I'm about to buy a DSLR camera. I'm looking at the Nikon D60...?

Question

I'm about to buy a DSLR camera. I'm looking at the Nikon D60...?

Answer 1

The camera body you choose will make little or no difference in the quality of your photographs. The most important thing is the lenses you use. So I would buy the cheapest camera body you can and invest any extra money in good quality lenses. Lenses aren't cheap and as you lens shop you will realize that many of them can be as much or considerably more than your camera. Just keep this in mind.



Another camera to look at in the same price range would be the Canon Rebel XS.

Answer 2

Hi Justin



Edwins advice is good. The Nikons and Canons have some serious lack of functions at this price level. With the Nikons you have to buy their AFs lenses if you want to have auto focus. Only having 3 focus points is simply pathetic in this day and age. There is no way you can get a Nikon D40 or D60 to automatically bracket shots so HDR pictures or just coping with a wide tonal range in your subject is difficult.



The best advice is to handle the cameras, go to a dealer and try them in your hands, look at build quality, brightness of viewfinder, do the controls fall naturally to your fingers. If you're a big fella you may need a larger camera with some 'heft' to it. How easy is to change such things as exposure compensation (EV) on the fly? How easy is it to change aperture, or metering system etc. etc. With Canon's lower end you have to use the screen and menus for all these things which means taking your eye away from the viewfinder, it makes them a pain to use.



Better yet, in our club, members have all makes of cameras and will let you take shots using them so you can compare the output from the various cameras on your own computer and printer, see how easy (or not) they are to use. After a few days of this testing our last 4 new members in your position picked the Pentax K10D to a man (now rarer than hens teeth unfortunately).



Your buying into a system, the Pentax system is the cheapest high quality system there is bah none. IMHO.



You can compare any reviewed camera's features side by side on the DP Review site here;-



http://www.dpreview.com/



On the menu bar on the left hold your mouse over 'Buying Guide' and select side by side. The dialogue box that opens lists all their reviews, just highlight any your interested in and use the right hand arrow to move them into the comparison box, then click OK. The major features from your selections will be side by side.



Chris

Answer 3

Hello Justin.



Here is something I believe worth thinking about: Sony and Pentax.



The Sony A200 is a 10mp DSLR with Sony's version of Image Stabilization (IS) in the camera body. Any lens you use will enjoy the benefit of IS. You can buy it with an 18-70mm and 55-200mm lens for $549.98 after a $130.00 "instant rebate" at B&H http://www.bhphotovideo.com



The Pentax K2000 is also 10mp and Pentax also has their version of IS in the camera body. Pentax bundles the camera with their AF-200 FG flash and an 18-55mm lens. $566.95 at B&H.



Nikon and Canon have their versions of IS in the lens. So every time you buy an IS lens you get to pay for the IS - again and again and again.



Since Sony bought the Konica-Minolta DSLR technology, every Minolta Maxxum AF lens made since 1985 can be used on the A200. I counted 61 lenses on the wikipedia site and every one of them will be an IS lens since its in the camera body.



Pentax still uses the K-mount introduced around 1975. Although there are limitations when using the older lenses on the K2000, they can be used and every one of them will be an IS lens.



I hope I haven't confused you but I like to show people that there are alternatives. In my opinion Sony and Pentax simply offer more value with their in-camera IS.

Answer 4

Lenses depends what are you going to be taking photos of like if your doing sports go for a 70-300 or macro go for somthing alot smaller and tripods range $40 to $150 for a good basic tripod.

Answer 5

D40 is actually a better buy if you want to go further into this hobby. It provides better flash sync speed and better noise performance at high ISO than D60. The lower price is also an advantage and it can go towards buying better lens at a later date.



D60 is useful only if you intend to do in-camera RAW processing. The image processing is good in D60 but if you plan to work on your photos on your computer later on, it makes no use buying D60 just for that.



Some other advantages which Nikon advertises (which are of no practical use)-

higher megapixels which don't matter

dust reduction system which hardly works.

Answer 6

I just returned the D40 (also a nice camera) for the d60

I can not say enough great things about this camera. If you are considering buying a DSLR and are moving from a Point and shoot to a DSLR this is the one you want!!! I had an Olympus I bought about four years ago that was a point and shoot. Top of the line at the time. It looks like a child too the pics after I compared them to the D60. Mine came with a cool little camera bag as well that is WONDERFUL! Not the prettiest thing ever but great for taking this camera every where I want to go.



I highly recommend this camera. When I bought it I actually had people stop me and say "I have that camera I love it!!" the cashier said "we sure sell a lot of these!" May I also mention it was NOT a electronics or camera store so I think that is saying a lot! :)



Nikon D60 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR Nikkor Zoom Lens

Price: $524.19 free shipping

reference: http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-10-2MP-Digital-18-55mm-3-5-5-6G/dp/B0012OGF6Q/ref=pd_cp_p_1?pf_rd_p=413862901&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00154KTXI&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0T5NKNXPMJCVWGJ98BR3&tag=commentglitte-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325



If you really want to buy i recommend you to buy Nikon D60 kit.

KIT INCLUDES 8 PRODUCTS -- All Brand New Items with all Manufacturer-supplied Accessories + Full USA Warranties:

<#1> Nikon D60 Digital SLR Camera & 18-55mm VR Zoom Lens Outfit PLUS

<#2> Transcend 8GB HC SecureDigital Class 6 (SDHC) Card

<#3> Spare EN-EL9 Li-Ion Battery Pack

<#4> Nikon SLR System Case

<#5> USB 2.0 High Speed SecureDigital (SD) Card Reader

<#6> Digital Image Recovery Software

<#7> Memory Card Storage Wallet

<#8> Cameta Microfiber Cleaning Cloth



Nikon D60 + Accessory Kit

Price: $547.95 + $18.95 shipping

reference: http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-D60-Digital-18-55mm-Accessory/dp/B00154KTXI/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=photo&qid=1234182473&sr=1-11&tag=commentglitte-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325



Hope that help.

Answer 7

I'm a Canon guy so I don't have direct experience with Nikon cameras, but you could read this review: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/NikonD60/



It's from DPReview, the best site out there when it comes to review cameras.There you can find comparisons, sample photos, everything.



Anyway as a beginner I got myself a Canon 450D (Rebel XSI) and it served me real good (in a short time I had my first paid shots).

Answer 8

Save your money and get the Sony A200. Go to eBay and spend the rest on excellent 20 year old Minolta AF lenses.



50mm f1.7. A superb prime lens, great for portraits with good depth of field.



70-210mm f4 "beer can". A brilliant lens, sought after by most Sony users who are "in the know". You could get the new Tamron 70-300mm, but it isn't a constant f4 like the beer can is.



Sigma 24mm f2.8. Very nice for landscapes and for close group photos. Again the f2.8 is useful over the kit lens.



35-70mm f4 "mini beer can". Better than the kit lens due to it being a constant f4.



Sony bought Minolta and at that price the Sony A200 wipes the floor with the competition in terms of features. Being able to use Minolta lenses and accessories is a major bonus.



Auto-focus, metering and image stabilisation with work these old Minolta AF lenses. You'll get bracketing, a great multi-point AF system, sensor cleaning...just look at the list of features for $499 missing off a D40 that doesn't have an AF motor in its body!