Auto Mode (8.5)
The automatic mode on the Nikon D70 takes away the responsibility of adjusting each setting for optimal exposures. If you don’t know too much about camera settings or you’re just having a lazy day, the auto mode will come in handy to obtain a well balanced image. Unlike the Canon EOS Digital Rebel the Nikon D70 gives you the option to adjust each setting – image size, image quality, shooting mode, flash sync, speedlight, auto focus, and AF assist – if you choose, but it will think for you otherwise.
Drive / Burst Mode (8.5)
The Nikon D70 offers an impressive five drive modes to choose from when shooting: single, continuous, self-timer, delayed remote, and quick-response remote. Single mode is the default for taking one frame at a time. In theory, there is no delay between shots, allowing the user to click away without waiting for the camera. This is typically the case; however, if you’re shooting in a very large format or your CF card is almost full, you might have to wait a bit for images to be properly stored. In continuous shooting mode, the Nikon D70 captures 3 fps (frames per second) when you hold down the shutter button, which surpasses the Canon EOS Digital Rebel's rate of 2.5 fps. This mode is great for situations in which your finger can’t move as fast as the scene in front you. The self-timer mode on the Nikon D70 offers four time options to choose from: 2, 5, 10, and 20 seconds. This blows the competition away, considering that the Canon EOS Digital Rebel and the Canon 10D only offer 10 seconds for self-timing. I can’t understand why Canon would limit their users so much. If you want to take self-portraits, the Nikon D70 is definitely the better option.
The Nikon D70 has two available options for using an optional ML-L3 remote: delayed and quick response. Delayed remote gives a 2 second delay between focusing and taking an image, which makes it good for self portraits too. The quick response takes the image immediately after focusing.
Playback Mode (8.5)
The Nikon D70’s playback options function like most digital cameras. As with all other SLR digital cameras, the D70 remains in shooting mode to allow for shooting at any time without stopping to switch modes. To view single images, press the playback button and use the up and down buttons on the multi-selector to browse through your card. This takes some getting used to. It is my natural instinct to want to browse using the right and left arrow buttons, and I still wonder why Nikon chose to set it up this way. For each image, if you press the right or left arrow buttons, you can view the image information: file information, shooting data, and histogram. You can also view your images in thumbnail form by pressing the thumbnail button, zoom in on images by pressing the playback zoom button, protect an image from being deleted or remove protection by pressing the protect button, delete images with the delete button, or view menu options through the menu button. To end your playback session, you can simply press the playback button again or press the shutter button halfway down.
Movie Mode (0.0)
The Nikon D70, like other digital SLR cameras, does not offer a movie mode.
Custom Image Presets (7.5)
The Nikon D70 Digital-Vari program offers a wide variety of image optimization options available in program, manual, shutter, and aperture priority modes. You can choose from normal, vivid, sharp, soft, direct print, portrait, and landscape to optimize their settings according to image type. Within custom, you are given the opportunity to adjust sharpness, contrast, color reproduction, saturation, and hue. Most people won’t bother adjusting these settings for the majority of their pictures, especially since the default settings usually do a pretty good job, but it’s nice to have all the options there when you want them.
