tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Robert1594. Thank you for responding. It was interesting that you prefer the D850 to the 'z's. The thought to switch was considered but in the end, the D850 won. I hope to agree the D850 is a great camera.

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Leftj, I did see your ad to sell yours. With the minor price difference, went with new. Thank you for commenting.

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Jerryc41, no bad attitude here. I'm not a collector of cameras. Once something functional collects dust, it's gone. Thank you for responding.

factsbob Loc: London, Ontario

We share the same age and camera. You certainly will not be disappointed with your choice. Get the GOOD glass to go with it! Welcome to the 850 Club!

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Thank you Dale. As a starting point it will be set-up the same as my D810...floating iso, back button focus, etc. Thank you for responding.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Good morning. I am about the same age as you, and I'm planning to buy a second D850 from my local dealer now that they are on sale for $2495 brand new in the box. I've had my first one for four years, along with a pair of D500s and figure that I'll be set for a long time even if one of them fails.

The D850 and D500 are both very "nice shooting" cameras, with great capability and very mature, optimized user interfaces...the best of any cameras I've owned or looked at. Only the Z9 comes close.

The secret to success with the D850 is to start where you are and learn gradually...a little at a time. Ignore suggestions to try to "drink from a fire hose" and try to learn everything at once. I was just out this week taking photographs of the school where I work using the color negative function. We wanted to do something unusual and unexpected for a project we are working on.

By the way, I learned talking to a Nikon rep the last time I was at my camera store that Nikon will be making a very significant change to their product support strategy (if it hasn't already happened). Support and factory repair will be maintained for previous and one previous model only. That means that the D800 and D800e will no longer be suported, and that support for the D810 will end as soon as a Z8 ( or whatever it us called) is introduced. Those of us who choose to shoot with the "older" equipment will need to have good habits around taking care of it.

Best wishes, and have fun with your new camera.

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Thanks for responding Starlifter. I have the David Busch book on it so will be reading that today. The D810 with the 200-500 lens is a great combo. Can't wait to see how the D850 compares.

GLSmith Loc: Tampa, Fl

I have 2 D-850 bodies as my primary (at 72). I feel like I've done a fair amount of research on the web as well as Nikon & found that Ken Rockwells site (https://www.kenrockwell.com) had some very useful data on the body as well as FX lenses. Another popular site I referred to is Steve Perrys site (a contributor here) (https://backcountrygallery.com/) with well researched & written articles & videos on AutoFocus, Techniques, & Exposure that can be applied to the D-850. Extremely versatile camera for astronomy & numerous other genres of photography

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Thank you Factsbob. Yes good glass is a must especially with high pixel count. Here's hoping the new one will be as great an experience as the D810.

Robertl594 Loc: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and Nantucket

I should have clarified a little better. I did not sell my Z9. I sold all others. I was not terribly impressed with the other Z models, maybe it was because I was so used the the DSLR’s I had before. But back to the point, the D850 remains one of my main cameras, along with the Z9. You made a wonderful purchase and I don’t understand why so many people on the thread are trying to squash your pleasure, maybe they are jealous of you. I join your celebration.
RL

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Yes RetiredCPO I will let you know how it works out. The 200-500 on the D810 is a winning combination. It will be interesting to see how it does on the D850. As for Alaska, it is a beautiful state but winter can below 60 degrees in Jan. The 24 hour sun in summer and the winter darkness was an adjustment. Moose for neighbors is always exciting! Thank you for your comments. After some learning curve with the D850, I will let you know my thoughts on it.

tiphareth51 Loc: Somewhere near North Pole, Alaska

Robertl594, cheers to the D850!

Robertl594 Loc: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and Nantucket

Yes!!!

eternal camper Loc: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Well I, too, have had a D850 for many years, have loved it in so many ways, but am trying to sell it now and move to mirrorless as I am finding it much too heavy! I am 80.
Was just wondering what mirrorless camera are you thinking I of moving to?
I am thinking of the very soon to be released Sony a7R V, and just feel I want to treat myself to something special and at this time Sony seems the way to go for me, although I was really thinking of the Canon R5 for a while
Steve

slcarn Loc: Draper, Utah USA

Wow, a D850 and Alaska. Can't beat that combination!

I worked and lived in Alaska for 20 years all prior to getting into digital photography. The sights I missed photographing were and are spectacular. I am jealous.

I have had my D850 since they came out. I have over 90,000 clicks of family, wildlife, scenery, Africa, Costa Rica and many National Park, snowflakes, hummingbirds, etc.

Make sure you get some good glass to shoot through. Primes and the trinity of zooms are needed to use the potential of this great DSLR.

Have a wonderful experience.

Steve