Camera Labs

i was thinking about downgrading from my D300 to a D90 until i came across this on the spec. D90 uses a multi-cam 1000 AF while D300 uses a cam 3500DX AF. from what i have read so far, 3500DX is what they use on a D3 and it is a lot faster and a lot more accurate with its focusing. has anyone compared the two in practice?? i don't take a lot of fast action pictures nowadays other than band concerts and stuff.

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current gear:
D300 + Nikkor DX 17-55mm f2.8 + Nikkor DX 10.5mm Fisheye f2.8

previous gear:
D80
Nikkor 18-200mm VR
Sigma 18-50mm HSM Macro
Sigma 30mm f1.4
Tamron 17-50mm f2.8
Canon 400D

They use the 3500FX on the D3 3500DX is D300.

But, the differences I know, is speed, amount of pixels that meter (accuracy) and amount of focus points between the 1000 and 3500DX

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- Wout -
Nikon D80 with 18-70 DX, 70-300 VR, 35 1.8 DX
Manfrotto 055XPROB tripod with 488RC0 midi ballhead
Lowepro CompuRover AW and Nova 200 AW

Honestly I didn't experience much difference between my D80 AF and the D300 AF.
Yes, there are much more AF-points and the algorithms to calculate the proper distance are more advanced now (also in the D90) but I think you should not so much bother with the difference.
Btw. What is your reason to "downgrade" from D300 to D90?

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Thomas (beware: Nikon-fanboy and moderator!) My Lens Reviews, My Pictures, My Photography Blog
D800+assorted lenses

This is one thing I can't agree with at all Thomas. Hope you don't mind me quoting you btw. You must have one special D80 as my D80, compared to my D700 feels much slower. There's much less torque for focusing with AF-D lenses as you'd expect comparing a pro grade body to an enthusiast one. AF lock on is also not as snappy even with af-s lenses. Sure it's fast enough. But is at fast as the D700? Not a chance. I know I'm talking FX instead of DX here, but aside from the bigger sensor, the AF systems aren't very different between the D300 and D700.

Personally, I'd keep the D300. I would have thought it would be more accurate and faster to focus in low light, than the D90 is. At least that's what I get with my D700.

To the op; If you can, try and rent a D90 for a concert, do that first. Don't make the mistake of downgrading and regretting it.

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I've upped my Iso, now up yours.
Nikon D700, Nikon D80, Micro Nikkor 105 f2.8 AI-S,Nikon 85mm 1.8D, Nikon 50mm 1.8D, Nikon 35mm F2D, Nikon 16-35 f4 VR, Nikon 24-70mm F2.8 AF-S, Nikon 70-200VRII, Nikon 70-300mm VR, 300mm f2.8 AI IF ED, SB-800, SB-900. Noiseware pro,NIK Dfine, Nik Colour Effex, Nik Sharpener Pro

thank you both for your input. highly appreciated :wink:
thomas, my reason to downgrading is more lenses. i needed money for my musical equipments, so i ended up selling all my camera lenses except the nikkor 18-70mm. thinking i would be satisfied with just one lens, like most dslr owners, i'm not :evil:

my crave for lenses is my main reason for downgrading. and as i don't take fast action pictures anymore, other than some band gigs, i couldn't see the biggest point of owning a D300. and D90 having similar ISO performance with the D300, i thought why not downgrade to that and use the left over money for a lens.

now the problem came when i read the specs. i take a lot of pictures at low light and night, so i needed a camera with good focusing. a lot of the reviews i read, including the one by gordon (great review by the way), it didn't mention anything about 3500DX and the Multi-Cam 1000. after reading the difference between the two, i'm really hesitant to sell my D300 now. i would really like to compare the difference in practice, but apparently, no one here has a D90 :evil:

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current gear:
D300 + Nikkor DX 17-55mm f2.8 + Nikkor DX 10.5mm Fisheye f2.8

previous gear:
D80
Nikkor 18-200mm VR
Sigma 18-50mm HSM Macro
Sigma 30mm f1.4
Tamron 17-50mm f2.8
Canon 400D

If you need the money for other gear, you could always invest in a used sb-800/new sb-900. That way you get the ability to shoot with off camera (using the pop-up flash as a commander), as well as using the flash itself's af assist lamp.

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I've upped my Iso, now up yours.
Nikon D700, Nikon D80, Micro Nikkor 105 f2.8 AI-S,Nikon 85mm 1.8D, Nikon 50mm 1.8D, Nikon 35mm F2D, Nikon 16-35 f4 VR, Nikon 24-70mm F2.8 AF-S, Nikon 70-200VRII, Nikon 70-300mm VR, 300mm f2.8 AI IF ED, SB-800, SB-900. Noiseware pro,NIK Dfine, Nik Colour Effex, Nik Sharpener Pro