phatmojo's Full Review: Nikon N80 QD Body Only 35mm Film Camera
Do to the biased, unaccurate, or uncomplete information supplied by the other "epinions" that I have seen, I have decided to write my own objective review of Nikon's new N80.
The N80 (F80 European model) is one of the most bang-for-buck models I have ever seen. It gives you the great features of the heavier, more expensive Nikon models in a lightweight polycarbonate/metal hybrid case. Like all of the higher "N" models, the N80 features four exposure modes:
*Aperture priority: you control the aperture and the camera's system chooses the appropriate shutterspeed. (great for taking landscapes and portriats)
*Shutter priority: you choose the shutter speed and the camera's system chooses the appropriate aperture, (great for actions shots and creative effects)
*Programmed: The camera does everything for you. (Great for vacations and parties when you just want to relax or give it to someone else and say "just press the button."
*Manual: The camera lets you do everything. (You control the aperture and shutterspeed but it has an on-board meter to tell you if you settings or to high (overexposed) or to low (underexposed). (This is good for the person that wants to control everything.)
These four modes are great to have but are in all higher-end slr cameras, (including Canon, except they have different names for them.) If you would like an autofocus camera with just these basic features and not the whiz-bang features of the other cameras, then I suggest you get the N60. It is $100 less and is easy to use right out of the box. It has a pop-up flash and also has a portriat, sport, and landscape mode to do even more things for you. However, be warned, being a learning photographer, I bought it and grew out of it in less then 4 weeks. After doing much research, the reason I opped for the N80 was because IT WAS BETTER THEN THE N60 IN EVERYWAY and it had the features of the higher priced cameras that I longed for such depth-of-feild-preview (a MUST for any amateur or pro photographer), bracketing, multible exposures (I love experimenting with this.), push-pulling film (go to photo.net, a wonderful place to learn about photography if you do not understand what some of these are), and the N80 has a feature that NO other slr currently has: On-demand grid lines.
Using one of the 18 programmable custom functions, you can turn the "on-demand grid lines" on or off. When turned on, a grid automatically and magically appears when you look through your viewfinder. It is great to use for shooting buildings and landscapes. I personally use this feature with the multible exposure feature so I do not overlap two images.
Another great feature of the N80 that is not found on most "pro" cameras is an on-board flash. I know some pro photographer might laugh at the amateurism of an on-board flash but that little guy is really powerful and convenient to have! I find it a relief when I go to a dimly litted place and didn't bring my SB22s flash, I just pop-up the cameras flash to get nicely exposed images. Along with having a regular exposure compensation button the N80 also has a FLASH exposure compensation so you can tell the camera if you want a more or less powerful flash.
Some other features of the N80 are 2.5 FPS (frames per second) and 5 area focus points. Although this isn't a super FPS ability (some of the higher nikons can do 4.3, 4.5 and 8 FPS) I find it quite adequate and much better then the N60's 1 FPS. The 5 point auto-focus points (i belive the only other found in the Nikons top camera the F5 ($2,000)) is a interesting feature. The camera has 5 focusing points: one in the middle, left, right, top and bottom of the viewfinder screen. On the camera's back is a button you use (and a lock feature to lock the button) to tell the camera which area you would like as the focusing point. For example if I wanted to take picture of a person standing right of a sunset. I could position the sunset right in the middle of my viewfinder, set the focusing point to the right point, and it would focus on the person and I would have my picture. Normally the sun would have been what the camera would have focused on.
Something hated and loved by photographers is the weight and build of the N80. The camera weights 1 lb 2 oz, compared to the F5 which weighs 2 lb 13 oz and the F100 which weights 1 lb 12 oz. Some Pro photographer use the N80 as a second lightweight body to go treking and hiking with. Although some photographers complain that the N80 is too light and "feels like a toy," I find it quite solid in my hands. My suggestion to you is to go to the store and try holding it for yourself, (then try holding the F5 and see if you can hold it for more then 3 minutes without hand strain.)
Also I recommend you buy the optional mb-16 grip. Not only does it give you added grip and heft, but it also serves as an AAA battery pack. Am I the only one that finds it aggrevating to have to buy 2 more C123 camera batteries for 15 bucks! With the MB-16 grip, I can use 4 AAA batteries (or rechargeable batteries) and save alot of money. Personally I use rechargeable hydrides. They are expensive but last twice as long as regular chargeables and are recheargeble up to 1000 times. I couldn't really tell you how long they last because my whole time with the camera I have only changed the batteries once. (This was when I left the camera on all night.) Another feature I like that I forgot to mention is the ability to use a mechanical cable release which you can buy for a little over 10 bucks instead of shelling out over $70 for an electronic one. An applause to Nikon for going back to this.
So what are the drawbacks of this wonderful new camera? Well some people complain about its cheap feel and say "God forbid you drop it." (I've heard this on photo.net on more then one occasion. My reply: It feels fine to me and I have dropped it on several occasions and it is perfectly fine. (However the front lens on my Promaster was smashed but thats another story.) Also the bright lamp the camera users to autofocus with (ad says with it you can focus completely in the dark, but why would you want to?) is as almost annoying as it is powerful. I don't want to blind my subjects so I turn it off. (the N60 has this same lamp but you do not have this option.) I would much rather have opped for an infared beam it could use to focus in dark places with. i just slip the camera in manual in the moments when its having trouble focusing (mostly at night.)
So in my conclusion i think this is a FABULOUS camera, but I have saved the WORST for last. This camera would be just perfect for me if it wasn't for one MAJOR flaw: The camera's inability to meter with manual lenses, something I detest the guys at Nikon's marketing department for and what I fell is a big mistake. The rest of the "epinions" wether bad or good have seemed to miss this. The camera works wonders with a Nikon or nikon mount AF lens but if you put ANY manual lens (except the very few that have a chip that allows metering but not AF which there are only a handful,) the camera's LCD will display "fEE" and you will have to switch the camera in manual focus and manual program. The light meter will not work and you will either have to guess the proper exposure or buy a separate light meter ($$$). If you love autofocus lenses or do not care for manual only lenses this is the camera for you but if your a manual lens freak or have some old manual lenses you would like to use on your new SLR DO NOT buy this camera. Buy the Nikon N90s or the N70. Keep in mind that any accessories you buy (teleconverters, macro lenses, ect) have to be Autofocus. So there you have it. The good, the bad, and the ugly. The decision is yours.
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