Nikon Df SLR with Special Edition 50mm Lens (Black) Accessory Bundle

Okay, first to bust a myth propagated by Amazon and Nikon alike. This is not a "nostalgia" camera. Film cameras were never like this. It is a camera for purist photographers who like to shoot manually, dont want 4 lbs. of camera body, and want a very good sensor, as opposed to amateurs who rely on A mode, and photographers who want all-in-one packages that can shoot video, auto-stitched panoramas, etc. The mechanical dials are not just for aethetics. They make it easy to see your settings and adjust quickly without slogging through a menu system. Well, most of your settings (see below). Overall, a nice, light camera with pretty good light sensitivity, but a number of drawbacks. Chief among them are the following 4, in my opinion: (1) very slow and imprecise Nikon autofocus (if you rely heavily on autofocus, youll be much happier with the Sony A99, which has vastly superior autofocus). (2) the inability to switch easily between auto ISO and manual. You have to go through the menu system to do this, which is flatly idiotic. There is simply no reason for it. (3) No playback through the viewfinder (again, compares unfavorably to the Sony A99). If youre in bright and sunny weather, good luck checking your shots, which is especially frustrating because the autofocus is so unimpressive. (4) short battery life. This is partly a function of how light the camera is -- it doesnt require you to tote around enough battery for 2 days of uninterrupted shooting, like the Nikon 4S. But I do not view this as a serious drawback, because, hey, carry a few spares. Big deal. Overall, a solid camera with some unfortunate and seemingly avoidable weaknesses.

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So much has been said about this camera. People seem to love it or hate it. I love it but it fulfills my specific needs. For weddings I use a D4 and this is my backup/travel camera. I like the knobs and dont mind the layout. I can quickly glance and know the settings, plus I dont take it out of manual mode so I dont use the EV. The sensor produces beautiful skin tones and fantastic shadow recover and of course the high ISO range. One gripe is the D600 auto focus. Yeah, I wish it were different but the camera is a tool to use and if you constantly think about it as a limitation your work will suffer. I use this with primes and heavy zooms with no problems. If youre considering this camera get the optional soft shutter release.

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I was very pleased with the dslr looks great and shot some great low light shots already with it

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I finally took the plunge and bought one of these, so I figure I might as well give my 2 cents. Also I read a gazillion reviews before buying it and there are a few things I dont recall seeing mentioned that I thought others might want to know about. I opened it last night and used it for a while walking around near dusk with the 24-70 2.8. Here are my first impressions: (1) It feels solid and the small size is nice when in "walkaround mode" like I was doing yesterday. When I picked up my big one this morning it felt awkward in comparison. (2) The images are great and the high ISO performance seems to be everything they say it is. I dont think it will let me upload a sample photo but here is a link for one I took last night when it was getting dark, ISO 5000. Tough to argue with that noise level. [...] (3) A number of people expressed concern or dislike about "balance" with a modern zoom lens. I was trying to understand what they were talking about but honestly I really dont get it. To me it felt fine with this lens attached. Maybe they meant if you wanted to hold it in one hand, which I never do anyway unless I have to reach for a very unusual angle I cant get to otherwise. Seems to me best to use two hands at all times for maximum stability. (4) One annoyance - which I have yet to determine how much of an annoyance it is - is that the clips where you would attach the neck strap are angled toward the front like you would see on an old SLR. I like to use a handstrap for those occasions when I do have to go one-handed and because of the angle of the clip the handstrap doesnt really stay on very well. I think I might be able to tinker with it so that it works better. Although I never used a handstrap with my old SLR it was never an issue. (5) As a lot of people have mentioned, there is only in SD card slot. Although I personally have never experienced a card failure Ive heard enough horror stories to be wary about relying on just the one card for a paid shoot. I thought about this and decided on the balance I could live with it, since I will be using the camera either for personal/walkaround/street purposes - or as a second body for event purposes. In the latter case I would have the big one with the 70 - 200 2.8 as my main camera and the Df in a holster with the wide angle. So worst case scenario its not like I would lose everything. (5) There is no 1/750 shutter speed, which is a setting I use a lot. For most action I use 1/1000 but if I have to cheat I go down to 1/750. With the Df I would have to go down to 1/500 - but my thinking is that with the great high ISO performance its kind of a wash. (6) The styling is relevant and irrelevant at the same time. Personally I like the new/retro fusion idea in cars and I think its fine but not a big deal one way or the other in a camera. Ive heard about people getting dirty looks from "serious photographers" when carrying this but I really dont worry about that sort of thing. There might be a bit of an advantage with respect to the general public in that people sometimes have strange reactions when you point a big camera with a grip and big lens and lens hood at them. This one might be more subtle and less likely to produce the annoying response that I must have a really expensive camera, implying that is why my pictures are better than the average persons. (7) The autofocus might have had a bit of trouble last night at dusk. Will need to experiment more. (8) For me at least changing shutter speed with the dial on top is much faster and more intuitive than the other way. (9) I guess everyone uses the camera differently and for different purposes but for me being free of the built-in flash and video are like having a weight lifted from my shoulders. I never use either of those features and its great not to have to see them or deal with extra weight or settings. (10) On the balance I really like the camera. Its a solid machine that feels great in your hands, similar to the way the old ones did. I think it will be great as both a walkaround/street camera for personal day-to-day use and as a "sidearm" for professional event use.

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Excellent digital camera for taking pictures (no video) that I like very much.

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If you like film cameras and want that experience in digital by this NOW. We shoot shows, and use it in studio. Using Nikons excellent lenses, some from the 60 & 70s our results are outstanding. Nikon should get an award for this one. Make more like it!

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I really like this camera, but it is definitely for a bit of a niche audience and there are definitely some things that Nikon really could have done better. First what Nikon did right: The sensor is simply incredible. Ranging from ISO 100-12800, 12800 is actually completely usable with almost no noise. Dimly lit subway tunnels? No problem. If you need to shoot indoors or dimly lit environments without a flash this will handle it. The styling is great. I find the ergonomic similar to the F3 (though chunkier) and compared to the other Nikon pro and semi-pro bodies it is incredibly light. The fact that you can use an old school shutter release is a nice touch (though it would be nice if you could also use a modern remote). The viewfinder is great and while it does not have the old school split prism focusing screen, manual focusing is a breeze. The dial controls have been a bit of controversial topic. Personally I find them reasonably easy to use, and they can easily be bypassed for those who cannot be bothered. The ability to use Non-AI lens is huge if you like manual focus primes, especially if you like to shoot film too. Non-AI lens are dirt cheap and great lenses. Unfortunately there are a few things that Nikon really could have handled better. First for a camera in this price range, there is no excuse for not building these with the 1/8000, 200,000 release rated shutter. The 1/4000 shutter works fine and will probably not be hugely limiting factor, but since Nikon is charging about the same for a Df Kit, as a D810 body, this seems like a strange place to cheap out on. The front command dial is not as difficult to use as some have claimed, but it is not as easy to use as the standard command dial design Nikon uses for everything else, and I dont think it really would have harmed the retro design any more than the current stylized front dial (the rear dial is the Nikon standard. The complaints about the Single SD card/Battery Compartment combination is not well thought out, and totally unnecessary. Personally I think this is a case of Nikon slavishly following Fuji with their X100 set up. Having to pull the SD card from the battery compartment causes unnecessary wear on a plastic part. Even if they couldnt acommodate a two card slot, they could have at least placed it in a dedicated slot on the side. As good as the sensor is in low light, the auto focus system is terrible in low light. I am constantly switching to manual focus in low light because the autofocus wont stop hunting. I have a D5300 with the same system that has a much easier time. But the D5300 has an assist lamp, where one was not included on the DF. The kit lens is pretty and works OK, but it is definitely not worth the premium you pay for a DF kit. Honestly the old plastic AF 50mm 1.8 looks more retro, is lighter, takes great pictures and can be had for about a $100.00 new. Unless you get a deal, just get the body. I guess the big question is it worth paying the same price for this as opposed to a D800 (or D810 now). Honestly other than the ability to use non-AI lenses and extreme low light capabilities, the D800 is a lot more capable camera. This is a great camera, but I would not have paid full price for one (I got an open box kit at a pretty steep discount). On the other hand I love using this camera, and I seriously doubt I will be selling it later down the line. So it definitely has a subjective "it" factor that cannot be denied.

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Ive had the camera for about a month, and I am really loving it. One major reason I chose this camera vs the competition is the superior low light ability. Image quality at high ISO is stunning, even better than I was expecting. Altogether, image quality in any situation is impeccable. It has a very small form factor for a full frame DSLR. It is lighter than it looks like it should be, but still feels solid. With the 50mm kit lens attached it is a very light weight combo, indeed. I have exclusively used mirrorless cameras over the last few years and dont mind carrying this around a bit, DF is heavier but not uncomfortably so. I like the look and the analog dials (opinions may differ). There has been a ton of criticism about this camera,. some valid , some unwarranted. Ill mention a few and my take on it FWIW: Bad ergonomics - Its a retro design. It has retro ergonomics. I dont think the point of this camera is to mount big heavy zoom lenses on it. With small primes it handles just fine IMHO. Bad AF - Im a center focus and recompose type of shooter. If you need AF points all over the frame, get a different camera. I have found the af very quick and accurate with the kit lens (havent tried any other AF lenses yet). However, Wish It could focus in even lower light. It goes to -1ev, for this camera with this sensor it should go lower. Oh well. Only one sd slot - Yeah, wish there were two, but there isnt. Manual focus sucks - I havent had a problem, the AF confirmation dot is a big help. However, I havent tried to focus any lens faster than f1.8. It is a shame Nikon didnt put a retro style focusing screen. bummer. Price - Its not cheap. But, if you want it, you can rationalize the cost. Im sure there are many other complaints I havent mentioned... So to end this thing, I love the camera. I like it for what it is and Im not really concerned about what it isnt. No camera is perfect and it is always a matter of tradeoffs when choosing one. I dont have any regrets about this purchase. Cheers !

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this camera is everything my husband thought it would be. Hes highly satisfied and happy to be using his old lenses. He does love the new lens that came with this camera. Definitely worth adding.

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The more I use this camera, the more I like it. Not needing the D810 for everything, this is a great choice for everyday photographs. The retro style is a walk down memory lane for those of us that used FEs, FMs and F4s

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