Nikon ISO200 question

[jona100]

Apologies if this is ridiculous question, but i am in the market for a new camera (long story short, my canon got stolen at Johannesburg airport by the luggage crew).

Anyway, its been a few months since and i really (really) need to get a new camera. Lenses got swiped as well, so i am not beholden to any specific brand.

Looking at a 5D or a Nikon d700.

A bloody tough choice, but the 5D kinda lets its case down by having an x-sync of 160/200 (i do a lot of off camera flash stuff, so the x-sync is a big deal to me), thus the d700 looks like the winner, one main question though, the d700 has a base level ISO of 200 (without using the silly software hack setting of IO1).

Having the top quality setting of ISO200 is a little worrying for me, as this means in very bright settings i am forced into faster shutter speeds (a big problem when you are working to maximum of 1/250 sync speed) than an ISO100 would have, or having to close down the aperture (which gives DOF I may not want).

Am i reading the Nikon ISO200 setting right here? would a compatible canon ISO200 have the same shutter and aperture setting or would the same shutter and aperture setting be found on Canon at ISO100.

Being forced to use ISO200 for the best quality picture but being saddled with a faster shutter speed or a smaller aperture would be a real deal killer for me.

[OsmosisStudios]

The Nikon sensors just start at 200iso instead of 100iso as their base, but they go higher as well. I've never had it be an issue with me, tbh, as the cameras are designed and optimized for 200ISO for noise.

As far as bumping up against your sync speed, I've only ever encountered one instance where I've had a problem. If you absolutely need to, just toss a light ND filter onto the lens.

[sk66]

If I were doing a lot of portrait type work (I'm guessing due to off camera flash use) a big consideration for me would be the 5D's FF 21MP vs the Nikons 12. I don't know that the sync of 200 is much different than the 250 for Nikon.

[ElCapitan]

What kind of flash work are you doing? Is it in a studio? Do you need to freeze fast action?

[kirbinster]

The Nikon does go down to 100 in three steps under the 200 setting - not a big deal. If you are concerned with too much light at ISO200 and don't want to change your settings what about going with a 1 or 2 stop neutral density filter. The D700 is an amazing camera.

[Shokinen]

Originally Posted by sk66

If I were doing a lot of portrait type work (I'm guessing due to off camera flash use) a big consideration for me would be the 5D's FF 21MP vs the Nikons 12. I don't know that the sync of 200 is much different than the 250 for Nikon.

I would be carefull with 21mp pictures especially if you shoot in RAW (I hope you are if you spend that much on a camera...).

It's tougher on the computer to process, longuer to transfer, takes more space on your cards / storage.

The improvement can be very nice but keep in mind there might be hidden cost to this upgrade.

[LoveDSLR]

I don't have any issue processing my 5D Mk II and D3 raw files. Yeah, I use my 5D Mk II mainly for portraits and the D3 for everything else.

[sk66]

Originally Posted by Shokinen

I would be carefull with 21mp pictures especially if you shoot in RAW (I hope you are if you spend that much on a camera...).

It's tougher on the computer to process, longuer to transfer, takes more space on your cards / storage.

The improvement can be very nice but keep in mind there might be hidden cost to this upgrade.

There are a ton of "hidden costs" when upgrading to FF..file storage and processing are some of the lesser concerns IMO.

[ritewinger]

200 base iso? No big deal, I leave my D700 on 400 to 800 regularly with no loss in iq, then crank it when it gets dark....

[jona100]

Thanks for your replies guys, quick (admittedly dumb) question. If you stick a 'full frame' lens on an APS sensor body, does what you see though the viewfinder correspond to what is actually in the final picture. Reason for the question is that I am fully aware that an APS sensor only records the middle part of the lens image (hence the crop), but does what you see through the viewfinder correspond to this? Or do you have to 'visualize' through the viewfinder what the actual cropped part that will be in the final photo (if this is the case, composition is gonna be real tricky).

Many Thanks in advance.