Confused over which way to go! (D5600, P900 or B700)

Michael55345

Michael55345

New member
Hi and happy Monday! Any thoughts or recommendations on the D5600? I saw that Amazon has dropped the price for the body and two kit lenses (18-55mm & 70-300mm) to $796.95 and that seems like a good deal. Here’s the thing for me: I love going for walks and drives and taking pictures (nature, people, architecture) but I’m not what you’d call a photographer like I think many of you here are. I’m strictly a hobbyist. I’ve never used a DSLR so if I got the D5600 there’d be a (steep?) learning curve and I’m not sure if I like the idea of carrying lenses with me whenever I go out. So I’m wondering if I should take the plunge and buy the D5600 or if it wouldn’t be a better idea for me to go with something like the P900 or the B700. Any thoughts on either of those two models? Thanks for reading and any insights and suggestions are much appreciated!
 
hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
I don't know anything about the P900 or the B700, but if you decide on the D5600 combo kit, B&H has it with a SanDisk memory card and a Ruggard shoulder bag. Not that I want to be an enabler. ;)
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1308913-REG/nikon_d5600_dslr_camera_with.html

B&H also has the P900 with a free accessory kit.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1132320-REG/nikon_coolpix_p900_digital_camera.html

And here is B&H's B700. They offer 2 optional kits along with just the camera, but no freebies that I can see.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1234131-REG/nikon_26510_coolpix_b700_digital_camera.html

Personally I prefer B&H over Amazon when it comes to electronics even though I'm an Amazon Prime customer. I live about 90 minutes from NYC. Any orders from B&H that are sent via expedited shipping come by UPS. I'm waiting on a WD My Passport 4TB drive which was offered as a Black Friday deal. It's now backordered due to the demand, but that's to be expected when ordering on Black Friday. Their company is far better overall in my experience. And B&H only charges sales tax for customers living in New York.

Good luck with whatever you choose. :)
 
P

PapaST

Senior Member
I would consider the P900 and B700 bridge cameras. From what I understand they are called that because they bridge the gap between the worlds of compact cameras and DSLRs. On the surface I think a bridge camera would be ideal and if you decide later that you want to evolve even more then you can take what you've learned from the bridge camera and apply it to a DSLR.
 
M

mikew_RIP

Senior Member
The P900 is a great camera if used sensibly, to use the full zoom over a long distance will normally give atmospheric degradation, this you would get with any lens over a long distance,you see the utube vids of the fantastic zoom range over several miles :D and the results are crap.
Used over sensible distances the results even at full zoom can be very good, a few examples.

Close up work

DSCN4345 by electric.mike, on Flickr

Mid range

re edit 7 by electric.mike, on Flickr

More distant

re edit 3 by electric.mike, on Flickr

Wide angle

DSCN2449 by electric.mike, on Flickr
 
Nero

Nero

Senior Member
Sounds like you'd be better off with one of the bridge cameras due to the fact that you don't want to carry lenses around and the fact that you sound like you prefer take photos casually (nothing wrong with that btw.)
 
B

Bikerbrent

Senior Member
Totally agree with some of the other posters. It does not sound like you are ready to commit to a DSLR. What are you taking pictures with now? If a cell phone either of the point and shoots would be a big step forward due to the zoom lens capability.
 
D

Don Kuykendall_RIP

RIP :(
I have several friends that have the P900 and are very happy with it. You just have to be careful when using the extremely long zoom. Handheld can be a problem as it would be with any lens that long.
 
T

Texas

Senior Member
Be sure to look at the various mirrorless models in your price range.

And if not fixed on Nikon, see the Panasonic Lumix models
 
S

skene

Senior Member
I'll go with the group. Unless you are willing to invest some time into researching if a DSLR is for you, it probably isnt. If you just want to take photos a DSLR styled camera may be your better bet. These will have some of the available features with the feel of a DSLR, without the ability to swap lenses and more control over creative images.
 
Danno

Danno

Senior Member
I am with the rest. The nice thing about the P900 or any bridge camera it does allow some flexibility to the point of going full manual on your photos. If you find you like that you can always move on to the DSLR, and the learning curve will be less dramatic because you can do some of it on the bridge camera.
 
Woodyg3

Woodyg3

Senior Member
Contributor
I'll go against the crowd and say give the DSLR a try. You can shoot in auto mode to start with, then advance as you feel comfortable. If it's too much, you can always sell and consider the time you had the DSLR the same as a rental period.

That said, the Nikon point and shoot cameras are very capable, and they offer some advanced features, as well.
 
Dawg Pics

Dawg Pics

Senior Member
So, what stopped you from going to DSLR back in 2013? If it was life, then no need to explain.
If it was you being unsure of learning DSLR, then there should be some other discussion here.

Maybe we can guide you better if we know why you are looking at a 2 lens kit when you stated you aren’t interested in carrying around lenses. The camera deals at Christmas are hard to pass up, but they have deals several times a year and great used deals all year round so don’t feel you will miss out. What is it about the D5600 kit that made you look at it over the Coolpix cameras?
 
W

weebee

Senior Member
I'm with the majority here. I've had the P900 for awhile now. And am happy with it. It doesn't shoot RAW. But that isn't a concern with me. I bought this as a means to really reach out for a shot. And it does a quite good job at it. I use either a monopod or tripod for longer shots if I can. Though hand held the IS works good.
 
Michael55345

Michael55345

New member
Dawg Pics said:
So, what stopped you from going to DSLR back in 2013? If it was life, then no need to explain.
If it was you being unsure of learning DSLR, then there should be some other discussion here.

Maybe we can guide you better if we know why you are looking at a 2 lens kit when you stated you aren’t interested in carrying around lenses. The camera deals at Christmas are hard to pass up, but they have deals several times a year and great used deals all year round so don’t feel you will miss out. What is it about the D5600 kit that made you look at it over the Coolpix cameras?
Click to expand...

It was life that got in the way back then. Like you said, the deals this time of year are pretty remarkable and sometimes, when I'm in a mood, I see a DSLR at a good price (like the D5600 at Amazon or certain others at Costco) I guess I get itchy and think, "Yeah, now's the time to give it a try." But then I read some reviews and learn that the lenses maybe aren't that great so I get some doubts and then I start thinking about carrying lenses and changing lenses and I wonder what I really want to do (which is a nice way of saying that I simply get confused!). The feedback here has been great and considering that my biggest 'wants' are a zoom and ease of use, I think the P900 (even with the lack of RAW) is probably my best bet.
 
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