Railfan Technology > Nikon D850

I am thinking about upgrading to a Nikon D850. I was looking for imput from someone that has one. I have been using a D800 since they came out a few years ago. Thanks

Thom Hogan is the definitive expert on all things Nikon. Suggest you visit his website and read his extensive review at bythom.com

Great camera. But make sure its RAW files are compatible with your photo editing software.

KG

Think it depends what you are using for. It hi-res, fast fps and big file sizes. I look at those as overkill for trains stuff. If you are shooting wildlife or doing some serious landscape that would be different. You want your computer and software to be up to date.

I use a D750 which I know is a little old, I have mine since they came out.

Reasonable file size, great for low light and half the price.


Bob

Have to confess, my first thought about the 850 for railroad photography was 'overkill'. All that resolution and associated big file sizes...plus cost...but why?

I've been using the D610 for the last 2.5 years and I'm so very pleased with it. File size is not overwhelming and picture quality is very sharp and clear. I use prime lens' when I can and everything just gets better with them. You can get the body, new, for less than half the price of an 850.
Wes

Wes Chiles
Topeka, KS

Look at Ken Rockwell's site on Nikon. www.kenrockwell.com

About a year ago it was time to buy a second body to go with my D800E. I looked at the D850 and D810. I decided the increased focus the D850 had for video was useless to me and Nikon had a great package price on the D810 and 24mm-120mm lens. So I went with the D810.

The second body gives me a back up and if I am set up with my 16mm-35mm lens or the 250mm-600mm lens I can have the second body with the 24mm-120mm nearby in case something surprises me which won't work with the lens I had planned for.

Don't worry about the file sizes, external hard drive prices are cheap and your next computer upgrade will give you all the speed you need.

I have one. I traded a D800E plus some other stuff I rarely use and got a decent trade allowance.

I haven't used the D850 much because of one calamity after another this year in my life. But I'm planning a summer trip and will give the D850 a proper workout. It already has been "blessed" of the holy water as I was drenched in Florida early this week while grabbing some outdoor snaps. The body does seem to be quite water tight.

As fbe mentioned, the D850 has features geared more for video than still photography. Don't let the file size deter you. A full resolution (8,256 × 5,504 pixel) image hovers around 94~96MB. Outboard HDDs have come down in price dramatically in the past few years.

Also, as Ken Goslett astutely points out, when shooting RAW files, if you're Photoshop based, it's important to remember Camera Raw Plug-In version 9.12.1 (or later) is required to open the D850's NEF files. The last Camera Raw Plug-In version which works with Photoshop CS6 is 9.1.1. I was pushed over the edge (more like walked the plank) into the Adobe Photoshop CC world (yikes-where's my life preserver??).

I'm not particularly fond of the XQD memory cards which replaced the familiar CF memory cards. Another thing geared for video users are the XQD memory cards, common in 4K video equipment. XQD cards are expensive and hard to find compared to CF memory cards. Nikon did preserve the SD Card option which allows simultaneous capture of both RAW file (XQD) and Fine JPG file (SD Card).

The low light image quality is noticeably improved because of the use of a back illuminated sensor. Even in normal lighting, running gear detail (shadow detail in general) is better and doesn't seem to require much, if any diddling in Photoshop to bring out detail.

Otherwise, yeah, I agree, probably way overkill but the trade up opportunity was too good to pass up.

daniel