Advise on D90, D300(s), or the rumored 39ner

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Advise on D90, D300(s), or the rumored 39ner

(33 posts) (12 voices)

Started 3 years ago by Nikoner
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Nikoner

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Hi all, I am new here.

I am a P6000 bridge camera user mostly shooting university sports in manual, and shutter priority mode. It is painful, I know. I had purposefully bought this camera to learn the basics on, so that I could migrate to a prosumer camera when I am ready. Thanks to P6000 now I have hands on experience with handling light, speed, and distance. I had my eye on D300 (since I mostly shoot sports, so 51 points would help there) but was going to settle for D90 for budgetary reasons, as I also wanted to buy a 85mm f1.8d lens along-with whichever camera+70-300 ed-if af-s vr kit I buy.

Now this rumor of a 39 point camera is kind of nagging me. My next semester is not beginning till end of august, so I am in no hurry to buy.

1) The new 39 point camera will certainly be pricier than D90 $770.00 but in your opinion will it be in less than $1,000 range?
2) When 39pointer is made available for sale will a new D90 concurrently be available for sale from likes of Adorama and B&H? Hopefully at lower price? Or will they jack up the price, or totally discontinue D90? (I would like to avoid buying a used D90)
3) Lastly, is there a better choice than the below for a under $500.00 lens than below?
Indoor Sports: Nikon 85mm f1.8D
Outdoor Sports: Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5 - 5.6G ED-IF AF-S VR

Thanks in advance.

Posted 3 years ago #
gelu88

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1. the D90 replacement will retail for anywhere between 900-1200 body only. there has been lots of discussion here that the D5000 and the D90 are too "close". so price is a bit of a wildcard. Note that the kit version will add about $250 to that.

Also, there is no hard evidence at this time that the specs revealed last week are for the D90 replacement. Nothing to do but wait.

2.The moment the D90 replacement is released, the older model will be discontinued. But honestly, historically this site has been pretty good with rumors, so we should know some significant details days, hopefully weeks in advance. Thus if the D5000 and D300s are any indication, you could probably buy a D90 before its discontinued and get a decent deal.

3. those lenses are your best bet, though i've heard some un-substantiated discussion that the 70-300 might be up for renewal, but i would just wait till august and then go for it.

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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Thanks Gelu88, it’s the waiting that’s difficult. Although I don't need it right now, I am trigger happy when it comes to new purchases.

Isn’t the 70-300 revamped already, from the earlier non VR version? I thought it was the 85mm which was rumored to get AF-S, that would be cool.

Posted 3 years ago #
adamz

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1. price will certainly be at least $100-$150 more than the price of d90 at launch - if it's gonna have 39 af points
2. don't expect that price will drop significantly at official retailers, more likely it will be taken out of stock; however, You should be able to find some good deals on ebay
3. 85mm indoor is short, maybe instead of buying two lenses, go for a used 80-200/2.8 - 200mm indoor will work much better (300mm on D90/d300) and You will be able to attach TC to get up to 400/5.6 when shooting outdoors - You can also consider 70-200vrI, You should be able to get one for less than $1500

as for Your camera choice, I would stick to d90, when shooting action I mostly use center af point, as it gives me speed - it's much easier and faster (at least to me) to rearrange the composition than to wait for the lens to focus on the subject I want. d300 is tempting, but You wouldn't see too much improvement when using with the 70-300vr lens [btw. this lens works much better on FX than on DX] - or should I rather say, the improvement You would face is not wort the price tag (at least IMHO)

Posted 3 years ago #
kanuck

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I think the more important problem for you will not be the specs but how painfully slow Nikon is releasing new bodies recently. I wouldn't be surprised if no bodies are released from now until August. Just spring for a D90 now its a wonderful camera and that 70-300 lense with the DX cropped sensor will seem huge.

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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Adamz, when you say 85mm is short for indoors; do you mean in terms of distance I will have difficulty in say shooting basketball or volleyball? I can be at the sideline or under the hoop, and move around when needed. (I am not allowed to use flash for obvious reasons, that’s why I need 1.8)

80-200 one lens instead of two is a nice idea but I have read at other places that it was not fast enough for most indoor gyms and people had poor results. (^^flash not allowed)

Kanuck have you used or do you think that the 70-300 would focus fast enough for a soccer game?

Thanks

Posted 3 years ago #
adamz

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this picture was taken from one side of the ice, the girl was standing almost in the middle, iso 1600, 340mm (200/2.8+TC17, fully open f4.8, 1/60s, handheld)

Posted 3 years ago #
adamz

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taken on d90, added some softness through Silver FX

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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Wow! that’s a nice picture, especially considering your f stop in the indoor environment. My apprehension is that basketball courts are notoriously poorly lit for photography, if I jack up the ISO I know I will have unusable picture quality even if I use some utility like neat image. Secondly the BB players move around very rapidly, so a fast shutter speed is a must at least 1/800 if not faster - bringing down the ISO even lower. Hopefully 85 mm will work out as basketball courts are thankfully smaller and one can get away with shooting only in one half of the court at a time.

I haven’t had a chance to explore this forum yet, I wonder if someone has posted D90+85 1.8 indoor sports pictures.

Posted 3 years ago #
gelu88

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From what i've been reading the 85 1.8 seems to be a great indoor sports lens. Remember that on the D90 it is actually a 127mm.

this thread has some pretty sweet shots with it (canon version though).

http://www.flickr.com/groups/canon85mm/discuss/72157606546772493/

and honestly you can get great shots with slower glass indoors, it just means you have to rely more on luck. I just compensate by taking 3 times as many pictures as i think i do. I consider the extra time it takes me to filter all the crap as punishment for not buying faster glass ;)

Also, obviously, use a tripod.

Posted 3 years ago #
adamz

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Nikoner - with any of the new DX cameras 1600 iso is fully available, as for my picture above - there was only natural light available, not a single bulb was turned on as it was practice only

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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I check rebate deals of D90 (Body only, Body + 70-300vr) on Adorama and B&H everyday, today I noticed they went up by 10 to 15 dollars on both the deals on both sites!

Whats happening, aren't the rebates valid thru May 1st?

Posted 3 years ago #
Unitymind

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I own a D90 and love it because it offers both worlds - point/shoot and advanced. One reason I can hand it to my wife on auto and she can fire away without getting upset. The D90 allows you to use most any lens and right now searching Craig's list you will find a lot of low shutter count D90's from $600-$750 depending on locations (me = Minneapolis). I did see a complete D300 set for $1300 the other day and a D300 body for $1100 obo.

I spent a month looking between the D90 and the D5000 and they are really different once you start shooting with it. The sensor is the same as a D300 and has most of the bells and whistles. The feel of the D5000 is lighter side if that matter.

I spend most of my money now investing in FX lenses and waiting for a new D700xx someday.

I would grab a D90 and/or D300 (non S) if you can find anything in your range.

Good luck!

Posted 3 years ago #
jonnyapple

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Welcome to the forum, Unitymind. I agree with what you said and I'm in the same situation. The D90 is a great value.

Posted 3 years ago #
shivaswrath

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I think the D90 is at a slammingly amazing price right now. . .at it's peak, it was floating body only at $900. . .I just actually sold my D200 to "upgrade" to the D90 . . .

For imaging reasons ALONE, it has been a pleasure. . .sure the metering is "okay" sometimes, but nothing a little spot metering can't handle. . .

Despite knowing it was getting discontinued this year, it's a gem of a body, has great features the D300 is lacking (some of the in camera processing stuff, for instance), and I would argue it isn't worth paying more than the current $750-800 on the 12mpx DX sensor when the D400 will be out in the next 12 months. . .

That was pretty much why I decided to just suck it up, get a great body at a steal of a price, and relegate it to a vacation/back up body when next sensor set is out (whatever it'll be). . .

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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I was at Penn Camera - Baltimore area today, and they did not have a single D90 body in stock. Neither did they have any D90 kit except for one kit with 18-105 lens.

The manager told me they were in short supply and Nikon was unusually slow with restocking dealers. However, he denied that Nikon may simply be trying to clear inventory before the replacement hits the market.

He substantiated his argument with telling me they had ordered 100 units of D90 but the delivery was delayed due to slow market. I don’t know what to make of it.

Posted 3 years ago #
NikoDoby

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Nikoner, read this post for the probable explanation.

http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=1856#post-31191

Though it might also be that a new model is coming soon too.

Posted 3 years ago #
Rusty1963

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I feel, that for sports, the higher frame rate of the D300s is a huge advantage, there hasn't been one mention of it in this thread.

When I shoot with my D90, I often just "miss" the action, maybe my intuition is faulty, maybe it gets "in between the (drops) frames."

With the D300s I have more throw-aways, but also more keepers.

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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Thanks Niko that explains it. Manager did say it was industry wide and they had similar stocking issues with Canon and Sony. I hope the prices come down once all those ships enter harbor.

Rusty: I agree with you, based on what I have read about D300(s). However, I feel that D300(s) would be a too much of a camera for me personally. I mean P6000 is touted as a bridge camera (and it is, I learned a lot from it) but it’s not gonna catapult me in a different league. If you don’t mind me asking: what sports do you generally shoot, and which lens do you use for it? Thanks.

Posted 3 years ago #
adamz

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rusty - I never had this problem with my d90

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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After a lot of review, research, and advice here; I have decided I need a Nikon 85mm 1.8D for my indoor sports shooting needs (Basketball, Volleyball, and Swimming & Diving). I will buy it along-with a D90+70-300vr kit, either before the current rebates end or wait till July.

I was wondering if I can get away with using the 85mm for day to day casual shooting as well, or should I look into buying cheapest available wide prime?

Posted 3 years ago #
NSXType-R

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You can use the lens however you see fit. There are no limits to what you can to do with the lens.

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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Let me ask you this, if I am in a 25 x 20 foot room with say 10 people. Would I be able to take decent shots of people? I know I will have to work harder moving around, but will I be able to get pictures of average sized people (say 5.8 to 6 foot)?

Posted 3 years ago #
NSXType-R

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Nikoner said:
Let me ask you this, if I am in a 25 x 20 foot room with say 10 people. Would I be able to take decent shots of people? I know I will have to work harder moving around, but will I be able to get pictures of average sized people (say 5.8 to 6 foot)?

Will you be taking individual shots or group shots? It's very difficult for me to be at a reasonable distance with the 35mm 1.8 as it is, the 85mm has got to be much tighter.

Posted 3 years ago #
Nikoner

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Mostly groups of 2 or 3 people, some individuals. From your experience it seems this is going to be a tight fit. If it comes to that, I can always take waist up pictures.

Posted 3 years ago #