d200, d90 or something else?

[Dewi]

Hi all!

Rather than the traditional coming of age car for my birthday, my parents have decided to split a new (well new for me, old for someone else) DSLR with me.(Who needs a car? When you can get a new/used camera?!:mrgreen: )

I'm a high school student, senior photo editor of the yearbook for two years, and I'm taking photo honors next year. I'm planning to study some sort of photojournalism in college, or at the very least a Photography minor.

That being said, I use my moms Canon Rebel XT with 18-55 and 75-300 lenses. I've played around with my friend's Nikkons and I really like the design and overall feel of them.

I've found a used D200 body in good condition + 18-55 and 75-300 lenses + filters + charger, battery, cables etc. for $1200. I'm wondering if thats a good price for the d200, or if I should be looking at another camera all together.

Wondering what you're thoughts are.

Thanks!

Dewi

 

[Double H]

Not sure of a price for the D200. I have a Fuji S5, which is the same body as the D200, and I love it. It has performed VERY well for me, professionally and just farting around. Of course, I am holding my shiny new D700 right now, so I am very biased! I am holding onto the S5 for a back-up wedding rig.

 

[JustAnEngineer]

D200 body is $600, new at Best Buy:
Nikon - 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera - Body Only - D200 - Body Only

Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR AF-S DX is $200, new.
The Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 Di-II for $440 is a better lens in the same extremely useful range of focal lengths.

Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G VR AF-S DX is $230, new.

Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX is $200, new.


Of course, you could get a Canon and continue to borrow lenses from your family members. There is a larger selection of compatible lenses for Canon, and the Canon lenses tend to be slightly less expensive than equivalent lenses from Nikon.

 

[TUX424]

That kit is not worth the $1200 the only extra thing that you are getting is some crappy filters, thats what normally comes with those so called "deals". I guess you have a budget of $1200. If so i would say go for a D90 with 18-55 f/3.5-5.6 and a 55-200 f/4-5.6 VR.

 

[LuckySo-n-So]

1300 bucks got me a d90 and a Sigma 18-50 2.8 macro lens, so I'd say 1200 isn't that great of a price for a used D200 and two mediocre lenses.

As someone posted earlier, you could get a brand new D200 from Best Buy online and still have $500+ for some good Sigma glass, or a couple decent Nikon lenses. OR you could get the D90 kit with a 18-105 vr for the same price--brand new...I think. The only thing you'll not have is the filters, which are relatively inexpensive anyway. You could have those in a couple months of saving easily.

 

[elemental]

I picked up a D200 a few weeks ago, but if I'd had the money I would have preferred a D90. The D200 excels in a lot of areas, but the high ISO performance is really dated. I am planning on using it for a lot of controlled light work, so this isn't too much of an issue.

1300 bucks got me a d90 and a Sigma 18-50 2.8 macro lens

I think your money is probably better spent here.

 

[PatrickHMS]

D200 body is $600, new at Best Buy:
Nikon - 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera - Body Only - D200 - Body Only

Seems that this offer comes and goes, so be sure to buy when you can find the offer valid, otherwise you will get the current price for the D200 (for them) of $799.00 for a new one.

(Also, many people do not seem to know that the Factory warranty for Nikon is only honored by Nikon to the first registered retail buyer, and when one buys a used Nikon there usually is no warranty (UNLESS you can fill out a blank warranty card and persuade Nikon to allow the registration. Or get an authorized Nikon Service Center to do the work under warranty.).

If I understand correctly - the term "Grey Market" ONLY has to do with the warranty (and not the actual product), the USA version vs. Grey market products are exactly the same, unless Nikon retools to sell cheaper products overseas, which I do not believe to be the case. Since there is no warranty on used equipment anyway, I have gotten some exceptionally good prices where someone sold me a "grey market" Nikon lens at a much lower price, but I knew the actual product was the same high quality I find in other Nikon gear. I just paid less because THEY didn't know that. If you have to pay to have it repaired anyway, why not buy at a significantly lower price when you can?

If I am incorrect about the above, will someone please correct me...)

Back to original point -

But with the D90 out for awhile now, as well as the new D5000 just come out, seems like prices for other Nikon camera bodies are beginning to drop like a rock.

Recently, I have seen used D200's for $500.00 or less, and used D80's for well under $400.00.

I look for the deals where the body has a lens, maybe with a camera bag, filter, flash, then resell what I don't want to recoup some of what I have spent. I did this and got a second D80 (I kept the body only) for a net $275.00 (for the body only, with 1,500 actuations) and bought a pristine D200 (with original packaging and other stuff, just like it came brand new, with less than 2,000 actuations) for a net of $450.00.

Why not spend what you have to to get a very capable camera body, then keep as much as you can of what you have to spend on as good a lens or lenses as you can get. Then learn to fully use the camera body you have, and by the time you are ready to upgrade, those now new cameras may have dropped in resale value, and who knows what the next generation camera technology will have to offer.

You can do a lot with a D90 and a nice lens or two, but what can you do (in terms of image quality) with a D80, or D200, and a couple of good quality "fast" lenses, like f/2.8 or less?

But YOU do what is best for you, this is just another way to look at things.

I know I will get flamed by some, seems like I always do...

 

[JustAnEngineer]

Seems that this offer comes and goes, so be sure to buy when you can find the offer valid, otherwise you will get the current price for the D200 (for them) of $799.00 for a new one.

The price in the cart is $600, with free shipping.

The OP should visit a retailer and hold a few of the camera models under consideration to try out the ergonomics. A Canon EOS 40D might also be a good choice in this price range.

 

[bdavis]

1300 bucks got me a d90 and a Sigma 18-50 2.8 macro lens, so I'd say 1200 isn't that great of a price for a used D200 and two mediocre lenses.

I second this, but I would recommend the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 it yielded consistently better results than the Sigma. Here are sample shots I took with my D90 and Tamron.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...hoto-gallery/164273-first-strobist-shots.html

 

[NateS]

I second this, but I would recommend the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 it yielded consistently better results than the Sigma. Here are sample shots I took with my D90 and Tamron.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...hoto-gallery/164273-first-strobist-shots.html

That's the setup I have and I flat out love it. Tamron 17-50 f2.8 is a sharp lens and I love the color/contrast that it produces....way better than any kit lens.

D90 is a strong camera as well and paired up with the Tammy is a killer combo.

This entire shoot was shot with that setup
Nathanael Siders Photography | Ryan and Becky

Of course the debate between the Sigma 18-50 f2.8 and Tamron 17-50 f2.8 is about as bad as the Nikon vs. Canon debates....both are solid performers and which one is better depends on who you talk too. Tamron looked better to me from viewing about 300 photos from each album on flickr.

 

[shivaswrath]

just an fyi, BestBuy has the D200 for $599 right now, add it to the cart, and the discount will be taken. . .I just "upgraded" from my D40x for $618 (shipping and tax!). . .absurd how much easier it is to use a D200 over a D40x, hate the menu's!!