Would you buy a D700 today?

[Ken Ford]

The D610 is cheaper and has the same sensor as the D750 ; and the MF Nikkors do very well on this 24MP chip. 24MP on a 24x36 sensor will give you way more interesting files than a 12MP sensor the same size. Plus, the files from the D750 or the D610 are still very manageable with your home mid-range computer, no need to upgrade your PP digital workflow.

The D700 has recently gained a fame of some sort (last prosumer Nikon DSLR to have been "made in Japan", build quality over the top, very reliable machine, superb battery life, shutter which can last forever) yet you don't want to skip some of its cons : 12MP only, 95% coverage viewfinder, big and heavy camera.

No worries! I'm fine with 12MP, I like the files that result from the D700's pixel pitch compared to ones I've looked at from some of the newer cameras; my D300 with MB-D10 feels svelte after carrying a pair of F2s with MD-2s around 24/7/365 for a bunch of years, and the control layout is comparable to my D300 - plus it uses many of the same accessories. And a D610 is twice what I paid for the D700.

Is it state of the art? No - but neither am I. 😛

That said, I could see myself picking up a Df at some point, too.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Did you buy this camera from a store or eBay? Is it on its way or did it arrive home already? Just wondering...

 

[Anthony Harvey]

leica M2 fan:
I purchased my D700 1/24/2012 and hands down it is the best camera I have ever had. It gets any project done with no fuss or muss. I have or have had many, many great cameras but this is my Go To camera. Many of our vacation memories have come from the D700. I'm so glad the OP did get this camera, you won't regret it!

I agree completely. My experience exactly. It's the best camera I've ever had too.

 

[Ken Ford]

Did you buy this camera from a store or eBay? Is it on its way or did it arrive home already? Just wondering...

KEH - and it should be delivered tomorrow. The MB-D10 should be here tomorrow, too.

I'm just a little worried about the shutter cycle count - KEH doesn't record it on their stuff.

 

[farlymac]

I'm considering a used D700 for my first foray into FF. My main DSLR is a D300, so the D700 makes sense - same accessories, etc.

Assuming I find a good low-mileage one, is it still a viable body today?

I'd buy one today, if I wasn't putting the truck in the shop tomorrow. I've heard, and seen nothing but good things come from them.

PF

 

[Keith]

Keith, in this case it's about $600 from what I can tell - the D700 in good shape with a warranty is $650. The heck with it, I'm doing it. Thanks for your input!

That seems like a great price ... congratulations and enjoy. 🙂

I've had mine since they came out and regard it as one of the finest cameras I have ever owned. Heavy yes but the build quality is awsome and the ergonomics are excellent. ISO 3200 is very clean and 6400 is perfectly usable with careful post processing.

I've only ever had three lenses for mine ... the f4 24-120 G Nikkor along with 35mm and 50mm Zeiss primes. 🙂

 

[Santtu Määttänen]

My d700 is a workhorse. I've recently seriously considered about purchasing a second one as a replacement. It's either "newest" d700 I can find or D810/D750 for me. My d700 has been with me since they came out and has seen pretty close to 300 000 actuations. Which ain't a surprise considering the heavy usage (average as I calculated it would be bit over 100 photos per day for the duration of ownership, but of course reality is different with days with few thousand shots from an event with fast moving objects to just few on my days off).

It has been a champ, it does show it's age in cosmetic way though. With rubber worn almost off and everything polished by fingertips. But the files are still spot on. Considering the used prices of these, I feel it's the best bargain one can find in camera world 🙂 12MP is plenty for most of us. Would I like more, sure thing. But I wouldn't worry about 12MP not being enough. It simply means less cropping in post and more concentration on the shoot.

I've used more modern Nikons as well from time to time (loaner units) and they've been fine. Fearing a bit on upgrading/replacing since the D700 has grown on my hand so firmly. But at the same time I'd love to be able to do some cropping in post. Not sure yet which way I go when the time comes, of course the availability of good conditioned D700s plays a role too.

 

[Range-rover]

Ken, you made a great choice with the D700, I on the other hand found a great deal
on a D3 and the 12 mp files on that are a dream even at high iso's. The money you
save getting that instead of the more expensive camera's you can get great glass
which I did, enjoy your camera.

 

[Ken Ford]

Grrrr.

The D700 arrived today with condition problems and very high actuations, so it's going back for an exchange. Definitely not EX condition.

 

[Ken Ford]

I just saw a low actuations D700 from a 100% feedback seller for a fair BIN (just a little more than the KEH one) on the big auction site, so I grabbed it. I'll instruct KEH to process a return instead of an exchange if this new one looks good - it looks to be in much nicer cosmetic condition.

One thing that concerns me about buying a digital body from KEH is the limited information they can provide and lack of photos of the actual item you're buying. Plus, I suspect they're buying pro trade-ins in bulk. Back in the days of film former pro bodies were a safe bet, but not for digital IMO. I have no problem buying lenses or film bodies from them, though.

 

[kyonthinh]

I would've chosen a Sony A900, but I don't own any Nikon lenses 😉
Without kidding, I would guess the only real downside is the mp count, but as you're coming from the D300, the D700 makes perfect sense. If you were coming from a 24mp D7x000 I wouldn't do it, but from the 12mp D300.... Enjoy your new toy!

I come from A900 to Nikon D800, it's day and night.
Minolta glass is not as good as Nikkor glass, saying like 70 200 to Nikkor 70 200 VR. Even when you cant say any difference, the sensor in A900 is what holding the lens back. Over ISO 800 and noise is all over the place. It's too old, and the camera shutter often goes to about 40-50k then die. I have seen a D700 with nearly 200k shutter count and still lives. And D700 is better in high iso. Pixel count is good, but it's not important when your picture cant be used...

 

[Ken Ford]

The eBay D700 arrived today, and it's in great shape with 9400 actuations - just a puppy. Everything is working fine so far, I'll wring it out over the next few days. My 50/1.2 AI-S handles great on this body with the MB-D10.

 

[peterm1]

The eBay D700 arrived today, and it's in great shape with 9400 actuations - just a puppy. Everything is working fine so far, I'll wring it out over the next few days. My 50/1.2 AI-S handles great on this body with the MB-D10.

One thing I especially like about my D700 is that it was one of Nikon's first cameras with a full frame CMOS sensor. This, together with its smallish pixel count gives it excellent dynamic range and sensitivity. I regularly shoot mine at 1600 ISO and will also shoot it at 3200 ISO where it still performs well. Admittedly more recent cameras do as well at even higher ISOs but the D700 gives me pretty well everything I need in this regard. Here are some low light shots taken by me in Hong Kong a couple of years ago which will give you a good indication of how well it can perform in that situation. Very clean images with little noise. I am sure you will enjoy yours and if you continue to use MF lenses even more so.

Restaurant kitchen Kowloon by Life in Shadows, on Flickr

The harbour - red sails at night by Life in Shadows, on Flickr

Tall, dark.......and handheld? by Life in Shadows, on Flickr

The city beyond 2 - twilight by Life in Shadows, on Flickr

 

[BillBingham2]

The eBay D700 arrived today, and it's in great shape with 9400 actuations - just a puppy. Everything is working fine so far, I'll wring it out over the next few days. My 50/1.2 AI-S handles great on this body with the MB-D10.

Good to hear, congrats.

B2 (;->

 

[Ken Ford]

Still having a good time getting used to the new camera. I made a serious mistake yesterday, though - I checked out a 58/1.4G out at a local store after work. Ugh. This could prove to be expensive.

 

[Andy Kibber]

Just bought one myself a couple of weeks ago. Only took me eight years to get one! Delighted with it so far. 😀

 

[lawrence]

Just bought one myself a couple of weeks ago. Only took me eight years to get one! Delighted with it so far. 😀

I still like the D700 very much after eight years of owning one. My only real complaint is that the handling of red is not particularly accurate (can often look orange) however this can be corrected in RawTherapee or similar.

 

[rwintle]

I am late to this discussion, but as a regular user of old-ish crop sensor (DX) Nikon DSLRs (5-year-old D5000, even older D300)... I'd love a D700 and would be happy to buy one today if I tripped across one.

Concert shooters, notorious for complaining about dismal light and high ISO performance, still speak highly of the D700 in the "concert photographers" Flickr group, and other places. 🙂

Enjoy!

 

[tedium]

I had one and sold it when I got my d800e , liked the 800 but didn't love it. So last week I just got another d700 after selling the 800 , to be honest I wish I kept the first one.
As soon as I had in my hand again it felt good and the image are still as good as I remember . I never really was happy with the results from the 800 more misses than hits.

 

[lawrence]

I never really was happy with the results from the 800 more misses than hits.

Interesting. In general, what were the problems with the 'misses'?