far deeper in to the shadows than any film camera and most digital bodies at the equal asa. I was consistently amazed at how little light this camera needed to make a useable picture. With a fast prime 1600/3200 was all I ever needed and I mostly shot at 1600-2000.
What would the oproximate weight of the camera be with a fast 35mm prime fitted?
It goes without saying that it dwarfs the M8/9.
Remember the Canon EOS 1-V with a 1.4/50 or the Canon 5D with a 50?That's about how big it is.
It's bigger than my R8/Winder/50 Cron and heavier.
It's bigger than a F100.
While the D700 body is on the beefy side, it's not a monster either like the big bodies with the built in vertical grip.
I only shot the D700 with primes (2/35, 1.4/50), but frankly after 12 years with the M series and Nikon F/F2/F3 I felt like I was lugging around a miniature Speed Graphic. Keep in mind that there is no fast AF 1.4/35 from Nikon, unless they release one at PMA. Of course you can use the MF 1.4/35 and the Zeiss 2/35 (highly recommended). Note that some of the older Nikkors with cause purple fringing. My old 2/35 fringed like crazy and really wasn't useable on the D700.
My other beef was that it's not exactly a cheap looking piece of gear. I sometimes shoot in some less than ideal areas and I always felt like a target with that thing. I would much prefer an M8/M9 that looks like an analog camera and can be concealed in a jacket pocket.
That right there is one of the main reasons why I sold the D700.
I have no idea what I am going to replace it with, since I can't swing an M9 and have my doubts about the quirky M8.2. The idea of shooting with a big red IR filter on every lens seems less than ideal... And as you mentioned earlier 1250 really is pushing it with the M8.x.
Regardless of the above, I have to say that the D700 was hands down the best DSLR I have ever used and not by a small margin.
It's 'only' 12MP, but the image quality is off the scale good. Noise is not an issue up to and including 6400. The camera is blazing fast and responsive. The AF is dead on. The ergonomics are close to perfect. This camera was designed by photographers, not a marketing committee. The 3D color matrix metering system is incredibly accurate and blows away anything I have ever seen from another maker.
The Nikon pro series is also the only DSLR that really supports manual focusing lenses. Yes, you can now also get the Zeiss glass for Canon EF, but I do not feel that the Canon ergonomics are set up for working like that. Nikon on the other hand offically supports manual focusing and it show in the menu options and ergonomics.
If I was a working photojournalist I would buy myself a pair of D700 and run them with Zeiss ZF primes (28/35/50)
