Big boy camera

[Soccerkid830]

I decided it's time to move up in the world of cameras and photography. Currently I use this and am looking for a semi-decent d-SLR. I've done a little looking around and it seems that Nikon is the way to go.

I've been looking at the D5100 and the D3200. Although the D3200 is the new version of the 3100, it seems like the older 5100 still would be better overall.

Anybody with decent knowledge that could shed some light here would be great. Any inputs or suggestions are always welcome!

 

[j_garcia]

Even though I owned a Nikon 35mm camera, I've always been a fan of Canon's image processors for digital. Even in their point and shoot cameras, the pictures seemed to be superior color wise. I haven't looked into DSLRs because of price and size, so that may not be the case in that realm. I plan on moving to a mirrorless 4/3rds instead of a DSLR. Less pricey, more compact and image sensors on par with DSLRs. I was waiting to see what Canon's version was like, but the review says it is average compared to its peers. A friend who is a amateur photographer has a Samsung NX200 that actually takes pretty decent pictures, so I have been considering the new NX210. Amazon.com: Samsung NX210 Kit Black 20.3-megapixel Digital Camera with 18-55mm Lens: SAMSUNG: Camera & Photo

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I own D40 and love it. The only thing which slightly bothers me is Nikon (and I think Canon does that too - not sure) limits most of lower end bodies like 3xxx and 5xxx to motor auto-focus lens only - this means any older lens would not autofocus....
Its important since there hundreds of excellent older lens which one could get for pennies

I always shoot in RAW and process all my images in DxO Optics pro software - which does great job fixing many many issues of cheaper lens

Maybe you could find good deal on D80 or D90 - keep in mind - one of the most important feature of DLSR is low-light performance - my D40 does great job due to big sensor and few megapixels - very good noise ratio

 

[afterlife2]

I went from Nikon to Canon and have not looked back. I love my Canon 30D. I bought it used in mint condition about 4 years ago on a canon forum and never looked back. No need for an upgrade it does everything pretty well. I highly recommend it and can be found for $350.00-450.00 used. Fuji is great too for fantastic colors.

 

[Soccerkid830]

Even though I owned a Nikon 35mm camera, I've always been a fan of Canon's image processors for digital. Even in their point and shoot cameras, the pictures seemed to be superior color wise. I haven't looked into DSLRs because of price and size, so that may not be the case in that realm. I plan on moving to a mirrorless 4/3rds instead of a DSLR. Less pricey, more compact and image sensors on par with DSLRs. I was waiting to see what Canon's version was like, but the review says it is average compared to its peers. A friend who is a amateur photographer has a Samsung NX200 that actually takes pretty decent pictures, so I have been considering the new NX210. Amazon.com: Samsung NX210 Kit Black 20.3-megapixel Digital Camera with 18-55mm Lens: SAMSUNG: Camera & Photo

I looked into these new mirrorless cameras and decided to just go with a DSLR. I'll have my P&S for just carrying around wherever, but I think a DSLR is what I'm looking for at this time. However, I did get to play with a Nikon 1 a few weeks ago and enjoyed it.

Maybe you could find good deal on D80 or D90 - keep in mind - one of the most important feature of DLSR is low-light performance - my D40 does great job due to big sensor and few megapixels - very good noise ratio

That's one of the main reasons I'm actually looking into a better camera, I'm sick of not being able to take a picture after the sun gets remotely close to the lower half of the horizon.
The D5100 has the same DX sensor as the D40 it looks like, although with a higher MP count. Would this bring noticeably extra noise and grain into shots?
What lens do you typically use for darker shots?

I went from Nikon to Canon and have not looked back. I love my Canon 30D. I bought it used in mint condition about 4 years ago on a canon forum and never looked back. No need for an upgrade it does everything pretty well. I highly recommend it and can be found for $350.00-450.00 used. Fuji is great too for fantastic colors.

I was looking at Canon's for a while, including a T3i. No offense to you, or Mac owners for that matter, but I've heard Nikon is to Canon as PC is to Mac in terms of usability and functionality. Where Nikon has tons of bells and whistles and can do anything you want but might be a bit more challenging to figure out. While Canon's are more click and go while not having much flexibility.


Thanks for the suggestions from everybody so far! Any other photography buffs care to weigh in?

 

[Midwesthonky]

I decided it's time to move up in the world of cameras and photography. Currently I use this and am looking for a semi-decent d-SLR. I've done a little looking around and it seems that Nikon is the way to go.

I've been looking at the D5100 and the D3200. Although the D3200 is the new version of the 3100, it seems like the older 5100 still would be better overall.

Anybody with decent knowledge that could shed some light here would be great. Any inputs or suggestions are always welcome!

I'm no help to you. I upgraded to the Canon Rebel T3i and love it. I'm not an expert so I use the auto settings mostly and have gotten some really great shots. I need to learn how to use the manual settings at some point, but life keeps getting in the way. We have always had great performance out of our Canon digital cameras so I tend to stick that way.

 

[afterlife2]

I was looking at Canon's for a while, including a T3i. No offense to you, or Mac owners for that matter, but I've heard Nikon is to Canon as PC is to Mac in terms of usability and functionality. Where Nikon has tons of bells and whistles and can do anything you want but might be a bit more challenging to figure out. While Canon's are more click and go while not having much flexibility.

No offense taken, but you're going by hearsay. If you're near a Ritz camera I'd try both and then decide. I've owned D70, D70s and D300 and IMHO Canon wins, while Fuji has the better colors overall.

 

[Soccerkid830]

No offense taken, but you're going by hearsay. If you're near a Ritz camera I'd try both and then decide. I've owned D70, D70s and D300 and IMHO Canon wins, while Fuji has the better colors overall.

You are entirely correct.

I don't have anything near me. I'm pretty isolated in the UP of Michigan. Green Bay, WI is the closest decently sized city at ~200 miles away. It'd be nice if everything wasn't so far away, including audio stuff.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

That's one of the main reasons I'm actually looking into a better camera, I'm sick of not being able to take a picture after the sun gets remotely close to the lower half of the horizon.
The D5100 has the same DX sensor as the D40 it looks like, although with a higher MP count. Would this bring noticeably extra noise and grain into shots?
What lens do you typically use for darker shots?

I hate Ken Rockwell, but his site does has decent information. He didn't invented America as pretends he did

For low light - you want: Faster Lens aka smaller F number - F2.4 is better than F4.5

Also Image stabilization is also nice to have

 

[avnetguy]

Either Nikon or Canon will do, both have comparable models and performance. I shoot with Canon, my brother shoots with NIkon ... same s**t different pile as both systems can do (mostly) what the other does.

The first big question is what do you want to do with your DSLR? Alot of people get lured into a DSLR only to have it sit at home because they no longer want to lug the "gear" around after the novelty wears off.

The first thing to look at is what lenses each system (Canon/Nikon) has to offer that'll fit your purpose. Buying a body is usually on the cheaper side of things, the glass (lenses) is normally where the real costs come in. Since you mentioned low light shooting, good, fast lenses are not cheap. As an example, a EFS 17-55 f2.8 IS for a Canon crop body will set you back a grand, tele-zoom for low light $1300 (almost double that if you want IS on it).

I'm not trying to scare you off, seriously, photography is alot of fun but like so many other hobbies it can be expensive when you want good results. Part of getting good results are from the hardware, having the right gear for the shot matters. The biggest part is coming from you, understanding light, DOF and handling your gear correctly are huge factors.

Steve

 

[mike c]

AFAIK, the nikon bodies are very affordable and full featured as opposed to canon bodies.

BUT where i am, nikon lenses cost an arm and a leg as compared to canon lenses.

and since you only buy one camera and multiple lenses, i would recommend canon.

entry level crop, i'd kill for a 650D/t4i right now

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I was looking at Canon's for a while, including a T3i. No offense to you, or Mac owners for that matter, but I've heard Nikon is to Canon as PC is to Mac in terms of usability and functionality. Where Nikon has tons of bells and whistles and can do anything you want but might be a bit more challenging to figure out. While Canon's are more click and go while not having much flexibility.

Like I said before - I don't use any PC or MAC/Nikon or Canon "bells and whistles " - Just shoot RAW to SD card and Process it with DxO Optics has a version for both mac/pc

My manager has Canon 5D and I think he uses Adobe LightRoom - I tried it, but I prefer DxO

There are also aspect of using DLSR as a video camera - there are some models which do a better job than others... I don't much about it since Its not my thing

also you probably know - one of better sites for photo equipment review is Digital Photography Review

 

[Soccerkid830]

I've been reading a lot about photography and lenses and such over the past few weeks and am starting to understand all the mumbo jumbo associated with it. I do realize the costs of lenses outweighs the body cost several times over.

I'm thinking about pulling the trigger this afternoon once I get home from classes on a camera and maybe a lens or two. We'll see what the bottom line comes out to be...


Thanks for all the suggestions everybody! And feel free to lay more out on the table. I'm obviously very new in the field of photography and any help is more than welcome.

 

[j_garcia]

I'm looking at 4/3rds because I already know I don't need a DSLR for what I want to do, and there are enough lenses for the bodies I am looking at to easily handle my requirements. I do use manual settings, but not always, though the typical P&S is probably not sufficient for what I want as well. We have a number of P&S cameras already and I am not happy with them aside from my Canon. I never would have thought of Samsung either, but my friend has his full DSLR and 35MM SLRs and he uses the Samsung as his P&S

 

[deedubb]

I really don't think you can go wrong with Nikon or Canon. They each have their fanboys, just like in audio, or Mac vs PC etc. If you know someone who is willing to loan you lenses, that might sway your decision because that is really the biggest cost of DSLR ownership. If you really have no preference, then just flip a coin and do it. I'm sure you'll be happy either way. I went with Nikon but not for any specific reason. Back in the days of film, I had a Canon SLR.

 

[Soccerkid830]

I ended up going with a refurbished Nikon D5100. The refurb comes with the same warranty and was almost $200 cheaper. I also got a 18-55mm f/3.5 lens, 55-200mm f/4-5.6, and a 35mm f/1.8 lens.

The different things all come with a bunch of random junk that might be useful once I start playing around with it a bit more but those are the main things.

Thank you everyone for the inputs! Maybe I'll get some decent shots up on here sometime.

 

[Matt34]

I ended up going with a refurbished Nikon D5100. The refurb comes with the same warranty and was almost $200 cheaper. I also got a 18-55mm f/3.5 lens, 55-200mm f/4-5.6, and a 35mm f/1.8 lens.

The different things all come with a bunch of random junk that might be useful once I start playing around with it a bit more but those are the main things.

Thank you everyone for the inputs! Maybe I'll get some decent shots up on here sometime.

Nice! I just picked up a Olympus Pen E-PM1 myself.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Nice! I just picked up a Olympus Pen E-PM1 myself.

Yea, I think micro 4/3rds is the way to go. For $350 it's a good deal

 

[Adam]

Congrats on the new camera! Please let us know what you think of it once you get a chance to check it out.

 

[Sheep]

I looked into these new mirrorless cameras and decided to just go with a DSLR. I'll have my P&S for just carrying around wherever, but I think a DSLR is what I'm looking for at this time. However, I did get to play with a Nikon 1 a few weeks ago and enjoyed it.



That's one of the main reasons I'm actually looking into a better camera, I'm sick of not being able to take a picture after the sun gets remotely close to the lower half of the horizon.
The D5100 has the same DX sensor as the D40 it looks like, although with a higher MP count. Would this bring noticeably extra noise and grain into shots?
What lens do you typically use for darker shots?



I was looking at Canon's for a while, including a T3i. No offense to you, or Mac owners for that matter, but I've heard Nikon is to Canon as PC is to Mac in terms of usability and functionality. Where Nikon has tons of bells and whistles and can do anything you want but might be a bit more challenging to figure out. While Canon's are more click and go while not having much flexibility.


Thanks for the suggestions from everybody so far! Any other photography buffs care to weigh in?

Nikon is what I shoot. I prefer the one lens mount for backwards compatibility. That's the biggest selling point for me, as glass makes the biggest difference.

One thing to note about trickling down with Nikon. I have the D5000, which is a stripped down D90. The D5100 would be a stripped D7000. Not a D40. A D40, while still capable, is no where NEAR as feature laden.

I think jumping into a D90 would not be a bad idea. Just read like a madman and get yourself familiar. A local photography course would do you a world of good if you really don't understand what's going on and why. I took one after I had already figured it out on my own, and ended up being the teachers aid (She was prego, it was my fault).

Sheepstar