My D70 initial Report

[Goldeneye]

Thanks for your report, Guilherme - very interesting.

If I was to upgrade to a DSLR today it would 100% be the D70, so I'll be waiting for the rest of your D70 posts with great anticipation! I will probably not be upgrading for at least another twelve months, probably eighteen - by which point the D70 will probably be selling with the kit lens for around £500 in the UK.

I think the main reason that a lot of Fuji owners are upgrading to the D70 is because after the S7000/S20, there's nothing else to to upgrade to . The only other Fuji cameras above these are the S2/S3, and for many people these are just too expensive. Dor the price it's selling at, the D70 offers a superb half-way compromise, and with so many great features it's very hard to resist. Maybe this will force Fuji to finally develop their own entry-level DSLR, who knows...

I for one would be very interested in that.

Nick
--
(Fuji s5000)
http://thegrapevine.brinkster.net/S5000-gallery.html

 

[_Dave]

Hi Guilherme,

I'm really glad you've updated to the D70, you obviously have the eye for good shots, so I'm hoping now that the quality will continue!

I'm tempted too in the next 6 months to upgrade as well, but I would really, really love to get a DSLR with a full frame sensor. Then when I buy a 10mm lens it really is 10mm and I'm getting what I pay for. But obviously the cost is slightly prohibitive...

I dunno, I'm tempted to get into wedding photography just to pay for the equipment. It would take a while to learn, but if it paid for a pro digital body and some top quality fast glass then I'd have to try it...

--
http://daaave.blogspot.com

 

[BigMike]

Hi Mike,

What is it the 300D is not doing for you that makes you want the 20D?

Morris

It's not written in stone guite yet, morris. My interest in photography seem to be heading more and more toward portrait and candid shots, something I really enjoy doing, and people seem to like and think I do best. The past couple of days, Jan has been also urging me to do more portrait and candid work. If this becomes my main interest for a while, there would be absolutely no reason to upgrade from the rebel. It is perfectly suited for this use, especially with the cleanness of the cmos sensor. I had been thinking about upgrading to the 20D for several features that might make shooting action shots a little easier, such as AI servo in all modes and faster AF. These make things a little easier for the action shooter. As Daniella has shown, they are helpful, but not needed for bird shots with the 300D. I'm still trying to decide which way I'll go, but I wouldn't be surprised that if in the end, I stay with the Rebel, and invest the money in prime lenses instead.

--

Once in a while, please check back several pages in the forum, for posts that may have been overlooked. Thanks!

 

[BigMike]

After I left this post to you, I started talking to my wife about upgrading to the 20D next month. After the discussion, I realized that the photos I seem to do best are portraits and candids, which I really enjoy. This being the case, upgrading to a 20D would make no sense. I'm going to be investing in several prime lenses, and other needed equipment. I also love doing landscapes, and the rebel is also well suited for that. I mess around with action shots, such as birds in flight, but really am not that interested in them. Actually, for the kind of work I am doing, the S7000 still does an excellent job, so will also get a lot of use.

Anyway, looking forward to your 70D shots. It's a fantastic camera!

--

Once in a while, please check back several pages in the forum, for posts that may have been overlooked. Thanks!

 

[Antonio_2]

As you know I might follow you soon or late.

The D70 with the 18-70 is a great bargain, powerful camera and decent kit lens. I don't like 300d kit lens, a good Canon lens for me would be the 17-85 but then it's more expensive than D70 with 18-70.

At tele side I think I prefer Canon lenses (for my needs) see this post
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1030&message=11665265

I am leaving now for some days, so I'll check back your findings next week.

Have great fun with your new camera.

--
Antonio
http://www.pbase.com/antonio_2

 

[Mister Mantis]

Why would you follow a brand? Chose what works best...

Morris

I agree.

I am not the one who initially mentioned that.

If some people here on this forum would like to stay loyal to
the Fuji brand, they have the S3 to look forward to.

So far, the shots I have seen out of the S3 are the BEST I have
ever seen from ANY digital camera!

~ Mr. Mantis ~

 

[Guilherme Orcutt]

I'll not reply individually for each post. I just want to give a big thank you for every reply and compliment I had here.

The 20D was high on my list and I really like spot metering, but what really made me choose the D70 was price. I would not have the money for the 20D and the extra glass, flash and filters that I'll buy on the next days. I was really tired of the endless research, analyzing samples, asking opinions here and there. I want to shoot some pictures with a DSLR, so I decided to get what my money could buy. The 300D lacks some features that I think it's important for my shooting style, so here I am.

Again, you will still find me here on the FTF. I like this forum and the people around here.

I like to invite you to read my next post where I made some comparisons of the D70 with the S7K.
--
Best regards,
Guilherme

My photo album: http://www.maccocker.com.br/gallery

 

[morris]

Hi Dave,

Well when I shoot landscape I agree with you, but when I'm shooting wildelife, that 1.5x crop is fantastic!

Morris

Hi Guilherme,

I'm really glad you've updated to the D70, you obviously have the
eye for good shots, so I'm hoping now that the quality will
continue!

I'm tempted too in the next 6 months to upgrade as well, but I
would really, really love to get a DSLR with a full frame sensor.
Then when I buy a 10mm lens it really is 10mm and I'm getting what
I pay for. But obviously the cost is slightly prohibitive...

I dunno, I'm tempted to get into wedding photography just to pay
for the equipment. It would take a while to learn, but if it paid
for a pro digital body and some top quality fast glass then I'd
have to try it...

--
http://daaave.blogspot.com

--



http://qcpages.qc.edu/~morris/POD [/U]

 

[morris]

Hi Mike,

You will get better focus speed improvements from lenses than from changing the body, at least on Cannon equipment which is what you have. Invest in the lenses and skip a generation of 2 before investing in a body again, if at all. Good lenses will improve you image quality with resolution, contrast and sharpness. Even if you are going to shoot wildlife, the higher contrast will make your 300D focus faster. If you are going to do portraits, get your self a 50mm 1.4 and have a ball. You might also want something in the 80mm to 160mm range. Again get fast lenses. My only complaint with primes is that you need to do more lens changes which lends to sensor dust and time cleaning rather than shooting and processing.

Morris

Hi Mike,

What is it the 300D is not doing for you that makes you want the 20D?

Morris

It's not written in stone guite yet, morris. My interest in
photography seem to be heading more and more toward portrait and
candid shots, something I really enjoy doing, and people seem to
like and think I do best. The past couple of days, Jan has been
also urging me to do more portrait and candid work. If this becomes
my main interest for a while, there would be absolutely no reason
to upgrade from the rebel. It is perfectly suited for this use,
especially with the cleanness of the cmos sensor. I had been
thinking about upgrading to the 20D for several features that might
make shooting action shots a little easier, such as AI servo in all
modes and faster AF. These make things a little easier for the
action shooter. As Daniella has shown, they are helpful, but not
needed for bird shots with the 300D. I'm still trying to decide
which way I'll go, but I wouldn't be surprised that if in the end,
I stay with the Rebel, and invest the money in prime lenses instead.

--
Once in a while, please check back several pages in the forum, for
posts that may have been overlooked. Thanks!

--



http://qcpages.qc.edu/~morris/POD

 

[BeckyC]

As you know I might follow you soon or late.

The D70 with the 18-70 is a great bargain, powerful camera and
decent kit lens. I don't like 300d kit lens, a good Canon lens for
me would be the 17-85 but then it's more expensive than D70 with
18-70.

Not really, right now Canon is offering rebates on their lenses with the purchase of the rebel. You get $100.00 rebate for the rebel and then rebate on canon lens. Some have realised $320.00 or more. On the Rebel forum some have considered buying the lenses just to get the rebates and then selling the lenses on ebay.

I believe the rebate ends either at the end of January or in February 05. There is the expectation of the annoucement of the rebel replacement at the PMA. So everyone on the forum is in a delimma to buy now and get the rebates or wait for the new rebel.

I went from the S7000 and purchased the rebel with the kit lens, 70-200 f/4L, sigma 28-70 & 50mm f/1.8 II lens.

At tele side I think I prefer Canon lenses (for my needs) see this
post
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1030&message=11665265

I am leaving now for some days, so I'll check back your findings
next week.

Have great fun with your new camera.

--
Antonio
http://www.pbase.com/antonio_2

--
Becky

 

[smakky]

Hi Guilherme.

Well, I finally got my D70 today, (persuaded my wife to let me )

Those 2 hours waiting for the battery to charge were almost the longest of my life.

I'll post some images when photobucket goes back online, but they're great and I LOVE the DOF I can achieve as opposed to with my ol' fuji.

They had a deal here in Australia where I can get a bonus 70-300mm Tamron lens, plus the kit lens, as well as the $200 back from Fuji. Add a 128MB card to that and an extra 2 year warranty I got it for $2300 (2100 after rebate) and the best thing, I didn't pay a cent! hehehe I got it on interest free finance and have 12 months to pay for it.

I'll make a new post when I have uploaded them.

See you on the D70 forum!

I'll not reply individually for each post. I just want to give a
big thank you for every reply and compliment I had here.
The 20D was high on my list and I really like spot metering, but
what really made me choose the D70 was price. I would not have the
money for the 20D and the extra glass, flash and filters that I'll
buy on the next days. I was really tired of the endless research,
analyzing samples, asking opinions here and there. I want to shoot
some pictures with a DSLR, so I decided to get what my money could
buy. The 300D lacks some features that I think it's important for
my shooting style, so here I am.
Again, you will still find me here on the FTF. I like this forum
and the people around here.
I like to invite you to read my next post where I made some
comparisons of the D70 with the S7K.
--
Best regards,
Guilherme

My photo album: http://www.maccocker.com.br/gallery

 

[Mister Mantis]

Hi Guilherme.

Well, I finally got my D70 today, (persuaded my wife to let me )

Those 2 hours waiting for the battery to charge were almost the
longest of my life.

You dirty DOG!

You JUST GOT your Fuji S5500 !!!

SHAME ON YOU!

You were supposed to take at least 5,000 photos with your
S5500 before getting a DSLR!

You just couldn't stand it, huh?
You saw all these people jumping, and you had to do it!

SIGH

~ Mr. Mantis ~
( LOYAL Finepix S5100 user! )

 

[smakky]

You dirty DOG!

You JUST GOT your Fuji S5500 !!!

C'mon... I had my S5000 for 4 months and my S5500 for about the same time... I was due for it

SHAME ON YOU!

You were supposed to take at least 5,000 photos with your
S5500 before getting a DSLR!

I took lots of photos over xmas... hardly any of the indoor ones turned out... they were too blurry, so that helped my decision

You just couldn't stand it, huh?
You saw all these people jumping, and you had to do it!

C'mon mate, it was a deal too good to pass up

SIGH

~ Mr. Mantis ~
( LOYAL Finepix S5100 user! )

Go see if you can try a D70 for your hummingbird shots... lets see how long you stay loyal to fuji

Cheers mate.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1034&message=11675448

 

[shudder]

Why would you follow a brand? Chose what works best...

Morris

I agree.

I am not the one who initially mentioned that.

I'm the one who originally mentioned it. Because... I have had such good luck and great shots from my 602, I am much more likely to stay aligned with a brand that I already am using with great satisfaction...

IF

...they come up with the goods on the current DSLR end of things. The S2 has been eclipsed, so that is no longer an option. The D70 is one serious cam -- the S3 better do it one better, or that's the end of Fuji for me.

So far, the shots I have seen out of the S3 are the BEST I have
ever seen from ANY digital camera!

Nice to hear.

--
best,
shudder

PIX: http://www.mmcphoto.com
MIX: http://www.artistlaunch.com/mmc
Get the SDD*: http://www.mmcphoto.com

• • shudder's digital darkroom

 

[Mister Mantis]

C'mon... I had my S5000 for 4 months and my S5500 for about the
same time... I was due for it

4 months ?!?!?!
That's hardly any time at all!
I got my S5100 right after you got yours!
I'm going to resist the temptation, and keep working
with my 5100 for at least another 6 months, maybe a year.

I took lots of photos over xmas... hardly any of the indoor ones
turned out... they were too blurry, so that helped my decision

Aaaaaah, okay, the truth comes out!
You wanted better indoor/low-light performance.
Okay, I can understand that.
The S5100 is not the best low-light shooter, but it still WORKS,
if you know how to work with it.
Did you spend enough time with your 5500 to really get to know it?

C'mon mate, it was a deal too good to pass up

I want to see some indoor/low-light shots from your D70!
I also want to see some bird shots!
Get busy, mate!

~ Mr. Mantis ~
( LOYAL Finepix S5100 user! )

Go see if you can try a D70 for your hummingbird shots... lets see
how long you stay loyal to fuji

Cheers mate.

I have no doubt, if I tried some hummingbird shots with a D70
and a good lens, I would probably never want to use my 5100 again!

( Which is WHY I am going to WAIT awhile, before getting a DSLR! )

I want to get my money's worth out of my 5100!

Hehehehe!

~ Mr. Mantis ~
sigh

 

[Guilherme Orcutt]

Hey smakki,
Lucky man you are. Great deal! We'll meet over the D70 forum.
--
Best regards,
Guilherme

My photo album: http://www.maccocker.com.br/gallery

 

[ChromeDome]

You will get better focus speed improvements from lenses than from
changing the body, at least on Cannon equipment which is what you
have. Invest in the lenses and skip a generation of 2 before
investing in a body again, if at all. Good lenses will improve you
image quality with resolution, contrast and sharpness. Even if you
are going to shoot wildlife, the higher contrast will make your
300D focus faster. If you are going to do portraits, get your self
a 50mm 1.4 and have a ball. You might also want something in the
80mm to 160mm range. Again get fast lenses. My only complaint
with primes is that you need to do more lens changes which lends to
sensor dust and time cleaning rather than shooting and processing.

Morris

Hi Mike,

What is it the 300D is not doing for you that makes you want the 20D?

Morris

It's not written in stone guite yet, morris. My interest in
photography seem to be heading more and more toward portrait and
candid shots, something I really enjoy doing, and people seem to
like and think I do best. The past couple of days, Jan has been
also urging me to do more portrait and candid work. If this becomes
my main interest for a while, there would be absolutely no reason
to upgrade from the rebel. It is perfectly suited for this use,
especially with the cleanness of the cmos sensor. I had been
thinking about upgrading to the 20D for several features that might
make shooting action shots a little easier, such as AI servo in all
modes and faster AF. These make things a little easier for the
action shooter. As Daniella has shown, they are helpful, but not
needed for bird shots with the 300D. I'm still trying to decide
which way I'll go, but I wouldn't be surprised that if in the end,
I stay with the Rebel, and invest the money in prime lenses instead.

--
Once in a while, please check back several pages in the forum, for
posts that may have been overlooked. Thanks!

--



http://qcpages.qc.edu/~morris/POD

Hi Morris,

I keep reading this about folk getting the 50mm for portraiture! Wasn't that the optimum fl for a full frame sensor? Surely a 35mm prime would be more appropriate for the 1.6 crop factor! Even that equates to around 56mm which aint quite 1:1!

Regards,

Greg

--
Every silver lining has a cloud ;-(

http://www.pbase.com/chromedome

 

[mystic7]

First off, congrats, G! I knew you'd make the wise choice I'm currently not posting over in the D70 forum. Seems some of them think I'm a racist redneck bigot because I wouldn't let a French guy with a Muslim nick badmouth Americans. Screw 'em! Anyway, I see a LOT of my old friends are looking towards getting a DSLR. If it's any help you can go through my galleries (link below in my sig).

The Miscellaneous gallery contains both D70 and old S7000 shots. Also, the most recent shots were done this weekend and I wasn't feeling too inspired so overall you can ignore it. I used the kit lens on all galleries except "Latino Festival II" and "3 Beautiful Ladies - Latino Festival II" and the latest gallery "Jazz Brunch", which again, I was lacking some inspiration, where I used the cheapo but effective Nikon 70-300mm G series zoom. Most of those shots are handheld, wide open at full zoom!.

So have a look and hopefully they'll give you an idea of what a total moron can do with a D70. Oh, btw, the girls in the "3 beautiful ladies.." gallery contacted me and want to buy the pictures. I'm a pro now! ;-)
Looking EXTREMELY forward to seeing what you do with the D70, G.
Cheers!
--
M7
http://mystic7.darwinonline.org

 

[Guilherme Orcutt]

Hey M7, I knew I would find you mate I'm still trying to get used to the camera. I don't have any other lenses yet but I'm thinking in getting the sigma 70 300 APO that seems to be a nice glass at an affordable price. Do you know how does this lens compare with the one you have? What is the difference in price? I still have to spend some money with a flash, I was thinking on the SB600, and some filters.

About the forum, one thing that took my attention is that there are too many people over there; I didn't feel that friendly atmosphere that we have here. As I will keep my S7K, it makes me happy that I can still be part of this "family".
I'll post some stuff from the D70 soon. We will talk
--
Best regards,
Guilherme

My photo album: http://www.maccocker.com.br/gallery

 

[mystic7]

Hey G. Yeah, there's a lot more new people there. Those are the ones who got on my nerves. As far as Sigma v. Nikon, I think the Sigma is $50 bucks cheaper. It MAY have the same glass as the Nikon ED as opposed to the G series. Some people, like myself have no problem with the G lens, but we make do with what we have and work around the shortcomings. Others want everything handed to them, so they pay more for the ED glass. Others insist on sticking with Nikon for the brand name and resale value. Your best bet is to do a search in the Nikon Lens forum, you'll find a ton of information there. As for the SB-600 from what I understand it is really worth it to get the SB-800 for $100 more. I myself have no interest in flash photography but those who are swear by the increased capabilities of the SB-800. Hope that helps and see ya soon.

Hey M7, I knew I would find you mate I'm still trying to get
used to the camera. I don't have any other lenses yet but I'm
thinking in getting the sigma 70 300 APO that seems to be a nice
glass at an affordable price. Do you know how does this lens
compare with the one you have? What is the difference in price? I
still have to spend some money with a flash, I was thinking on the
SB600, and some filters.
About the forum, one thing that took my attention is that there are
too many people over there; I didn't feel that friendly atmosphere
that we have here. As I will keep my S7K, it makes me happy that I
can still be part of this "family".
I'll post some stuff from the D70 soon. We will talk
--
Best regards,
Guilherme

My photo album: http://www.maccocker.com.br/gallery

--
M7
http://mystic7.darwinonline.org