Fuji S3Pro vs. D300?

ElginetPhotos

I broke down and bought a D300 2 days ago. After shooting about 1000 frames and dialing it in carefully, I have to say I STILL prefer the overall quality of the S3Pro.

I love the speed (The Fuji is not an "action" camera at all!) of the D300 and the dual format shooting ability, But I either just can't get it dialed in right, or it just can't be compared and I've literally been on this thing day and night for 2 days.

I'll post some comparative shots tomorrow. I really had great expectations for this camera (and still have 12 days to return it..).

Anyone have any ideas?
(I'm shooting 14 bit RAW + Jpeg)

NikonsandVstroms

ElginetPhotos wrote:

I broke down and bought a D300 2 days ago. After shooting about 1000 frames and dialing it in carefully, I have to say I STILL prefer the overall quality of the S3Pro.

I love the speed (The Fuji is not an "action" camera at all!) of the D300 and the dual format shooting ability, But I either just can't get it dialed in right, or it just can't be compared and I've literally been on this thing day and night for 2 days.

I'll post some comparative shots tomorrow. I really had great expectations for this camera (and still have 12 days to return it..).

Anyone have any ideas?
(I'm shooting 14 bit RAW + Jpeg)

Well, there's two things, first on the dynamic range issue, the S3 actually is actually superior to the D300, but Nikon is getting close (even closer now with the D700/D3). What you get with the d300 basically is more resolution.

The other issue is, what are you comparing, if you doing JPEG versus JPEG the Fuji does better out of camera JPEG images than almost anything.

dangin

i have a fuji s3 pro and as far as portraits go, the only camera i've tried that surpasses it is my nikon d3. haven't shot the d700, but i suspect it'd best the s3 as well. that being said, i think the s3 tops the d200 and d300 for portraiture. the colours are just better IMO.

for action shots, you're right. no fuji dslr would work well. the fps is just way too slow to catch anything. if you're shooting raw and you're really picky about the dynamic range and getting some details in the highs, then the s3 or d3/d700 are the only way to go.

the d300 is a step up from the d200, but the d3 is a whole flight of steps above it.

ElginetPhotos

dangin wrote:

i have a fuji s3 pro and as far as portraits go, the only camera i've tried that surpasses it is my nikon d3. haven't shot the d700, but i suspect it'd best the s3 as well. that being said, i think the s3 tops the d200 and d300 for portraiture. the colours are just better IMO.

for action shots, you're right. no fuji dslr would work well. the fps is just way too slow to catch anything. if you're shooting raw and you're really picky about the dynamic range and getting some details in the highs, then the s3 or d3/d700 are the only way to go.

the d300 is a step up from the d200, but the d3 is a whole flight of steps above it.

Yeah, I have a feeling I'm going to be returning this thing for a D3. That's going to hurt....but I'm not wasting money on this thing if I can't even get it close.

I'm shooting RAW + Jpeg with the D300, and RAW only on the S3. I really HATE lugging 2 cameras to scenes, especially when they're heavy as these are.

Gonna play a lot over the weekend and put some direct comaparisons up to look at. This should be interesting. ;-)

Have a good weekend guys and thanks for the input...

NikonsandVstroms

ElginetPhotos wrote:

Yeah, I have a feeling I'm going to be returning this thing for a D3. That's going to hurt....but I'm not wasting money on this thing if I can't even get it close.

Why not a D700?

Arkayem

Funny, but I have not seen this

ElginetPhotos wrote:

I broke down and bought a D300 2 days ago. After shooting about 1000 frames and dialing it in carefully, I have to say I STILL prefer the overall quality of the S3Pro.

I love the speed (The Fuji is not an "action" camera at all!) of the D300 and the dual format shooting ability, But I either just can't get it dialed in right, or it just can't be compared and I've literally been on this thing day and night for 2 days.

I'll post some comparative shots tomorrow. I really had great expectations for this camera (and still have 12 days to return it..).

Anyone have any ideas?
(I'm shooting 14 bit RAW + Jpeg)

I shoot weddings, and have tried an S3. However, I found it much inferior in detail and color to my D200. The only advantage I found for the S3 was the dynamic range, and that can be handled with smart use of flash.

swintonphoto

Or you could consider an S5. Also, I bet the S5 replacement should be coming soon.