D750: Anyone Using It? Loving It? Hating It?

[Mark Romero]

Thanks for posting the video.

Yes, it does look nice. No doubt about that. And it looks like it would be EASY to work with.

It's the 2.2 crop factor that has me worried though. With the Tokina 11-16 I would still be at 24mm full frame equivalent, which is wide but I normally try to shoot at 20mm equivalent.

I wouldn't need f/2.8 because I would still need a heaping amount of DOF. On a crop sensor, I usually shoot around f/5.6 to f/6.3, although I know some people who use a crop sensor D7200 and shoot at f/4 with the Tokina 11-16.

I have found the Sigma 10-20 f/4-5.6 to be not all that sharp (I've had two that I used with my Nikon D7000 - one was very sharp in the center and horrible on the edges and corners, the other was pretty sharp all throughout the frame, so I kept that one). Otherwise, that would probably be my choice for 4K on a 2.2. crop factor.

I will look into the 1080p of the D500 / D7500 as well. 
 

On 6/3/2017 at 0:39 PM, TwoScoops said:

The D750/D810 replacements should have 4k, coupled with the great color science etc; could be pretty interesting.

 

Yes, that would be appealing, although I am interested in when it might be released. 

The other thing is, once it's released, I am sure the resale value of my D750 will drop like a stone...

[TheRenaissanceMan]

I'm with Mercer, the XC10/15 sounds far more suitable for you than a D7500. Deep focus, lots of detail, strong codec, and (in standard mode) accurate color (which I'd imagine is important for real estate).

It'd be worth keeping the D750 alongside it for the agent interviews and stills (if that's a concern), but if you don't plan to, I'd sell it post haste if you want to get the most you can for it.

That said, don't sell or switch cameras based on what some nerds on the internet who don't make a living from their images tell you. The D750 is a great HD camera. If you're happy with the images, your clients are happy with the images, and the camera doesn't make your life difficult, then why change it? You'd be better off investing in some lights or support gear, and just work on improving your craft. 

[mercer]

Yeah unless you are specifically being asked for 4K, then I wouldn't switch. The D750 supplies a beautiful image. 

[Mark Romero]

50 minutes ago, TheRenaissanceMan said:

I'm with Mercer, the XC10/15 sounds far more suitable for you than a D7500. Deep focus, lots of detail, strong codec, and (in standard mode) accurate color (which I'd imagine is important for real estate).

It'd be worth keeping the D750 alongside it for the agent interviews and stills (if that's a concern), but if you don't plan to, I'd sell it post haste if you want to get the most you can for it.

That said, don't sell or switch cameras based on what some nerds on the internet who don't make a living from their images tell you. The D750 is a great HD camera. If you're happy with the images, your clients are happy with the images, and the camera doesn't make your life difficult, then why change it? You'd be better off investing in some lights or support gear, and just work on improving your craft. 

Thanks for your input. I appreciate your thoughts. Especially the part about improving my craft

13 minutes ago, mercer said:

Yeah unless you are specifically being asked for 4K, then I wouldn't switch. The D750 supplies a beautiful image. 

Thanks for the thoughts. No, not being specifically asked for 4K, but I do want to present something sharp and clear for the clients.

[Mark Romero]

So here are my priorities:

1) Can shoot both stills and video

2) Speed both on site and in post (due to low budget - usually only $200 to $300 for a 1:30 minute video to a 2:30 minute video, and the real estate agent / homeowner might only allow me a limited time on location)

3) Low light and High Dynamic Range capability

4) Depth of field: the more DOF, the better

5) Ability to use on a gimbal

6) Video Image quality

Yes, video image quality is at the bottom. 

As for which one(s) win in each category:

1) As a stills camera: D750 > a6300 > a7s original

2) On site / PP speed: D750 > a7s original > a6300

3) Low light / dynamic range: a7s > d750 = a6300 (but the sony cameras are HARDER to work with to get that dynamic range / low light)

4) DOF: a6300 > D750 = a7s

5) Ability to use on gimbal: It's a wash, really: a6300 works well on Zhiyun crane I own, but LCD screen is dismal. a7s could work on Zhiyun crane. D750 won't work on Zhiyun crane, works ok on Beholder DS 1 I also own, but probably would have to sell both Crane and DS1 and buy Ronin M for the D750.

6) Video image quality: a6300 > a7s > D750 (but the amount of work that needs to go into the Sony footage to get that better image quality makes me question whether it is worth it).

So that's kind of everything. In summary

Option A: Sell Sony a6300 (and back up a6000, sony lenses, Zhiyun crane, Beholder DS1), buy a Ronin M and an ultra wide lens for the D750, and enjoy ease of use / quick turnaround on soft(ish) 1080p footage that might have a little less DOF, or...

Option B: Sell my Nikon gear, stick with the Sony a6300 and enjoy the sharper image and increased DOF, but then deal with the longer times required on site and in post, or...

Option C: Sell my Nikon gear AND sell my a6300, buy an a7s and ultrawide lens for video (easier to use than a6300 but not as easy as the D750), then use the a6000 for shooting stills. Big drawback I see is having two ultrawide angle lenses (one for the full frame a7s for video, one for the crop sensor a6000 for stills)

Anyway, thanks for reading this long post. Your thoughts are appreciated.

[TheRenaissanceMan]

It's a damn shame Nikon cancelled the DL series, because otherwise I would've just told you to get one of those for deep DoF and stick with the D750 for people shots/stills.

As it is, I think you're best off sticking with the D750, softish or not. The only one of your priorities it really falls short on is gimbal use, which is also the easiest point to rectify--just get the beefier gimbal. Or hell, get a really nice slider instead. That'll last for the next dozen cameras, and the (admittedly few) real estate videos I've seen have used them almost exclusively.

Get a Tokina 11-16. It's an APS-C lens, but covers full frame at 15 and 16. Otherwise there's some good vintage 20/21mm Nikkors that could do the trick. I've never worked real estate, so I'm not sure how wide is too wide. 

Always go with easier to use over slightly better image quality. The most important thing on set is you. Your skills and attention are valuable; don't waste them focusing on a fiddly camera instead of your shots. 

[noone]

Option C for me but that I would use the A7s for stills to because I love the A7s as a stills and video camera especially in low light though is no slouch in good light either.

It also gives you much more choice in lenses (Nikon is not so adaptable and the APSC Sony makes it harder for wide angle).     

The A7s will also give you a choice in both FF and APSC modes (especially for video).      Should you ever need 4k (as you will in future) you can always add a external recorder to get it with the A7s and by then there might be zillions more cameras with 4k (or greater).

The A7s is not a camera if you need tracking AF or AFC at any great speed or if 12mp isn't enough (actually even around 5 or 6mp is often more than enough for me) but otherwise it is a great camera.

 

[TheRenaissanceMan]

2 hours ago, TheRenaissanceMan said:

 

I see now that you already have the Tokina and want 20ish mm equivalent. Whoops! If you're alright with manual focus, definitely look at some of the older Nikkor glass in that range. It's one of the few vintage lineups I'm not familiar with, but a quick Google search should bring up some solid advice on which ones are worth seeking out. 

Edit: not sure why I quoted myself. Whoops again. 

[TwoScoops]

4 hours ago, Mark Romero said:

 

The other thing is, once it's released, I am sure the resale value of my D750 will drop like a stone...

 

Yeah I kind of want to sell mine now for that reason, haha. I'll basically get back what I paid (used) now.

[Mark Romero]

2 hours ago, noone said:

Option C for me but that I would use the A7s for stills to because I love the A7s as a stills and video camera especially in low light though is no slouch in good light either.

It also gives you much more choice in lenses (Nikon is not so adaptable and the APSC Sony makes it harder for wide angle).     

The A7s will also give you a choice in both FF and APSC modes (especially for video).      Should you ever need 4k (as you will in future) you can always add a external recorder to get it with the A7s and by then there might be zillions more cameras with 4k (or greater).

The A7s is not a camera if you need tracking AF or AFC at any great speed or if 12mp isn't enough (actually even around 5 or 6mp is often more than enough for me) but otherwise it is a great camera.

 

Yeah, the a7s possibly COULD work for me for stills... I don't really need too many mega pixels for real estate stills. The only thing is that if it is anything like the a6300, then the files might take a bit more massaging in post, and shooting slog 2 is not going to happen.

1 hour ago, TheRenaissanceMan said:

I see now that you already have the Tokina and want 20ish mm equivalent. Whoops! If you're alright with manual focus, definitely look at some of the older Nikkor glass in that range. It's one of the few vintage lineups I'm not familiar with, but a quick Google search should bring up some solid advice on which ones are worth seeking out. 

Edit: not sure why I quoted myself. Whoops again. 

Yeah, I will probably look into a 20mm manualfocus lens.

[noone]

A7s with Canon 17 f4 L TS-E

[mercer]

2 hours ago, noone said:

A7s with Canon 17 f4 L TS-E

Nice! What profile did you use?

[BLACKOUT]

The 17 TSE looks well resolved and clean, any issues with adapting the tse to the Sony mount??

I'm hoping to go this way for a future set up..any regrets..

Thanks........

[Geoff CB]

5 hours ago, BLACKOUT said:

The 17 TSE looks well resolved and clean, any issues with adapting the tse to the Sony mount??

I'm hoping to go this way for a future set up..any regrets..

Thanks........

Seconded !

[Mark Romero]

8 hours ago, BLACKOUT said:

The 17 TSE looks well resolved and clean, any issues with adapting the tse to the Sony mount??

I'm hoping to go this way for a future set up..any regrets..

Thanks........

I know some people (Rich Baum, Wayne Capili)  who use the Canon 17mm Tilt shift with a metabones speed booster on a crop sensor Sony a6000 for real estate and they love it (at least for stills). Don't know about video though.

But if it works well with a speed booster on a crop sensor I would imagine it works well (for stills at least) on a full frame a7s / a7s II.

[Nikkor]

The 17 ts-e makes me feel all warm inside. Shooting buildings and interiors with it is super exiting.

[noone]

No profile used.    Jpegs as as taken.

The 17 TS-E is my favourite lens for both stills and video though for video I just use it on a tripod or table to shoot bands to record the odd song.      I can get all the band members in shot and focus with little distortion from next to the stage.

I have no issues adapting it to the A7s and in fact, I think it is actually better (at least much easier) to use on a FF E mount camera than on a Canon DSLR.     I can use it walk around at night on an A7s (for stills at least) and I could never do that on a Canon DSLR (certainly not on my last one anyway).    

 

[IronFilm]

Wait for the D750 mk2!

 

Or buy now a D500 / D7500

On 09/06/2017 at 6:15 AM, TheRenaissanceMan said:

It's a damn shame Nikon cancelled the DL series, because otherwise I would've just told you to get one of those for deep DoF and stick with the D750 for people shots/stills.

 

Fully ?% agree that Nikon should have released the DL18-50!!

 

Would have been a massively kick as camera for real estate or drones.

[BLACKOUT]

5 hours ago, noone said:

No profile used.    Jpegs as as taken.

The 17 TS-E is my favourite lens for both stills and video though for video I just use it on a tripod or table to shoot bands to record the odd song.      I can get all the band members in shot and focus with little distortion from next to the stage.

I have no issues adapting it to the A7s and in fact, I think it is actually better (at least much easier) to use on a FF E mount camera than on a Canon DSLR.     I can use it walk around at night on an A7s (for stills at least) and I could never do that on a Canon DSLR (certainly not on my last one anyway).    

 

A lot of the forums one reads about the tse lens on a Canon rig is the lack of an adjustable screen in full frame bodies.

Do you have a sweet spot in aperture or just wide open and see what comes out....

 

[noone]

44 minutes ago, BLACKOUT said:

A lot of the forums one reads about the tse lens on a Canon rig is the lack of an adjustable screen in full frame bodies.

Do you have a sweet spot in aperture or just wide open and see what comes out....

 

Depends.     Used for live music close to the band (stage if there is one), f4 will sometimes not be enough to get all in focus and in shot (the closest musician might be a fraction too close) though often f4 is ok but I will also stop down to 5.6, 6.3 or even f8 as the A7s can handle really high ISOs.  

Depth of field isn't really an issue most of the time (17mm FF has infinite DOF at f4 with a subject distance at 8 feet or more and 6 feet subject distance at 5.6) and I don't need infinite DOF if there is a wall thirty feet distant for example so I just aim at a middle musician and get the closest in shot and focus most of the time

 

Shifting for a building generally needs stopping down more and more so if shifting a lot.

The lens is pretty good at f4 as a general landscape lens though.

Other than shifting, I would use it at 5.6 more often than not I suppose at night maybe a bit more (6.3/f8) in the day.