D50 v 70

[pseudonym]

G'day all, long time no speak, been in on and off lurker mode for the last few months (got over to Seoul and things kinda just grabbed my attention away from my photography :dunno) but now I'm back with what I'm sure will be a great contribution to this community, wadda ya'll think of the Nikkon D50 v the 70 ? :D

I've basically found myself falling ass backward into money over here (compared to the average student budget anyway :):) and having purchased a good many gizmos and gadgets I have decided this is my chance to upgrade to a digital SLR (having decided my pentax Optio s5i makes a great pocket camera for those nights out on the town but over and above that ... well it's OK but).

Cannon, in Korea, is expensive (more expensive than Aus. actually) but Nikkon is cheap as chips, go figure. So I am looking at my options and I'm looking in particular at the D50 and 70 (anything more is a bit too expensive and out of my league skill wise). I automatically lean toward the D70 as it is the 'higher' model (and only a hundred bucks more expensive) and I wonder if this is a reasonable line of thinking or if there are other factors I need to take into consideration.

Tried having a look around but couldn't find any discussion on these cameras, please point me in the right direction if I am mistaken.

Cheers guys.

[Seymore]

Well, I have not yet had my hands on the D50, but I'd suggest you get the D70s if it's still within your budget. Here's dpreviews comparison of the D50/D70/D70s (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond50/), based on the D50... and you'll see some differences. Basically the D50 is a detuned D70, with some "added" features. But, I feel this is a matter of opinion. I guess it all depends what you want to use the cam for. I still find myself mounting a MF 135/2.8 on a regular basis. Some of the shots, because of glass quality, are just amazing. And this lens is 20-30yo.

Also, here's the review for the D70 (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond70/)... the D70s (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Nikon/nikon_d70s.asp). And, here's your side-by-side listing of features for all 3: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=nikon_d50%2Cnikon_d70%2Cnikon_d70s&show=all

HTH...

[pseudonym]

hey cheers Seymore,

Mate checking out those reviews/comparisons (particularly the sample photographs) the D50 is looking the better camera, and for less money, what makes you rate the D70 ?

just curious.

[Seymore]

Ummmmmmmmmmmmm... Lessee... I own one. :wink I see the D50 as Nikon's 300D/XT (read low end) competitor, and the D70 to the 10D/20D. Also, the D50 uses SD cards. Most all other dSLRs I know of use CF cards. Sorta makes a transition to a different camera, if needed down the road, a bit more costly with the purchase of new storage media.

But, I guess I'm being a bit biased towards the D70. Since, when I bought mine the D50 wasn't even announced yet. Let us know what you end up going with. I'm sure you'll be a happy camper. Oh, and make sure you handle both of them at a local store before you buy in Korea. It gives you a feel for each.

[pseudonym]

yeah good point, the cheapest prices here are on the 'net and I have never fired a DSLR before (played around on a few film ones but that is it). Might even go into one of the camera markets here and try them out before I make my decision (it'll be another month and a half of saving before I can afford one...providing no benders in the meantime lol).

SD card is one reason I may go with a D50 (Got 2 of the buggers for my pentax, there's 150bucks I don't wanna spend again) but at the end of the day camera/photo quality is more important to me.

Thanks for the input, I'll let ya'll know how it turns out.