Nikon D80 or D200 advice?

Question

After reading reviews and specs on these two models I'm still trying to decide if it's worth the extra $$ for the D200? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

Answer 1

Thank you Teef. You and Monster, and Gary have already nailed it however. The image quality is identical and the biggest advantages of the D200 have been mentioned. I´ll just add one or two more...
* The D200 can meter with old AI(S) lenses.
* The control layout is geared towards tweaking important settings on the fly. On the top left of the body for example, the D80 has a dial for shooting modes. On the D200 there are no shooting modes - this space is reserved for buttons to set ISO, WB, and file size/ image quality. (You´ll rarely have to dive into the menu on the D200.)
* The D200´s better build quality also extends to the shutter - the D200´s is rated for 100.000 actuations vs. 50.000 on the D80. And the D200 has weather sealing. I don´t hesitate to take the camera out of the bag for a few shots in the middle of a downpour - I´d doubt I´d be as careless with a D80 (the lens I use also has weather sealing.) As for the metal vs. plastic body... like Teef says, the D80 is already pretty rugged but the D200 is practically bulletproof.
And I´m sure the D200 does a bunch of other stuff a fraction better too, but those differences will not justify the higher price. As mentioned, the biggies are better build quality and 5 FPS vs. 3. If you don´t need those 2 things, spend the price difference on lenses (or on something else completely.)

Answer 2

You have already received some great technical responses, so I will only add my canned response for enhancement.

Comparison between the Nikon D80 and the Nikon D200:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=nikon_d80%2Cnikon_d200&show=all

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d80/vs-d200.htm

How do you compare the D80 to the D200? This is a tough call. Here is the recent Popular Photography review of the D80. They make comparisons with the D200 throughout the article. They also have capsule summaries comparing the D80 to the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi (400D), the Pentax K10D, and the Sony Alpha 100. In the conclusion, they suggest that Nikon has "gone crazy" releasing this camera for $700 less than the D200, stating that the D80 is nearly the same camera without a few features and without the industrial strength of the D200.

http://www.popphoto.com/cameras/3231/camera-test-nikon-d80.html

I own a D200 and a D70s, which should feel quite a bit like the D80. The D70s by no means feels "cheap," but it is lighter and somewhat smaller than the D200. If I had all of the image quality of the D200 available in the D70s, I doubt I would have spent the money for the D200. In other words, if you are looking to move up from a point and shoot, the additional price is probably not worth the difference unless you need the superior construction and all the subtle features of the D200.

Answer 3

I myself own a D80 and I must say I am extremely pleased with it. I mainly take landscapes which gives me lots of time for lens changes and camera setup. Therefore the polycarbonate body does not bother me. To say this camera is 'plastic' is frankly an injustice, because this is a very rugged professional camera. My feeling is that if this camera is for your own personal use and the slower frame rate is not an issue, then the D80 will give years of outstanding service.

If you are a professional who expects a lot from your gear and you do sports photography or similar with lots of fast lens changes, I would certainly consider the D200. If you look around bigger forums such as nikonians, you will find that many D80s are in professional use.

That's my take as a happy D80 user. If you are lucky either Dr Sam or OMG (or both) will also answer giving their takes as D200 owners. I have always found their points well considered and worth taking on board.

Hope this helps.

Answer 4

Both are 10 MP, very close on the sensor, and use the same lenses. The D200, I think has an aluminum alloy underbody, so it will be more rugged, it has a faster burst, and I think it has 4 more focus points. Ultimately it depends on what type of photography you are going to be doing. The D200 is more of a professional camera, the D80 more of an enthusiasts camera. Check out www.dpreview.com for more information. Hope this helps and good luck.

Answer 5

That's quite a challenge. I'd say that you could use maybe 100 dpi, assuming the image will be viewed from a distance, and blow a full-frame shot up to about 30-32", but 48" is huge. You might want more pixels. Or film. One caution. You can NOT mix Canon bodies and Nikon lenses, so decide which family you want and start out there. If you aspire to own a D5, start with a Canon or your lenses will become obsolete once you finally get your D5. Or D8... Addition: I decided to do a test for you. I took a full format image from my D200 (10 MP) and cropped a small section to print at 80 dpi, which would give you the size you are looking for. I'd say that it looks "okay" from about 4 feet away. Maybe 10 MP would work out for you, in which case the D80 would be fine.

Answer 6

If you 're into sports photography, the D200 would get you 5 frame per second as opposed to 3 in D80.

Also D200 has a sturdy magnesium alloy body.

If action photos and rugged camera body are important for you, then the extra $$ would be well worth it.

I myself actually got a Canon 20D instead of Digital Rebel because of such reasons.