Buying a used camera: Shutter count
 

I'm looking at the Nikon D7200 with a macro lens for product photography. Used cameras that seem to be in good to excellent condition have 8000+ shutter counts.

Is that meaningful in the life of the camera?

I'm no expert, but 8000 wouldn't scare me away.

Even if your shutter count was much higher, the macro photography isn't going to use it much- compared to say- rapid fire pics of a motorcycle races or something.

What I would want to see is how smoothly the camera actuates, and overall generall condition of camera/ equipment. Was it babied? Was it used outside and exposed to elements? I've got a 9 year old canon5d mkII which the shutter is beginning to stick on. It has WAAAAAY more than 8000 shots. It also got used outside/ rain/ etc. I might just hit it with some PB blaster. That outta do it!

I just sold a few cameras with shutter counts in the 5000 range. Not a big deal. Entry level cameras are rated for @ 50,000 shots, mid-range 100,000, and pro 200,000. That's what I've read. But, just like cars, you can have a car with 200,000 miles that has been well cared for and will continue to run for years, others with 75,000 miles are beat.

Good to know, thank you. There are a lot of these cameras on the market. Just looked at this one.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-D7200-USA-DSLR-Camera-MINT-Only-579-Shutter-count/254486109211?epid=215280384&hash=item3b408ddc1b:g: eSoAAOSwNQReI50U

8,000 is nothing.

People may argue this but as someone that buys and sells a lot of Nikon gear, condition is important. With only 8,000 shots it should be showroom new looking. No scratches, no wear marks. Rubber should be good, and feel good. Gold box, manuals, all original cables etc.... If, it has a white box it is a refurbished unit. Not that there's anything wrong with that - except it sold for less from the store.

What do they want for it? D7200's were going for around $699 new somewhere in the last year. D7200 is one of the best crop sensor cameras Nikon ever produced. But then many jumped to the D500, which is the best ever produced by Nikon. But a D500 is best for wildlife and birding, and a much bigger body.

From what I can tell the Nikon 7200 used is selling for $450 and up. Mostly up, so that one looks to be a good deal with such low shutter count.

I agree. My d70 went 250,000. My d7000 stopped going 'click' at 280,000. Still have a d7000 with 60,000 and a d800 with 120,000.

I found theres lots of cameras for sale that are indistinguishable from new. I buy them and ride them hard and paint is worn off before they eventually die. I wouldnt buy one of my bodies.

Ive alwayed tried out used gear before buying it.

I checked the shutter count on my old D7000 before sending it off to my sis in Australia. It had 9600 or so on it. Site I used said it was @10% of what was expected lifetime so good to go.

Which macro lens are you going to pair your new old camera with Shaun?

To me, 8,000 clicks is like 10,000 miles on a car. It doesn't sound like you'll wear that body out doing product photography, either. I'd be curious what lens comes with the body as well. I tend to benchmark the price of a used package vs a good deal on new, where the worries of what might be wrong with it are gone. How demanding are your photographic needs? Do you plan on doing other types of photography? I'm not up on the latest best forums for good advice, but I would expect this one would be good:

https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/board/45

All good stuff, thank you Gentlemen.

Scott, that's my next question. What would be a good autofocus macro lens for the D7200?

Steve, I need to take very high res close up pics of nuts and bolts, and also close-ups of finished work, especially anodizing and chrome.

I had an old Lumix LX3. Took perfect pics but was lost in my car accident and 10.1MP was never really enough.

Have an LX5 which takes worse pics than the 3 ever did and after getting cooking oil in the view screen, it was time to get a new camera though it still works. Foolishly bought a Canon G9X which got rave reviews and I'm sure if you are out and about it takes good pics. It can't focus at all on close-up details. It is worthless so I'll keep it for a travel camera.

Researching product photography, the D7200 came up on a few lists. I need good overhead shots of hardware laid out on a table and then sectional pics and then close-up fine detail pics of something as trivial as a bolt head. And then chrome and anodizing detail pics as well.

If you want to stick with Nikon glass, you might research what lens fits your needs first. Most of the upper-tier Micro Nikkor fast-glass is not cheap. Some will set you back several times the cost of a decent body.
There are "suitable" offerings that will work with Nikon mounts of course (Simga, Tamron, etc.), but IMO, Nikkor glass is like Porsche...there is no substitute. :cool:

I wouldn't worry about an 8000 shutter count. The 7200 is a great body. Product photography is incredibly tedious. For what you are doing I would not worry so much about a macro lens and think more about a good (not just solid but easy to use) tripod, a good ball mount, a good posing set up (studio), lights, and editing software first. If you've got all that now you are way ahead of the game. A short zoom lens would be more versatile than a fixed macro (less jacking around with the tripod). In the context of product photography and for images uploaded to the internet where the final resolution isn't great, you'll never notice the difference between a software cropped and enlarged image and a 1:1 image.

This is now above my paygrade. I have no idea what a short zoom lens is. Sometimes shots are of me holding something and taking a pic of it. Others it would be outdoors where shooting by hand is preferred. Even inside shooting by hand is preferred.

I've been doing point and shoot pics for years and always bothered by it's limitations to say nothing of having to color correct because of overhead fluorescent lights and natural streaming through big windows behind me. Tired of taking low quality pics and not being able to take artistic ones for instagram and facebook.

It’s just my opinion, but I think the best piece of equipment you can have is a good tripod. The second best is good editing software. “Short zoom” is bad terminology. Too tired to explain tonight, 24 -100 is a good zoom range for car parts I would think.

Is this for 'studio' use?

Nikon has manf'd the top 'micro' lens system for decades from short ones to telephotos and even a macro zoom - a manual focus one at 55mm costs about $50

this is a DX (APS-C) body so those will act like a 75 mm

if what you really want is a "close-up" lens all the micros will do that too

for an AF in that range, the newest 60mm will be xlnt and act like a 90mm on the D7200

for insects, etc. get the 105 micro AF (like a 150mm or so)

for objects in your biz, use a light tent or the great Nikon micro flash unit for more detail, but also more specular reflections

Nikon also makes a DX micro lens if you want a shorter lens

and yes don't worry re shutter count - it's a pro body

shorter refers to perspective and affects the working distance

OK, can't sleep. I'm going to delve into this from my perspective. Me - I don't know all the jargon. I am neither a great technical photographer nor a creative art photographer, but I've take a LOT of pictures. Some have won awards.

The 7200 body you are looking at is great. It allows you to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor, time of exposure, and the aperture. You can do a lot of cool stuff just messing with these three adjustments. The problem with hand-held shooting is it takes away a lot of options for using these adjustments. That's why you need a good tripod. For example, you are shooting something and you can't get enough light into a dark part of the photo. A ham and egg photographer like me would put the camera on a tripod, slow the sensor down, stop the aperture down, turn the exposure time up, and "paint" some light into the dark area with a flashlight while the shutter is open. It ain't fancy, but you would be surprised what interesting effects you can get doing these kinds things.

I don't worry about diffraction and distortion and whatever the imperfections are of zoom lenses. After an hour of moving the damn tripod every time I want to reframe a photo I get tired and sloppy and screw it up anyway. If I only had a zoom lens I could reframe effortlessly. That's why I have zoom lenses.

Photoshop is endlessly entertaining. It's better than a video game. Once you learn the magic of the sliders in the "Camera Raw" mode you will sell your TV. The creative possibilities are endless, and if you are just trying to get a photo job out and there is one little flaw you can fix it without re-shooting everything.

A lot of great photos are taken by people with "pro-sumer" equipment who are creative, have a good eye, and know basic photography. A lot of boring photos are taken by photographers who know all the jargon and can quote you the diffraction and diffusion numbers for all their lenses.

I will second the recommendation on getting a good tripod. Doesn't need to be expensive, it just needs to be able to hold your camera.
I'd also suggest starting out with a manual focus micro Nikkor. The 55mm 2.8 would be a good place to start IMO. Not too pricey, but one of the best lenses around for what you want to do, again IMO. If I were looking for one I'd also try to find one paired with an M2 Extension tube.
This will allow you to get those up close detail pictures.
Using a manual focus lens will slow you down, at first, but it will also get you thinking about the photograph you're taking. You'll not only have to think about the focus, you'll get more involved with the exposure and how shutter speed/ISO/aperture all interact together to produce the image you want.

Here's an example of what this rank amateur has been able to do with his lenses/cameras. Not the best example but just a picture I took playing around with my setup back in 2016.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1579495599.JPG

This is an 8 sec. exposure with natural lighting only.

I have a D7200, I'm happy with it, high-entry to mid level SLR,$500 for a used body is a good price, but it's the lenses that cost the money. I've slowly collected items like tripod, bag, extra batteries, flash, etc.
The big con it doesn't have a fold out screen, which is good for events like weddings, etc., for me it wasn't a deal breaker.

This D7200 tutorial is a good watch and at the end is a good review on lenses available that you need with alternatives to Nikkor lenses. It's long but has an index in the description. Used lenses are out there you want AF or AFS for auto focus but older manual focus lenses will also work. I personally wouldn't buy a used lens unless I could inspect and try it first.
https://youtu.be/_Kw3P1yRwLs

I have been a photographer virtually all my life and shot my first paying job when I was 15. It was a wedding on Fort DeRussy Military Reservation of a guy back from Vietnam on R&R and his girlfriend came to visit him. There were dressed in Hawaiian gear, and I shot 24 pictures and handed the film to her to get processed back home.

I carried a Hasslebad system to high school as well as my 35mm system.

We bought a used Canon EOS-1D X Mark III DSLR to shoot the oblique aerial photos a few years ago. That is some heavy iron and takes fantastic pictures. At the same time I ended up with a Canon Rebel EOS SL1 for basicly nothing. It has just over 200,000 shutter actuations on it. I carry it to car shows, and almost never use it. I did set it up for my brother to shoot me going past the marker in Key West. I set it up in rapid fire mode, and told him to fire away. I sorted through the images to find the perfect shot.

So 200K exposures is a lot, but it still runs fine.

I have a iPhone 11 Pro, that does amazing photos. That is always with me, and what I use for most photos now.

Mark, I have bought a couple of lenses and cameras (for the lenses attached) off the shop Goodwill site. Didn't spend a lot of money, granted, but got some of my best lenses that way. My 55 2.8 was advertised as 'a really clean lens' and it was impressively clean and unused looking when I got it. I consider it one of my best lenses.

I did weddings, portraits and commercial as well as a young lad with my brother who had a framing and photography shop. He had a Hasselblad I often manned the 35mm at weddings. He also had a large format camera and I got to use them all.

Incredible images, I'd love to have a older hasselblad with a digital back, but the D7200 fits my needs and pocketbook.

Not reading all the replies, but 8000 shutter count is nothing. I think of it as miles on a car.

Nikon says you'll need a rebuild at 150k.

That said, I wouldn't buy a used camera off ebay. Go to a camera shop or Best Buy and try a new one. Then hit craigslist and facebook marketplace to see one locally. try it out and see how it compares to new.

My old D90 worked great till I sold it w/ 30k clicks, and my 8yr old D4 keeps on trucking (over 40k). Only gripe I had with the D90 was the adhesive on the rubberized grip would get squishy in warm weather. The zoom ring grip on my favorite lens is doing the same.

KEH is more costly than eBay but allows no hassle returns and has been a good source for me over the last few decades...

speaking of the iPhone:
it sounds like Shaun will want a lot of depth of field (DOF) - that goes up as the sensor size goes down - a good phone cam will give a lot of DOF

focus stacking can be done in post for the D7200, but many Panasonic m43 cameras will do it in body - much easier and quicker - I moved almost entirely to Panny m43 a couple of years ago but still have some Nikon and Hasselblad gear

I also suggest light pipes, LEDs for adding light into small dark corners for macro

items can be placed on a piece of glass to make them seem to float in space

I use alligator clips or small clamps in a fixture for small items - stick them in front of the computer screen with a colored background (MS Word with paragraph formatted to the color you want) for tabletop photography of small things
- or drape a piece of burlap over the screen put it back a bit to blur the texture

Looked at Craig's list for the Boston area and found more than a few D7200's with less than 3k shutter counts.

What a great board! Scott sent me a few CL links, one of which is perfect. I've emailed the owner and hopefully can paypal tonight. Thank you Scott!

Macro lens

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1579561594.jpg


Video I found on it. This is exactly what I need.

<iframe width="762" height="429" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PYxCqPuD7jE" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Glad you were able to score that lens Shaun.
If I hadn't just spent $$$$ on a new one for my Sony I'd have been asking you to get it for me.

And after watching the video, I wouldn't blame you at all!

Yeah, if you score that lens you done good. Congrats!

that's an older screw-drive AF lens

it will be just fine as your pro D7200 can drive it (amateur bodies D5xxx, D3xxx cannot)

AF is slower than the newest ones and it is a bit clunky - but just fine; I still have a 105 macro like that

Yep. Good lens no doubt...just be sure the seller isn't asking "AF-S VR" money for it because it's an f2.8.
Also it's an FX (full-frame) lens, so on a 7200 (DX) body it will be closer to 90mm (a good thing IMO).

;)

Met the seller today and given both the camera and his nice personality (super nice guy), I got the D7200 and macro lens.

But first, thanks to everyone chiming in and especially to Scott Douglas who helped immeasurably with PMs. Thank you Scott, you are definitely one of the best who make this board so great!SmileWavy

Here's the camera and lens. They are pretty much brand new. Came with original box and all documentation as well as a battery and charger.

Even thought my Canon G9x will reside permanently in the car now, I expect to get another lens for travel adventures.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580174703.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580174703.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580174703.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580174703.jpg

So put that lens on and take a picture of it.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580175968.jpg



http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580175968.jpg



http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1580175968.jpg

That is a nice looking combo if I do say so myself.

Congrats!

Now, go take some pictures with it.

Yes, it's gorgeous! I'm out all of tomorrow so Wednesday I'll be shooting some pics.

There's always TONIGHT!

I am off to bed soon, getting up at 5AM tomorrow morning. Long day tomorrow.

Plus I want to explore the camera a little first.

But pics will come soon!