I think it was 1999 that nikon came out with the D1, which was, more or less, their first major dslr, and kinda one of the first major dslrs in general. In the few years following they launched a pair of cameras that catered to two different strengths. The D1X had a whopping 5.4mp sensor, double the size of the D1, but the D1H still had a smaller 2.7mp. It traded sensor size for higher iso options and an increased image buffer, which would let you take faster photos, and if I understand correctly, faster shutter speeds with less light. This basically gave you two choices on if you prioritized speed or quality

A family friend gave this to me when I was downstate. I was (and still am) shooting with digicams so It's kinda neat to mess around with one of the first professional digital cameras out there. Because its the quality-orientated model, it's also gotta be in like direct sunlight if you want to shoot with a lower iso without a tripod. And despite producing relatively low resolution images, they look really good. Very DSLR-like for lack of a better explaination

It sounds a bit weird but it handles less like a camera and more like a tool. Lots of physical controls and retuntant locks and inputs. For some examples, there's a second shutter button for portrait mode if you hold it by the grip, which has a lock switch so you don't accidentally press it. The main mode switch, focus type, menu panel, and even d-pad all also require a second step to operate so you don't accidentally press them. The CF card requires you to open a door, to press a button, which opens a larger door, so you can flip up, and then push, the card release. That's 5 steps not including actually removing the card.

The thing is though that none of these feel unwarrented while using the camera, the d-pad lock keeps the focus location from changing while shooting, the 5 step CF door actually happens pretty smooth and quick. Everything is in a more or less ergonomic location based on how often you will be using the control

I'm also very not used to using a dlsr. I've dabbled with a canon once that made you go into the menu to change the ev, with a really clunky layout, but this one at least has very intuative controls with the dials (though some things do require me looking in the manual.) One problem that is the same though is no live preview. I am very used to live preview when taking photos so if I'm shooting without it chances are I'm gonna fuck up the exposure first try.

Even the screen is just mostly just for changing settings. I've got the quick review on, but I don't really use it for looking at photos after that much

Another thing with this model that's a lil weird is that the sensor has twice the resoltion horizontally, which it then squishes to be the normal aspect ratio. Because of this you don'y really get a pixel-to-pixel image of what the sensor sees. This isn't really a problem unless you're looking for it, but it's still a weird choice to make

I got a sigma 28-80mm lens with macro to test it out, but the aperture is a lil fucky and the metal mounting ring turned out to be a plastic one painted silver, which I learned after putting this thing in my backpack one day. This is also another small gripe, as since it's huge and heavy I gotta plan outings a bit more rather than just bringing it along on regular day.

Recently I found a nikon 18-70mm lens, which doesn't have a macro, but goes a bit wider and doesn't have a fucked up aperture, so I've been using this instead

The original batteries were nickel metal hydride, but two 18650 lithium-ions give it just about he right voltage and can power it for a lot longer. I only soldered the wires too, the cells are just snapped in there

Here's a few example photos

Like I said I haven't taken it on too many outings yet, but with a few test runs it takes some pretty good photos. It needs a ton of light and isn't much higher rez than say a cybershot, but it's got great dynamic range, and I'll prolly experiment a bit in what vibes it works best with

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