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hi im new to this forum, had a read of a few posts but im searching for people's opinions specific to these two models

im travelling to japan soon and was hoping to pick up a d70s or a d80. i understand they are 6mp and 10mp cameras respectively, but with the huge price difference im wondering if its worth it buying a d80.

im looking at (aud$)
D70s body: $890
D80 body: $1330

i could get a nicer set of lenses with money saved on the d70s. is 10mp worth it?

what do you guys think?

Welcome Wider - If you are new to digital SLR my advice would be the D80. This camera is a partially stripped D200 and supports the latest technology. The D70s is a very good camera but IMO is a little dated if you are starting out.

I am sure others will offer the other side of the coin

Both cameras are accomplished and worthy tools but the D80 gives some added extras such as the 10mp (some cropping/enlarging advantage), the brighter and wider viewfinder and AF system , all pinched and adapted from the D200

It's probably not so much that the 10mp is worth it, but rather better ISO and colour are probably worth it, especially if its your first DSLR.

It requires plenty of patience and post-processing skill to get full use of a D70/s.

With the D80, I'd expect (since I havent used one) that colours and tone out of the box will be much better than a D70 untouched. This way can be better to start off with as first DSLR, as it is new and will not be 'outdated' until maybe 2 years later (who knows).

I have upgraded from the D70s to the D80.

The D80 has a tendency to overexpose. The matrix metering is all over the place with high contrast scenes. However the D70 had a tendency to slightly underexpose. The D80 requires some extra tweaking during use to get the right exposure. Patience is required and much checking of the LCD and histogram.

However the D80 is a better camera overall and you wont regret getting one of those. If you are a little impatient and want to do a lot of point and shoot type work you are better off with the D70s.

Check this if you are interested
http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d80.htm#exposure

thanks all, interesting advice!

this isnt my first slr my father has an old Nikon EM which he doesnt use anymore and over the years i've learnt it well. i enjoy taking pictures with it, but moved on to an olympus sp-350 because i picked it up cheap. im getting over the point and shoot cameras really quickly, I have fiddled with a D50 which i despised alot due to its 'all plastic construction' feel. im used to a camera that could injure someone if you threw it at them... from the comments, would i be correct in assuming that the D80 is a better build quality? D70 similar?

the main reason i ask this price vs pixels question is a D80 would be stretching the budget a bit unless i wanted to pick up a demo/display model in japan also, i heard the D80 light meter will not work with lenses that dont have a cpu? i have a 50mm manual focus lens that stops down to 1.8 which would be nice to use im thinking...

The only DSLR which can injure people if you throw it at them is the D2 series... The D200 is barely there, but is pretty well built compared to the D70/50/80...

All these D50/70/80 are made with plastic and feels reasonably cheap if you are used to the old days of all metal pounders. Once you get used to this, it is all good.

heheh fair enough

i dropped into a camera shop today and a fella there gave me some honest advice: the d50 is the same in most aspects if not slightly better than the d70... this is starting to make things complex. i'll make up my mind eventually i guess

wider wrote:i dropped into a camera shop today and a fella there gave me some honest advice

lol - yeah, right! Half these guys went to carsales college!

wider wrote:the d50 is the same in most aspects if not slightly better than the d70

Very similar, but better? I don't think so. There are a couple of features missing on the D50 (such as aperture preview) which I tend to use a fair bit. It's also a little more clunky to change settings (metering mode for example requires a menu change rather then a dial). Obviously, there is also a handling difference due to the different bodies. Overall performance-wise though, I'd agree they are very similar and both very good cameras.

i guess it was honest in a way that he was advising i bought a cheaper camera than the more expensive...

i'm realising there are many features and functions i am not yet aware of on DSLRs and need to read some more. cheers for the info

A cheap body with better glass is what I will go for at first...

Can always couple the good glass with a better body when you get more experience around the digital side of things and the cheap body stays as backup body... just my thought IMHO