The beast is back! After a long hiatus, the D300 is finally back in my hands and on my tripod. I’ve not used this camera in nearly a year. It started flaking out last year, around April and finally gave up in June. It wasn’t until mid-November that I sent it back to Nikon. Then, it was on hold, awaiting parts for nearly a month, but it finally arrived yesterday. This, in itself, was a surprise. I just happened to check the site, expecting to see On Hold, but instead saw Shipped. I was very surprised. Even more so when I clicked on the tracking number and saw that it was in Charlotte and out for delivery! 
It arrived around 1:00 PM. I fired it up, had a few shots to see that everything was peachy, and set about reseting the menus the way that I like them: Auto focus assist – off, sounds – off, all that nonsense.
Today, I had a number of meetings, the final one ended at around 2:30. I decided to head to the park for about 30 minutes and take a few shots … righhhhhhhhhhtttt! I got to the park at around 3:00 and easily slipped into the zone, so to speak. I took a few shots by the river, after I figured out how to work the camera again. It was funny to watch after getting used to other cameras, not using this one for so long, and then coming back. Comedy at its finest!
I walked up and down the trails, looking here and there. At one point I startled either a hawk or an owl, I didn’t get to quite see what it was, but it sure didn’t like that I was so close. I would have to guess owl. I’ve almost walked into an owl before. I usually don’t see hawks perched that low, but you never know. The woods were so quiet, save for the distant fun-filled yells of some younger girls with extremely high pitched voices. Man, they could yell! Eventually, they stopped and all was quiet save for the wonderful background noises of the woods.
It had been a long while, more than a year, since I had mounted the camera on a tripod, walked along the woods, took my time, and just enjoyed what I was doing. As you can probably guess, I went over my 30 minutes, just a tad … well, by an hour and fifteen minutes. Hmmmm. 4:45? I suppose I ought to be getting back home now.
What a good time that was. I’ve got more such outings planned. Who knows? Maybe I’ll see that hawk or owl again. I’m sure it’s out there.
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There’s nothing like being in the woods with a camera and losing track of time. I’m glad to hear you got the camera back and that you were able to get in the groove so quickly!
I’m still having a few hiccups along the way as far as remembering how to do certain things.
Glad you got the D300 back. i would miss it dearly if I had to send one in for repair. Do the folks who repaired the camera do a through tune-up on cameras when brought in for repair or do they just fix the problem and not check out the rest of the camera? I’m not sure what, if any, maintenance needs to be done on a camera that is a few years old and has been used a lot. Any ideas?
Ken, the folks at Nikon do a fine job. When you get it back, it looks like new. They repair, clean, and adjust it back to factory specs. It’s pretty impressive. Here’s what the did, according to the invoice:
Replace Connector FPC
Replace Lens PC
Replace Rubber Grip
Replace Rewind Side Rubber
Adjust mirror angle
Adjust Auto Focus operation
Checked Communication
Clean CCD
When I got it back, it looked brand, spakin’ new and the camera was wrapped very well in plastic and surrounded by bubble wrap.
Usually, manufacturers recommend a CLA, Clean, Lubricate, Adjust every few years. I would imagine if you sent it back to the manufacturer, they would do similar things as they did to mine, such as adjusting the mirror, cleaning the sensor, adjusting the auto focus, etc.
I can’t bear the thought of being without my DSLR, which is why I have a back-up (older model) and a back-up to that one (still older model). The oldest one had to go back while under warranty and I was lost. Fortunately, my repair took only a very short time. But, I didn’t want to be stuck like that again.
Congratulations on reuniting with the D300. It sounds as though you will be having a wonderful time during the repeat of the getting-to-know-you phase. This photos certainly proves that you are off to a smashing start.
You sound very prepared, Anita. I had extra cameras, but not an extra DSLR. You don’t know how close I was from buying a used Nikon D90, just to have a back up. So very close. LOL – It felt really good feeling the heft of the D300 in my hands again and, as you said, entering that getting-to-know-you phase again. We are on pretty familiar terms, now, that D300 and I. I think that she needs a name. I shall have to consider that … =)
As freeing as it is to shoot without a tripod, there is a welcomed feeling of control and concentration that seems to come back when we use it again. Definitely a love-hate relationship! Same with DSLRs – although I like my point and shoots for their simplicity and light weight, I still don’t feel I compose as intently with them.
I like my DSLR mainly for the depth of field control that I get with the various lenses. With the P&S, I sometimes get tired of that infinite depth of field. Give me blur!!! As for the tripod, it’s rare that I dislike it, but sometimes it can be annoying, but I’m usually glad that I brought it along.
Totally agree with Mark, I take more time with the DSLR than I do the G12. I got my D300 back in two weeks with everything working spiffy. I also think putting my camera on the tripod, or even a fence post, sure causes me to take more time and see. I do use the G12 for different images than I do the D300. Glad you have the beast back.
Yes. It is nice to have the beast back. I’ve also started playing with my lighting setup again, too. Nice to have the camera back and control of the lights.
I see that Nikon brought out 2 new cameras, the D4 and D800. Neither interest me; however, the price drop of the D700 after the release of the D800 might entice me. LOL I’ve been waiting for that to happen for a couple of years!
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