Nikon choice, wait or not to wait?

S

Stelvium

Well-known member
Hola guys,

i was planning to but before september a new DSLR. My family own Nikon glasses for 20 years and my d90 (i use mostly for pictures) has many glasses to offer. Now i'm not sure what to get:

1 - going for Blackmagic Cinema Pocket in offer these days for 499$. I should buy accesoories too and the price will go up.
2 - wait for a new Nikon surprise in this summer like 7200 or stuff like that
3 - going with a d5200 and buy a couple of batteries
4 - wait for a special offer on a d7100 to be competitive with Panasonic Gh4 and Blackmagic cinema pocket
5- i don't want to buy an used d7000 as it records just in 24p and i'm in Pal land


Guys i'm very confused in taking this decision so every suggestion is highly appreciated!
I shoot mainly documentaries and corporate videos
Thank you
 
Hi lars,

do you have the pocket? What about the tokina 11-16? Is it a good choice with the pocket?
Thx
 
I'd look to BMCuser.com for pocket questions... many people there just didn't like the 11-16 on the pocket, can't recall why.

The pocket needs a speedbooster or wide M43 or super-16 lens to be useful, and then the faster CF cards ($90 or so each). So you're in for $1200 or so even with the price cut. And the speedbooster doesn't help as much as $500 should, if you ask me... gonna need a wide lens and STILL may not be able to do crazy-wide stuff.

The 7100 is a fantastic camera all around (well, if you have aperture ring glass for video it helps!) I think it and the 5300 are the best DSLRs for non-raw IQ. Fantastic stills camera. SHARP images.

The 5300 is a really really nice video DSLR as well.

And then there's the GH4... smallish sensor if you came up on APS-C, at 2.3x vs. the 1.5ish Nikons. Speedbooster or wide lenses? Some people love the IQ, I've always found it kind of video-ish. Sharpness ain't everything...

The BMC cinema cam, $2k. 2.4x crop. You need SSDs and SDI monitoring or a dependable converter. Many many problems with blown SDI ports, or blown SDI monitors.

The 2 rumors that seem to be possible right now:

1) A D7200 is coming. Maybe this summer, maybe Photokina. Can't imagine it won't have 50/60p like the 5300. And will the GH4 make Nikon do anything awesome?
2) Pocket price cut has something to do with BMD's 9/24 announcement and we'll see a next gen pocket... or something...

Both are rumors... we may have some game-changers in the next 90 days. Or not. if you have projects to shoot, get hold of something. I did a TON of work with a t2i and $20 nikkor adapter. It's a very pretty camera for under $300 used these days. (But the D7000 blows it away for color and overall image feel, in my opinion - something really cool about the sahdows from the D7000. Lotsa jello though). You can get past that orangey-Canon look with some work. There are many used Canon models with the same sensor and IQ, too.

And research the Nikon 5200 vs 5300 - I was very pleased when I rented the 5300 as a b-cam for a 7100 shoot. Not sure the difference from the 5200.
 
What exactly is your budget? Because with the pocket the price of the body is just the starting point... You'll need a wide angle lens and/or a speedbooster, an army of batteries (this is a downside for documentary btw), and some very fast cards. I don't think you can get all that for under $1K, and reaching $2K is pretty easy (e.g. pocket+speedbooster+sigma1835). It's an excellent camera and it delivers a very, very nice image, but you need a lot of stuff beyond the body.

The D5200/D5300/D7100 are great cameras for video, and still my recommendations in their price range, together with the Sony a6000. The D5300 has 1080p60 and cleaner high-ISO, the D7100 has much better features for stills (AFMA!!) and better ergonomics (two wheels). The a6000 can take a speedbooster so you get the FoV and DoF of a full frame sensor (make sure it works with your lenses before you go Sony).

Below that I would recommend a second-hand NEX. My 5N is still great, and it would be really cheap, but it overheats like crazy so it's not for documentaries. Newer models don't have that problem, but I don't know exactly which ones. The a6000 sure is better (older models still have some aliasing/moire), but also much more expensive.

Above the D7100, it would be the BlackMagics (but you have to be able to deal with the small sensor size, which means new lenses), and the Sony a7s. The D810 is also an option for people wanting stills first and video second.

(it is a personal opinion but I don't like the GH4: it's the sharpest camera you can get, but dynamic range is still pretty bad, it can't even match the Canons, nevermind the Nikons; the a7s and the BlackMagics are in a completely different world regarding DR)



All in all, if you do a lot of photography and use AF, and already have Nikon lenses, I think the D7100 would be the one.
 
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Guys first of all THANK YOU for the help you are giving me. The budget would be around 1300$ (1000 euros).
Right now i'm leaving the idea of BMCP as you guys made me notice that almost 2000$ of amount is needed. Thank you Samuel
I saw your amazing footage Mike; what's <n all around lense that you guys use most? I often bring with me the 18-105 for work and 16 - 85 that were with the D90.

If i can wait a little i'll cross the finger for the upcoming new nikon!
Morgan what would be a good price for an used FS100 or af100?
 
You might get an AF or FS for 1200-1500EU I guess.

But you wont need to buy a sound recorder and with the AF you wont need to buy ND either!

And the image may be better than a DSLR

You could also consider a cheap canon that runs magic lantern..

S
 
Most used lenses for me - keep in mind this is APS-C and I might feel differently with a smaller sensor...

By far most used for me is the 28-70 2.8 Nikkor (not the 24-70 which is signifcantly more $$). You can get the 28-70 for $700 or so used (I got mine for $500 because there may be an AF problem, so far it's fine but for video, I don't care). It's a newer generation lens, crazy sharp and lots of that nikkor-zeiss how-do-I-describe-it mojo. Cons: it's huge. It's massive. (But man, it looks badass on a rig).

There are other zooms in the same range but they may not be as sharp across the range - the better Nikkors have low distortion and are sharp enough wide open.

Absolute favorite people lens: Nikkor 85mm 1.8 AF-D. Cheap used lens, too. By FAR I prefer to shoot people (esp. ladies) with this one.

Best bang for the buck people lens: 100mm 2.8 series E. Amazing for $100 or so. If you find one, grab it unless you have the 105 already.

Best affordable "normal" lens on APS-C: the Nikkor AIS 28mm 2.8 - legendary lens. $300 used. I believe they still make it. No other 28 in Nikon history is this good. Almost zero distortion, beat out the Zeiss in tests for sharpness.

Wide - I still can't commit to a wide lens. I have the 18-35 3.5 Nikkor which is really pretty nice for video but not that fast. Very affordable though. I've rented the Tokina AF 12-24mm f/4 AT-X Pro DXii and liked it, but again, slow - though I rarely use a wide in the studio and seem to be at F8 outdoors with them.

I tend to shoot at F4 - 5.6 anyway though, unless I'm doing some rack focus thing.
 
Stelvium said:
Hola guys,

i was planning to but before september a new DSLR. My family own Nikon glasses for 20 years and my d90 (i use mostly for pictures) has many glasses to offer. Now i'm not sure what to get:

1 - going for Blackmagic Cinema Pocket in offer these days for 499$. I should buy accesoories too and the price will go up.
2 - wait for a new Nikon surprise in this summer like 7200 or stuff like that
3 - going with a d5200 and buy a couple of batteries
4 - wait for a special offer on a d7100 to be competitive with Panasonic Gh4 and Blackmagic cinema pocket
5- i don't want to buy an used d7000 as it records just in 24p and i'm in Pal land


Guys i'm very confused in taking this decision so every suggestion is highly appreciated!
I shoot mainly documentaries and corporate videos
Thank you
Click to expand...

The most imporant thing you have to remember about video is how crucial audio is and you should really be considering HOW you are going to get the best possible audio quality for your productions....especially documentaries and corporate videos.

Personally I dont trust the audio input on ANY of the current crop of DSLRs from any of the manufacturers - Nikon included. I dont think the preamp quality for microphones is good enough and they have unbalanced 2.5mm or 3.5mm input connectors that are flimsy and prone to disconnect or worse still break and they ususally have an AGC circuit built in that automatically adjusts levels on the fly.

The best way to record good audio is to buy an external recorder and send the HDMI video from the camera and audio from a good mic preamp/mixer and record these separate signals together....If you are in PAL land things get complicated!

Firstly the lower end Nikon bodies (D3200/3300/5200/5300) DONT output 1080 video at PAL frame rates via HDMI - you only get 30P. The D7100 does output PAL and I have been successfully recording 1080-25P from a Nikon D7100 into a Atomos Ninja2 HDMI recorder. Audio is being sent from a Tascam DR-100 MkII and video from the HDMI output on the camera. You can record very high quality video at data rates up to 220 Mbs AND great audio doing it this way.....There is one problem however - audio is slightly out of sync by about 5 frames. Easily fixed but a PITA.

However, the new Atomos Ninja Blade should allow you to fix this problem during recording as you can program an offset in frames to adjust sync of the incoming audio and video signal....Also the Ninja2 has a very tiny screen whereas the Ninja Blade has a bigger and higher quality IPS screen that is colour calibrated and has focus peaking and waveform monitor/vectorscope overlays to help in nailing focus and exposure which is crucial. The sound devices PIX 220/Pix240 recorders are excellent as well and have the highest quality preamps built into them already.

The D7100 also allows you to program in non-cpu manual focus lenses to get 3D matrix metering...handy if you have lots of manual focus glass around. Its also weather sealed and has an impact resistant metal chassis.

If I was you I would carefully consider my options for audio just as much as for video. It will definitely bust your budget but a setup with a used D7100 + Ninja Blade + high quality preamp will give you a very professional setup for the type of productions you want to do. If you cant afford this setup give up the Ninja blade and record audio into the camera using a padded line to mic level cable sent from the external preamp into the camera...its not perfect but will get you by and you can then opt for one of the cheaper Nikon bodies and record everything internally to the camera with the option of also recording audio and video separately and syncing in post if you wish.

All the best.
 
Thank You buddy! Just won on ebay a Dr -100 for 100$
Now i have to look for 2 options:
used d7100
or d5200
if you find an ninja for cheap could you link to me?

thank you for helping me so Much
 
Stelvium said:
I was planning to buy before september a new DSLR.
Click to expand...

My personal theory is to not buy anything before you really need it, then buy the best value for your money that's available at that time. Then, stop shopping! There's no point in second guessing yourself; you made your decision, now move forward by learning your new equipment and using your new equipment.
 
Bruce, i know already the Dr 100... I used it already as i shot My previous National advertisings with d7k. I was asking help to take a decision as i'm moving to the next step. That's Why i'm asking to people/friends in this forum suggestions in My next choice. Thank you all guys
 
Stelvium said:
Thank You buddy! Just won on ebay a Dr -100 for 100$
Now i have to look for 2 options:
used d7100
or d5200
if you find an ninja for cheap could you link to me?

thank you for helping me so Much
Click to expand...

No problems....As stated a D5200 wont be much use to you for external HDMI recording in PAListan....it only outputs 30P to my knowledge. Also the Ninja 2 has audio sync problems (my testing so far has shown it to be 5 frames out)....better to get a Ninja Blade new for $995 USD and you can get audio/video sync during recording - according to Atomos info on their website.

* Just an addendum. Found that there is a function of the Ninja2 in the audio menu to shift audio sync in frame increments....should be able to sync both video and audio during recordings. I will test this feature later this week to make sure it works.
 
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Gotta be honest! I'm newbie at the external recording world as i always pick the memory cards and stick em into the pc then start to edit. Sometimes i used the zoom h4n sistem too. But sometimes i m in need to work in the time line with images shot in 50i from Sony hdrfx1. So what would be the result mixing footage from d5200? I had a lot of issues with the d7100 as records just in 24p....
thx a lot for helping me guys
 
Wait after photokina next month to see what's new unless you have a paying shoot. I own both the Nikon D7000 and Canon 70D, if canon updates the 70d to get rid of moire and add a headset jack, then for video that would be my first choice, the dual pixel auto focus for eng is great along with the touch screen to select your focus points, in addition you get a flip screen. The D7100 is a very nice camera but has no flip screen and can not compete with canon's dual pixel auto focus for video (yes canon's is that good), The d5300 is a nice entry camera with lots of detail. If you are on a limited budget and don't want to wait I would go for the D5300 unless you must have the headset jack then the D7100, if you will shoot in a controlled environment to avoid moire (such as striped clothing, brick buildings, roof shingles etc) go for the 70d.
 
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