Nikon D70

Hello all again,

Well, I was able to pull the trigger on a used Nikon D70 with 5300 shutter clicks on it. Whole package lens and all for a good deal. I know its old, but its my first DSLR and I didnt want to break the bank on my first camera. If anyone still uses this camera or has any tips for me, please leave a comment. Have a good day!

Congratulations! I'm looking forward to seeing some photos posted! 5300 shutter clicks is very low, so it hasn't seen a lot of use yet. It is an older model, but that really doesn't matter. The battery might not be great at holding a charge now, so you will want to see how it performs and replace it if you feel the need.

I'm a Canon guy, so i can't help there, but I too await the outcome!
Perhaps grab a couple batteries if you can find a good deal? I'm glad I did!

There is a D-70 around here, daughter still uses it a lot. Takes great pics, my newer D-300s has more bells & whistles, but the D-70 give it a good run in picture quality. I take it when I want a lighter/smaller body.

Sounds great - and the shutter count is next to nothing, mine is getting close to 10,000.
+1 to the extra batteries. I've got two so I always have a fully charged at hand, and I'm actually thinking of getting a third, as I have come close to emptying both on a trip.
There is nothing more irritating than running out of power; experienced that once when a small twister developed close to me - that was after that, I got an extra.

Looking forward to see your shots

Check to see that the firmware is up to date. Nikon released a pretty significant update for it when the D70s came out.

https://support.nikonusa.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/13580/~/d70-2.0-firmware-update

Congrats on getting your first DSLR. Time to push the shutter clicks up and post some photos here.

I still have an old D40 that gets occasional use and the D70 was a much better camera so I think you'll be pleased. No need to buy anything more expensive until that D70 starts to limit you in some way you can't live with. That will take some time.

Your battery should probably be good for several hundred shots. If you notice it dies sooner than that, a new one is a good investment. You can find inexpensive ones on ebay or amazon that will work just fine. They won't hold quite as much juice as a real Nikon battery but they'll be close and cost much less.

The low light performance won't be up to today's models, but with decent glass, it's a great way in to the "hobby".

Enjoy.

Chapinahat said:

The low light performance won't be up to today's models, but with decent glass, it's a great way in to the "hobby".

Click to expand...

At low ISO, the low light performance will not leave much to be desired. Low ISO at low light just means working with the camera on a tripod and not being able to freeze movements, but sports and action at low light is not quite a suitable field for beginners anyway.

Since I'm always the first to come out with the idiot questions, where do you get your shutter count?

The number of shutter releases is embedded in the exif data of every pic you snap. Of course not all software displays all those exif fields but there are some websites that will let you upload a pic and tell you your shutter count. http://www.nikonshuttercount.com/ is one.

Congrats siouxshaver!

Thank You! I need to rack some miles I guess!

You picked a great camera. I've been using its younger brother for years. (D90)

Enjoy!

I have a D 80 pretty similar body. the 70 had a body mounted AF drive so you have no limitations on compatibility of af lenses.

there is an online community that is pretty good, Nikonians.org. lots of great knowledge there. grabbed a lens compatibility chart for ya...
https://www.nikonians.org/reviews/nikon-slr-camera-and-lens-compatibility

A D70 was my first digital SLR camera, and I still have it. It plays backup to my D700. I love what the D70 does with colors, the D700 takes some tuning of the white balance to do colors as well as the D70. Newer cameras have more bling, but not much more substance than the D70.

I get better color out of the D80 too in some respects. I think it's the filters built into the newer DSLRs, but i definitely need the denser Mpx I get for astro work i can't push in with the 80 like I can with the 600

The D-70 was My first and It still gets used a lot . My daughter just had her first baby and she has it now and it still produces great pictures.

I now have a D600 FX, but I still use my old D60 and have some impressive pics with the camera.