Forget the hurricane. Forget Usain Bolt DQing in the 100m final in Daegu.
The big event of the week was the arrival of my new (well almost new) camera. Not just another camera, but a real camera with a full frame sensor. I had been dreaming about this step for at least a year and a half, but previously it had been really impossible to justify the expense for an FX camera for school. After all, my trusty old Nikon D200 was still cranking out photos of acceptable resolution for school projects. Having successfully completed the first year of my 2 year Commercial Photography program and with Nikon rumors abounding of new DSLR announcements, I decided that I had a responsibility to provide a good home for just one of the many, many Nikon D700s that have started to be put up for adoption on e-Bay by more affluent photographers planning to upgrade to the new gear when it is announced. I think I did reasonably well in negotiating for a two year old with a mere 10K actuations plus an MB-D10 battery grip.
Well my baby showed up last Friday about two hours behind the NIKKOR 28 – 300mm VR lens that I also closed my eyes to purchase. Naturally I have been experimenting and learning the nuances of this new device continuously since then. I am in ecstasy. Multiply everything good that I had been told about this camera by 2. The only word that seems appropriate to describe the image quality is… WOW! I am absolutely delighted by images that I have created so far. Here is a sample:
The bean stalk
The D700 is similar enough to the D200 that I am able to do basic things without having to refer to the manual, however, the autofocus is considerably more complex so I have had to seek the aid of my secret mentor Thom Hogan and his “Complete Guide to The Nikon D700″.
More to come.
