Nikon D2Hs

Opinion: This camera should be priced at no more than $1,400, just like all the other D-SLRs. Why? Read on.

I had been a Nikon user before the Digital camera time. Having Nikon F4s and FM2 with a range of lenses from 15mm fish eye to 300mm/f4 all Nikkor lenses, you would have thought that I would go for a Nikon Digital. I considered and reviewed a lot before buying a Digital SLR. But I see that Nikon is not stepping up to the plate as Canon is. To start, I first bought the Digital Rebel, good camera. The foremost important thing for me in digital is the Image Quality, and the Rebel delivered, a little soft, but beautiful tone and blacks and whites. . I sold my Rebel though, because I am a Nikon user for ages, and just have not found something digital for me.

I’ve always hesitated on buying a D-Nikon because I see that the Nikon digital cameras are well constructed, but the images have still some flaws, but that is not the only factor in my decision. I see that Nikon inc. does not think that we – the consumers, take into consideration other things beside the camera. For instance, I strongly believe that Nikon should provide their (Nikon Capture) Raw (NEF) manipulation software for free, and not have to pay $99 USA for the software. After all these prices for Digital cameras are still ridiculously high, considering how fast they become obsolete. I know a pro photographer that shoots horse races that has all these $5,000+ cameras (about 3 bodies) lined up in his obsolete corner of his room, and soon to add another one. It is our fault (the consumers) that these prices/camera/software combo packages are still selling like hot bread when some of them don’t make sense.

I remember when you could buy a solid Pro Nikon camera body for $2,000 that would last 25 years. That is - until the digital age came, and blinded us all in the economics point of view. I still am waiting for a Nikon digital camera that is worth purchasing that would include the essential software for FREE below the $1,000 tag price - to grab my assorted Nikkor lenses and put it to use again.

This is a message for Nikon: I need a camera under 1,000, with the essential software for FREE, and that would have the essential features. To me essential is e.g. 1- Everything that the D70s but at least 8.0 MP with uncompressed Raw, 2- DOF preview, 3- Pure blacks and pure whites in normal parameter to make those pics “snappy”.

Oscar

Opinion: this camera is way to expensive, 4 megapixel in the year 2005 is just a crazy thing, nobody could understand. Also if you read what Thom Hogan said about the D2X "Yes, you can switch to High-speed crop and get a bigger effective buffer, but once you've shot action at 12mp and seen the stunning amount of detail that can be captured, you won't want to switch to 6.9mp." and the D2Hs is just 4 megapixel

Opinion: Opinion by actual D2hs owner: I own and shoot with the Nikon D2hs, and have
much experience with the Nikon D100. I'd bypass those opinions by people who
obviously don't own and or don't use this particular camera, and who can’t read
simple instructions that this area is for actual owners to post their opinions.

4megapixels: I was one mouse “click” away from purchasing the 12mp (megapix)
D2x. I thought the D2x would be the ideal camera because of my interest of
producing large prints in addition to Web/Internet photography, general
commercial photography, and selling work mastered to CD and or DVD to private
interest. The D2H (in my opinion) produced unreliable colour & white balance
consistency, and was horrible at high ISO, so the D2H was never an option for me..
at any price. I knew what large prints looked like from our D100, and after a lot of
research, I came to the conclusion that I could get excellent prints on par with a
6mp camera with the D2hs. * Once you do the math, the difference between 6mp
and 4mp is quite small. Take into consideration that most modern large-format
print houses have RIPS that wonderfully upsize (upres) your photos to a reasonable
size of your liking. One could easily upres a 4mp photo (using a PROFESSIONAL
RIP) and produce a very high quality print, fit to be matted and framed and ‘look
like’ a 240-300 dpi print. A nice 16x20, will satisfy most wedding photographers.
* I went ahead and saved $1,500 by foregoing the D2x and getting the D2hs w/ a
great lens, etc..

I bought the D2hs, Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 AF-S VR lens, SB800 flash, an extra battery,
and the Nikon TC-17E II teleconverter, for a few hundred dollars over what I
would’ve paid for a D2x. I bought online, avoiding sales tax, and saved another
$500 in doing so (all inclusive) !. The camera works as I expected and I like the
colour consistency better than the D2H, and the speed is superior to all other
digital Nikons. The build quality is robust. I’ve tested the camera for colour
consistency on the beach, in the woods, at home in dim light and at night. I am
impressed with the D2hs on all accounts.. the best digital Nikon if you're going to
be shooting high ISO.

The high-speed setting, is very useful. A woman was lying on the beach, her back
arched, long hair suspended in air, while she playfully flicked sand with her foot.
Using high speed burst, I caught her in perfect position.. back arched, hair in the
wind, tanned leg outstretched, and bare foot tightly arched and pointed like a
ballerina.. I selected that perfect shot out of a burst of about 30… and that was at
340mm w/the 17E II, teleconverter and 70-200VR lens!! Sharp, considering a
converter attached. I am now a definite fan of high-speed burst. That is exactly the
speed I need for shooting models and general Web work. The speed of the D2hs
matched with the SB800 speed light makes shooting models (which is usually a
pain in the rump) an easier task. No other Nikon can match the D2hs in that
respect (speed w/out cropping). I can shoot extremely fast in RAW (NEF format),
MUCH faster the studio lights can keep up, and they recycle in less than 1 sec!!

Cost Effectiveness? The worth of a camera directly depends on how well it fits in to
your workflow and or, how much money (or joy) it can generate. Most people I
hear whining about the price and 4mp, would not usually be making huge prints or
remotely need 12 (or even 8) megapixels anyway. I find the D2hs very well priced,
and a workhorse of a camera.

1. Fast workflow at the camera, rapid shooting up to 50 frames.. 40 in RAW.
Something I can really use with the SB8000 and hyper flash sync speeds. Nikon's
flagship flash keeps up pretty well with the camera. One must be careful not to
overheat the flash when shooting in rapid succession. (always fully read the
manuals that come w/your gear!)

2. Lower initial cost outlay. $3,500 vs. $5,000 for the D2x. Do you really NEED
12mp for what you do?

3. The advantages are such that I wouldn’t want to have to use a D70s, even
though it’s a great camera. At 6mp, it will only print a really good quality print,
about 10% larger than the 4mp D2hs. I can easily match the prints of a 8mp
camera with upresing via modern printing RIPS/software, however the D2x
dominates the D2hs (of course) when it comes to quality VERY LARGE format print
resolution.

4. Colour, white balance and professional lens(es) consistently yield excellent
quality shots with minimal fiddling w/menus, etc., on the D2hs. Everything with
the D2hs is just like the D2x... the speed and high ISO capability is better.

5. Post processing workflow. I can manipulate photos quicker in Photoshop,
realize more on the compact flash (especially in best quality mode where the file
sizes aren’t a constant.. although the latter is an option on the D2hs). With the
D2x, I think 90% of the time, 12mp would go to waste for my type of shooting
(now that I know I can get reasonable large prints from a printing bureau with a
D2hs).. The D2hs hails from a proven design. The image quality and colour
reproduction of the D2hs is excellent. If you're a wedding shooter, typically, a
bride or groom can’t tell the difference between a good photo made from a D1x,
D100, D2hs or D2x… especially if 8x10 or 11x14, is what you typically print when
going beyond wallet size.

Overall I rate this camera excellent. If you are taking photos to seriously earn a
buck, and your market is real estate, blogs, weddings, web sites, and shooting
specific subjects for photo collectors, then this is the perfect camera… be sure to
purchase quality lenses. If price wasn’t a factor, I think most D70s owners would
not even think of going back to their camera if they used the D2hs for a day. Get a
NIKON spare battery (who cares if you spend $40 more for the "Nikon" brand, you
won’t have to worry about warranty issues if the battery malfunctions, etc… use
your head, and don’t skimp on a stupid battery to try and save $40 when you just
bought a camera costing thousands). You can realistically expect between
800-1,000 photos on a charge with a AF-S, VR lens attached. I use the Sandisk
Ultra II flash cards so there is virtually no delay in recording a 50 frame burst. The
buffer in the D2hs is so huge, that you can realistically shoot in rapid succession in
RAW, without having to wait for the camera. Can you shoot 40 RAW shots with
your current camera, and have those 40 shots clear the buffer in a matter of
seconds?

In jpg fine, you can expect around 300 shots, or so, per 512mb on a compact flash
card (150 or so in RAW). expect 300 uncompressed RAW shots per 2gig card.
The Nikon SB800 speed light (flash) is a great addition.

Don’t skimp, and read the instruction book from cover to cover. The flash has been
Excellent to us.

Nikon might bump the resolution up sometime in the future (or they might not),
but after using the D2hs, and delving into the business aspect of photography- I
think Nikon has their head screwed on correctly when it comes to the D2hs. This
camera wasn’t intended for the weekend pleasure shooter, nor the birder who wants
to make billboard size prints of the prarie chicken he saw over the weekend.. This
camera has a definite niche market… and it fits those in that market like a glove.

Best of luck to all of you in your purchase decision. My advice is research well
before you buy. Use a checklist to define your purchases.. will a particular camera
give you a quick return on your investment? Do you really need 12mp? How often
will you actually make huge prints? What about passing up the D2x and getting
the next "medium format" size generation digitals on the horizon? Medium format
will be the "norm" in a few years or less... You get the point. Unless you're
freelancing for magazines, etc., and need HUGE file sizes now.. I'd forego the D2x,
purchase the D2hs, and make a 16-22mp camera your next large purchase, as
prices are plummeting!

..Often less, is actually more.

Teila K. Day

Recommended Lenses, especially for professional/business use. These zooms are
optically on par with, or will surpass the performance of most primes while at
the same time giving you maximum versatility.

Nikon 17-35mm f/2.8
Nikon 28-70mm f/2.8
Nikon 70-200VR f/2.8
Nikon 200-400VR f/4
-----------------------------------------------
$9,500 U.S (appx)

*Depending on your needs, Nikon's 200VR and 300VR prime lenses are excellent.
I'm only recommending the non-DX format lenses because they offer the most
versatility right now by enabling the photographer to seemlessly use the lens on a
film camera or Full Frame digital Canon body for example. If Nikon makes a Full
Frame camera, you'll still be able to use your lenses to their full potential !

I would not purchase a $1,000 + lens, and not be able to use it on my Nikon film
camera!

Opinion: Fantastic product ! I upgrade from a D2h. I don't need 12Mpix. 4Mpix are ok, and post-processing time are slower.
- Automatic WB was improved from D2h.
- High ISO are far better. I've done 1600 iso tests with ultra low ambient light, and results where great.
- All operations are done instantly.
- The display is now usefull (quality and 4 histo)
HIGHLY recommended !