Yup, when it became clear that no one was intending that there would
be anything superior to the CP8400/8800 in the foreseeable future, I
traded image quality for contemporary design. At ISO6400, the D700
well exceeds ISO200 on the CP8400. I greatly miss the articulated
monitor of the CP8400, but the D300 and D700 monitors allow a 170°
view of an outstanding very high resolution monitor.

The D300 would allow me to use all my superb manual focus Nikkors, but
not at the focal lengths I chose, with the 1.5x magnification factor.
The D700 solves this. Everything in photography involves compromise,
and as yet no ideal camera for me exists. If it did, it would have the
form factor of a CP8400, with the sensor and the engine of my D700.
Panasonic has made an attempt with the G1, but it is a camera with
deep faults. It is also version 1.0 so succeeding cameras based upon
its philosophy may succeed. The design is completely 21st century.

I also took a long look at the Leica M8 having considerable legacy
lenses, etc., that would work with it. It is much closer to my ideal
street camera than the Nikon dSLRs. However, it is even more deeply
flawed than the Panasonic, not to mention its price. Lens
compatibility and LiveView at least move the D300/700 into the realm
of usability, even though I still am not enthusiastic about using a
century-old form factor that has not been updated since 1949. I am in
my final years, shooting my legacy images. At this point, there is no
acceptable 21st century form factor, so I compromise incredible image
quality and flexibility for an ultimately useable camera.

My hope is for a mirrorless camera with a sensor and processor equal
to my D700, with an articulated monitor and equally fast focusing,
along with the ability to use my arsenal of glass. I want an
interchangeable lens Coolpix with a full frame sensor and dust
reduction that works as well as my D300/D700. Until then, I will make
the personal compromises I must to photograph acceptable content with
a less than ideal 19th century design. My images are far more
important than the retro design of my cameras.

larry!
http://www.larry-bolch.com/



On Tue, Nov 25, 2008 at 12:28 AM, Renato Aranghelovici
<renato.aranghelovici@...> wrote:
> Ha, that smells D3/D700 flavour... aka, a DSLR...
> Guess who bashed me years ago because I switched to D70
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Larry Bolch" <lnbolch@...>
> To: <coolpix990@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 08:43
> Subject: Re: [coolpix990] The on/off button on the 990
>
>>
>> You could check through the archives, but I don't off hand recall any
>> mention of it. The forum was very busy for the first four years or so
>> of the decade, but is not quiet as most people have moved on to more
>> contemporary equipment. Just want you to know that you are not being
>> ignored if you don't get an answer.
>>
>> If you think it is worth fixing, I suggest you check with Nikon. While
>> it was the state of the art when it came on the market and a wonderful
>> camera, time and technology has moved on. I am still currently
>> shooting with a state of the art Nikon and getting almost no visible
>> noise at ISO6400 and finding ISO25,600 entirely usable for available
>> darkness shooting. Unfortunately, no company is doing much with
>> compact digital cameras, other than cramming an absurd amount of
>> resolution - and noise - into ever smaller sensors.
>>
>> larry!
>> http://www.larry-bolch.com/
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Nov 24, 2008 at 5:59 PM, wherethegypsyangelsgo
>> <wherethegypsyangelsgo@...> wrote:
>>> Has anyone ever taken this apart and perhaps cleaned it. Many months
>>> back my son left it outside and it was never the same again as in the
>>> half press to focus then the harder press to take photo but most
>>> photo's came out in focus.
>>>
>>> I tried to use it the other day and now, with fresh batteries, I turn
>>> it on and it comes on, then shuts off. And then when I turn it off, it
>>> stays on for a short while before actually shutting off and I couldn't
>>> even get it to stay on long enough to get a picture.
>>>
>>> Any ideas and how would I get to the bottom part of that button? Anyone
>>> been that deep into the camera?
>>>
>>>
>