Nikon DSLR gurus

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/9/2008 1:28:07 AM
Author: decodelighted
No hijacksies but ... Happy Belated 2nd Anny! My near wedding date twin

Hey Deco!

I actually thought of you on your wedding anni and was going to post a thread congratulating you! But I don't think either of us are the type to shout it from the mountaintops on Pricescope, are we?

Hope you had a great one Deco, and congrats to you and Decoshub!!

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/9/2008 1:32:32 AM
Author: strmrdr
Both make good cameras.
I will likely end up using a sigma lens on either one I get.
The sigma 17-70 or 18-50 combined with the sigma 150 macro is the combo I want with either a Nikon or Canon body.
One lens I would miss that Nikon don''t have is a kicken 70-200 f/4 IS.
The various 70-200 f/2.8s are to big and heavy for a travel lens and the lower end variable max aperture lens aren''t that great on the long end in low light.
In good light the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO Macro is nice for a lot of people.

I am not sure how my 18-200 will perform in low light so I did buy a speedlight to play with how things look with bounced flash. It''s gotta be better than what I am doing now!!

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 10/9/2008 1:40:25 AM
Author: TravelingGal

I am not sure how my 18-200 will perform in low light so I did buy a speedlight to play with how things look with bounced flash. It''s gotta be better than what I am doing now!!

It will be fine and if you hit its limits you can always add another lens...

A great photo does not begin in the camera it begins in the mind and spirit of the photographer.
When you have captured the shot in your mind before you raise the camera you will have achieved the zen of photography that most will never have and never know what they miss.

 

[sbde]

tgal and strmrdr: thank you so much for your thorough and detailed reviews.

i am definitely leaning more towards the XSi now, and may take your advise tgal to see what sorts of deals come up around Xmas. the plan is to get the camera before my little one arrives early next year so there is still a bit of time.

 

[MonkeyPie]

Date: 10/9/2008 1:32:32 AM
Author: strmrdr
Both make good cameras.
I will likely end up using a sigma lens on either one I get.
The sigma 17-70 or 18-50 combined with the sigma 150 macro is the combo I want with either a Nikon or Canon body.
One lens I would miss that Nikon don''t have is a kicken 70-200 f/4 IS.
The various 70-200 f/2.8s are to big and heavy for a travel lens and the lower end variable max aperture lens aren''t that great on the long end in low light.
In good light the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO Macro is nice for a lot of people.

I have this one, and it is manual on my camera. I like it a lot, but I LOATHE how far away I have to stand from my subject. Plus what tends to look good in my viewfinder is not so clear and perfect once taken. Something to think about.

I''m going to start saving up for an 18-200mm so I can shoot all the stuff I like the best without having to stand 6 feet away

 

[omieluv]

Hey Tgal, congrats on your decision, you are going to take fantastic shots with it!! Love your other pictures, me thinks someone is very talented

Today, I went to my local camera store to play. After holding several DSLRs, I dound that the grip on the D90 does not suit my hands and found the D80 to be more comfortable by comparison. When holding the D90, I felt as if my fingers were straining and my hand started hurting. Perhaps I would get used to it, but the D80 felt more natural to me. I found this very strange, as both cameras are very close in size.

When does your camera arrive? Are you excited??

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/12/2008 2:28:30 AM
Author: omieluv
Hey Tgal, congrats on your decision, you are going to take fantastic shots with it!! Love your other pictures, me thinks someone is very talented

Today, I went to my local camera store to play. After holding several DSLRs, I dound that the grip on the D90 does not suit my hands and found the D80 to be more comfortable by comparison. When holding the D90, I felt as if my fingers were straining and my hand started hurting. Perhaps I would get used to it, but the D80 felt more natural to me. I found this very strange, as both cameras are very close in size.

When does your camera arrive? Are you excited??

Omie, sometimes nuances make a difference. I do believe the body changed a little from the 80-90, so probably that little bit is enough for you. And the heft might have also changed. Are you going to buy it? Lots of good deals right now on the 80 and since it''s discontinued, I''d buy while you can...all the camera stores in my area are out. People are snapping them out because it is a well loved model. That''s what got me into this whole thing to begin with.

I got my stuff yesterday (except for the speedlight and crumpler bag) after I came back from my biz trip! Love it! It''s heavy with the 18-200 but still feels great. Glad I got the D40 because I think with all the weight I would not have wielded the 80 very well.

I got a "factory demo" (i.e. Nikon refurb) from Cameta and I think it is fine. I paid $275 for the body only and it came with 3800 shutter clicks already taken. I hear some of their demos have no shots on it, others over 10,000, so I am satisified. If I wanted a new camera, I would have had to pay 150 more and gotten it new. It is in mint condition.

It also does have one hot/stuck red pixel at high ISOs. I can''t find it on my regular pics, but it is there. I read up on it and I guess almost every camera can have them at one point or another, so I am not going to send the camera back of have it remapped at this time. Anyone else have any experiece with hot pixels?

Other than that, IQ looks great and I think the camera has a lot of potential!!!

 

[omieluv]

Date: 10/12/2008 11:12:37 AM
Author: TravelingGal
Omie, sometimes nuances make a difference. I do believe the body changed a little from the 80-90, so probably that little bit is enough for you. And the heft might have also changed. Are you going to buy it? Lots of good deals right now on the 80 and since it''s discontinued, I''d buy while you can...all the camera stores in my area are out. People are snapping them out because it is a well loved model. That''s what got me into this whole thing to begin with.

I got my stuff yesterday (except for the speedlight and crumpler bag) after I came back from my biz trip! Love it! It''s heavy with the 18-200 but still feels great. Glad I got the D40 because I think with all the weight I would not have wielded the 80 very well.

I got a ''factory demo'' (i.e. Nikon refurb) from Cameta and I think it is fine. I paid $275 for the body only and it came with 3800 shutter clicks already taken. I hear some of their demos have no shots on it, others over 10,000, so I am satisified. If I wanted a new camera, I would have had to pay 150 more and gotten it new. It is in mint condition.

It also does have one hot/stuck red pixel at high ISOs. I can''t find it on my regular pics, but it is there. I read up on it and I guess almost every camera can have them at one point or another, so I am not going to send the camera back of have it remapped at this time. Anyone else have any experiece with hot pixels?

Other than that, IQ looks great and I think the camera has a lot of potential!!!

How exciting, you camera has finally arrived!! You got a very good deal on your D40 and I am happy to hear that it is in great condition for being sold as reconditioned. $275 is a great price, considering there are a good number of point and shoot cameras that cost at least $300 brand new, which I am sure you are aware of. Once you learn the limitations of the 18-200 lens, I am sure you are going to have fun with it.

Though the D80 is a great price,but I am not sure if I am going to buy it. This was not the camera I wanted, so either I make peace with its limitations in comparison to the D90,or I consider D40/D60. For the price you paid for your D40, that would really leave room in the budget for a nice lens + accessories, which I think was part of your logic anyway. I will check out pricing at Cameta and think about it some more.

After you get the hang of the D40, please post pictures, I am sure they will be great!!

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/12/2008 4:12:22 PM
Author: omieluv

Date: 10/12/2008 11:12:37 AM
Author: TravelingGal
Omie, sometimes nuances make a difference. I do believe the body changed a little from the 80-90, so probably that little bit is enough for you. And the heft might have also changed. Are you going to buy it? Lots of good deals right now on the 80 and since it''s discontinued, I''d buy while you can...all the camera stores in my area are out. People are snapping them out because it is a well loved model. That''s what got me into this whole thing to begin with.

I got my stuff yesterday (except for the speedlight and crumpler bag) after I came back from my biz trip! Love it! It''s heavy with the 18-200 but still feels great. Glad I got the D40 because I think with all the weight I would not have wielded the 80 very well.

I got a ''factory demo'' (i.e. Nikon refurb) from Cameta and I think it is fine. I paid $275 for the body only and it came with 3800 shutter clicks already taken. I hear some of their demos have no shots on it, others over 10,000, so I am satisified. If I wanted a new camera, I would have had to pay 150 more and gotten it new. It is in mint condition.

It also does have one hot/stuck red pixel at high ISOs. I can''t find it on my regular pics, but it is there. I read up on it and I guess almost every camera can have them at one point or another, so I am not going to send the camera back of have it remapped at this time. Anyone else have any experiece with hot pixels?

Other than that, IQ looks great and I think the camera has a lot of potential!!!

How exciting, you camera has finally arrived!! You got a very good deal on your D40 and I am happy to hear that it is in great condition for being sold as reconditioned. $275 is a great price, considering there are a good number of point and shoot cameras that cost at least $300 brand new, which I am sure you are aware of. Once you learn the limitations of the 18-200 lens, I am sure you are going to have fun with it.

Though the D80 is a great price,but I am not sure if I am going to buy it. This was not the camera I wanted, so either I make peace with its limitations in comparison to the D90,or I consider D40/D60. For the price you paid for your D40, that would really leave room in the budget for a nice lens + accessories, which I think was part of your logic anyway. I will check out pricing at Cameta and think about it some more.

After you get the hang of the D40, please post pictures, I am sure they will be great!!

Check out their auctions on ebay. You can type in D40 body only and a bunch of them should come up. They had been going for about 300 in the last couple of weeks, but the last two went for $267 and $258, so maybe weekends are a better time to try.

 

[EricaR]

LOVE this thread! I''ve been debating which Nikon to get for a while now. The Nikons just feel better in my hands vs a Canon. I think I''ve decided on the D60 - I like the extra megapixels over the D40. I do quite a few outside/nature shots that end up being cropped quite a bit so the extra size will be useful. Now I just need to pick some lenses...

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/15/2008 12:19:21 AM
Author: EricaR
LOVE this thread! I''ve been debating which Nikon to get for a while now. The Nikons just feel better in my hands vs a Canon. I think I''ve decided on the D60 - I like the extra megapixels over the D40. I do quite a few outside/nature shots that end up being cropped quite a bit so the extra size will be useful. Now I just need to pick some lenses...

Glad to hear it''s been of help! I almost went with the D60 too, but it would have gone way over budget with the lens I wanted.

Can you do me a favor and not post a pic of giant spiders on this thread?

I now have to wait until the other thread goes to the next page...I am really grossed out by spiders, so a huge picture of one had me running for the hills!!

 

[EricaR]

Sorry about that!!!

I''m usually scared of them too, but this one was pretty neat and didn''t try to kill me and suck my brains out.

 

[MonkeyPie]

Date: 10/15/2008 12:29:17 AM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 10/15/2008 12:19:21 AM
Author: EricaR
LOVE this thread! I''ve been debating which Nikon to get for a while now. The Nikons just feel better in my hands vs a Canon. I think I''ve decided on the D60 - I like the extra megapixels over the D40. I do quite a few outside/nature shots that end up being cropped quite a bit so the extra size will be useful. Now I just need to pick some lenses...

Glad to hear it''s been of help! I almost went with the D60 too, but it would have gone way over budget with the lens I wanted.

Can you do me a favor and not post a pic of giant spiders on this thread?

I now have to wait until the other thread goes to the next page...I am really grossed out by spiders, so a huge picture of one had me running for the hills!!

OMG me too! It''s fascinating in one way, but I am SO freaked out by them. I got this creepy feeling when I saw it rofl.

When do we get to see some shots with your spiffy new camera TGal? I am about to go browsing for Cameta, they sound awesome. And I want an 18-200mm SO BAD.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/15/2008 11:07:58 AM
Author: MonkeyPie

Date: 10/15/2008 12:29:17 AM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 10/15/2008 12:19:21 AM
Author: EricaR
LOVE this thread! I''ve been debating which Nikon to get for a while now. The Nikons just feel better in my hands vs a Canon. I think I''ve decided on the D60 - I like the extra megapixels over the D40. I do quite a few outside/nature shots that end up being cropped quite a bit so the extra size will be useful. Now I just need to pick some lenses...

Glad to hear it''s been of help! I almost went with the D60 too, but it would have gone way over budget with the lens I wanted.

Can you do me a favor and not post a pic of giant spiders on this thread?

I now have to wait until the other thread goes to the next page...I am really grossed out by spiders, so a huge picture of one had me running for the hills!!

OMG me too! It''s fascinating in one way, but I am SO freaked out by them. I got this creepy feeling when I saw it rofl.

When do we get to see some shots with your spiffy new camera TGal? I am about to go browsing for Cameta, they sound awesome. And I want an 18-200mm SO BAD.

I posted a couple of quick test snaps in the mommy thread of my kid. Nothing fancy and still playing around with the focus and trying to get it sharp while she is in motion (the shots I took are of her going a bit wacky in her jumperoo so they are not as clear as I would like). I am going to try do some shooting in the next couple of weeks, but I am not taking a lot now in case I exchange the camera for another one.

Amazon just lowered their price on the 18-200. It''s 645.99 now.

 

[TravelingGal]

Just an update for anyone looking to buy from Camera. They sent over another camera after testing, and this one looks brand new. I tested it and it had only 53 shutter clicks and the pixels were fine. So I returned the other one and am very pleased with them! I''ll write again if anything goes wrong with my refund, but so far I am extremely impressed. They answer emails by the next day and are helpful.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

TGal, I need your help! My friend show has an awesome Nikon just gave me the pictures she took at T''s b-day. It is a magic camera and I want one!

First basic question how do you choose between canon and nikon? What lenses do I need? What is the best play to buy?

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 11/17/2008 1:05:44 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring
TGal, I need your help! My friend show has an awesome Nikon just gave me the pictures she took at T''s b-day. It is a magic camera and I want one!

First basic question how do you choose between canon and nikon? What lenses do I need? What is the best play to buy?

Which Nikon does she have? And with anything, a camera is only as good as its operator. Since you take great pics anyway, I''m sure you could make some magic too!

I chose Nikon vs Canon for comfort. I would say go over to a store and check them out firsthand. Most will have the Canon Xsi, Nikon D60 (same body as my D40) and the new D90. Hold them and mess around with the shutter and adjusting the focus. I found the Canon grip awkward but many like them. I also have small hands. There are also entry level model from Pentax and Sony that get good reviews.

Most entry level DSLR will come with a kit lens. Some kit lenses are good, others not so. Not sure if a newbie like you or me could really "tell" at this point. If it comes with two lenses, it will be something like an 18-55 and a 55-200. Those ranges should cover much of your basis needs, but also will mean you will have to swap out lenses depending on what you want to shoot. Using multiple lenses will also mean it''s a bit lighter weight vs a "walkaround" lens like mine which is 18-200 and pretty heavy. The downside is that you may not get the shot you want because the other lens isn''t on the camera.

Once you figure out what you want, the work begins to try and find the best price. Amazon (directly from them, and not a 3rd party...ask me if you don''t know the difference), Adorama, B&H photo are good places to start. I got my camera body from an ebay auction - Cametaauctions. They are totally reputable and I had a fantastic experience with them (I posted it on this thread). The best price for my lens was on Amazon. I got my camera bag from Adorama, so I was kind of all over the place.

Costco may have a special on what you want. I found that places like Best Buy and other mainstream electronics retailers sold pretty much at MAP (Minimum Advertised Price). With the holidays about to approach, who knows what crazy deals may surface. I posted not long ago that Costco had the Canon 850IS point and shoot AND a color photo printer for 249. I paid something like 350 for the camera alone last holiday season...and IMHO the 850 is still better than the later model!

Check out return policies as well. Cametaauctions actually offered refunds, which I was surprised about since it was an auction.

Give me an idea of which direction you want to go, and I''ll help you from there. I researched for what seemed like weeks on this and I am extremely pleased with my purchase. I have been a bit too busy to really study the book I bought, but even simply pointing and shooting the camera in auto mode have yielded far better results than my canon P&S ever did.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I have small hands too and like your idea about going to BB or something just to see how they feel in my hands. My neighbor also has a NIkon. She said she got it b/c their lenses were cheaper than canon. She has 3 lenses and an extra battery and spent $1,200. Not sure which model she has but I can find out. I will have to ask my other friend too. I know she got her''s from Wolf camera. I took a few photo classes in art school (we bought our supplies from B&H) but don''t remember any of it. Haha. I just want an awesome camera that takes good portraits.

 

[beau13]

Can't help..Avril Lavigne and I l LOVE the Canon Rebel XSI though!!

And, what a cool commercial that is!

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 11/17/2008 1:54:18 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring
I have small hands too and like your idea about going to BB or something just to see how they feel in my hands. My neighbor also has a NIkon. She said she got it b/c their lenses were cheaper than canon. She has 3 lenses and an extra battery and spent $1,200. Not sure which model she has but I can find out. I will have to ask my other friend too. I know she got her''s from Wolf camera. I took a few photo classes in art school (we bought our supplies from B&H) but don''t remember any of it. Haha. I just want an awesome camera that takes good portraits.

You also have to decide on what manner you will be taking portraits. Will it be close range, or do you want to take some good candid portraits with a zoom? I do think as they get older, you get some awesome shots when they think you are not looking, which means you have to be a fair distance away.

Also, post here or check out reseller ratings before you buy from a lesser known source. There are a ton of dodgy vendors out there who do a bait and switch. Stuff like posting a camera for super cheap and then alerting you that you need to call in to complete the order. They then do a hard sell on warranties and accessories, which have high margins.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I want a camera that will grow with me. T is on the move so much so I need to take action shots and still shots (for then she finally slows down). Stupid question but is the flash on the body or is that separate. I have a REALLY old Nikon 35 mm camera with a seperate flash. Do you think there will be deals closer to X-mas? You know I love a good deal

 

[omieluv]

Nikon dSLRs will have a built in flash, but, they are not the greatest. You will also want to budget for an external flash, if going the dSLR route (look into Nikon Speedlight 400+ models). My hands are smallish and I found the D90 to be a bit cumbersome as well. You might very well look into D40/60 with the D80 at the largest you might want to go. Though D40/60 models are considered to be "entry level" in terms of dSLR cameras, they will have enough features to grow with. You can get great deals on the D40 right now, so even if you happen to quickly master the camera, you would not have spend too much $$ & it makes a great back-up/travel camera too. Plus, if you stay with Nikon, you will be able to use lenses purchased for the D40 on higher models. Not sure if this is true, but I read that you can get good savings if you wait to buy in February.

 

[TravelingGal]

Tacori, the best part about my new camera is the separate speedlight I bought. I bought the 400 for about 100 bucks. The 600 would be better as the flash swivels up and sideways, but it just seemed too huge to me and more than I wanted to spend. Plus it takes 4 batteries vs 2. The 400 is light enough that I actually WILL take it around with me.

With the light bouncing off the ceiling, I am able to take a much less harsh looking photo and can catch faster motion. This is using the auto feature right now as I haven''t played with it too much. I am really glad I got the speedlight.

So if you invest in the DSLR, leave room in the budget for some extras because if you''re going to make the jump, might as well buy some of the stuff that helps make a difference.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Information overload...haha. I don''t need top of the line and would like to keepo it under 1K if possible. The external flash always seemed such a pain but I guess it is worth it for magazine quality photos.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 11/17/2008 6:11:12 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring
Information overload...haha. I don''t need top of the line and would like to keepo it under 1K if possible. The external flash always seemed such a pain but I guess it is worth it for magazine quality photos.

Well, mag quality depends on you, not the flash!

1K is absolutely doable DEPENDING on what camera body you want and lens. For instance, there are all kinds of deals on the D60 when I was looking. Costco had it plus the two lenses at 849. Add in the 400 speedlight and you''re under 1000.

Or, you could get a D40 body only for around 250 (depending on the ebay auction) but it would be a demo/refurb. Then you could add on what lenses you''d like. That is what I did.

Just did a search on the D80 at Amazon. They are old (only third party remains). Amazon had the best price on the D80, and I was sure it would sell out pretty soon.

We''ll help you Tacori, no worries. Go to the store first and fiddle with all the cameras. Tell us what felt nice, and we''ll go from there. Make sure you play with cameras with the lenses on. Keep in mind that the D40/60 do not have live view (which means taking a pic from the LCD) and the ones that do, do it less effectively than the P&S you have now. Personally, I like looking through the viewfinder. With the combo of DLSR and point and shoot, I feel like I can be ready for whatever.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Thanks TGal, I really do think I have a good eye so I just need the equipment to help me. That being said I am not look to go pro and would like something relatively easy to use. So you trust a demo/refurb? My FIL bought us a refurb canon video camera and we have had no problems with it (we have had it for a year and a half). The snob in me wants new but I want to be practical too. I will update you after I go to Best Buy and try some out. Might be awhile. Haha. The monkey does NOT do well shopping anymore.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 11/17/2008 6:25:11 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring
Thanks TGal, I really do think I have a good eye so I just need the equipment to help me. That being said I am not look to go pro and would like something relatively easy to use. So you trust a demo/refurb? My FIL bought us a refurb canon video camera and we have had no problems with it (we have had it for a year and a half). The snob in me wants new but I want to be practical too. I will update you after I go to Best Buy and try some out. Might be awhile. Haha. The monkey does NOT do well shopping anymore.

Yeah, I can understand not bringing babies to the shops!

I really think something like the D40/60 would work. Mine is considered an easy and sort of a "dummy" camera but you know what? It''s still way over my head and I have a lot to learn! I can see where the limitations might be but I have not hit them yet, nor will I for awhile. Which is why I bought the D40 refurb. If I decide I don''t want to invest more in this hobby, I am not out much on the camera. If I do decide I want to get a better camera, well then I am not out much on the camera!

Yes, I trust refurbs from the right source. Cameta gives you 9 extra months of their own warranty on top of the 1 year you get with the nikon warranty. Keep in mind that warranties by nikon are NOT transferrable, no matter what some person on craigslist or ebay tells you. They will only warranty the original owner.

More on this later...going to go check out that house I mentioned to you on the other thread.

 

[MonkeyPie]

I''m with TGal - the D40/D60 is entry-level for most camera users, and good enough to use without ever leaving the auto setting if you don''t want/need to try manual. I only run in manual, but it does take some learning! I''d start with auto first and get used to the buttons and menus before you change stuff. You can reset the settings, but it''s scary to get stuck in a setting and not know how to get back out (I admit it, I did that MANY times)!

If you have time to browse and read, try looking at the D40/x/D60 group forums - I post there a lot and they have LOTS of good info! I can''t link it, but you can find it real easy. (I forgot that is a forbodden word, whoops...it''s been a long day.)

 

[EricaR]

Wooo-hoooo! Just thought I''d bump this to say that I GOT MY CAMERA!! And I got a smoking deal!

D60, two kit lenses, bag, extra battery, 4gb high speed card, and two Nikon books = $550! (Well, $650 really, but I had a $100 gift card from Costco since they accidently put the wrong tires on my car a few weeks back and I had to bring it back in.)

Of course, my FI won''t let me open it until Christmas. So it sits there, in the box, mocking me.

My original budget was $1000 so I''ve still got a bit of $$ to play with for a flash or I can save it up and buy the 18-200 lens.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 12/2/2008 11:18:43 AM
Author: EricaR
Wooo-hoooo! Just thought I''d bump this to say that I GOT MY CAMERA!! And I got a smoking deal!

D60, two kit lenses, bag, extra battery, 4gb high speed card, and two Nikon books = $550! (Well, $650 really, but I had a $100 gift card from Costco since they accidently put the wrong tires on my car a few weeks back and I had to bring it back in.)

Of course, my FI won''t let me open it until Christmas. So it sits there, in the box, mocking me.

My original budget was $1000 so I''ve still got a bit of $$ to play with for a flash or I can save it up and buy the 18-200 lens.

That''s a great deal! Is that costco or costco.com? Tacori is looking right now and 650 for all that would be the deal to beat. I only see it for 750 at costco.com without all the stuff you mentioned?