� Sensor: CCD - 6.1 Million pixels � Image Size: 3008x2000 � Lens: Takes all Nikkor lenses � Focus: Advanced TTL Auto/Manual � Exposure: Vari-program/AP/SP/M � Metering: 3D Matrix/CW/Spot � Monitor: 1.8" TFT LCD � Movie Mode: No � Storage: CompactFlash/Microdrive � Batteries: Li-ion Pack � AC Adaptor: Optional � Video Output: Yes � Size/Weight: 140x111x78mm - 595g � Transfer: USB (Mac & PC) Content and images originally posted by Andy Bright
Reviews
clivefrancis's review
I bought this on the day of release, and was my first DSLr (or SLR come to that!) i had previously owned 3 Olympus digi's (C920, C3040 and the C5050) and was very happy with the quality and build of the cameras, but they just lacked that little bit more in terms of zoom, file size (that was commercially acceptable), so i started the review process.
i was originally going to get a 10D, but as underwater photography was my main passion (www.the-deep-blue.co.uk) and there was a lack of reasonably priced housing for this i started to look at the D70.
i knew a housing would be available for the D70 very quickly, so this became more of an option.
i can honestly say that i have not been dissapointed with this camera, yes i have spent thousands on it, lenses, dedicated flash, and of course the housing, but the pictures are worth it.
but you can take it straight out of the box and start producing superb quality photo's and practice the manual settings with instant feedback.
i have yet to update my site with photo's from this camera (too busy playing with it), but i have used this and the SB800 to take the photo's for my brothers wedding and although some were a little under exposed due to beeing limited to the church because of bad weather, it was easily corrected in the nikon and photoshop software.
everyone who viewed the photo's agreed they were better than some professional ones they had seen.
so you can't get a better recomendation than that!
Pros
- well balanced and extremely easy to use
Cons
- can\'t really think of any
- apart from reviewing pictures it opens up in a zoomed mode and you have to zoom out to view the picture.
quickcam's review
The prices are dropping on this camera faster than anything. If you are willing to spend a bit more, get the D70s which has a bigger LCD screen.
Pros
- amazing color
- compatiable with many lenses
- fast shutter speed
- fast flash sync
Cons
- LCD screen too small
- lacks USB 2.0 connection built in
Kari Post's review
The digital D-SLR gives me the freedom to shoot anything and everything (no rationing 35mm film for me anymore). I bought the body from B&H for $800 -- it was either a demo model or refurbished but its as good as new, and costs $100-$200 less than a non "previously loved" model. I love this camera. It is fast (minimal shutter delay, no write delay), just as fast as my 35mm SLR, which is super important when shooting sports. I shoot at 1600 ISO a lot because I'm stuck doing action indoors, and the images are very nice and smooth compared to how I've seen many point-and-shoots perform at 400 ISO. The slowest film equivalent on the D70 is 200 ISO which is kind of a bummer, 50 or 100 would have been nice. The controls are nice and the menu is pretty easy to use. It is pretty similar to my N65 in those respects. Manually setting white balance is kinda tricky, I usually have to attempt it more than once to get a reading because I somehow screw it up, but once I get a good reading it really does enhance the pictures. AF is usually pretty good and decently fast. I love the EXIF data recorded by my D70 (most digital cameras have this, so don't think the D70 is special, but it is a nice change from 35mm). The 1.5x crop factor is sweet when shooting wildlfie and sports, but can be difficult to work with when doing landscapes. Image quality is pretty good, with good colors and sharpness. The matrix metering is very good and has performed very well for me in all types of light. Overall the D70 is an excellent camera that I would highly recommend. You really can't go wrong for the buck, although I have yet to try the D70S or D50.
I'm ranking it a 9 because although it can't compare to the high end DSLRs out there like the D2X it is certainly a wise investment in its range.
Suggested Tips: Buy a large capacity fast memory card. I have the 1 GB Lexar 80x WA compact flash card. It's well worth the extra money if you shoot sports or wildlife where the picture of a lifetime can happen in a split second and then its gone. You won't want to be missing shots while the camera writes to your memory card.
If you can afford it get an extra battery too. They aren't too expensive and although the battery life on this camera is very good, it never hurts to have a spare.
Pros
- price
- build
- not a lot of noise even at ISO 1600
- dual knobs allow you to quickly adjust exposure
- good battery life
- fast
- EXIF data
- versatility
- focus lock
Cons
- white balance was a little tricky to use
- no self timer button (you have to go through the menu)
- lowest ISO is 200
DiggitalD's review
A lot has been said about this camera already. It's great for somebody getting into amateur photography and for learning. However, it's easy to outgrow. I'm just going to list my gripes.
autofocus has lots of problems, leading to a recall mirror lock-up is only for cleaning, not shooting mirror causes too mush vibration ISO minimum is 200 no battery grip (except 3rd-party using infrared) no environmental seals no cable-release thread remote is only useable from in front
The camera has worked out well enough, but there are just so many things that cause unsharp images, ie. poor tracking of moving objects & mirror vibration. Long lenses need good support and proper handling. Ignoring my whining, the camera is easy to use and has nice features like the creative lighting system.
Pros
- cheap
- lots of accessories
Cons
- lacks professional build & features
g8ina's review
NB : First posted a long time ago at ciao.co.uk June 2004 and then at pyroport.com July 2004, written by me and all copyrights reserved.
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I worked my way thru the ranks of digital cameras. I started with a tiny Fuji MX1300 1.2MP with NO features. I soon tired of that and upgraded to an Olympus C40z which was great, it did so much more and I even did my sons wedding photos with it. Then I got the MegaPixel bug and upgraded to a Fuji s602Pro...... This nearly satisfied my cravings as a photographer, but there were things as an astronomer I still couldn�t do, like long exposures. So, a penny saving exercise and several e**y sales of junk later and I now own the Nikon D70 (originally) with the superb 18-70mm DX lens and now with the Tamron 28-300mm XR UltraZoom and a 500mm f6 scope as manual lens.
- FIRST IMPRESSIONS
It's big and a lot heavier than the Fuji, but fits nicely into my hands. All the controls are very well placed ergonomically and I can adjust most essential settings without taking my eye off the viewfinder. With my 512MB 66x Lexar CF card, I can take 145 JPG fine large images, and although it took me a few days to decide on the best settings for my type of photography, it was worth the effort as I am now producing photos like I have never done before.
Battery use is amazing - I have been out for 2 whole days shooting on ONE single battery charge ! The DX lens is also amazing, and due to the way the D70 is made, it effectively multiplies the focal length of the lens by 1.5, so my 18-70mm lens, *effectively* becomes what would be a 27-105mm lens on a standard SLR camera (for digicam users only, this works out at 3.8 x optical zoom). Finally, in first impressions, this camera has the fastest switch on time and autofocus I have ever seen ! It is ready to use even before my finger has moved from the on-off button to the shutter button.
- CONTROLS
All of the controls are settable either via the very comprehensive and easy to read menu, or by using dedicated buttons mainly placed down the left hand side of the LCD screen, with a few others dotted about in other strategic places. I can change the following settings without resorting to the menu : ISO, White Balance, Bracketing, Flash, Metering, single or multishot, exposure compensation, auto/man focus and AE/AF lock. Other functions, which are less needed to change regularly are in the menu, and boy, what a menu.... (edit - especially since the new FW upgrade)
Menu functions are divided into four areas, Playback, Image settings, General settings and Special functions. I don�t see anything missing from these that I wanted, and the manual talks you through each setting nicely, so it is relatively easy to setup.
There are 2 control wheels, one at the back of the body and one at the front. The rear wheel is the main control adjuster, so by holding down, say, the ISO button, I can scroll from 200 ISO up to 1600 ISO just by rotating the rear control wheel. The front really comes into its own when I use full manual exposure setting, where the rear adjusts the aperture, and the front adjusts the speed.
The final body control is the up/down/left/right button which most modern digital camera s now have in one form or another. The uses of this one are many fold : it moves the autofocus area setting, it pans up/down/left/right on the playback and also scrolls thru 4 playback information screens including histogram, highlights, and 2 screens of data relating to camera settings for the image being viewed.
- IMAGE QUALITY
Amazing.......eventually ! At first I had the wrong settings, soft focus, normal image processing etc, but after a while of viewing images on my PC, I found the right image settings for my particular taste. This will vary for everyone, and Nikon have given us plenty of choice in this matter. I settled on Large Image setting (6MP), Fine, Optimise Image to Sharp, ISO 200, and auto white balance.
(boring bit for non astronomers follows, sorry !) As I am an astronomer, the long exposure settings were one of the main reasons I chose this camera. Up to 30 seconds on auto, and up to 30 minutes on BULB, with or without auto noise reduction - yes, it even takes a dark frame and removes the noise caused by any hot pixels ! My first test astro images were untracked so show star trails, but even with these trails I can see that I caught the Ring Nebula, M57 (yes, I know that most of you reading this don�t know what on earth Im on about - just trust me when I say that getting M57 is not easy, even with a decent telescope) using the 300mm at maximum zoom, 30 seconds exposure at F6.3 and ISO1600. My astronomer friends are quite impressed, and they are a tough audience ! (sorry, that's the astronomy bit finished. It had to be done !)
Yes, you do get some substantial noise at 1600ISO settings but that is to be expected. What I wasn�t expecting though, was the rather less then comfortable noise levels at 400ISO ! It is minor and my noise reduction software can edit it out easily enough, but even my Fuji had lower noise at 400ISO than the Nikon. Still, it�s the only thing I can fault it on so far.
Wild birds and aircraft make up a lot of my targets at the moment while I�m still testing the Nikon, and to take these shots, you need to be quick. As the Nikon is ready to shoot before I am, I have not missed any birds or aircraft since acquiring the camera. Another great advantage is that the shutter speed now goes down to 1/8000th of a second (yes, one eight thousandsth of a second!) so I can even stop a humming birds wings in mid flap, and helicopter rotor blades appear frozen in mid air....
Colour balance is good, focus is always very sharp, I'm very impressed by this autofocus system !
(edit - autofocus is nowhere near as fast or sharp with the Tamron, but with Nikons AF lenses, it is superb)
- OTHER FEATURES OF NOTE :
Battery life - as stated is amazing, some friends who are occasional shooters can go a whole week before a recharge is needed, and, as the battery is only 1400mAH, this makes it all the more clever. I looked at a mains power supply, but at nearly �80 for a 9VDC 500mA supply, I was not tempted. Nikon have also stopped us using cheap and cheerful car boot sale power plugs by using an unknown power connector on the camera. Clever idea Nikon, but not appreciated !!
Infra Red remote - Great idea, much easier than the cable release system on the Coolpix models and also on the Nikons main opponent, the Canon 300D. Essential for long exposure shots for my astronomy to avoid body vibration.
Carry Strap - sadly not the most brilliant design. The strap attaches to the body by looping thru two small slots on the side. This means that the strap is under a bending stress when carrying the camera, and this leads me to believe that the strap will suffer from wear before too long. I have got around this by using a couple of heavy duty key rings between the body loops and the strap. This has taken the side stresses out and I recommend any other user to investigate alternative fixings for this.
Autofocus - has several setting for focus areas, including a dynamic setting which can track moving objects. You can also select a moveable single focus point upon half pressing the shutter button, or full time autofocus for moving subjects. Tried it with birds, very good (edit - not as good now with Tamron) !
Metering - excellent. Very versatile spot, centre weighted or matrix settings. Not had any shots with poor exposure yet (edit - over the 2 years I found it does tend to underexpose by about 1/3 of a stop. The compensation easily deals with this.).
Multi Shot settings - very fast. Even at 6MP fine I can take 9 shots before the buffer has to stop to write to the CF card. and with rapid fire at about 3 FPS (approx) I can catch all sorts of activity with the birds.... Bracketing is just as good as the rest of the system, with adjustments in the menu for +/- settings.
- CONCLUSION
OK it's only a quick review, but in the 2 weeks I have owned this Nikon D70, I can honestly say it has allowed me to take my best photographs, ever ! I did a lot of comparisons some weeks ago between ths D70 and the Canon 300d, and the Nikon won (but that was a lot to do with astronomy !)
I bought mine from S W Optics, Bristol for �939 inc the 18-70mmDX lens & next day delivery (Thanks Steve). 70-300mm G lens from London Camera Repair (brand new) for �97 total, again with next day delivery.
I�m happy.
(June 2004 � G8INA, David Harris)
Pros
- Quality build
- features
- durability.
Cons
- A very tiny bit noisy in low light shots
- even at 400ISO
