Retired Nikons: Can They Still Hang Around With The Fresh Crop? (Video Included)

Old digital cameras just do not get the same love as old film one's. Why is this? Are they really that out of touch with the current line up out of Japan? (I know cameras are from other countries as well, but mostly insanely expensive ones such as Leica and Hasselblad). Of course older, vintage type film cameras will be sought after because of their historical value, but even the film cameras of the 90s and 2000s are still demanding a rather respectable sum. But early digital? Prices for these cameras have tanked, possibly even to their lowest levels currently (January 2017).

Let's compare two film cameras from the two Japanese Giants: Canon and Nikon. The Canon 1V was released in 2000, after the first generation of digital SLR cameras had been released. You would imagine this would make this film camera rather unwanted, correct? Wrong, the Canon 1V is a minimum of $500, with really mint ones closing in on $1,000. Compare that to the Canon 1DS, the first full frame Canon digital SLR with an 11 mega pixel sensor. Surely the digital Canon is worth more? Nope, in fact a good 1DS may fetch $500, but most go for around $300 to $400. Even a first generation Canon 5D can be had for around $300.

It's the same story with Nikon's. The Nikon F6 was released in 2004, when most professionals had already made the switch to digital. Nikon knowing this, marketed the F6 to rich amateurs, who loved it and still do. As with most cameras marketed towards rich amateurs, the F6 was and still is a very expensive cameras, generally costing around $1,000. The F5 is a better example. The F5 was released when 35mm film was still king and therefor was purchased and used by professionals. As being a camera marketed towards professionals rather than rich amateurs, naturally the camera's used prices are lower than the F6. A good F5 in perfect working condition will run you around $300 to $400. The camera that replaced the F5 in digital form was the Nikon D1 and it's variants. The value of the digital cameras in 2017? $100 if it is in perfect working and cosmetic condition.

Why is this? I know the specifications can be, and usually are, underwhelming, but shouldn't a camera that was nearly $6,000 when new be worth more than some editing software, an office printer, or anything that costs $100!? The problem lies in digital retirement. Now when 35mm film was the common format for many, it didn't matter what camera you were using, they all used 35mm film. You could put a cheap roll of film in a Nikon F5 and get ok results or you could put some professional Velvia into a Yashica Electro 35 and get brilliant results. I have scanned negatives from my 1976 Nikon F2 that blow away images scanned from my 20 year newer Nikon F100. Can the same be said with digital? Well, yes and no actually, please read on.

Where do most of your images end up being viewed? Massive prints on the wall, or Flickr? Let's be honest, if you are reading this, more than likely you are not making massive prints to sell. The point is, if you are mostly viewing and showing your images online, huge mega pixel cameras are simply not necessary. I made a larger print (11 x 17 or something weird like that) from an image from my Nikon D1X (5.3 mp) and it looked stunning. Here's that image if you're curious:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/137151523@N08/30463258466/in/dateposted/

Am I going to sit here and type to you that my Nikon D1X sensor is as good as my Fujifilm XE-1's sensor? No I will not, but for the prices that these old professional cameras can be had for, who cares? The Nikon D1X was my first venture, and I fell in love with that camera. Everyone complained of it's short battery life, but with a quick purchase of an aftermarket battery, I get plenty of shots out of it before having to change. Sure, the LCD screen is crappy (crappy is an understatement, it's actually comical) but at least you can kind of see your image. The sensor blows highlights easily and doesn't have a massive dynamic range, so expose carefully. And yes, the largest CF card you can put in the D1X is a 2GB card, which should give you around 200 RAW images (You almost have to shoot RAW if you want your final image to look presentable, the JPEG's out of cameras this old are dreadful). Of course, cameras now support memory cards that can take thousands of images, but is that really necessary? I take great images with 36 exposure rolls of film and it's much more of a hassle to carry around several rolls of film (and the fact that it takes longer to change film vs changing memory cards). Personally I also find that I get more keepers when I know I am on limited space (taking fewer unnecessary images and more excellent ones). These old cameras have small image files, so an expensive, fast writing card isn't a must. I got a 2 GB Transcend and it has worked flawlessly. Don't buy an $80 CF card for a $100 camera, that is plain silly. Here is the Transcend on Amazon for $13:

Transcend 2 GB 133x CF Card

Up next, I purchased a Nikon D2H, which is a much more modern camera than the D1X, as you can see in the video below. Personally, I don't like the D2H as much. The images it produces aren't that different from the D1X, and I like the way the D1X fits my hand more. The D1 series of cameras were very exciting and innovative. The D2H is just an improvement, and not a huge one in my opinion. The biggest reason's to get a D2H over the D1 series cameras are:

Better LCD display (still not very accurate)
More modernized menu
8 frames per second
Slightly smaller RAW files compared to the D1X
Supports larger CF cards

That's about it for the D1x and the D2H. I cover more information in the video, and it gives a nice look of these two retired Nikon's side by side. The D1X can be had for around $100, and the D2H around $200. Unless you need the larger memory space and 8 fps, I would go for the D1X. Both cameras give screwy colors out of camera, but the D1X excels at portrait work with it's skin tones. My advise: Get a Nikon D1X and an AF 50mm f1.8 for a total of $200 (same as D2H body) and go shoot some awesome portraits.

Nikon D2H w/ Nikkor 300mm f4.5 ED

Nikon D1X w/ Nikkor 70-210mm f/4

Nikon D1X vs Nikon D2H VIDEO:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73ZQcFlIPmA