Advise for beginner looking at the D60

spinxy · Mar 7, 2008

Hi all,

I'm trying to decide which Body to buy first, i understand that the D40 isn't compatible with a lot of good lenses, so uptill now have been looking at going for the D80, however now the D60 is here and at a good price!

firstly i would like to use the camera for basic photo's in clubs of people for a small event's photography company,
secondly i have interest's in fashion/glamour photography which i would like to take up as a hobby.

could you advice me on the best body, lense and flash. i'm willing to up my price for considerable difference but will like to keep it low for now incase none of the above happens.

Thanks for your help

Socrates · Mar 7, 2008

spinxy said:
Hi all,

I'm trying to decide which Body to buy first, i understand that the D40 isn't compatible with a lot of good lenses, so uptill now have been looking at going for the D80, however now the D60 is here and at a good price!

firstly i would like to use the camera for basic photo's in clubs of people for a small event's photography company,
secondly i have interest's in fashion/glamour photography which i would like to take up as a hobby.

could you advice me on the best body, lense and flash. i'm willing to up my price for considerable difference but will like to keep it low for now incase none of the above happens.

Thanks for your help

Decisions, decisions, decisions...

First, pretty much ALL Nikon lenses work with the D40 but some will not autofocus. Do you know for fact which lenses you want or is your concern a matter of principle?

Second, the D60 may have the same limitation. I don't know for certain.

Third, are you certain about your photographic future? (Do you have any photography background on which to base your decisions?)

Fourth, I would fully expect another price decrease for the D80 soon. Wait a bit and think about the D80.

Mav · Mar 7, 2008

I'd just go with the D80. The D60 is basically the same as the D40x, which was really not any better than and in some ways worse than the D40 which was $200 cheaper. If you think this is going to be more serious and beyond just a hobby, definitely go with the D80. It's a great camera.

Socrates · Mar 7, 2008

Mav said:
If you think this is going to be more serious and beyond just a hobby, definitely go with the D80. It's a great camera.

That's the biggie and I pretty much agree with you. Unfortunately, many persons at the beginning stages of any hobby really don't know for certain.

petey · Mar 7, 2008

save your money and get the D40

ProjektONE · Mar 7, 2008

I started off with the D50. If you feel that the D40 or the D60 are not going to benifit you then dont waste your money, cause your not going to be happy. Try to find a used D50 or a D80. I have just purchased a D80 and couldnt be happier. These cameras arent cheap so when you make your decision make sure its what you want.

eminart · Mar 7, 2008

Buy one of each!

Actually, I've just recently gone through the "which body" decision making stage. I finally decided to go bigger with the D80 or D200 (in the end the D80 was what I could afford). I made my decision based on the fact that I know I'll want to grow in this hobby as my career is soon to be graphic design.

I think it all depends on how far you think you'll want to go in the hobby (as the other replies have mentioned).

ANDS! · Mar 7, 2008

I agree with others. The D80 is a perfect entry camera - it is quite a bit more functional than the D50/40 but isn't intimidatingly so. It's been out over a year, so being able to get it for 600-700 bucks shouldn't be a problem.

jsrockit · Mar 13, 2008

The D40x and D60 are perfectly capable of Professional results. That said, spending more generally gets you more with Nikon.

gamerz · Mar 13, 2008

The D40x and D60 are perfectly capable of Professional results. That said, spending more generally gets you more with Nikon.

Not the D40???

Dang, I don't know why I keep browsing these forums

, One moment I know exactly what I'm going to purchase, have a plan laid out, and then read this thread and start second guessing myself... great...

sabbath999 · Mar 14, 2008

Personally, given the choice between the D40, D40x and D60 I would take the D40 hands down.

It has less noise at high ISO than the D40x, a faster sync speed and it is MUCH cheaper.

The stuff added to the D60 is stuff I don't care about.

Having said all this, I would 100 times more prefer the D80 for just a few more dollars.

TamiyaGuy · Mar 14, 2008

The D60 is really a bit of a "whee look at me" camera. It has the same body as the D40 and D40x (so the same lens limitations), but has 10 megapixels, vibration reduction, sensor cleaning, and active D-lighting (it has a similar effect to HDR, but not as pronounced).

Basically, they're all gimmicks. Sure, sensor cleaning and VR is a plus, but so long as you have a tripod and a blower, you'll be fine. D-lighting is avaliable on the other cameras (just not AS you take the photo), and come on... stop motion movies???

I would personally go for the 2 ends of the range, depending on what you do. Either go for the D40: The noise is very low, image quality is very high, and it's about as cheap as it gets. The 6-megapixel sensor, despite my original worries, can still create fantastic prints up to A3.

Or, of course, go with the D80. It's much more of a professional camera, so if you're thinking of going somewhere with your photography, this is the one. Yet again, noise and quality are superb, and the starter lenses it comes with are much better.

Just my 2c.

Dubious Drewski · Mar 14, 2008

My opinion is the same, save a bit for the D80. 'Tis a nice machine.

TamiyaGuy said:
The D60 is really a bit of a "whee look at me" camera ... come on... stop motion movies???

Are you serious? That's hilarious! It would have its uses, maybe for those folks who do not have any movie editor software. Well ok, who doesn't have that. Yeah you're right. It's a gimmick.

passerby · Mar 14, 2008

spinxy said:
Hi all,

I'm trying to decide which Body to buy first, i understand that the D40 isn't compatible with a lot of good lenses

Really? what is the definition of good lenses here?

The members in this forum by the name Socrates and Sabbath have been around long enough with cameras, yet they bought new lenses that are compatible with d40. Socrates in one post mentioned has just bought a new lens, 18-200 vr. By right these people should just buy "good" second hand lenses from the by gone era don't you think? but they did not. Ask other long timers and see how many "good" (ala second hand) they has bought. At this moment I am waiting for my new lens for my d40, NEW. There is no second hand goods in my place as far as the electronic stuff is concern. And I have never sold any, I just threw them away.

You know the differences between new and second hand don't you? If we have money than we buy new, if we don't have money than we buy used stuff.

If you have the intention to earn the money from photography - than why thinking to use those "good" lenses? Be mindful of your customers please who pay you and expect the best.

sabbath999 · Mar 14, 2008

passerby said:
The members in this forum by the name Socrates and Sabbath have been around long enough with cameras, yet they bought new lenses that are compatible with d40. Socrates in one post mentioned has just bought a new lens, 18-200 vr. By right these people should just buy "good" second hand lenses from the by gone era don't you think? but they did not.

I can only speak for myself here, don't know how Socrates chooses his equipment.

I the D40 was the THIRD dslr I bought in 2007, following the purchase of a pair of D80's. I bought it for a specific purpose... to have a light cheap camera to take with me when I just didn't want to be toting around my expensive and heavy equipment...

I did not, have not, nor will I ever buy a lens where the main consideration is whether it is compatible with the D40. I have purchased several lenses before I bought the D40 that were not compatible with it auto focus wise, and two lenses after I bought it that weren't.

Several other purchases WERE compatible with it, but I am telling you that the thought didn't even enter my mind when I bought my 70-200 VR that "wow, this will autofocus on my el-cheapo D40". I am pretty sure I have never actually taken a picture with that lens on the D40 either.

I did buy the 55-200 VR because it takes great pictures and weighs absolutely nothing... I am glad that is compatible with the D40 when auto-focus, but I would have bought it even if it wasn't.

The D40 is what it is, a cheap camera with severe limitations that takes fantastic pictures. I think it is the perfect "snapshot" dslr to use as a light walk around camera, and I shot about 95 percent of my last 10 day trip to Hawaii with it, the 18-55 kit lens and the 55-200 VR, because the camera and lenses are easy to tote around all day long and the image quality is outstanding.

A lot of equipment hounds would think it sacrilege that I left the D300 in the motel room and the 70-200 VR, my 24-70 f/2.8 and just about every other pro lens I own except the 105 VR in the living room back home... but most of them also don't hike for hours at a time over lava fields in the blazing sun, where one false step can destroy $4K worth of equipment... so there is that as well.

The bottom line is this... photography isn't about the camera. The D40 would certainly not be my first choice of a camera for somebody who is interested in getting serious about photography, because the limitations are quite substantial. Having said that, if you know what you are doing you can take some fantastic pictures with one and not have to spend a lot of money to do it.

Here's one of my "vacation" shots with my D40... any limitations in this picture are from a lack of skill by the photographer, not the camera equipment.

EXIF: D40, kit lens, $20 tiffen polarizer, 1/80s f/10.0 ISO200 18mm