Posted: 12/25/2015 6:57:33 PM EDT
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The wife unit is looking to get into some photography I'd like to get her a DSLR for her bday on the 10th of Jan. Looking at the Nikon D3300 with 18-55mm VR II Zoom Lens (Black) + Accessories
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I'll admit that I don't know a whole lot about Nikon setups, so I can't give you advice on that specific body.
If she this is gonna be mainly for snapshots of the kids and general memories, I would actually say to go with a mirrorless setup, and just as capable as an entry consumer dslr. If you imagine her really getting into it, then step up to the prosumer grade bodies, they cost a little more, but are far more capable. |
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friend of mine is a professional photography gear reviewer.
he says the new mirrorless digitals are the way to go and that nikon and canon are both way behind. ordinarily the answer is canon/nikon, but that advice may be out of date now. just something to think about. |
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I know nothing about them, but my son recently became interested in photography after meeting a professional who spent a little time with him.
She recommended a d5200, as it is last years model, and there are good deals on them. I can't tell you the difference between the one you linked, and the d5200, but he ended up finding this one on ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/171445967208 |
| I got my wife the Nikon D5500 for Christmas. This is her first DSLR camera and she seems pretty happy about its specs. I have a friend who does professional photography and she recommended the D5xxx line for a beginner. The only real difference between the D5200, D5300 and the newer D5500 is the D5500 has a touch screen which makes it easier to change settings for someone like my wife. I played with it a little today and am impressed. |
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Thanks for the info. What are mirrorless? Ill have to do a bit more research I guess. No mirrors in the body to show you what is going through the lens. It is a lcd viewfinder showing a feed from the sensor. Much better for recording movies and the viewfinders are interactive. I still prefer the mirrors for photo but thats what i am used too. Use mirrorless gh3/4 for video, nikon for stills. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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I got my wife the Nikon D5500 for Christmas. This is her first DSLR camera and she seems pretty happy about its specs. I have a friend who does professional photography and she recommended the D5xxx line for a beginner. The only real difference between the D5200, D5300 and the newer D5500 is the D5500 has a touch screen which makes it easier to change settings for someone like my wife. I played with it a little today and am impressed. That's a nice camera bit out of my price range though. I'll have to watch some reviews tonight maybe I can pony up the extra coin. |
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BJ's has a Great deal on the D5500
An advantage with the Nikon is there are a whole lot of lenses out there on the used market for a nice price |
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I'm Nikon, so take that for what you will.
The D3XXX series is WAY too small a form factor for me. The D5XXX and D7XXX are much more usable in the hand. For someone starting out I strongly encourage you to consider used gear from KEH or Adorama (or others). You can get a lot of gear for a good price. Oh, and the lenses are more important than the bodies. ETA, my current body is a D7100, and I have a venerable D200 as a backup. |
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That's a nice camera bit out of my price range though. I'll have to watch some reviews tonight maybe I can pony up the extra coin. Quoted:
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I got my wife the Nikon D5500 for Christmas. This is her first DSLR camera and she seems pretty happy about its specs. I have a friend who does professional photography and she recommended the D5xxx line for a beginner. The only real difference between the D5200, D5300 and the newer D5500 is the D5500 has a touch screen which makes it easier to change settings for someone like my wife. I played with it a little today and am impressed. That's a nice camera bit out of my price range though. I'll have to watch some reviews tonight maybe I can pony up the extra coin. I also just got the D5500 and it looks to be the best entry level camera out there |
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I also just got the D5500 and it looks to be the best entry level camera out there Quoted:
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I got my wife the Nikon D5500 for Christmas. This is her first DSLR camera and she seems pretty happy about its specs. I have a friend who does professional photography and she recommended the D5xxx line for a beginner. The only real difference between the D5200, D5300 and the newer D5500 is the D5500 has a touch screen which makes it easier to change settings for someone like my wife. I played with it a little today and am impressed. That's a nice camera bit out of my price range though. I'll have to watch some reviews tonight maybe I can pony up the extra coin. I also just got the D5500 and it looks to be the best entry level camera out there Damn you guys are going to cost me an arm and a leg! Touchscreen seems pretty cool. I need to buy new as its for her birthday wish I could buy used. Still leaning towards the 3300. |
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Buy the body and the lense separately. The kit lense is ok but for another $100 you can do so much better. Adorama had refurbished 18 to 140 for $220. It's a much better and versatile lens. You will be much happier with that. Get a prime or fixed zoom 35 or 50 mm and you have a nice setup for just about anything.
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Quoted: The wife unit is looking to get into some photography I'd like to get her a DSLR for her bday on the 10th of Jan. Looking at the Nikon D3300 with 18-55mm VR II Zoom Lens (Black) + Accessories I just gave that to my daughter for her college course camera. Its a good starter camera. |
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Honestly if you are buying separately, ditch the kit lens and start with a 50mm prime. I could do it separately. But Amazon Prime makes it much easier to buy the kit. And I just got $100 gift cards for xmas in Amazon so i'll put that towards her camera. |
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I could do it separately. But Amazon Prime makes it much easier to buy the kit. And I just got $100 gift cards for xmas in Amazon so i'll put that towards her camera. Quoted:
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Honestly if you are buying separately, ditch the kit lens and start with a 50mm prime. I could do it separately. But Amazon Prime makes it much easier to buy the kit. And I just got $100 gift cards for xmas in Amazon so i'll put that towards her camera. That's up to you. Kit lenses are a decent place to start and are flexible. That said the quality of the lenses are the greatest, primes are a cheapway into a better class of lenses and a 50mms are very versatile. |
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for a beginner ... go with a mirrorless camera. Set the camera to manual control. What is great about mirrorless is that the exposure you see on the viewfinder / lcd screen will be the same as the shot you take.
I learned on a sony mirrorless, but eventually migrated to clunky Nikon full frame DSLRs. For me.. the optical viewfinder and superior battery life has yet to be matched by mirrorless. |
| Prime (fixed focal length) have typically wider apertures like F 1.8 , F 1.4 assuming it's a standard focal length like a 50mm. this is great because it easier to achieve things like shallow depth of field with relatively little distortion compared to wide angle lenses. also, it helps if you are shooting handheld in low light and don't want to bump up the iso ( more noise ) |
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I recently picked up a Nikon D3300 and I'm happy with it. i did not want to spend as much as the D5500 cost. Results in this thread. http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_121/1814522_Gun_pictures___getting_started_offer_critic_advice_for_my_samples.html |
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The wife unit is looking to get into some photography I'd like to get her a DSLR for her bday on the 10th of Jan. Looking at the Nikon D3300 with 18-55mm VR II Zoom Lens (Black) + Accessories You could go that route, but if she gets into it, she will find it limiting. The D5100, D5200 are both good, and have more controls to learn from. The D7000, D7100, and D7200 are pro-sumer grade. All the controls are via buttons, not menus. I have a D7000, and it works great. Lenses are what have the greatest impact on photo quality. Don't get hung up on pixel count, it really isn't that important until you start blowing photos up to wall sized stuff. The 16mp that mine has, takes outstanding shots, and the D3100 my wife uses has a 14mp and it's still good. Here is one shot I took free hand with a D600 and a 16-24mm lens. 24mp full frame, which is really not a very high pixel count for full frame aka 35mm. Untouched btw, no post processing 
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Adorama has a refurb D7100 for $429. Get that camera, the 35mm f1.8 DX and the 50mm f1.8 FX lens. Then save for the 70-300 FX zoom. Do it now. Because if you get a D3300, you'll be frustrated after a year or two and you'll want a better camera. Good info right there. Cameta camera is another good source for refurbs. The 50mm f1.8 lens is considered one of the sharpest lenses out there, and isn't expensive. I have a 70-300mm lens, but went with a Tamron, which costs less than the Nikon version and is considered about as sharp. She can get the Darrell Young book, Mastering the Nikon D7100, and it will walk her thru the settings etc. There's several facebook groups for Nikon stuff, and there's one that Darrell Young himself gets on. Mirrorless cameras have come a long ways, and do take nice photos, but few have big enough sensors in them that can compete with the DSLRs and even then, they have a lot of limitations. If your wife wants to learn, and progress, the dslr is the natural choice. |
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Adorama has a refurb D7100 body for $429. Get that camera, the 35mm f1.8 DX and the 50mm f1.8 FX lens. Then save for the 70-300 FX zoom. Do it now. Because if you get a D3300, you'll be frustrated after a year or two and you'll want a better camera. what is the 50mm fx on a crop sensor? like 75mm? |
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what is the 50mm fx on a crop sensor? like 75mm? Quoted:
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Adorama has a refurb D7100 body for $429. Get that camera, the 35mm f1.8 DX and the 50mm f1.8 FX lens. Then save for the 70-300 FX zoom. Do it now. Because if you get a D3300, you'll be frustrated after a year or two and you'll want a better camera. what is the 50mm fx on a crop sensor? like 75mm? On a Nikon, yes. On a Canon it's a bit longer. They're 1.6. Nikon is 1.5 |
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Target was running a deal on the 3300 kit with a bag and the 55-200 for $499. Not sure if it is over. Yes, it's a good starter camera. If you are coming from an iPotato, it will likely do more than you need for years. If you get into it, drop more coin on a better setup. That's why I would start small - less up front.
I have a mirrorless but find that I really prefer a real viewfinder for photos. Mirrorless is great for mostly video IMHO or when you need compact. I still travel with my D750 and two or three good lenses. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Quoted: I'm Nikon, so take that for what you will. The D3XXX series is WAY too small a form factor for me. The D5XXX and D7XXX are much more usable in the hand. For someone starting out I strongly encourage you to consider used gear from KEH or Adorama (or others). You can get a lot of gear for a good price. Oh, and the lenses are more important than the bodies. ETA, my current body is a D7100, and I have a venerable D200 as a backup. Thanks for saving me the time typing. |
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Damn you guys are going to cost me an arm and a leg! Touchscreen seems pretty cool. I need to buy new as its for her birthday wish I could buy used. Still leaning towards the 3300. Quoted:
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I got my wife the Nikon D5500 for Christmas. This is her first DSLR camera and she seems pretty happy about its specs. I have a friend who does professional photography and she recommended the D5xxx line for a beginner. The only real difference between the D5200, D5300 and the newer D5500 is the D5500 has a touch screen which makes it easier to change settings for someone like my wife. I played with it a little today and am impressed. That's a nice camera bit out of my price range though. I'll have to watch some reviews tonight maybe I can pony up the extra coin. I also just got the D5500 and it looks to be the best entry level camera out there Damn you guys are going to cost me an arm and a leg! Touchscreen seems pretty cool. I need to buy new as its for her birthday wish I could buy used. Still leaning towards the 3300. Touchscreen may seem cool, but I think it's window dressing. They're making touchscreens becasue everyone has a smartphone and sort of expects it. Once you really begin to USE the camera you're going to find that dedicated buttons, that can be manipulated without looking at them, have immensely greater utility than a touchscreen. |
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Seriously - look at used older ones. I'm a cannon guy but will still use my old rebel xt's (yeah we have 3 pr 4 still)
Small frame, cheap and the lenses don't change. Nikon same thing. If you aren't running full manual on a dslr you don't need one and you can get georgeous 20x30 prints from 8megapixel Spend money on lenses, then move up to a non crop. I carry xt kit, 50mm pri,e, 2.4x converter, 50-500 zoom, 18-1xx whatever kit and an l series 70-200 with IS Newer ones are higher Rez and may be better buy but you don't need new. |
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Also ditto on key and adorama.
More Important learn the theory and learn photoshop. I also love noise ninja as a cheat shooting low light and football Theory being shutter speed, ISO and f-stop as a minimum. You can't drive studio flashes much pass 200 shutter, but you get georgeous color and clarity at 100 ISO Sorry, I'm a nerd from way back when we did 400 Asa film hand loads from the fridge and actual film develop and prints. Theory has changed but it's still the basics. Otherwise, point and shoot with photoshop alone |