Nikon D300s CMOS 12.3 MP Digital SLR Camera with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens

Nikon D300s 12.3 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens
Rating:
I’ll keep it short and sweet, and my review will also include the review of the 18-200 VR II which was bundled with the D300S as a kit.

Pros:

Dual-slots: This was crucial for me when deciding which camera to purchase because I shoot weddings… and there’s no way to recreate the magic of the original moment if your card fails at the wrong time. One CF slot which supports UDMA cards and one SD slot.

Handling of High ISO: I’ve shot this thing at 1600 ISO with little to no noticable noise. There is a Noise Reduction setting which I never use but have heard good things about.

Battery Life: Easily shoots 800-900 shots per charge

Acts as a Commander to my flash: The Nikon CLS allows your camera to transmit signals to my SB-600 flash

Weather Proof: Body is built like a tank and all the nooks and crannies are sealed up

Video mode: Yawn, I’ll never use it, but it’s there if you need it.

Live view: This can come in handy sometimes

18-200 lens: This lens is a great walk-around lens and actually pretty compact, considering how flexible your focal length is. VR is amazing and the lens shoots very nice at f8 thru out the entire focal length.

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Cons:

Honestly I can’t think of any, it’s the best camera I’ve ever owned and a complete bargain!

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Nikon D300s 12.3 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens
Rating:
This is a great camera even if Ken Rockwell doesn’t really recommend it. I am a previous D200 owner, but I am very fond of this D300s. I still have much experimenting to do with this. I love my custom setup with vivid colors for landscapes and jewelry but I’m always forgetting to re-set it to normal when I’m taking people pictures. I haven’t used the video as much as I want to. One draw back I couldn’t edit the video with my Sony Vegas movie editing software, although I may have an earlier version of the software. Has anyone been able to do that?

The 18-200mm is the best Nikon lens made. Extremely versatile and may be the only lens you’ll ever need. I love the new locking system.

Nikon D300s 12.3 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens
Rating:
I’ve owned Nikons almost since they were first available here and I’ve always been happy with the performance of their cameras. But this is the first time I’ve been ecstatic over one. I switched from using the old N90s to a D90 two years ago and while I liked the camera, I was put off by the amount of plastic in what was, after all, a $1000 body. I also found the controls a bit hard to get along with — I’m not a fan of spending a lot of time paging through menus. When the D300s came out I had a chance to buy one and it proved an answer to my complaints about the D90.

The new camera is magnesium. It’s 8 ounces heavier than the D90 so it balances better with the heavy 2.8 lenses I usually use. To tell the truth I had a short period of frantic manual reading when I first started using the D300s. Nikon has shifted the controls around so that menu hopping is needed less often, and that’s a blessing. It offers about a zillion focusing and metering options – While I normally stick to spot evaluation the camera offers some 51 spots which can be used individually or in groups.

Comparing photos to the D90 I would say theres a definite improvement in the images, although it’s subtle. And there are more internal processing options as well. Yet another neat feature is that the camera takes two memory cards. This really is as far as you can take a 12 megapixel camera. Even though Nikon rates this a semi-pro camera the quality of image will answer most photographer’s needs for some time to come. One day Nikon will improve the D700 and I’ll switch, but until then I’m happy with the D300s (as a matter of fact that’s now TWO D300s’s).

Nikon D300s 12.3 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens
Rating:
This was my first DSLR. If you’ve never owned a DSLR, it does take some experimentation with settings and lighting to see what the camera can do and how the pictures will turn out. But that’s the great thing about digital cameras…you can shoot at will and see the immediate effects. Also, learning and familiarizing yourself with the controls really helps when snapping shots of young kids that that tend to move incessantly.

- The picture quality is awesome (no surprise here and universally agreed upon by most reviews)…especially when I compare it to pics taken with my ultra portable point and shoot Canon SD630.

- The layout and functions are quite intuitive and easy to use so it wasn’t hard to get the hang of it (and a good guide book really helps).

- The construction seems very solid, you can feel it in your hands.

- External flash is very key in getting good results.

- I purchased it with the 18mm-200mm VR-II lens. The lens was very expensive but if you could only get one lens, it’s definitely a great all around lens. Also surprisingly compact for a telephoto zoom.

- Favorite feature…dual card slots, ability to save JPEG to one slot and RAW to the other provides a lot of flexibility.

- Haven’t played around with the video yet so I can’t really comment. But I think the built in mono mic is sort of a lame feature. If Nikon can provide HD video, it should at least have stereo sound. There is an optional mic you can purchase but again, it’s another thing you would need to buy and another thing you will have to lug around.

- The only gripe is that it is EXPENSIVE. But if you are into photography and preserving moments of your kids and family, it’s probably worth the money. A better price point would have earned it a full 5 stars.

Overall, really happy with the camera and having a lot of fun learning about all the features and capabilities.

Nikon D300s 12.3 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens
Rating:
This is my first digital SLR. I must admit it has sometimes been a little overwhelming, but I’ve gotten great pictures right from the start. I’ve had it for almost 2 months now and I am still playing around with it and learning about the features of this camera. I use this camera for outdoor wildlife and for indoor sporting events. I have not been disappointed in its performance. One of the more difficult things for me to settle on has been the various focusing options – and which to use in any particular situation. But one of the great things about the camera is the ease of changing the various options, like focus mode, so that you can easily experiment with different settings to see which works best. If you are looking for a great digital SLR, I highly recommend this one.