Nikon D3s discussion thread


uranium2k

Member
Feb 26, 2008
212
0
16
manbehindcamera.blogspot.com
front_1.jpg


Can't seem to find any of such threads in the forum via search, so decided to start one...

Any user reviews from Clubsnappers for the flagship model of Nikon?
 

love the camera but havent switch to it yet because:

- Too heavy
- Megapixel not enough
- Video not 30FPS
- No CLS...
 

love the camera but havent switch to it yet because:

- Too heavy
- Megapixel not enough
- Video not 30FPS
- No CLS...

Your answer is EOS 5D Mark II :devil:
Lightweight, 21 Megapixel, 30 fps Video
Of course not CLS
 

The answer to CLS is SU800 or SB900, isn't it? And anyway it isn't really that heavy. D700 + grip is just as heavy... I tend to agree on the lack of development on the video and megapixel part though, although pixels are not everything and what D3s is more than sufficient for most.
 

love the camera but havent switch to it yet because:

- Too heavy
- Megapixel not enough
- Video not 30FPS
- No CLS...

....then what do you love about the camera?.....otherwise this is not the camera for you if you have problem with the areas listed above.
 

Hi, I owned a D3s, bought locally 2 months ago. Initially was thinking if I really need to splurge my hard-earned $ on this one.

Background: I came from C Camp and was using this full-framed 21mp DSLR. A fantastic, faultless, travel camera. However, I was not very impressed with its AF system, particularly when using 85LII and 24LII at their widest aperture. The focussing is a hit-and-miss.

Thus, decided to switch camp, which can provide equal high-iso performance BUT better AF system. Was thinking of D700 initially, but later made a U turn after pondering for very long.

You can say that it was an impulse buy. But it was all worth it. What I liked about this D3S is:

1) 4 customisable shooting menus, in which you can set the ISOs, Image Area, etc to suit your needs. For example, if I am using the 50 1.4G, I'll store a setting with maximum ISO 10000 and minimum shutter speed 1/100. Then if I am using a wide angle lens I'll switch to another pre-installed setting. This really saves my time.

2) The super incredible high ISO: Now, shooting at ISO 10000 with usable results is really a dream come true; I can shoot anywhere and anytime I want. When I was with my previous camera, the maximum I dare go was only ISO 4000. Now, with D3S, ISO 8000 looks as good as my previous one at 4000.

3) Dead-on focussing - With the combination of matrix metering, the 'C' shooting mode and the 3D tracking system, the success rate of shooting fast moving objects is much higher than my previous model. Even with slower lenses, this combination works.

Conclusion: The combination of high ISOs with the incredible tracking system is really the deal breaker. Although sometimes I wished D3S is at least 16 megapixels, I've no regrets owning one. Yes, the price of a D3S may not justify itself especially when D700 can do 80% of its job, but the remaining 20% which the D700 can't do is the high ISO performance. Really groundbreaking.
 

To be very honest I'm just a D300 user but because of a couple of events that I have to cover I rented a D3s from CameraRental to try it out and at the same time to make full use of the high ISO performace. This is my take of this eqpt

1. It's lighter even when fitted with a 70-200 f2.8 lense. (comparing with a D300 + batt grip + D3 battery + 70-200 f2.8) even the body alone feels lighter.
2. was shooting at an event (on my flickr it's labelled "Ignite") the iso used there was at about 6400-10000. Was amazed at the noise output when blown up 100% on my LightRoom. In fact noise reduction in Lightroom took most of the minor noise specks away.

Of course the not-so-good thing that I kind dislike is the Silent Shutter option, but maybe also because I do not need to use it.
Can't comment on the video portion because I never like a camera to take video and so didn't use it. But even there's a function I wouldn't use it unless it's a canon camera.

Seriously the only thing I can comment is the weight. It really felt lighter as compared to my eqpt.
 

Some samples:

ISO 12800 (there was very little available light, at about 6.50pm)
DSC_1113.jpg



ISO 8000
DSC_1111.jpg



ISO 5600
DSC_0761.jpg



100% crop
DSC_0761crop.jpg
 

I believe the D3s is the current ultimate low light camera....i wish the D800 to match it, ISO wise :lovegrin:
 

I believe the D3s is the current ultimate low light camera....i wish the D800 to match it, ISO wise :lovegrin:

Yes, the current ultimate low-light king... But as technology advances, next time probably I can tell my children that my D3S is once the champion of low light shooting.. and they'll give me that 'tsk' look :bsmilie:
 

Sorry. May I know what is CLS?
:)

CLS = Creative Lightning System (not CLubSnap LOL)

Copyrighted by Nikon, which enable the commander to control multiple Nikon flash units together. You could also set the Nikon flash units into different groups and give control independently.

Not sure whether Canon or Sony could do the same way, but I am pretty satisfied with Nikon CLS ... :thumbsup:
 

3) Dead-on focussing - With the combination of matrix metering, the 'C' shooting mode and the 3D tracking system, the success rate of shooting fast moving objects is much higher than my previous model. Even with slower lenses, this combination works.

Hey you are right. I read about the 51-points 3D focusing, combined with AF-C. It's really quite amazing. Somehow it just knows what and when to focus on the intended subject.
 

err... u spelled it wrongly lol.

:bsmilie::bsmilie:

i always thot it was Corridor Lighting System...

anyway, can't go wrong with D3s. best low-light camera in the nikon lineup... for now.

but, the weight is a b1tch... the older you get (and the more kids you have), the smaller the camera i have... heh... :p
 

:bsmilie::bsmilie:

i always thot it was Corridor Lighting System...

anyway, can't go wrong with D3s. best low-light camera in the nikon lineup... for now.

but, the weight is a b1tch... the older you get (and the more kids you have), the smaller the camera i have... heh... :p

:bigeyes: corridor lighting system :bsmilie:

i second u when it comes to weight.. tried it once b4 wif 24-70 f/2.8 and it feels like carrying dumbbells back in army for training :p
 

There lack of Pop Up Flash stopped me from getting the D3s.
Current happliy shooting with the D700, the pop up flash do come handy at times:)
 

Love the camera and could not stand the flimsy flash on the D700. Don't use video, so it is not an issue. BTW, the D3x is the flagship, not the D3s.