Nikon D50

KonicaKyle · Jun 24, 2006

So any reviews I've read on this camera say it's a godsend for beginners at SLR photography. Is this all true?

At just over £400 it's really tempting me to buy a DSLR, something that I thought I wouldn't do till i had a lot more money!

What sort of photos can I expect from the standard 18-55mm lens?? Good close ups? And how far away will I be able to zoom into objects from??

Sorry , but im a total n00b when it comes to lenses, never had an SLR before!

Any thoughts on this camera would be greatly appreciated!!

And also, where is the best place to buy from online? I was thinking digital-cameras.com??

Thanks!

Don Simon · Jun 24, 2006

You could buy from there, but you can get it cheaper from Play.com or Amazon. Significantly cheaper at Amazon.

The D50 is a great camera, as it's many owners here will testify. You can't go wrong for that money. There are alternatives of course, like the Canon 350D or the Pentax DL2 (which is ridiculously cheap at £350 from Jessops), so you might want to try them as well, but I doubt you'd regret buying the D50. The only thing you can't tell from other people's reviews is whether it feels comfortable and intuitive to you. Best thing is to go to a camera shop and try one yourself, as well as the alternatives.

Arch · Jun 24, 2006

yes, i agree with zaphod the D50 is excellent for the money..... you have a similar decision i had...... there are a few cameras around the same price as 'entry level DSLRs' from Konica Minolta, Pentax, Canon and Nikon....... the Nikon D50 the Canon 350D where the two i ended up deciding between...... and then purely for the 'feel' of it i went with the D50.

You wont be dissapointed with either......as for close ups etc..... you may have to invest in one or two other lenses..... the 18-55mm that comes with it is fine for general use..... but if you want to get into macro photography, you'll need a proper macro lens, (or alternatively buy close up filters and extention tubes).... and for long zooms...... a lens with more distance would be an improvement.... but these are things you can add to your arsenal later on when your more familier with you cam.

I buy some of my stuff from purelygadgets.co.uk...... but i ended up buying my D50 from town..... it turned out Dixons and jessops where trying to compete with web prices...... so there wasn't much difference.

bigfatbadger · Jun 24, 2006

yes, the D50 is stonking for the money and is a good beginners camera.

I bought mine from the badly named but cheap and good service www.cameras2u.com but I'm pretty sure that jessops et al are pretty close to this price with the advantages of local support and no delivery costs.

Don't know if this is the same in NI though

KonicaKyle · Jun 24, 2006

Thanks for the advice guys!!

Think I'm gonna get one ordered up. Amazon is the cheapest, however it says 1-2 weeks delivery, and I'm heading away in 10 days or so, and would dearly love to bring the camera with me, so I'll check out elsewhere!

Really looking forward to getting into DSLR photography! My little Konica kd500z has served me well over the years, but I've gotten as much out of it as it is capable of I think!

LWW · Jun 24, 2006

You won't regret it.

I never would have believed I would say this but my D50 is a superior camera to my F4s.

LWW

KonicaKyle · Jun 25, 2006

Sadly, I'm having to wait a week for delivery, so I've been researching different features, lenses, accessories etc.

I was wondering, how good quality are these "macro filters"? I've seen a lot on eBay for not too much money. I obviously don't expect them to be as good quality as a macro lens itself, but can you still achieve good closeups with them?

Thanks!

LWW · Jun 25, 2006

KonicaKyle said:
Sadly, I'm having to wait a week for delivery, so I've been researching different features, lenses, accessories etc.

I was wondering, how good quality are these "macro filters"? I've seen a lot on eBay for not too much money. I obviously don't expect them to be as good quality as a macro lens itself, but can you still achieve good closeups with them?

Thanks!

I'm not sure which you refer to, but Nikon and Hoya both make very good close up lens attachments.

LWW

KonicaKyle · Jun 25, 2006

LWW said:
I'm not sure which you refer to, but Nikon and Hoya both make very good close up lens attachments.

LWW

Okeydoke, I'll check out both then :wink:

KonicaKyle · Jul 3, 2006

The standard Nikkor 18-55 lens is 52mm, yes? Just want to make sure.

Just with regard to looking for filters etc

Thanks

LWW · Jul 3, 2006

KonicaKyle said:
The standard Nikkor 18-55 lens is 52mm, yes? Just want to make sure.

Just with regard to looking for filters etc

Thanks

YEP!

LWW

KonicaKyle · Jul 4, 2006

LWW said:
YEP!

LWW

Okay, thanks. I'm heading off around Ireland next week, and have been told to get myself a Polarising filter for landscape shots.

Got the D50 the other day, lovely camera!

KonicaKyle · Jul 4, 2006

Would something like this do the job??

http://www.jessops.co.uk/Store/s18378/0/Filters/Jessops/52mm-Linear-Polarising-Filter/details.aspx?&IsSearch=y&pageindex=1&CatId=194&comp=n

Don Simon · Jul 4, 2006

That's a linear polariser - wouldn't a circular polariser be better? I don't know who makes Jessops' filters but I've used their circular polarisers and they do the job; Hoya are also good for the money. Bear in mind that circular polarisers are a very common filter so you might be able to pick up a good quality used one for very little cash.