I know, only I can answer that question. I've had a hard time making the transition from film to digital, and it's not IQ, but the change in perspective that stymies me. My current dSLR is D80/16-85 zoom. Left over from my film days are just about all the 2.8 AI/AIS primes from 24 mm to 200 mm plus two good zooms - 28-105 and 75-150. These are all much faster than the 16-85 I'm currently using, and all come back to life on the FX700.

Yes, $3,000, is a lot of money, but there are no additional lenses to purchase. It actually becomes more economical than adding new fast lenses to the D80 or a D300.

My only hangup (besides price) is the size. I do a lot of backpack/nature/trekkinng/travel type stuff where small size and not being conspicuous are important.

All things considered, this seems to be the first dSLR I'm actually excited about purchasing.

"My only hangup (besides price) is the size" - see a comparison side-by-side between the D80, D300 & D700.

An animated gif comparing the size of a D300 to the D700:

Also a D300 vs. D80.