What size of memory card do I need?

I just bought a Nikon D300 camera. I have a Nikon D70 for land pictures and found my 512MB cards adequate. However with the 12.3 megapixel DX format I am going to need more memory. What do I need for memory? Is 4GB enough or should I go to 8GB? I don't think 16GB is necessary. I am planning on downloading my pictures at the end of the day onto my Coolwalker MSV-01 storage viewer (30 GB). Is this enough storage for an average one week trip or do I also have to carry my lap top computer along?

Thanks,

Shane

Shooting RAW you will get 450 shots on a 12GB card.

Paul C

I use 2 8GB cards. You can get very fast 8GB cards, while larger cards are significantly slower. On a typical day in SE-Asia i would probably be able to use 1 card for several days without downloading, but it all depends on your own shooting habits.

I think there are 2 schools of thought on the size of cards. Some believe having a big card means all the eggs in one basket and if you don't d/l after every dive... if they fail, your work is history. On the other hand, being able to shoot 4-500 shots a dive is a boon for action etc shots. Some strobes can keep up with 400 shots at full blast (my Inons with a fresh set of batteries for eg.) and the less you mess with the housing for battery/card changing the safer it is.

As Cor says, how large the capacity of the card also depends on how much you shoot. I know quite a few people who are -2 to +2 EV bracket shooters, taking 5 shots for every subject. They need the capacity. Your mileage will vary with your shooting style.

For topside on my Canon 1D, I use 1 16GB CF and 1 16GB SD. Underwater, I keep 8GB on each format. I also switch when I'm shooting natural light at high FPS.

if you don't use Drew's machine gun spray n pray technique , a couple 4GB would probably do with a 10-12mp camera in RAW for a days worth of diving (4GB per day, swapping out at end of the day)... But given how cheap CF cards are, maybe get 2x8GB...

I'm with pakman. I just got back from my first trip with my Canon 40D. I took 2 4GB cards and it was fine. I got about 270 shots on a card. I'm thinking of getting an 8GB as my primary, just in case there's a long day with lots of good stuff or I go machine gun

Thanks for all the good advice.

I think I will go with two CF Extreme IV 8GB cards. Plenty fast and lots of memory. It is better to be safe than sorry and have too much memory than not enough. This will cost $500, but should be worth the investment.

Thanks,

Shane

Just me, but I'd go generic on the cards. $500 seems like a lot of money. I just purchased two generic 8G cards off Ebay for $80. I just came back from a trip and was satisfied with their performance. On your storage for the week, 30G will be cutting it close.

Just me, but I'd go generic on the cards. $500 seems like a lot of money. I just purchased two generic 8G cards off Ebay for $80. I just came back from a trip and was satisfied with their performance. On your storage for the week, 30G will be cutting it close.

Gary;

How fast were the cards you just got? I saw Compact Flash Extreme IV (40MB/sec) at $219 Canadian, which I thought was a deal.

Shane

Thanks for all the good advice.

I think I will go with two CF Extreme IV 8GB cards. Plenty fast and lots of memory. It is better to be safe than sorry and have too much memory than not enough. This will cost $500, but should be worth the investment.

Thanks,

Shane

I picked up 2 8GB Extreme III CF cards for $200.00 + $100.00 mail in rebate. For $50.00 a card, I don't think it makes sense to go smaller (or bigger right now due to price point).

Sandisk has rebates offers again (at least in the states). 4gb - $30, 8gb - $50 for Extreme IV's.

Which retailer? Thanks.

I'd been real happy with the Ritek Lightning Series CF (233x). Dirt cheap here in HK and pretty reliable. Haven't had any corrupt files or transfer problems.

The 8GB one's now go for less than US$40 in the states.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820183189

Sandisk has rebates offers again (at least in the states). 4gb - $30, 8gb - $50 for Extreme IV's.

Hi!

Can you tell me where you get the 8GB Extreme IV for 50 bucks? Flying over to Houston in a few weeks and would be handy to get hold of such an offer, they are 170Euros here from what I have seen.

Cheers, Wolfgang

I used a couple of Extreme III 4GB cards with my D70 and I could easily do two dives without changing the card. I was using them with my D300 until just recently when I went to a single Extreme III 8GB card which will allow me at least 2 dives (but up to 4) on a single card.