Its very easy to use, if you wish you can use Automatic mode which does a pretty good job of getting good exposures. If you are a geek like me then you will be more than happy with the selection of advanced controls on offer.
The standard kit lens, 18-70mm is extremley sharp and focuses fast.
Build quality is very good, ive dropped this camera more times than I would like to remember and there is not a scratch on it, more importantly its easy to hold and use. Before buying a d70s I tried out a Canon 350d, the poor build quality immediatley put me off, I much prefer the chunky handling of the Nikon.
Battery life is very good, i've literally lasted a week on a single battery taking 20-30 shots a day.
Make sure you buy a CF card since most digital SLRs do not come with one as standard.
Overall I think its very good value for money. Definatley would recommend it.
If your interested in seeing some pictures taken with a Nikon d70s you can see them on my website at www.wavek.com
Taking photographs is a joy with this. Easy to use, and looks the business as well.
Works seamlessly with Apple Mac computers and iphoto with plug in and play connect-ability. No installation necessary as iphoto recognises the camera instantly upon plugging in the USB lead supplied with the Nikon D70s set up.
All buttons and control dials are easy to reach and the display is easy to understand and follow. You will quickly learn and begin to master taking great SLR shots in manual mode with this.
If you are an enthusiast, and are keen to develop taking really cool photographs of the kids, family, friends, landscapes, shows, concerts, or basically anything, than this is the set up for you.
I can not fault the lens at all. With the D70s body, it handles moving images with ease and with the clever in built mode functions on the camera, the sport one is unique as even at fast moving speeds you are able to achieve pin point sharpness in your images.
I am partially sighted and using this camera is not complicated for me. Everything is just there at my finger tips. It was a little hard at first to read the display on top to set the ISO and other settings but once I understood what they were for, I can set them up now without having to read at all. This is so brilliant for someone with poor vision to be able to handle a camera like this.
I feel proud when I take out my camera and take photographs of my children. I never leave home without it now and are proud to be the owner of this package.
Well done Nikon :)
I bought this 2 months ago after much soul searching. Having done a ton of research, I'd been convinced this was well worth buying, but when I had a look at one in the shop I was initially disappointed by the bulky size of it and the relatively small viewfinder compared to my 35mm Nikon. I thought about it for a while and took the plunge a couple of weeks later, and I'm so glad I did.
Compared to a compact digital camera, yes this is pretty big, but the downsides end there. This camera takes your photo exactly when you want it to, no pressing the button and counting to 3 before it decides it is good and ready. With a true SLR viewfinder, there's no squinting at a little screen, you see the shot exactly as it will be and all you need to do is press the button.
If you're feeling creative you can explore the varying degrees of over-ride available, including a variety of pre-set modes for specific photo-types.
The feature I like best is the continuous shoot mode. Basically you can hold the button down and it will fire away at 3 frames per second until you get bored. They claim something like 140 shots in succession, but I don't think there is an actual limit. This can give you some super little sequences like a mini-movie and works well with action shots or with children.
I put a 1Gb card in it (doesn't need to be a high-speed card as the camera has a superb buffer memory) and I get nearly 600 good quality pictures on that. The battery life is awesome - many hundreds of shots per charge. Hunt around for cheap spare batteries to be safe, but the one you get is a truly remarkable performer.
This is my 4th digital camera. It's nice to have a tiny one to carry around for snap shots, but if the things you are photographing matter to you, you want the timing, composition and quality to be bang on. This is just an incredible camera for the price (and an excellent price it is on Amazon), the lens is very impressive and a useful range, the performance of the camera is fantastic, and the quality of the photos makes it absolutely worth trading up from those horrid little compacts so many of us have been putting up with until now. If I lost mine I'd buy another tomorrow. Just great. Love it. Totally recommend it.
