Not sure if you guys gives a damn but if you're stoned like me atm you can stream pretty much all the latest series on instaflixxer. I've been binge watching with my girlfriend for the last couple of months =)
Watched this video when you first uploaded. Got a D500. 4 years later, still shooting with the D500 with close to 100,000 images off it. The camera is a beast and built to last.
I went with the D500 and I'm 98% satisfied. I am a bird/wildlife photographer and the 'silent' mode really isn't silent... not good for my subjects. oops! But the images it captures really are outstanding and I'm thrilled. I wish I could come to Florida and do a workshop with you.
As usual, Great content without all the normal RUclips fluff! I went with the D500 with the 200-500mm based on some of your earlier video reviews and have Zero regrets.
I think that Nikon D850 is better for macro photography because it has focus bracketing and focus stacking. Sorry for my english (i don't live in an english speaking country)!
Hi Mark, great video, I originally bought the D500 then sold it after a year to help fund the D850 purchase with Grip. Have used it for 8 months now and LOVE it especially landscapes. I did miss the D500 though and like you wanted both so purchased it again a week ago. Wow, what a camera, I certainly noticed the quicker auto focus, more buffer, and all the other things you mentioned including the quieter shutter button. Now I am very content, I have both, one for both landscapes and wildlife and one for wildlife with a 1.5x crop sensor used with the Sigma 150-600 S lens and 1.4x converter, lots of zoom power. Cheers Rick from Aus
Thanks for this video.I intend to get the D700 because its a great affordable camera now plus it shares accessories with my beautiful D200 , so now i can save up to buy the D500 as I will never afford D850 this decade.
I'm going to be upgrading from a D7500 (that I learned on) to the D850. The reason I'm getting the D850 is because I want something that is going to give me a ton of room to grow. I don't want to keep having to buy new bodies and lenses every few years as my skills develop. I'd rather spend the extra money once and raise my abilities to meet the capabilities of the camera than keep trading things in and buying new bodies.
I am an armature photographer.i started with the Nikon D5300 and 28-300 mm lens. Now I am comparing options to buy either D850 or D500 with 200-500 mm lens. I found your vidio very helpful. I will soon make discision. Commenting from Masai Mara Kenya🇰🇪🇰🇪🇰🇪
I had a d7100 ith a 200-500. Changed it for a d500. I mostly do wildlife. Best move ever made. I really like that combo nd that's what works best for me. Great video. Can't wait to see the next one.
Dominique LeBlanc I will follow your path. I'm better now than my D7100 AF : it's time to upgrade ;) ... but the D850 with grip is tempting. expensive choice. later I suppose.
Such a great video of real life experience. Mark, I love the way you break down your videos with detail explanations. Its mid 2020 and as I am faced with this same exact question right now D500 vs D850 this video is still relevant today. Thank you!
very informative and helpful - I will be picking up the D500 and the 200-500 this week- and can't wait to try all the stuff you have talked about - love your bird photography especially
I agree about the D500 and the Nikkor 200-500mm being the best wildlife combo out there, one thing I always tell people also is that while older and slower the D7200 and the 200-500mm is an honorable mention wildlife combo for super cheap.. $2400 for both brand new, but the buffer is small so you have to plan your shots
Some are saying the D7500 is the cheaper way to go. Has a larger buffer. Same autofocus as the D500. Same sensor. Just not as fast for FPS. And buffer is slightly smaller than the D500 but bigger than the 7200.
@@williamfriggle true, I wouldn't have no problem using one, it got a bad review because of the one card slot..that wouldn't stop me from buying it, I have never had a card fail and I shoot in extreme conditions
Bill Friggle true d7500 is better choice when compared to D7200.. People who cannot afford d500 can stretch a bit from D7200. There are lots of pros of d7500 when compared to D7200. I am just waiting for price drop but unfortunately in my country the price has gone up due to dollar fluctuation..
This was a very hard question for me! I was literally right there asking myself this very same question! I told myself if Nikon released a 40+ MP D800 replacement, I was all over it. As time marched on, I developed a new addiction, wildlife photography. I started monitoring Raptors for the city and been using a B700 and spotting scope. But I wanted more and the D500 is a beast in that field. So what to do, I couldn't afford bought. I decided to make do with my D800, its still a great camera and went with a D500 and 200-500mm! I have zero regrets!! The added bonus is the D500 4k video! The video is really quite well compared to my old D800 and slightly smaller.
I switched from Canon to Nikon about 8 months ago....I got the D500 and I'm a seasoned photographer with no budget contrains. I wanted the extra reach of a crop sensor and all I can say is what a major upgrade from the 7D II. If I had prime super telephoto lenses, then the D850 would be on my list as well! Good video Mark!
My son wants the 500, and I’m about to purchase the 850, I have owned my D4 for 6years, incredible camera, which is why I haven’t bought the 500. Great review mark, keep up the good work
Great video Mark. I currently own the D500 and have been considering changing it for the D850. You've given me some things to consider there that I hadn't initially thought about. Thanks.
Mark Smith I have one question on the image quality. You mentioned that the D850 has better image quality but it’s important to have the grip for this. How does the grip improve the image quality?
@@Yewbzee The grip reduces mirror blackout which increases AF accuracy. There was a video out there which demonstrated this. There was quite a noticeable improvement when I added the grip.
Mark you are the best one in youtube .. i get tired looking for that answer .. you the best photographer explain easy and simple .. thank u so much and subscribe and millions like ❤😘
Thanks Mark. I have the D500 and 200-500 and it is a killer combination for wildlife, but I do get some very noisy images if shooting in low light situations. There is always some sort of compromise, whatever kit you opt for!
I have both! Partly because I’ve watched you shoot them. I shot the D850 this morning in crappy light. But I prefer the D500 during normal light. Nice video as always.
Agreed on the D500's tendency to overexpose whites. Besides dialing down exposure compensation, using the highlight weighted metering mode can be a very effective remedy. I've found it to be especially helpful when the subject is in direct sunlight and the background is shaded. On overcast days, matrix metering and -0.3 to -0.7 EV works pretty good. Still, the D810 and D850 retain more detail in the whites thanks to their superior dynamic range.
I'm really happy you touched on how much louder the d850 is compared to the d500 because i thought something was wrong with my 850 when i got it because the shutter is much louder and slower than my d500 is.
Mark, you should be a spokesperson for Nikon. I learn so much from you. My wife and just returned from the Great Salt Lake and we took some beautiful pictures if bison using the D500 with the 200 to 500 lens. We also enjoy using our Nikon 18 to 300 lens on our D500. The picture quality on this lens is excellent and our go to lens if we don’t want to pack a bunch of lenses.
Mark- I bought a D850 for sports and it has turned out to be a terrible mistake on my part! I just send the camera today back to B&H. I realize now I should have bought the D500! Really enjoy your videos. Thanks Mark! Randy B.
Ace video Mark! Great video! I was one of the many asking this question as you know haha. Very helpful thou and thanks for taking the time to respond and make this video.
best channel on youtube for photographers huge fan of yours ... i remember asking same thing a year from now when u shared ur D850 n D500 shots early on and u recommended same things ... so following ur advice n savings in last 1 year ... sold my D810 n upgraded to D850 and im in love ... my 200-500 is a different beast all of a sudden and DX mode on D850 is really really good ... super sharp i think D850 with 3rd party battery grip and D5 battery n all is best swiss0army knife DSLR n bestest value for money especially when we compare its DX mode with D500 ... ur AF sensors just cover wider area i suppose in DX mode as compared to D500 ... Mark would put us wise in a much better way
BOTH! You buy BOTH!!! I had the D500 for a year and I loved every second of ownership! The only reason I don’t have it still is because I sold it to help pay for my D4S! The D850 is an absolute MONSTER! That thing can do no wrong...sure not everyone is balling out of control when it comes to finances but these two bodies are well worth whatever sacrifices that you may need to make...BOTH!
D4s and D500, which one would you pick for wildlife and long distance sports with the 200-500mm? I have another system with the Trinity and a couple f/1.4
Shang-Hsien Yang Easy, the D500! The D500 has a better focusing system, a better frame and buffer rate and then there is the reach of the D500! I love my D4S...it’s built like a TANK and that is why I got it cause I am out in all kinds of weather...not to say that the D500 can’t handle adverse weather as well.
Thanks Mark, great video. I’m coming from D300 and after a ton of reading and watching videos I convinced myself the D850 was best step for upgrade. I use all FX glass, so it felt right. However I rented the D850 this weekend and man what a beautiful camera, but after shooting with this and my D300 with all my f2.8 glass, I think I should have rented the D500 as well. Image quality is obviously deep, but in all earnest I’m not blown away to justify file size (6x) cost and less throw on my lens that I’m used to with DX crop. Waste IMHO to buy D850 to crop, and all the bigger prime telephoto are way too much for “fun” shooting, so I’m now not sure what to do. I like having 2 of the same bodies on me at all time so a D850 and a D500 makes sense but for me it doesn’t. I’ll rent the D500 and see how that compares. All your points about the D850 are spot on and it’s a fantastic camera! I think what you said early in video is most accurate, each are meant for different things...coming from DX to FX is not an easy step from what I’m seeing after this weekend. Ok just rented the D500 (lensrental.com) and I think it’s a snappier camera and seems faster shutter speed, but the 850 detail is insane compared to the 500 which is awesome! The 850 is just more. Also for those with bigger hands the D500 is smaller and is not as comfortable as the 850, which is much closer to the D300. I was hoping I’d love the 500, but the 850 is the winner.
I decided to stick to DX until I will get really good money on photography, since my budget. I shoot landscape and Street or portrait with D500 printing up to 90cm in Photo rag or Baryta paper and there isn't any sort of problem. I tried a FF and honestly, I cannot see a huge difference in the end for my type of photography that's why the choice. Yes better ISO and Super shallow DOF but I shoot astrophoto that to me looks good already in APS-C and my portraits are never shot at1.8. so I do not feel the necessity for that. I saved lots of money and get the top level APS-C! What could be better than that! I put aside of the D500 a D7200 for star trail and recently also landscape for the slight higher Dynamic range and with this combo I am the happiest man on the World now. The most difference I notice on FF is the view inside the viewfinder but again... that not affect my shot. When I will get money then Let's think to FF. For now it does not make sense.
Thanks Mark, very helpful and timely for me as I settle at last on the D850 and after much though is now in the way home from NJ. :=) I have using my 500 4.0 G VR ll with a D7200 for birds and the 200 2.0 G VR ll with a D750 for street portraits.Again thank you for your time.
Thanks Mrk. Another informative video. I have a D500 with the grip. I shoot primarily sports and wildlife. I thought about buying the D850 but I want the extra reach from the crop sensor. I feel that I will have to crop my images in the D850 and the effective resolution wouldn’t be any better. I have the 200-500 zoom and the 70-200 FL zoom. I don’t have the inclination to use a teleconverter as it degrades the image and affects the aperture. I also don’t want to spend 12k to buy a 600mm lens. I do notice the crop sensor affecting my family portraits as the 1.5 crop is not needed, or even wanted, for this type of photography. Since I don’t need to shoot ultra wide angle, it’s more of an annoyance to have the extra reach of the crop sensor. I just use the 16-80 wide angle for portraits, as well as the 35mm and 50mm. They all work well. I would prefer the D850 if I know I can get close to the wildlife (I just can’t count on this) or for shooting portraits and other stills. So, the D500 is still the camera I would buy, even today. Just love it.
Thanks a lot Mark. Very helpful as usual. I always have an eye open for an upgrade and read a few reviews but really think that yours are way the best......you are a hands on , practical and excellent photographer. Many reviews are too much in laboratory mode and don’t give a real idea of the performance of the camera in the field. I have a D500, D800 and P7700 (which lives permanently in the car so I always have a camera). Surprising the P7700 os capable of producing some reasonable quality shots, certainly better than nothing. The D500 and 200-500 is absolute magic and thanks to you. So upgrade of the D800 ? .....still a great camera but the clunky focus can be a drag. Have been thinking Z7 or D850, but the D850 seems to be a good acquisition, particularly for landscape and I love the sound of it’s low light ability. Great in those dark rainforests. Mostly busy birding with the D500 at the moment. Thanks again.
I'm about to get one of the 2. Budget is a concern. The 850 would cause me to take a 3 month learning break to buy parts. That's good. But as for wildlife, lakes, and for sure moon and sky. I'd love to hear you say go 500!! Also new, only own nikon p1000, not too hard to learn. You've taught me most on my quest. Please do suggest, it would have value as I'd love not to wait.
Another great video. I think the 850 is a hands down winner if you have the scratch to afford it. Word of caution for those thinking of a purchase. Just don't buy your camera from Abes of Maine. See Ripoff Reports. Their website is misleading, their sales team is misleading. Actually outright deceitful.
@@awc723 The abridged version is this. 1. They had a Halloween sale going, offering the D850 camera body for about $600 less than normal retail. I responded and ordered the camera body. 2. Rather than ship me a new D850 Camera body from Nikon, they shipped an OPENED D850 with lens kit. Nikon factory seals BROKEN. Some of the individual component packaging inside the Nikon box looked like it had been opened and repacked because the packaging was crumpled. 3. The Camera itself felt like some kind of imitation plastic model. Mastercard advised me not to return the camera in order to investigate as potential counterfeit. Unfortunately I had already returned the item
Well, I ended up with the d500 new, and used d7200 for learning. Thanks, I'll do full frame once I've learned. Thank you very much for filling the blanks, and saving me 2k plus. And the used 7200 wad Well taken care of with lots of lenses and extras, some things, like the extra 3 batteries work in d500 as well. So you've helped me very much. Now I'll buy a nice lens with savings. Cheers mate.
I have been using the D500 with a tamron 150 to 600. great for wild life. Iv'e used it for a wedding. It did a good job. Once I get a 2.8 zoom it will be a perfect blend.
Im a mirrorless guy. Sony a6300 is what I own. If I had a choice if it came down to me buying a DSLR it would definitely be the Nikon D500 all the way. I shot wildlife so yea, the D500. but I think its gonna be a very loooooong time before I can afford a D500 lol. Maybe one day. By the way Mark Smith. I love your work bud. Your videos are very inspirational. keep it up man.
Currently own the Nikon D850, and just purchased the D500 because I’m always putting it into dx crop mode, I will be selling the D850 and keeping my Nikon D800E around anytime I need a higher resolution camera for things like landscapes etc. I’ll take any extra reach I can get, but I don’t want to be wasting the sensor of the D850 with always putting it into crop mode, especially when I’ll be getting slightly more megapixels with the D500. The D500 is also slightly lighter and more forgiving if you do not have perfect technique. The bigger buffer and frame rate also sold me as well. It should be arriving in the mail today and will take it out for sunset to photograph some trumpeter swans paired with the Nikon 200-500 f5.6
Thanks Mark- I'm upgrading from my Dinosaur D80 and Ive tested the D500. It was quite nice and I liked the speed and focusing. I haven't had a chance to test the D850 yet. This helped with decision making!
I bought both of them and love them. D500 I use for wildlife shots requiring a long shot. The D850 I used for everything else! The D500 I do use the Nikon 200 to 500mm and agree great they work great together
I’ve given considerable consideration to upgrading to the (very) desirable D850. But, I’m simply very happy with the results using my D500 and 200-500 combo. P.S. I love the Osprey video.
Funny watching this knowing you now have converted to Sony, Comes down to best tool for the job at any given time, technology changes so fast now, but can be very expensive trying to keep up, Nice work your always a joy to watch no matter what camera you have. 👍🏻
👍👍 Thank you for a REAL due diligence and field experience comparison of the D850 vs D500. It is amazing the difference between a REAL field tested camera review verses the youtube standard talking heads rambling without doing any due diligence just to get a video and their affiliate links posted before any other channel.
Great!!!! Thank you very much. Very nice video. I have Nikon D500 since 1 year with Tamron 150-600 G2 mm and I'am very happy with results. Thanks Mark from Spain
Great video! Just picked up a D500 to compliment my D810. Maybe in a year or so I'll upgrade the 810 to the 850. While money certainly is a consideration for me, the combination as you've said is the ultimate rig! Thanks.
It's also a question of how much money you can spend on a camera. I had a limited budget and choosed between the D500 and D750. It becamed the D500 and so far I haven't regret that!! It was the best choice for me!!
Mark everything is well done in this video. Today it would be great to include the Z6 II to compare with these 2. You are a great photographer, love your work thanks for share all this stuff
I bought the D500 for what it does best, fast action at a distance, whether it is wildlife or street photography. It does an incredible job at these tasks. If you are on a budget, get the Tamron 200-400 lens with stabilization. This gives you 600mm equivalent and allows you to reach out and get shots across the pond or across the street with no problem. If you want high quality landscape shots, get yourself a 6x7 or a 4x5 film camera. That, with a good quality scanner, will scratch that architecture/landscape itch, plus it will slow you down and make you a better photography. Heck, you might enjoy getting a new skill and begin developing your own film.
I started with the D90 and within a year, I upgraded to the D700. Ran that for a while before upgrading to the D850. I do have mostly Prime lenses. 24 f/1.8, 35 f/1.8, 50 f/1.8, 85 f/1.4. I also have the 70-200 f/2.8E FL ED. With these, I primarily shoot portrait photography but would like to venture into wildlife and aviation photography. So, I just picked up the Nikkor 200-500 f/5.6 along with the TC-14E II. I also have the TC-20E II that I picked up for the 70-200. So now I have the D850 and my older D700, but I'm tossing around the idea of replacing my D700 with the D500 because of the faster FPS. Any helpful suggestions or advice?? Glad I stumbled onto your channel. You have a new sub now 😊
I've been pestering you all. You've said to get 850 since I've got a d7200. So I exchanged my d500 for the D850, and should have it Jan.4. Thanks for the advice. I sure hope my learning cure maintains.
Mark another great video........I do have both the D500 and D850 and love both.....I do have a question for you......Do you have a "dry cabinet" for your gear.........Since I will be keeping my gear in my garage I want to get a dry cabinet......any suggestions........I live in Central Florida....thanks
Thumbs Up Mark. I too love the buffer and the auto focus in my D500 especially when shooting my 3 son's Hockey and Lacrosse games. When you shoot a camera with a smaller buffer you notice it. Dont have a D850, My D810 still works good. Was hoping the Z7 was going to be more then it appears. So I will wait and see if they can get a Mirror-less as good as most say the D850 is.
Another solid video, Mark...great comparison! You made me feel pretty good for buying the D500 (I'm using it with a Nikkor 80-400mm lens) considering the expenses involved. I wanted to mention something I learned about the 200-500mm lens, as well as my own telephoto zoom, while in the Khutzeymateen earlier this year. I was told that the 200-500mm doesn't have a seal to keep out the moisture that you'll encounter in that sort of landscape. I had issues with condensation with my own lens although it has a seal. The nature of how these lenses work can create problems when there is a lot of moisture/rain. The Everglades can be rainy, but I've never experienced the same sort of issue there (much warmer obviously in South Florida). Thanks!
Hi Mark Great video. You know me, I shoot with basically the same setup(s) except I can't handle the expense or weight of the 500 f/4. I agree with everything you say. I really would have a hard time choosing between the 2 if I had only one choice. Believe it or not I have found working with the D500+200-500mm and the D850+80-400(G) a great combo and the TC 1.4 works well with it. That 80-400 is proving itself. Hope to see you soon
Using highlight weighted metering on the D500 solves for blown out highlight issues. All of your videos are excellent btw Mark, too many click bait talking head music videos for photography and gear on the tube :).
RUclips will one day sponsor the RUclips Awards at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, and you Mark will win a huge trophy. Maybe it will be a golden condor. Speaking of condors when can we expect some shots?
I would always vote for the D850 if I can afford it. With the vertical grip it is almost as fast. I have a pair of D800s along with a D500. I do appreciate the lighter weight of the D500. The D500 doesn't handle highlights quite as well. It is great for speed but when I want image quality I use one of my D800s. I shoot the same RAW images to both cards and that really slows it down and reduces my buffer. I printed a 20X24 out of my D500 and it looks great. I over sharpened it a bit but that is my fault.
If I ever decide to put my nikon F4 in the dry box for a long rest and have a different change I would highly recommend the D500 as u said good review thanks mark
The D850 is not just faster to autofocus with the Nikon grip and D4/D5 battery, because of the frame rate increase. It is actually also slightly due to the larger battery that provides much more power to the camera and therefor the autofocus motor/system. This nothing new, but most people have never noticed or said anything if they have. I have a D810 with the grip and I own two D4s' bodies. I noticed when I put the larger D4s battery into the grip on the D810 you can actually hear the autofocus system become faster and it's audible.
If you can only afford one or the other, and I think that applies to quite a few of us, then I'd go with the D850 if I were shooting in mainly lower light situations and the D500 for well lit, open fields and skies situations. I recently moved from D500 APS-C and Olympus EM1 mark II M43 systems to a Sony full frame system, because I'm nearly always shooting into tree lines or bushes. Changing to full frame has paid off for me, as the format does cope better with higher ISO values. As a wildlife photographer the one drawback with both the D500 and D850 for me, is the lack of presets on a top plate dial. My EM1.2 had three incredibly customisable presets and my A7III and A7II each have two. Having customisable presets means you can change between slow shutter speed, large aperture, single focus point, single frame etc., to fast shutter speeds, smaller aperture, multiple focus points, continuous focus etc., at the blink of an eye by just turning a dial. The Nikon D7500 has customisable presets, so for some one starting out, who cannot affors two camera bodies, it could be a better purchase than a D500. You may be capturing an image of a perched bird, then immediately switch to a bird in flight with the turn of a dial because you have already stored the necessary settings in the presets.
There is no need to change from AF-S to AF-C with the proper back button setup. You can easily assign multiple focus areas to different buttons as well as metering modes. Changing the shutter speed for a bird that is perched to a speed suitable for flying takes just as long as pressing another button, at least in my experience it does.
@@MarkSmithphotography. But isn't it far easier to be able to pre-programme those settings, together with the appropriate exposure compensation, then access them with the single click of a dial, rather than have to remember to press several different buttons?
good video. your videos made me buy the d500 6 months back! ive been happy with it since. i do have a bit of a rant with Nikon tho. i was at photoplus this past thursday and i was looking to try the z7. i asked if i could put my xqd card in and take some floor shots so i could see how they are in post and they wouldnt let anyone put a card in. i was really annoyed. and then i go over to the Sony area and they encouraged that we use a card and take test shots, so i did!! and they quality was really insane!! i tired the a7III , a7rIII and the A9. i went back over to the nikon areas and told the same worker, that sony will keep taking nikon consumers because they know what they got, and they are not scared to let people try and see it. my only issue is that i have invested in nikon heavy with gear. so it sucks that they got us by the you know what. ill have to go to B&H and try the z7. thanks for the video!!
Thank you so much for the good information. I'm really into macro photography, so I was looking into buying the D850 for the stacking and the image quality, but I also love birding so the D500 looked to be a better choice, especially because I have small hands and not a whole lot of physical strength. I do want the stacking though, so rather than being paralyzed by choice, I'm making do with a 7200 until they upgrade either the D750 and/or the D500. I know, it may be a couple of years. It will be a long wait. Thanks again, I loove, love your pictures and the way you present your material. Kudos.
Hey Mark, this is a top topic to cover. I am sure will give a lot of wildlife shooters great pointers. Thanks. One more aspect that I was looking forward to was a comparison between the cameras’ iso performance. Maybe if you can throw some “light” on that (pun intended). I use a d810 with the 200-500. Price to performance ratio is great with it. However, I am not happy with the af speed and the iso performance. I can’t accept anything above iso500 at max from it. I want to retain the 200-500 to see if switching the body will give me better quality images. Hence need to decide between d500 or the 850!!
Wow, you are in a tough spot. Here's what I did. I was shooting the D810, picked up a D500. I told myself there was no way the D500 would out perform the D810, just no way. Within 2 weeks of using the D500, I was no longer using the D810. Going back to the D810, it felt broken almost. Far too slow but and this is a big one. I instantly noticed the images on the D500 were not as clean as the D810. With the 200-500, I don't like to shoot over 3200 ISO.
Both it is. Different beasts, different applications. D500 + 500mm f5.6 PF rocks for BIF, sports, action. D850 is a dream for resolution and dynamic range with ultra wide landscape captures. 'Tis the season, Autumn 🍂 coming. D850 time ...
I have both and I also have older lenses. I don't need to worry if the lens has Nano coating with the D500 since Nikon recommends 24.5 px sensor as the limit for no Nano coating. (light dispersion). Which camera do I grap first, the D500.
I love the D850, it's the best camera I have ever owned and has been an all around really amazing camera. It's rugged and durable, you don't feel like you will drop it while using it, the OVF is bright and clear, the buttons are tactile and concise, the touch screen is bright and responsive and very sharp, the port covers, hinges, doors and casings are all top notch and of good build quality, overall the camera just feels like it is built to last a long time. Apart from that the image quality is incredible and when you land a good shot with this camera it's a rush. I just wish they would fix the video AF...
The D850 with the MB-D18 and EN-EL18 battery is definitely the best thing in the world! I know it costs a fortune to get the 9FPS, but I already own two D4s bodies and therefor have the charger, so it wasn't too bad for me. I would also agree with you Mark that the autofocus seems faster with the grip and bigger battery, which I also noticed when I used the grip and big battery in my D800E and D810. I'm not just talking about it being faster do to the higher frame rate, but rather just faster autofocus drive. You can instantly notice the difference between the two batteries.
Love the video, very informational and straight forward. I would love to see more gear reviews of like tripods other important accessories, I know you sometimes sprinkle that information into your normal story videos.
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Not sure if you guys gives a damn but if you're stoned like me atm you can stream pretty much all the latest series on instaflixxer. I've been binge watching with my girlfriend for the last couple of months =)
@Kellen Antonio yea, been using InstaFlixxer for years myself :D
Watched this video when you first uploaded. Got a D500. 4 years later, still shooting with the D500 with close to 100,000 images off it. The camera is a beast and built to last.
This gear is simply spectacular. Got the D500, 16-80 f2.8 and 200-500. Upgraded from the D7100, wow, what a leap in performance and quality.
Thanks to you and Ken Wheeler I have Purchased the D500, D850, and 200-500 F 5.6 .
I went with the D500 and I'm 98% satisfied. I am a bird/wildlife photographer and the 'silent' mode really isn't silent... not good for my subjects. oops! But the images it captures really are outstanding and I'm thrilled. I wish I could come to Florida and do a workshop with you.
I’m thinking of d500 wat do you think now and wat lense do you use. Thanks. I know it’s year late so you might not see 😂
I@@robbie8166 if you haven't gotten a d500 yet absolutely do it. I have both cameras and either one is a good choice
Interesting comments...I upgraded from a D7100 to my D500 and kept the D7100 as a backup camera....love both cameras ... thanks for sharing..👍😃
As usual, Great content without all the normal RUclips fluff! I went with the D500 with the 200-500mm based on some of your earlier video reviews and have Zero regrets.
That is great to hear!
I think that Nikon D850 is better for macro photography because it has focus bracketing and focus stacking.
Sorry for my english (i don't live in an english speaking country)!
Hi Mark, great video, I originally bought the D500 then sold it after a year to help fund the D850 purchase with Grip. Have used it for 8 months now and LOVE it especially landscapes. I did miss the D500 though and like you wanted both so purchased it again a week ago. Wow, what a camera, I certainly noticed the quicker auto focus, more buffer, and all the other things you mentioned including the quieter shutter button.
Now I am very content, I have both, one for both landscapes and wildlife and one for wildlife with a 1.5x crop sensor used with the Sigma 150-600 S lens and 1.4x converter, lots of zoom power.
Cheers Rick from Aus
Sounds like you have the best of both worlds!
Nice recap of some of our conversations from our workshop! Thanks again for a great day and a tour of some of your favorite hotspots!
My pleasure!
Thanks for this video.I intend to get the D700 because its a great affordable camera now plus it shares accessories with my beautiful D200 , so now i can save up to buy the D500 as I will never afford D850 this decade.
I'm going to be upgrading from a D7500 (that I learned on) to the D850. The reason I'm getting the D850 is because I want something that is going to give me a ton of room to grow. I don't want to keep having to buy new bodies and lenses every few years as my skills develop. I'd rather spend the extra money once and raise my abilities to meet the capabilities of the camera than keep trading things in and buying new bodies.
Best wildlife photography channel on youtube!
Thanks!
Yes
absolutely the best story teller!
I second that as well
By faaaaaaaaar!
I am an armature photographer.i started with the Nikon D5300 and 28-300 mm lens. Now I am comparing options to buy either D850 or D500 with 200-500 mm lens. I found your vidio very helpful. I will soon make discision. Commenting from Masai Mara Kenya🇰🇪🇰🇪🇰🇪
I had a d7100 ith a 200-500. Changed it for a d500. I mostly do wildlife. Best move ever made. I really like that combo nd that's what works best for me. Great video. Can't wait to see the next one.
Dominique LeBlanc I will follow your path. I'm better now than my D7100 AF : it's time to upgrade ;)
... but the D850 with grip is tempting. expensive choice. later I suppose.
@@jcphenix1 the d500 is a absolute beast. Can't wait to try it when the snowy owls come back. Happy shooting!
Thanks
Such a great video of real life experience. Mark, I love the way you break down your videos with detail explanations. Its mid 2020 and as I am faced with this same exact question right now D500 vs D850 this video is still relevant today. Thank you!
very informative and helpful - I will be picking up the D500 and the 200-500 this week- and can't wait to try all the stuff you have talked about - love your bird photography especially
Stepped up from d7100 to d500 with Tamron 70-200 g2 and 150-600 g2 lens. Been extremely happy with my experience to date.
A D500 with a 18mm - 200mm DX lens and you have the best combo for general photography and a killer setup for street photography.
Yes. The 18-200 dx is incredibly sharp throughout the range. The 24-85 fx is another very, very sharp lens on the D500.
I agree about the D500 and the Nikkor 200-500mm being the best wildlife combo out there, one thing I always tell people also is that while older and slower the D7200 and the 200-500mm is an honorable mention wildlife combo for super cheap.. $2400 for both brand new, but the buffer is small so you have to plan your shots
Thanks for the info.
Some are saying the D7500 is the cheaper way to go. Has a larger buffer. Same autofocus as the D500. Same sensor. Just not as fast for FPS. And buffer is slightly smaller than the D500 but bigger than the 7200.
@@williamfriggle true, I wouldn't have no problem using one, it got a bad review because of the one card slot..that wouldn't stop me from buying it, I have never had a card fail and I shoot in extreme conditions
Bill Friggle true d7500 is better choice when compared to D7200.. People who cannot afford d500 can stretch a bit from D7200. There are lots of pros of d7500 when compared to D7200.
I am just waiting for price drop but unfortunately in my country the price has gone up due to dollar fluctuation..
The D7200 has a (not by much)better IQ than the D500.
This was a very hard question for me! I was literally right there asking myself this very same question! I told myself if Nikon released a 40+ MP D800 replacement, I was all over it. As time marched on, I developed a new addiction, wildlife photography. I started monitoring Raptors for the city and been using a B700 and spotting scope. But I wanted more and the D500 is a beast in that field. So what to do, I couldn't afford bought. I decided to make do with my D800, its still a great camera and went with a D500 and 200-500mm! I have zero regrets!! The added bonus is the D500 4k video! The video is really quite well compared to my old D800 and slightly smaller.
Great choice!
I switched from Canon to Nikon about 8 months ago....I got the D500 and I'm a seasoned photographer with no budget contrains. I wanted the extra reach of a crop sensor and all I can say is what a major upgrade from the 7D II. If I had prime super telephoto lenses, then the D850 would be on my list as well!
Good video Mark!
Thanks so much. Sounds like you are happy. I highly suggest a prime telephoto with the D850. Match made in heaven for wildlife.
Such a good video. It's amazing to find the opinion of someone who has actually used both cameras in anger. Thanks for your efforts.
My son wants the 500, and I’m about to purchase the 850, I have owned my D4 for 6years, incredible camera, which is why I haven’t bought the 500.
Great review mark, keep up the good work
Thanks
Mark Smith What about the D800?
Excellent!! Extremely informative and detailed comparison and rundown of these two cameras...you have covered the things that matter the most :)
OMG thanks for making this video Mark. I have been waiting for this comparison from you for ages.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching.
Mark I am like you...I have both. For me, landscape: d850. Wildlife d500... Spot on comparison....thanks
Great video Mark. I currently own the D500 and have been considering changing it for the D850. You've given me some things to consider there that I hadn't initially thought about. Thanks.
Thanks. Glad to help!
Mark Smith I have one question on the image quality. You mentioned that the D850 has better image quality but it’s important to have the grip for this. How does the grip improve the image quality?
@@Yewbzee The grip reduces mirror blackout which increases AF accuracy. There was a video out there which demonstrated this. There was quite a noticeable improvement when I added the grip.
Cheers Mark, I’ll look that up.
Mark you are the best one in youtube .. i get tired looking for that answer .. you the best photographer explain easy and simple .. thank u so much and subscribe and millions like ❤😘
Thanks
Thanks Mark. I have the D500 and 200-500 and it is a killer combination for wildlife, but I do get some very noisy images if shooting in low light situations. There is always some sort of compromise, whatever kit you opt for!
Thanks for watching and you are correct!
I have both! Partly because I’ve watched you shoot them. I shot the D850 this morning in crappy light. But I prefer the D500 during normal light. Nice video as always.
Thanks!
Agreed on the D500's tendency to overexpose whites. Besides dialing down exposure compensation, using the highlight weighted metering mode can be a very effective remedy. I've found it to be especially helpful when the subject is in direct sunlight and the background is shaded. On overcast days, matrix metering and -0.3 to -0.7 EV works pretty good. Still, the D810 and D850 retain more detail in the whites thanks to their superior dynamic range.
Agreed. I've used highlight weighted metering but always had mixed results. I prefer to use exposure compensation.
I'm really happy you touched on how much louder the d850 is compared to the d500 because i thought something was wrong with my 850 when i got it because the shutter is much louder and slower than my d500 is.
Nice honest video Mark, good to see a comparison based on actual hands on experience. Well done and thank you for your efforts.
Thanks
Roger on the demands of the D850. Dang thing magnifies every mistake I make. OTOH, it's also motivating me to step up my photographic game.
You got it!
Mark, you should be a spokesperson for Nikon. I learn so much from you.
My wife and just returned from the Great Salt Lake and we took some beautiful pictures if bison using the D500 with the 200 to 500 lens.
We also enjoy using our Nikon 18 to 300 lens on our D500. The picture quality on this lens is excellent and our go to lens if we don’t want to pack a bunch of lenses.
Thanks so much. Glad to hear you got some great images using the D500.
Mark- I bought a D850 for sports and it has turned out to be a terrible mistake on my part! I just send the camera today back to B&H. I realize now I should have bought the D500! Really enjoy your videos. Thanks Mark! Randy B.
I have both now! Got the D850 yesterday and of course its pouring today when I have the day off.
You have the best of both worlds now.
I use the D7200 and nice glass. It has a good buffer and an excellent auto focus.
Don denis Unlike the D7100. 😏
Ace video Mark! Great video! I was one of the many asking this question as you know haha. Very helpful thou and thanks for taking the time to respond and make this video.
Thanks for watching.
best channel on youtube for photographers
huge fan of yours ... i remember asking same thing a year from now when u shared ur D850 n D500 shots early on and u recommended same things ...
so following ur advice n savings in last 1 year ... sold my D810 n upgraded to D850 and im in love ... my 200-500 is a different beast all of a sudden and DX mode on D850 is really really good ... super sharp
i think D850 with 3rd party battery grip and D5 battery n all is best swiss0army knife DSLR n bestest value for money especially when we compare its DX mode with D500 ... ur AF sensors just cover wider area i suppose in DX mode as compared to D500 ... Mark would put us wise in a much better way
Thanks. Glad to hear you are enjoying your D850.
BOTH! You buy BOTH!!! I had the D500 for a year and I loved every second of ownership! The only reason I don’t have it still is because I sold it to help pay for my D4S! The D850 is an absolute MONSTER! That thing can do no wrong...sure not everyone is balling out of control when it comes to finances but these two bodies are well worth whatever sacrifices that you may need to make...BOTH!
D4s and D500, which one would you pick for wildlife and long distance sports with the 200-500mm?
I have another system with the Trinity and a couple f/1.4
Shang-Hsien Yang Easy, the D500! The D500 has a better focusing system, a better frame and buffer rate and then there is the reach of the D500! I love my D4S...it’s built like a TANK and that is why I got it cause I am out in all kinds of weather...not to say that the D500 can’t handle adverse weather as well.
Agreed!
I have the D800/D500 combo. That is really good too.
Dennis W That is a nice combo!
Thanks Mark, great video. I’m coming from D300 and after a ton of reading and watching videos I convinced myself the D850 was best step for upgrade. I use all FX glass, so it felt right. However I rented the D850 this weekend and man what a beautiful camera, but after shooting with this and my D300 with all my f2.8 glass, I think I should have rented the D500 as well. Image quality is obviously deep, but in all earnest I’m not blown away to justify file size (6x) cost and less throw on my lens that I’m used to with DX crop. Waste IMHO to buy D850 to crop, and all the bigger prime telephoto are way too much for “fun” shooting, so I’m now not sure what to do. I like having 2 of the same bodies on me at all time so a D850 and a D500 makes sense but for me it doesn’t. I’ll rent the D500 and see how that compares. All your points about the D850 are spot on and it’s a fantastic camera! I think what you said early in video is most accurate, each are meant for different things...coming from DX to FX is not an easy step from what I’m seeing after this weekend. Ok just rented the D500 (lensrental.com) and I think it’s a snappier camera and seems faster shutter speed, but the 850 detail is insane compared to the 500 which is awesome! The 850 is just more. Also for those with bigger hands the D500 is smaller and is not as comfortable as the 850, which is much closer to the D300. I was hoping I’d love the 500, but the 850 is the winner.
I have to up my budget and get the D500 and 200-500 for my upcoming Alaska trip. Thanks for the great videos you make. They are very helpful.
A really nice summation of strengths and weaknesses between the two cameras. 👽👍👍👍
I decided to stick to DX until I will get really good money on photography, since my budget. I shoot landscape and Street or portrait with D500 printing up to 90cm in Photo rag or Baryta paper and there isn't any sort of problem. I tried a FF and honestly, I cannot see a huge difference in the end for my type of photography that's why the choice. Yes better ISO and Super shallow DOF but I shoot astrophoto that to me looks good already in APS-C and my portraits are never shot at1.8. so I do not feel the necessity for that. I saved lots of money and get the top level APS-C! What could be better than that!
I put aside of the D500 a D7200 for star trail and recently also landscape for the slight higher Dynamic range and with this combo I am the happiest man on the World now. The most difference I notice on FF is the view inside the viewfinder but again... that not affect my shot. When I will get money then Let's think to FF. For now it does not make sense.
Upgrading from my D2H next year and I think I’m going with the D500. Great presentation on both cameras.
You will not be disappointed, Nikon is having a sale on the D500 and the grip combo as I type this.
You will love the D500. Massive improvement!
Thanks Mark, very helpful and timely for me as I settle at last on the D850 and after much though is now in the way home from NJ. :=) I have using my 500 4.0 G VR ll with a D7200 for birds and the 200 2.0 G VR ll with a D750 for street portraits.Again thank you for your time.
Thanks for watching.
Thanks Mrk.
Another informative video.
I have a D500 with the grip. I shoot primarily sports and wildlife. I thought about buying the D850 but I want the extra reach from the crop sensor. I feel that I will have to crop my images in the D850 and the effective resolution wouldn’t be any better. I have the 200-500 zoom and the 70-200 FL zoom. I don’t have the inclination to use a teleconverter as it degrades the image and affects the aperture. I also don’t want to spend 12k to buy a 600mm lens.
I do notice the crop sensor affecting my family portraits as the 1.5 crop is not needed, or even wanted, for this type of photography. Since I don’t need to shoot ultra wide angle, it’s more of an annoyance to have the extra reach of the crop sensor. I just use the 16-80 wide angle for portraits, as well as the 35mm and 50mm. They all work well.
I would prefer the D850 if I know I can get close to the wildlife (I just can’t count on this) or for shooting portraits and other stills.
So, the D500 is still the camera I would buy, even today. Just love it.
Thanks a lot Mark. Very helpful as usual. I always have an eye open for an upgrade and read a few reviews but really think that yours are way the best......you are a hands on , practical and excellent photographer. Many reviews are too much in laboratory mode and don’t give a real idea of the performance of the camera in the field. I have a D500, D800 and P7700 (which lives permanently in the car so I always have a camera). Surprising the P7700 os capable of producing some reasonable quality shots, certainly better than nothing. The D500 and 200-500 is absolute magic and thanks to you. So upgrade of the D800 ? .....still a great camera but the clunky focus can be a drag. Have been thinking Z7 or D850, but the D850 seems to be a good acquisition, particularly for landscape and I love the sound of it’s low light ability. Great in those dark rainforests. Mostly busy birding with the D500 at the moment. Thanks again.
Started with the D500 but recently got the D850. Both killer machines😎
I'm about to get one of the 2. Budget is a concern. The 850 would cause me to take a 3 month learning break to buy parts. That's good. But as for wildlife, lakes, and for sure moon and sky. I'd love to hear you say go 500!! Also new, only own nikon p1000, not too hard to learn. You've taught me most on my quest. Please do suggest, it would have value as I'd love not to wait.
D850. All day, every day. No comparison.
Another great video. I think the 850 is a hands down winner if you have the scratch to afford it. Word of caution for those thinking of a purchase. Just don't buy your camera from Abes of Maine. See Ripoff Reports. Their website is misleading, their sales team is misleading. Actually outright deceitful.
Thanks
how so please eloborate
@@awc723 The abridged version is this. 1. They had a Halloween sale going, offering the D850 camera body for about $600 less than normal retail. I responded and ordered the camera body. 2. Rather than ship me a new D850 Camera body from Nikon, they shipped an OPENED D850 with lens kit. Nikon factory seals BROKEN. Some of the individual component packaging inside the Nikon box looked like it had been opened and repacked because the packaging was crumpled. 3. The Camera itself felt like some kind of imitation plastic model. Mastercard advised me not to return the camera in order to investigate as potential counterfeit. Unfortunately I had already returned the item
Well, I ended up with the d500 new, and used d7200 for learning. Thanks, I'll do full frame once I've learned. Thank you very much for filling the blanks, and saving me 2k plus. And the used 7200 wad Well taken care of with lots of lenses and extras, some things, like the extra 3 batteries work in d500 as well. So you've helped me very much. Now I'll buy a nice lens with savings. Cheers mate.
I have been using the D500 with a tamron 150 to 600. great for wild life. Iv'e used it for a wedding. It did a good job. Once I get a 2.8 zoom it will be a perfect blend.
As always, superb opinion. I have nikon D850 with tamron 70-200 g2 f/2.8. Insane quality
Thanks!
Im a mirrorless guy. Sony a6300 is what I own. If I had a choice if it came down to me buying a DSLR it would definitely be the Nikon D500 all the way. I shot wildlife so yea, the D500. but I think its gonna be a very loooooong time before I can afford a D500 lol. Maybe one day. By the way Mark Smith. I love your work bud. Your videos are very inspirational. keep it up man.
Thanks so much!
Currently own the Nikon D850, and just purchased the D500 because I’m always putting it into dx crop mode, I will be selling the D850 and keeping my Nikon D800E around anytime I need a higher resolution camera for things like landscapes etc. I’ll take any extra reach I can get, but I don’t want to be wasting the sensor of the D850 with always putting it into crop mode, especially when I’ll be getting slightly more megapixels with the D500. The D500 is also slightly lighter and more forgiving if you do not have perfect technique. The bigger buffer and frame rate also sold me as well. It should be arriving in the mail today and will take it out for sunset to photograph some trumpeter swans paired with the Nikon 200-500 f5.6
Thanks Mark- I'm upgrading from my Dinosaur D80 and Ive tested the D500. It was quite nice and I liked the speed and focusing. I haven't had a chance to test the D850 yet. This helped with decision making!
I bought both of them and love them. D500 I use for wildlife shots requiring a long shot. The D850 I used for everything else! The D500 I do use the Nikon 200 to 500mm and agree great they work great together
Congrats on 20k!
thanks!
I’ve given considerable consideration to upgrading to the (very) desirable D850. But, I’m simply very happy with the results using my D500 and 200-500 combo. P.S. I love the Osprey video.
once again excellent video! I love my D500 for plane spotting but I’m also eyeing with the D850
Thanks! Both cameras are excellent.
Funny watching this knowing you now have converted to Sony, Comes down to best tool for the job at any given time, technology changes so fast now, but can be very expensive trying to keep up, Nice work your always a joy to watch no matter what camera you have. 👍🏻
👍👍 Thank you for a REAL due diligence and field experience comparison of the D850 vs D500.
It is amazing the difference between a REAL field tested camera review verses the youtube standard talking heads rambling without doing any due diligence just to get a video and their affiliate links posted before any other channel.
Thanks so much!
It's a fantastic recap. I prefer D850 for my architecture and wide life.
Wtf is wide life
excellent comparison,my current body is the d500.My next one will be the same.the speed and price make this a legendary body.
Thanks!
Great!!!! Thank you very much. Very nice video. I have Nikon D500 since 1 year with Tamron 150-600 G2 mm and I'am very happy with results. Thanks Mark from Spain
Great video! Just picked up a D500 to compliment my D810. Maybe in a year or so I'll upgrade the 810 to the 850. While money certainly is a consideration for me, the combination as you've said is the ultimate rig! Thanks.
It's also a question of how much money you can spend on a camera. I had a limited budget and choosed between the D500 and D750. It becamed the D500 and so far I haven't regret that!! It was the best choice for me!!
Mark everything is well done in this video. Today it would be great to include the Z6 II to compare with these 2. You are a great photographer, love your work thanks for share all this stuff
Z6 doesn’t stand a chance when it comes to photography. The Z6II is much better.
5 years later - thanks for doing this video 🎉
Another great video Mark, thanks very much. The d500 is my next camera.
Enjoy. It is a great camera.
I bought the D500 for what it does best, fast action at a distance, whether it is wildlife or street photography. It does an incredible job at these tasks. If you are on a budget, get the Tamron 200-400 lens with stabilization. This gives you 600mm equivalent and allows you to reach out and get shots across the pond or across the street with no problem. If you want high quality landscape shots, get yourself a 6x7 or a 4x5 film camera. That, with a good quality scanner, will scratch that architecture/landscape itch, plus it will slow you down and make you a better photography. Heck, you might enjoy getting a new skill and begin developing your own film.
I started with the D90 and within a year, I upgraded to the D700. Ran that for a while before upgrading to the D850. I do have mostly Prime lenses. 24 f/1.8, 35 f/1.8, 50 f/1.8, 85 f/1.4. I also have the 70-200 f/2.8E FL ED.
With these, I primarily shoot portrait photography but would like to venture into wildlife and aviation photography. So, I just picked up the Nikkor 200-500 f/5.6 along with the TC-14E II. I also have the TC-20E II that I picked up for the 70-200.
So now I have the D850 and my older D700, but I'm tossing around the idea of replacing my D700 with the D500 because of the faster FPS. Any helpful suggestions or advice??
Glad I stumbled onto your channel. You have a new sub now 😊
I've been pestering you all. You've said to get 850 since I've got a d7200. So I exchanged my d500 for the D850, and should have it Jan.4. Thanks for the advice. I sure hope my learning cure maintains.
Congrats!
@@MarkSmithphotography I'm curious, do you live in CO? Or Ca? I livevin Co. Do you ever meet up at places with other shooters?
D500 Every time!!!!
Mark another great video........I do have both the D500 and D850 and love both.....I do have a question for you......Do you have a "dry cabinet" for your gear.........Since I will be keeping my gear in my garage I want to get a dry cabinet......any suggestions........I live in Central Florida....thanks
Thumbs Up Mark. I too love the buffer and the auto focus in my D500 especially when shooting my 3 son's Hockey and Lacrosse games. When you shoot a camera with a smaller buffer you notice it. Dont have a D850, My D810 still works good. Was hoping the Z7 was going to be more then it appears. So I will wait and see if they can get a Mirror-less as good as most say the D850 is.
Thanks! Yes, the Z7 seems to respond great for video but lacks for stills. Doesn't really make sense.
I've been saving up to buy the d500, nice upgrade from my d7100! I will be using a tamron 150-600 which I love for my whale watching pictures!
Another solid video, Mark...great comparison! You made me feel pretty good for buying the D500 (I'm using it with a Nikkor 80-400mm lens) considering the expenses involved. I wanted to mention something I learned about the 200-500mm lens, as well as my own telephoto zoom, while in the Khutzeymateen earlier this year. I was told that the 200-500mm doesn't have a seal to keep out the moisture that you'll encounter in that sort of landscape. I had issues with condensation with my own lens although it has a seal. The nature of how these lenses work can create problems when there is a lot of moisture/rain. The Everglades can be rainy, but I've never experienced the same sort of issue there (much warmer obviously in South Florida). Thanks!
Thanks
Using same the new 80-400 such a great range and underrated lens
Hi Mark Great video. You know me, I shoot with basically the same setup(s) except I can't handle the expense or weight of the 500 f/4. I agree with everything you say. I really would have a hard time choosing between the 2 if I had only one choice. Believe it or not I have found working with the D500+200-500mm and the D850+80-400(G) a great combo and the TC 1.4 works well with it. That 80-400 is proving itself. Hope to see you soon
Nice, thanks for the info. I had a great time over in your neck of the woods!
Using highlight weighted metering on the D500 solves for blown out highlight issues. All of your videos are excellent btw Mark, too many click bait talking head music videos for photography and gear on the tube :).
RUclips will one day sponsor the RUclips Awards at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, and you Mark will win a huge trophy. Maybe it will be a golden condor. Speaking of condors when can we expect some shots?
That would be awesome and thanks for saying that. I've never even seen a Condor. I guess I need to go find some.
I would always vote for the D850 if I can afford it. With the vertical grip it is almost as fast. I have a pair of D800s along with a D500. I do appreciate the lighter weight of the D500. The D500 doesn't handle highlights quite as well. It is great for speed but when I want image quality I use one of my D800s. I shoot the same RAW images to both cards and that really slows it down and reduces my buffer. I printed a 20X24 out of my D500 and it looks great. I over sharpened it a bit but that is my fault.
Great point. I didn't even consider the weight.
If I ever decide to put my nikon F4 in the dry box for a long rest and have a different change I would highly recommend the D500 as u said good review thanks mark
Thanks.
The D850 is not just faster to autofocus with the Nikon grip and D4/D5 battery, because of the frame rate increase. It is actually also slightly due to the larger battery that provides much more power to the camera and therefor the autofocus motor/system. This nothing new, but most people have never noticed or said anything if they have. I have a D810 with the grip and I own two D4s' bodies. I noticed when I put the larger D4s battery into the grip on the D810 you can actually hear the autofocus system become faster and it's audible.
Really nice video Mark 👏🏻👏🏻👍🏻👍🏻
If you can only afford one or the other, and I think that applies to quite a few of us, then I'd go with the D850 if I were shooting in mainly lower light situations and the D500 for well lit, open fields and skies situations. I recently moved from D500 APS-C and Olympus EM1 mark II M43 systems to a Sony full frame system, because I'm nearly always shooting into tree lines or bushes. Changing to full frame has paid off for me, as the format does cope better with higher ISO values. As a wildlife photographer the one drawback with both the D500 and D850 for me, is the lack of presets on a top plate dial. My EM1.2 had three incredibly customisable presets and my A7III and A7II each have two. Having customisable presets means you can change between slow shutter speed, large aperture, single focus point, single frame etc., to fast shutter speeds, smaller aperture, multiple focus points, continuous focus etc., at the blink of an eye by just turning a dial. The Nikon D7500 has customisable presets, so for some one starting out, who cannot affors two camera bodies, it could be a better purchase than a D500. You may be capturing an image of a perched bird, then immediately switch to a bird in flight with the turn of a dial because you have already stored the necessary settings in the presets.
There is no need to change from AF-S to AF-C with the proper back button setup. You can easily assign multiple focus areas to different buttons as well as metering modes. Changing the shutter speed for a bird that is perched to a speed suitable for flying takes just as long as pressing another button, at least in my experience it does.
@@MarkSmithphotography. But isn't it far easier to be able to pre-programme those settings, together with the appropriate exposure compensation, then access them with the single click of a dial, rather than have to remember to press several different buttons?
@pete draper, Hmm... Six of one or half a dozen of the other.
good video. your videos made me buy the d500 6 months back! ive been happy with it since. i do have a bit of a rant with Nikon tho. i was at photoplus this past thursday and i was looking to try the z7. i asked if i could put my xqd card in and take some floor shots so i could see how they are in post and they wouldnt let anyone put a card in. i was really annoyed. and then i go over to the Sony area and they encouraged that we use a card and take test shots, so i did!! and they quality was really insane!! i tired the a7III , a7rIII and the A9. i went back over to the nikon areas and told the same worker, that sony will keep taking nikon consumers because they know what they got, and they are not scared to let people try and see it. my only issue is that i have invested in nikon heavy with gear. so it sucks that they got us by the you know what. ill have to go to B&H and try the z7. thanks for the video!!
Thanks for watching. I read others were allowed to use their own cards with the Z6 at the show. Maybe you got the uneducated Nikon employee?
@@MarkSmithphotography really? your probably right! i will deff check B&H next week and give both a try. i didnt see the Z6 on display tho...
How does adding a grip improve the auto focus ?
Thank you so much for the good information. I'm really into macro photography, so I was looking into buying the D850 for the stacking and the image quality, but I also love birding so the D500 looked to be a better choice, especially because I have small hands and not a whole lot of physical strength. I do want the stacking though, so rather than being paralyzed by choice, I'm making do with a 7200 until they upgrade either the D750 and/or the D500. I know, it may be a couple of years. It will be a long wait. Thanks again, I loove, love your pictures and the way you present your material. Kudos.
Thanks for watching and for the compliments!
Honest feedback 850 with 200-500 underperform , thanks for your valuable feedback
Hey Mark, this is a top topic to cover. I am sure will give a lot of wildlife shooters great pointers. Thanks. One more aspect that I was looking forward to was a comparison between the cameras’ iso performance. Maybe if you can throw some “light” on that (pun intended). I use a d810 with the 200-500. Price to performance ratio is great with it. However, I am not happy with the af speed and the iso performance. I can’t accept anything above iso500 at max from it. I want to retain the 200-500 to see if switching the body will give me better quality images. Hence need to decide between d500 or the 850!!
Wow, you are in a tough spot. Here's what I did. I was shooting the D810, picked up a D500. I told myself there was no way the D500 would out perform the D810, just no way. Within 2 weeks of using the D500, I was no longer using the D810. Going back to the D810, it felt broken almost. Far too slow but and this is a big one. I instantly noticed the images on the D500 were not as clean as the D810. With the 200-500, I don't like to shoot over 3200 ISO.
Both it is. Different beasts, different applications. D500 + 500mm f5.6 PF rocks for BIF, sports, action. D850 is a dream for resolution and dynamic range with ultra wide landscape captures. 'Tis the season, Autumn 🍂 coming. D850 time ...
That was a great comparison of the two cameras. Thank you very much!
I like the D500 for its speed, af performance (which I perceive as slightly better than on d850), the buffer (incredible!!!) and the pricing.
agreed
I have both and I also have older lenses. I don't need to worry if the lens has Nano coating with the D500 since Nikon recommends 24.5 px sensor as the limit for no Nano coating. (light dispersion). Which camera do I grap first, the D500.
I love the D850, it's the best camera I have ever owned and has been an all around really amazing camera. It's rugged and durable, you don't feel like you will drop it while using it, the OVF is bright and clear, the buttons are tactile and concise, the touch screen is bright and responsive and very sharp, the port covers, hinges, doors and casings are all top notch and of good build quality, overall the camera just feels like it is built to last a long time. Apart from that the image quality is incredible and when you land a good shot with this camera it's a rush. I just wish they would fix the video AF...
Agreed 100%
The D850 with the MB-D18 and EN-EL18 battery is definitely the best thing in the world! I know it costs a fortune to get the 9FPS, but I already own two D4s bodies and therefor have the charger, so it wasn't too bad for me. I would also agree with you Mark that the autofocus seems faster with the grip and bigger battery, which I also noticed when I used the grip and big battery in my D800E and D810. I'm not just talking about it being faster do to the higher frame rate, but rather just faster autofocus drive. You can instantly notice the difference between the two batteries.
Agreed 100%
Love the video, very informational and straight forward. I would love to see more gear reviews of like tripods other important accessories, I know you sometimes sprinkle that information into your normal story videos.
I'm planning a what's in my bag video soon.