Originally posted October 11, 2011

A while back I wrote about selling my higher end Canon 7D kit and moving to a Nikon D7000 with some cash back in the bank. Beyond that, I haven’t said much about it. Part of that was because I was focused on my small camera situation and looking to move to a micro 4/3rd camera from Panasonic or Olympus for my “small” camera.

Well…I never actually went through with that plan. You see, I’ve been shooting again with the Nikon D7000 and it reminded me why I ended up with a small sensor compact and a larger DSLR; image quality, speed, & control. While the latest generation of smaller cameras are making headway, there is just no mimicking these things in current micro 4/3rd camera nor can they match the IQ of the larger APSC sized sensors.

After shooting this past weekend, I decided that for me there is still no need to go back to a micro 4/3rds camera and sensor. Yes, they are smaller than a Nikon D7000. However, they are not that much smaller and if I don’t need the IQ of the D7000, a compact camera such as the LX5 is good enough.

So…Is this a review of the Nikon D7000? Hardly. There are tons of great and revealing reviews out there of this camera already. I just like the feel in hand, the features and the controls. I will say that the only thing I really miss from my Canon 7D is the buffer for burst shooting. Shooting RAW I can easily and quickly run up against the buffer of the D7000. It isn’t a big deal because it makes me really focus on the image I intend to capture. It is just the only thing I notice that I miss. One thing I miss? Not bad really considering I was able to put a considerable amount of cash back in the bank and get a camera set up that is quite a bit lighter and in my opinion has better IQ.

One might wonder just how I put money back in the bank in this change over? Well….This involves selling high and buying low. Honestly though, I did pick up some old Nikon lenses used and that made a big impact. My lens of choice for all around is the wonderful 18-70 f3.5-4.5 DX lens. There is no IS but with the ISO capability of the D7000 I never really run into an issue due to lack of IS.

Anyway, enough babble. How about some pics? This isn’t a gallery or anything like that, just some images I like that I took with the awesome Nikon D7000.

For me, this camera really delivers and it has pretty much ruined me in the area of IQ. Yes, I know there are other more expensive cameras out there that top this camera in overall IQ and speed. I don’t really give a rip as for me it really is a dream to use and shoot and the files it produces are wonderful.