ocir Offline Upload & Sell: Off
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splathrop wrote:
Okay, I started at the end and worked my way backward to page 10. Full disclosure: I shoot Canon for now, but longingly considered switching to Nikon for this camera, because I sell very large prints of my work, and the resolution would help. Decided not to make the switch; maybe this thread shows why. Or maybe not. It's not as if nobody is getting it right with the D800.
My first thought is that most contributors to this thread ought to get in touch with Thang, and figure out what he/she is doing about post-processing. Thang is getting color and contrast right, as are a few others. They prove you can make sensational images with this camera. Also, the avocet dipping its beak is a masterpiece, and wonderfully presented. So kudos to KirkB. When I saw his work on page 37, I thought, "This is going to be good!" But it hasn't been good, mostly.
There are a lot of images here that would be terrific, but they just die for want of the right color and contrast. Seems like an inherent feature of D800 output. Or maybe everybody is flattening contrast by lifting shadows, just because they can.
But that wouldn't entirely explain why the people in so many images look like cancer patients—even the kids. Nor would it explain the subdued colors in landscapes, or even in inherent color festivals like a balloon launch.
This camera may be a great tool, but right now if I were shopping for a wedding photographer I would put it in the contract: no D800s allowed. Because not enough people seem to have mastered what to do with the raw images, and I wouldn't want to take the chance. I suspect that some of this might be learning how to use the camera's strengths judiciously, instead of willy-nilly. Or maybe it's something I don't understand.
But who knows? Talk to Thang and KirkB. Or stop getting all ga-ga about resolution and dynamic range, and start looking at your pictures with an eye to judging whether color and contrast also need some attention. ...Show more →
Waah, go change our diaper! It's wet!
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