Nikon D300s in 2019: Can it still hold its own?

[@ChuckJacksontampaphotographer]

I still use my D300s as a backup camera for some gigs and, quite frankly, I still like the way its images look! Solid camera even today....

[@RealHomeRecording]

Agreed. I have and make money with a D300.

[@npg1989]

My friend gave me her Nikon D300 about 5yrs ago. Because she upgraded. And i still use the D300 to this day and I LOVE IT!

[@sethie_shots]

The S is a pretty cool upgrade. Uses SD & CF also shoots higher frame rate and vid

[@InertiaEffect]

I bought a d300 earlier this year for $120usd , pretty good camera for me today.

[@ManojKumar2]

@Buds Eye hi where did you get please.

[@ManojKumar2]

Where did you get, please?

[@TheWizdry]

Great video! I have a D300s used, and Love it. Highly recommended.

[@thatsentertainment5602]

Im extremely impressed with the photo quality of this camera! I saw some portrait photos taken by the D300 on Flckr and they look amazing and on par with the Nikon D800 photos!

[@christiankeil7845]

For stills it is great and will be in time to come. Video is another story

[@alexshdvideo]

Also the being able to meter with any manual focus lens in aperture priority is a HUGE deal for me.. I use lots of Lensbaby lenses as well as older vintage lenses 30-80 years old and they work flawlessly with my D300s. I’m thinking of moving up to the Nikon Z6II... but honestly I haven’t pushed my D300s as far as I can yet.. though I am sure there are tons of advantages with a new $2,000 body. So I think I for now I will just order a used Nikon battery grip for my D300s for about $40 and another memory card and shoot more.. maybe buy a couple hard drives to store more pictures. But yes. For video.. don’t bother.. in fact I wouldn’t bother with any DSLR. Get a Mirrorless camera or better yet a video camera. :)

[@cs.studios]

I now use a nikon z7 for video. D780 would be the only dslr for video.

[@11mcrew27]

My d300s is my go to. Put the right glass on it and have fun.

[@khanscombe619]

Nice video. Glad you like it. I got mine new before Mt D3s & isee them together & still hav3 t hem because they just last. It's essentially a baby D3s. If you uw3 1, you'll get to know the other easily. Its 12.1mp crop in macro feels like 16mp.

[@razensan1]

D300s is fully programmable. Settings can be saved to memory and transferred to a computer for storage.

[@LillyJem]

The low light photos still look a lot better than the newer entry level and prosumer Canon's

[@alwynsmit3546]

Such a pity Nikon never released a D400. Yes the D300s is a great camera, but can you imagine the 16mp sensor from the D7000 in a D300s body with that AF? They would have sold bucketloads of it.

[@Albertoepicness]

I went to a photography place, and these are the cameras they use

[@sidetrackbeatz5431]

Alberto 9324 are u serious..

[@Albertoepicness]

@@sidetrackbeatz5431 yes

[@cs.studios]

I dont know how I feel about these cameras being used in a professional environment in today's time. I would expect something along the D800, D600, D750 series. While this is a great camera , I wouldn't wanna use it in a professional environment in today's time.

[@Albertoepicness]

@@cs.studios they're actually very good

[@cjmpaja]

​@@cs.studios Yup, they're still decent today. but when you shoot in low light, the D300s is beaten by newer cameras, but the colors that come out of the D300s are epic. If one is looking for a budget full frame camera, and they don't need video, the D700 is an awesome choice. the way it renders colors is unique to it, and it not yet matched by any other nikon camera...

[@mcunner]

I got a D300s and grip for pretty cheap but the CF card I got was about 1/3 of the price I paid for camera and grip 😅. My batteries last for around 1200-1500 shots... Not sure why your new battery isn't great.

[@andywong3374]

Why you don’t use Sdhc d300s can use cf and sdhc

[@kremache2210]

Still have it for 10 years...pair up with nikon 17-55 f2.8 dx king

[@chikumbutsobanda504]

how is the bokeh quality with this combi

[@kremache2210]

@@chikumbutsobanda504 still great with those lens

[@michaeldelrossi4487]

The D3500 is a basic 18-55mm Zoom Camera, the D3500 has a Discontinued from Nikon! It was outsourced and made in China!

[@cs.studios]

This is D300s, made in japan and professional build quality.

[@muratsahan8697]

Good video - you cover a lot - thank you

[@the40thstep]

Should have bought Pentax K5 for that. Still, probably best dynamic range out of all APSC DSLR cameras according to DXOmark and the picture quality is much better than D300

[@SammySantiagoIrizarry]

Great Video!! Thanks!!!

[@AdamJonesPhoto]

The D300s is about 20 months newer than the D300 and is slightly better in a llot of areas that matter. e.g frame rate, dynamic range etc . Its not the same as the D300 despite what many say.

[@andreik3096]

still great cam for taking pix in "hot places", manilla slums, kabul, rio's favellas, or trashing it in tough hikes. it's af is the same as on d7100, buffer depth is better than on d7200, 12Mpix is bigger than 4K screen (which are 8Mpix usually), that's more than enough. you can stand under the rain with it (with a WS pro lens). they go for $100-150 on ebat with

[@cs.studios]

That's my favorite thing about the D300S, build quality. I've used mine in rain and it's great as a beater especially for the price. Although I normally take care of my stuff.

[@andreik3096]

@@cs.studios yup, cuz whatever they say about d7*** serie's WR, you can still kill your cam in the rain, your lens attachement rubber seal can leak and you end up with cam's body ruined. so, better take chances with $150 value cam than with $500-700 one ;-) thinking less about damage risks liberates you, you'd shoot more, in more "orginial" situations and end up with more keepers.. rich or pro (insured) dudes would just bring their d8** cams or d500, on budget you count it everywhere...

[@allanschmidt8859]

You still have it? Does it work ok as a video camera?

[@cs.studios]

I gave it away, for video there’s no good Nikon dslr except the d780. I recommend mirrorless for video usage

[@64ferreira]

Does the 300s work well in low light? For landscape shots is the resolution sharp despite the 12MPixel sensor?

[@cs.studios]

It does decent but not that great especially in 2019. You will want a fast lens for sure at least f2.8. If you can use a tripod then itll be fine.

[@gzarari]

Highest you should go is iso 800, on iso 1600+ alot of noise + very blury images

[@INDIGOBLUE555]

My two cents....I totally agree with the comments, however just let me add the prints' size matters quite a lot. I mostly use the screen view on my pc, and obviously this makes things easier. You just need an image editing free software and you'll be getting decent results.At this stage you don't need pushing your ISO in excess of 800 if using a fast lens as a cheap Nikon 50/1.8 in your evening or night shooting. This works with my d200 and I figure out it'll be working even better on the d300. So,since being a d200/d300 enthusiast I do suggest buying a d300 in our days, albeit you should take into account a max. expense around €200,00 (body only). Don't forget the value for money ratio is the true benchmark to look at.

[@weboo15]

Hi good review, can you make a nikon d90? Is it still worth getting it in 2019

[@cs.studios]

Yes! D90 is very cheap (can be found for 100$ on ebay sometimes) and is very similar camera to D300s. The D300s has a pro body with weather sealing, which the D90 does not but the d90 has most of the capabilities as d300s. My next video will be on D800.

[@islander_girLe]

Great video. I have had my D300s for 8yrs now. These cameras are strong. I completely agree with your opinion about the video feature. I’m starting to get into videography and I recently just shot my very first video (edited) with my D300s. The 720p quality is very decent. This is what I shot yesterday: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rajXpqqpmN-fkMU. Please excuse my beat up 18-55mm VR lens. I didn’t know how to set up my camera for video shooting just yet and I was also experimenting with iMovie. But I think it turned out ok overall. I can imagine my videos becoming much better once I get familiar with the settings when shooting videos.

[@cs.studios]

Nice video, there are some extra tips on this site. Keep in mind you dont have to follow it exactly , only things that sound relevant to you: www.flickr.com/groups/nikon_d300s_users/discuss/72157622690846920/

[@TheWizdry]

High quality video. Can’t beat the 24fps looks like a 35mm film camera. Well done.

[@INDIGOBLUE555]

Has any software upgrade ever been released for d300 / d300 S ??? Thanks :-)

[@cs.studios]

D300s got v1.02 firmware. D300 got 1.11 firmware. There were no significant features added

[@INDIGOBLUE555]

@@cs.studios Thanks :-)

[@dct124]

Quite a few technical errors but overall a good video for someone in the market for an older camera and wondering is their current cell phone better.

[@zarrow50]

No point comparing Dslrs to Phone cameras

[@muratsahan8697]

On the contrary - its valid.

[@zarrow50]

@@muratsahan8697 Phones have got very good but pros still take their Nikon D5's And Canon FD mk iiiiiii 1's

[@muratsahan8697]

@@zarrow50 It depends on the task at hand. For instance, a modern smartphone with night mode can actually outdo a DSLR when it comes to night pictures.

[@mohanmanikumar8435]

can i use nikon d300s as web cam for teaching how can i use please reply brother

[@cs.studios]

No, the d300s is old. You need the newer cameras at least d800 generation like d3200/d5200. The newer cameras like z50/d850/z5/6/7 support webcam easily using the new nikon utility

[@mohanmanikumar8435]

@@cs.studios can i use hdmi to hdmi mini to hdmi caputure device to connect laptop and record in obs studio

[@cs.studios]

Yes that should work fine. Might be worth getting the ac adapter too for d300s

[@mohanmanikumar8435]

@@cs.studios bro nikon d300s red focus box is appering in the live view mode ..there is no advanced hdmi settings in my camera ...i searched but i had not found any solution plz help me brother

[@84_regal]

How did you get that flash on the side of the lens to come on like that

[@cs.studios]

You mean at 4:16 ? That’s the AF Assist light there’s an option in the custom menus to turn it on and off

[@84_regal]

@@cs.studios yes at 4:16 and thank you ima look for it today

[@dct124]

DOF (depth of field) is mostly determined by the lens and it's aperture. I currently have a Note 9 and a D300. I have a 28-200mm 1:3.5-5.8 My Note 9 can get far greater DOF with it's f1.5 and f2.4 aperture. Simply shoot in PRO mode. MF gives the best results comparable to Mirrorless/DSLR cameras. Shooting in RAW will give you the best results. I also have a 58mm Moment lens which enhances the quality of the smartphone and allows it to be a portrait lens at 57mm (Note 9 lens is 27mm). The pixel pitch on the D300 is about 3x greater than the Note 9 so details definitely are greater on the D300 however it's really hard to tell the difference once the photos have been processed in Lightroom/Lightroom Mobile. The overall sensor size kinda doesn't matter unless you're just concerned with the crop factor. What really matters is the photosites on the sensor. Which on the D300 are a lot bigger than on a smartphone. Next would be noise processing. The Note 9 destroys the D300 in noise performance in good lighting conditions however the D300 does tge same in low light but what I noticed about my Note 9 is stability so I can hold my phone at 1/10 with no noticeable camera shake allowing more light in. The D300 with that lens I def have to stop at about 1/30 - 1/60. My recommendation for a D300 would be based on budget, lenses and actual work. I bought the D300 to shoot weddings. Will def be using a speedlite.

[@cs.studios]

Thanks, I'll be doing a D800 video soon. My Note 9, now 10 definitely is easier to use than the D300S. It requires more processing on the D300S but the Note camera is good out of the box. A good lens like a Sigma F1.4 series will allow the D300S to do good in low light but over ISO 800 it isn't very good.

[@dct124]

@@cs.studios a off camera flash solves that quickly. The only reason I got my D300 was b/c cell phones don't have a flash. The iphone has that one but I can't stand iphones.

[@dhaneshr]

the f-stop for a lens is a function of sensor size. For example, F1.8 in a full-frame sensor is(in terms of depth of field) equivalent to f2.8 in a APS-C sized sensor, and is close to f1.4 in a medium format sensor. In the Note 9 although f1.5, relative to the sensor size (which is puny compared to a APS-C sensor) will not give you anywhere near the depth of field you will get on a DSLR. The shallow DOF you see in cellphone cameras are purely computational photography at work (i.e fancy AI or image processing).

[@snoopdoggty1086]

Im getting a second hand d300 with vertical grip,super new and also with box and shit.It only cost me 80 bucks wtf

[@cs.studios]

That's a really good deal you got

[@snoopdoggty1086]

@@cs.studios yea.Im happy about it.Cant wait to see my new dslr soon

[@jadoon702]

YOUR VOICE SHOULD BE USED FOR CARTOONS 😆

[@advocatusdiaboli9351]

I got a D3300 for $150 which I believe "annihilates" this one by a big margin as well.

[@cs.studios]

That's a really good deal for a more modern DSLR, better sensor, video capabilities, smaller. However, d300s does have pro controls, better build quality, dual card slots, weather sealing, faster fps, autofocus motor, etc. So it does depend on what you're doing.

[@advocatusdiaboli9351]

@@cs.studios Can't say much about that but a brand new D3500 + kit lens is $299 right now. I'm not sure what's happening and why this stuff is so cheap. Maybe a new model coming up before christmas?

[@cs.studios]

I've heard some rumors they're going to just stop making the low and mid end DSLRs and focus only on high end and mirrorless. That may be why