Best SLR Camera?

So I'm new on here. I wanting to buy my first slr camera. My husband doesn't want me get an entry level camera but something that I can grow with. We need a camera that isn't too expensive. Any suggestions?

I vote D7000 as the best over-all camera for mid-level entry that can grow to near professional but can be over powering and a bit daunting for some people just starting out. So depending upon your level of commitment the next best dSLR would be the D5100....IMO.

Mojo Dave said:

I vote D7000 as the best over-all camera for mid-level entry that can grow to near professional but can be over powering and a bit daunting for some people just starting out. So depending upon your level of commitment the next best dSLR would be the D5100....IMO.

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Sounds like good advice, to me.

Yes, the D7000. I have one its a fantastic camera at a very good price.

The D5100 isn't a bad choice either, and less expensive. A lot of bang for the buck.

And look at factory refurbished models. They are warranted as new with a deep discount.

Look at a D5100, but definitely the D7000 first, as others have said. You can buy Used ones (Body only) on amazon for under $1000 now. And, if you want the lens, pickup a used kit for fairly cheap. The D7000 would be a excellent beginner camera and one to grow on, it has a lot of very nice features plus newer technology. Also, if you just got the body only, maybe pick up a prime - 35 f1.8G, nice and cheap, but very good lens for a great price tag. Keep us posted on what you decide

D7000 or D5100, depending on budget

Think about your lens strategy too!

blackknife said:

So I'm new on here. I wanting to buy my first slr camera. My husband doesn't want me get an entry level camera but something that I can grow with. We need a camera that isn't too expensive. Any suggestions?

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Its very difficult for anyone to guess what your budget is. A camera that ' isnt too expensive ' means ...what ? $100, $500, $1000 ??? How much are you willing to spend on a body, and how much for lenses ?

Good advice already, but read what Eye Level Jeff has said. Think about your lenses ...choices in this dept. are much more critical

lower end SLR 3200,, nice entry level high end 7000, a really great learning vehicle, any used one like a D90,D300.

I suggest you make a list of what you want in a camera. Also, think about what you want to do with the pictures you take. Are you just posting them online and printing 4 x 6? If this is the case, you don't need a camera with lot's of MP. If you are blowing them up alot or heavly cropping them, then you may want to consider a high MP camera. If you have never had a Nikon DSLR or SLR before, then you obviously don't have any old Nikon glass lying around. Therefore, having an in-body focus motor may not be that important to you. Just remember when you purchase any Nikon lens in the future, to make sure it has it's own focus motor. To help you out with that, look at this: List of Nikon F-mount lenses with integrated autofocus motors - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia From this, i think you will find that you are covered and won't have to worry about getting a camera with an in-body focus motor. I am sure there are a few more things that you may want to consider, but i really think in the end you will be looking at a D5100. Good luck

Thanks everyone! I love taking pictures of my daughters and might like to get into a little side business of family protraits. So I would love something that I can blow up a picture to at least an 8x10 or bigger (and I'm still learning so I will probably be doing lots of cropping)! As for price...I really don't know....something less than $1000 probably closer to $500-600 (I don't mind if it is used as long as it is in great condition).

blackknife said:

Thanks everyone! I love taking pictures of my daughters and might like to get into a little side business of family protraits. So I would love something that I can blow up a picture to at least an 8x10 or bigger (and I'm still learning so I will probably be doing lots of cropping)! As for price...I really don't know....something less than $1000 probably closer to $500-600 (I don't mind if it is used as long as it is in great condition).

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Your budget screams D5100. I am not sure that you could find a 2nd hand D7k for 5 or 6 hundred. 8x10 would be no issue with pics taken with the 16.2 mp sensor either. I don't think there would be any need for heavy cropping doing family portraits or just family pics in general. You will do just fine with a 5100. End of!

Thanks!

ok....and this may be a dumb question but are all Nikon lenses exchangeable between cameras? So if I buy the 5100 now and in a few years need to upgrade my body would I be able to keep my lense?

blackknife said:

ok....and this may be a dumb question but are all Nikon lenses exchangeable between cameras? So if I buy the 5100 now and in a few years need to upgrade my body would I be able to keep my lense?

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Simple answer, yes. I highly doubt that Nikon will change it's mount on their DSLRs.

If you could find a D300, that would work for you, too. Great camera...12.2 MP...pro grade...easy to use...I could go on and on. You could find one used for around $600 - $800, depending on where you live.

d90, 300, 7000. All these will work with older lenses without auto-focus and/or CPUs. And they will auto-focus with older AF lenses that can be bought cheaper than their newer model counterpart.

Spec wise, a D5100 beats D90 and D300 - D300s is a bit more of a competition. Lets face it, he won't get a D7k for his budget. Let's get the guy into something new and up to date... D5100! I am not sure that investing in AF (with no lens motor) only lenses is a wise move. If you buy a D7K or a D300, you may want a back-up or secondary camera and why pay lots of money again when you can get a D3000 or D3100 for a few hundred bucks? Don't limit yourself to cameras that only have in-body focus motors. Anyhow, for his budget, i would start him off with a D5100 and an 18-55mm. For what he wants to do at the moment, he is not going to need to purchase tons of lenses. Even in the future, i doubt he will need tons of lenses. Here are some comparisons for him to look at:
Nikon D5100 vs D300 - Our Analysis

Nikon D5100 vs D90 - Our Analysis

lets look a bit more at the D300. The D300 can only use CF cards. When was the last time you saw a laptop with a CF card reader built in? Not to mention that CF cards are 2-3 times more expensive compared to a comparable SD card (16gb SD to 16GB CF). So, if you don't want to connect your cam to your computer, you have to buy an external card reader. MORE EXPENSE! A D300s would be a better offer. That being the case, the cheapest D300s i have seen on Ebay is $646, body only.
A D90 you say? Only advantage that the D90 has over a D5100 is the in-body focus motor. Any other small advantages are hardly significant.
D7K, surprisingly, is being sold on ebay for 3,4,5 hundred dollars! wow, i did not expect that. But, it is only a beefed up D5100 with more manual controls, ruggedized body, foucus motor, and semi-mag alloy body. Soooooo, at those prices, you may want to investigate a bit more.

I can't speak on the D5100 or the D90 but I can say I have owned, still own, a D300 and it is one solid performer. I have had about 4+ years of use out of it and never regretted buying it. As for types of memory cards, it makes little or no difference to me as mine never comes out of the camera, I simply plug the USB cable into the camera and PC and let the two interface as they are, then transfer the pics over...

The D300 is getting a little dated but their capabilities are still not to be laughed at. That's why, even though I just bought a D600, I am definitely going to hang on to mine... There are plenty of good second hand D300's at the moment over here and all you'd have to watch out for is the shutter count. I'm sure they are rated at over 100,000 uses. Mine has done a mere 7000, give or take...