D7000 vs D300s

[knumbnutz]

Hi Everyone,

Does anyone have a real comparo between these two cameras ?
I understand that the D7000 should have better hi ISO capability and resolution.
Both are weather resistant.

I have a D700 and want to get a crop camera, i also have a sigma 120-300mm F2.8 that i want to use on it, mainly sports and a lighter travel option than FX.
I hope the D7000 can work the sigma ?

But the specs dont really say why the D300s is better (because it is higher value) so I am trying to work out which is going to be the best option.
just AF ?

Thanks Neil

[RRRoger]

Take your Sigma 120-300 and a SDHC card down to you local camera store and try them on the D5100, D7000, and D300.
Personally, I even prefer the 5100 to the D300, I also use it for Video.
If your Sigma is not the HSM version, forget the D5100, it has no focus motor.
You should get an idea of how they handle and when you get home you can compare the images.

[kiwi]

If for sport I think compare af points and features, and buffer size etc

I think the d300s for the money is still the best dx camera but the d7000 sure comes close

[RRRoger]

If for sport I think compare af points and features, and buffer size etc

I think the d300s for the money is still the best dx camera but the d7000 sure comes close

for the extra money, you are not getting much. The D7000 has better AF and much better image quality.
You are paying more for more buffer and bigger, heavier body.
Wait for the D400 if you want to beat the D7000.

[ricktas]

There is no reason your siggy lens won't work on it. Nikon in their wisdom, made their DX and FX lenses basically the same, except for the image circle. Thus you can swap lenses back and forth as you wish. The only limitations are as stated above, some lenses will be manual only, and if you put a DX lens on an FX body, the camera will auto-crop the result to fit the smaller image circle of the DX lens.

[knumbnutz]

There is no reason your siggy lens won't work on it. Nikon in their wisdom, made their DX and FX lenses basically the same, except for the image circle. Thus you can swap lenses back and forth as you wish. The only limitations are as stated above, some lenses will be manual only, and if you put a DX lens on an FX body, the camera will auto-crop the result to fit the smaller image circle of the DX lens.

Hi Rick,
In another thread there is a concern about the D7000 somehow being slightly different in the focusing protocols or something making certain sigma lenses in operable for AF.
The D300s makes a lot of sense in some respects, its basically a D700 in FX ? same CF card slot and overall shape.
But the D7000 is better in some respects too.
Anyway i guess the first step is to take the lens to the shop and try, i dont think many people have this lens (but its a superb lens !)
Cheers Neil

[junqbox]

If you have a grip for for your 700, it will work on the 300. The 300 has a magnesium body like the 700. I don't believe the 7000 has that. If weight is your concern, you may want to go the 7000 route. If you want a higher level of robustness the 300 might be worth the extra bucks. Overall the 300 has more cross compatibilty with the 700, eg- CF card, battery, etc.

[Jarra]

Have had a play with the D300s and after months of research (even looking at the dreaded Canons) decided on the D7000. For a bloke with big hands the D300s is more comfortable to hold but thats it in my opinion. Get the D7000. It is an awsome piece of kit surpassing the D300s in most respects. Or wait for the D400.........

[Sar NOP]

Hi Everyone,

Does anyone have a real comparo between these two cameras ?
I understand that the D7000 should have better hi ISO capability and resolution.
Both are weather resistant.

I have a D700 and want to get a crop camera, i also have a sigma 120-300mm F2.8 that i want to use on it, mainly sports and a lighter travel option than FX.
I hope the D7000 can work the sigma ?

But the specs dont really say why the D300s is better (because it is higher value) so I am trying to work out which is going to be the best option.
just AF ?

Thanks Neil

The difference varies from one photographer to another and also from one subject to another (it's true for every cameras !).
Try both cameras yourself with your lenses and on your usual subjects. Then, make your own opinion...

[arthurking83]

Hi Rick,
In another thread there is a concern about the D7000 somehow being slightly different in the focusing protocols or something making certain sigma lenses in operable for AF.
The D300s makes a lot of sense in some respects, its basically a D700 in FX ? same CF card slot and overall shape.
.....

I don't know which of the 'certain' Sigma lenses are affected, but member HelmutK has a D7000 and a Sigma 150mm f/2.8 Macro, and it focuses perfectly ..... perfect!

There may be some older Sigma lenses that may be affected in some manner(this has been known to happen in Canon mount before).
Having said that, tho, historically, Sigma are very good with any issues involving focusing protocols, and incompatibilities, where they issue firmware updates on the lenses, and all you need to is to get it to a Sigma dealer to effect this firmware update. Has been free(for life) in previous times, and there's no reason to suspect otherwise now!

I'm not sure who made reference to the D7000 focusing system being better than a D300(s, or otherwise) but in my brief playing with the D7000 against the D300, I felt the D300 was more 'positive' or faster.
Once again this was restricted to using the Sigma 150 Macro lens tho(HSM).

When I had the opportunity to play with the D7000, I have to say that my only criticism of it was the small size of it. Pretty trivial, and more of a personal preference really, and from experience my had will cramp up with prolonged use of one. The larger sized D300 just feels more comfy in my hand, whereas with the D7000 requires me to compress my fingers more and hence they'll eventually cramp up. Mind you I don't use straps and stuff like that too.
I didn't get too many lower ISO images with the D7000 to directly compare, but of the ISO3200 and above images, the D7000 is way ahead of the D300, in terms of both noise suppression and image detail.. so it's not like you get better signal to noise quality due to more noise reduction only, there is still better detail retention in the image.

[super duper]

The 7000 has a greater iso range, slower fps and doesn't have the bracketing range of the d300s. The 300s and the 700 take all the same accessories (I think, double check), eg battery, remote, cards, grip etc.

[arthurking83]

One perfomance difference I remember between the D300 and the D7000 was the buffer. If you regularly shoot massive burst series, then the more restrictive buffer of the D7000 may end up becoming annoying.
I don't know if this is simply card type related, SD being slower than CF, or if it is a camera limit too. Helmut seemed to have a speedy enough SD card, but after about 12 frames(raw) the D700 slowed, D300 should shoot well into the 20+ range in raw format before slowing. By default CF cards are faster than SD cards.

As Super Duper said, about accessories. D300 and D700 all use the same accessory types, batteries, grips, 10pin connector accessories, and so on.
PITA if you choose Nikon accessory hardware, but if you choose thirdparty accessories, some can use removable cables with connection ends for different camera types(even brands). Eg. Phottix wireless remotes now use removable cables, and you can order more cable types to suit.
Nikon would be wise to get with the times too, but that would mean less gouging(but I won't break out into a rant over such trivial matters )

[fillum]

I can't quite see what you'd be gaining by getting a D300s. It's around the same size and I think only slightly lighter than the D700 so it doesn't really offer much in the way of a "lighter travel option". The D7000 is a bit smaller and lighter, and something like the D5100 is smaller and lighter still.

Is there a problem using the D700 for sport? You get more 'reach' of course with the crop sensor, but you could get close to that by adding a 1.4x TC on your D700. You lose a stop in max aperture but the better high-ISO performance of the D700 should make up for that. A grip (e.g. Zeikos, ~$80 from memory) will give you 8fps on your D700, same as the D300s.





Cheers.

[knumbnutz]

Thanks for the responses !

I have a 120-300 F2.8 and a 2xTC so in theory 600mmF5.6, i also have 70-200f2.8 so focal length range is not too much of an issue.
I think the D300s is probably in some ways the best way to go, AF is main consideration followed by ISO and weight and performance.
It would be nice to have some better ISO and if it is heavy like the D700 then the wife can stick to the pentax KM which is perfect for her - size and weight wise.

What is the equiv FOV on the D7000/D300s with a 600mm attached ? 900mm ?

Cheers Neil

I can't quite see what you'd be gaining by getting a D300s. It's around the same size and I think only slightly lighter than the D700 so it doesn't really offer much in the way of a "lighter travel option". The D7000 is a bit smaller and lighter, and something like the D5100 is smaller and lighter still.

Is there a problem using the D700 for sport? You get more 'reach' of course with the crop sensor, but you could get close to that by adding a 1.4x TC on your D700. You lose a stop in max aperture but the better high-ISO performance of the D700 should make up for that. A grip (e.g. Zeikos, ~$80 from memory) will give you 8fps on your D700, same as the D300s.





Cheers.

[kiwi]

For sport you will not be shooting 600 f/5.6 to start with, well, maybe cricket

Too long a focal length and too much DOF.

If the action's that far away, so are you.

[zollo]

the d7000 supports the new UHS-1 type sd cards, whereas the d300s does not. therefore if you take advantage and have a UHS-1 sd card, you will find the d7000 just as capable of clearing the buffer as any cf card, and in my experience, quicker. I have both the 7000 and 300s and although I am unable to prove it on the net, I find the 7000 constantly focuses faster, especially in low light, both with nikkor lens and the few sigmas I own. the fps is slightly down compared to the 300s. in the iso wars, the 7000 beats the 300s hands down. same too in dynamic range, an underrated advantage for the 7000. as for durability, both the 7000 and 300s are rated at 150 000 shutter actuations, I think Nikon may be trying to tell us something with that!

as someone has previously said, the 7000 beats up on the 300s quite convincingly in my experience, and despite its slighly smaller body, is always my first pick now for DX, probably until the 400 comes out or something

[kiwi]

Interesting zollo. Thanks.

[ecopix]

D7000-D300s compo

There might be less difference at lower ISO. I compared the controlled laboratory shots from the dpreview site (see below). I’ve had to reduce them 50% to 1000 pixels for the forum, but even the originals showed very little difference.

The D7000 is a nice camera and probably the pick of DX Nikons at this moment, but if you’re shooting with D300s (as I am), I wouldn’t be losing any sleep over the difference, at least up to 1600ISO (I didn’t look at higher).

What we see as a big difference may not be very important to the final viewer. The trouble with splitting hairs is that customers read the claims and then start questioning a photographer’s choice of gear. In my experience customers suffer almost universally from the little-bit-of-knowledge-is-dangerous syndrome.

If I upgrade, it would be from customer pressure, not technical need. The D300’s 12 million quality pixels are quick to work with, and produce sublime reproductions at A3 in print.

Cheers.


D7000-D300compo800iso_1000px.jpgD300-D7000compo_1000px.jpg

[Lance B]

Don't know about the D300's high ISO ability when compared to the D7000, but I do know the D7000 has some very impressive high ISO ability almost that of the D700. I do sometimes get a tad confused when swapping from D700 to D7000 as the controls are slightly different, the most annoying being that can't set the front control dial to be for EV compensation, but there are a few other niggles. What I'd love is a D300s with D7000 sensor and that way, it would be just like a D700 in DX! However, I am very impressed with the D7000.

Here are some sample shots of the D7000 at ISO 6400 and ISO3200:

ISO6400:




ISO3200:

[Wayne]

I would be waiting for the D300s replacement unless you are constrained by budget. It is supposedly only days away, and tests will no doubt soon follow.