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Obliviousdesignz

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Hey guys, new here :D

Basically I would like to know what gear you guys would recommend. I used to have a Nikon D40, but it was stolen from me this summer, and with the holidays coming up I'll finally be able to get some cash for a new camera. I'm a college freshmen, so money tends to be pretty tight, but I'm willing to spend quite a bit on a new camera.

Before my camera was stolen, I primarily took shots of flowers and such, but I'm always willing to branch out. Heres a link to my DA profile, theres only a few pictures on there, but it gives you some idea of my skill level. Obliviousdesignz on deviantART

Basically I want to spend ~$1000-$1200 max. I was thinking about getting a d40 and buying a couple nice lenses for it, but the features of the d90 caught my eye. I'm willing to live with a lesser lens until I can save enough for the nicer ones.

What does everybody think? Thanks :D
 
I'm not a nikon guy, but I know the d5000 is a hot item now. Have you considered it? For Canon, I would look at the Rebel T1i.

As a starter, both companies offer a pretty good 18-200 lens that will give you a good single general purpose lens until you put back money for more lenses. For Canon, the t1I is around $700 and the 18-200 lens ia $600. Using Bing.com cashback, you can probably knock those prices down. Nikon prices for the d5000 and 18-200 lens are similar. Looks like around $1300 which is just above your price limit, but I think it would be a good setup for you.

In general, most photographers would opt for the higher end glass over a new body. The glass will stay with you as you upgrade bodies.
 
You can take better photos using better lenses on a lesser camera body than you can using lesser lenses on a better camera body.

I suggest you buy the best lenses you can justify, based on what you want or need, then you can pretty much keep them for a lifetime if you care for them properly. They will only be even MORE expensive later on, and cost you more then than they do now.

Camera bodies are upgraded FAR more often than are lenses. New technology will come along, and the former newest and bestest will be discontinued and replaced by something newer and better.

You will likely replace your camera body far more often than you would replace a quality lens, which will also hold its value better than the camera body will.

Why not keep up by buying the former generation body, used, after newer camera has replaced it, and prices begin to fall like the proverbial rock.

Remember when recently, the D200 was selling brand new, with Nikon factory warranty for $599.00? Many here will "want" a better camera than a D200, but that is plenty for what most of us would ever need a camera for. D200 was wonderful, the latest and greatest, just three short years ago.

Why not wait until they release a "D91", and buy a D90 for cheap.

Not long ago, I bought a D80 (in exceptional condition, with less than 1,000 actuations) for a net (after selling what came with it that I did not want) $275.00. Until D90 drops considerably in price, I am very happy with my D80.

But heck, I was getting what I thought were very nice shots with my "lowly" D40.

"He who dies with the most toys...wins"

LOL
 
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You can take better photos using better lenses on a lesser camera body than you can using lesser lenses on a better camera body.

I suggest you buy the best lenses you can justify, based on what you want or need, then you can pretty much keep them for a lifetime if you care for them properly. They will only be even MORE expensive later on, and cost you more then than they do now.

Camera bodies are upgraded FAR more often than are lenses. New technology will come along, and the former newest and bestest will be discontinued and replaced by something newer and better.

You will likely replace your camera body far more often than you would replace a quality lens, which will also hold its value better than the camera body will.

Why not keep up by buying the former generation body, used, after newer camera has replaced it, and prices begin to fall like the proverbial rock.

Remember when recently, the D200 was selling brand new, with Nikon factory warranty for $599.00? Many here will "want" a better camera than a D200, but that is plenty for what most of us would ever need a camera for. D200 was wonderful, the latest and greatest, just three short years ago.

Why not wait until they release a "D91", and buy a D90 for cheap.

Not long ago, I bought a D80 (in exceptional condition, with less than 1,000 actuations) for a net (after selling what came with it that I did not want) $275.00. Until D90 drops considerably in price, I am very happy with my D80.

But heck, I was getting what I thouught were very nice shots with my lowly D40.

"He who dies with the most toys...wins"

LOL

Well according to some of those pro-photographers on here those crappy cameras with crop sensors and kit lenses are only for soccer moms and amateurs who will never be able to take any pro quality photos. You have to spend at least 10k on equipment and have the latest bodies and those who have 3 generations old dslrs should get a job... yeah...
:mrgreen:
 
oh, great... let's not get this going again.

I have not seen one photographer actually say that. They actually generally say just the opposite, you can absolutely take great images with crop sensor cameras. They just say that there is a difference in image quality. but, that's besides the point.

I am personally in agreement with patrickHMS, get a lower level camera, and get the best glass you can afford. For example, if you got an old 20D you could also get a 70-200f4L (used), a 50mm 1.4, and a Sigma 18-50 2.8 for about 1200-1300. All of that is good glass.

Of course this isn't Nikon stuff... cause I don't know that...
 
There's tons of small,light d-slr bodies to choose from....D3000 and D5000 come to mind, but there are also a lot of choices to make as far as the size and weight of the equipment you are willing to cary around. Lenses last a long,long time. How devoted to carrying a camera are you? Do you need a small,light camera body like a D40? Are you willing to put up with the size and weight of the "better" lenses from either Nikon or Canon?

Maybe you ought to stop by Thom Hogan's Nikon Field Guide and Nikon Flash Guide and read up on the logical lens choices article he has, as well as some of his camera body reviews, just so you have a better understanding of what's on the market, and what the tradeoffs are with specific bodies and lenses. Living in the midwest, where you do, it might be hard to find cameras and lenses to trial fit, except at big box stores like Best Buy,so, online research at a central web source like Thom's site might help a lot.
 
The D90 and the excellent Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 HSM Macro that Nate mentioned would put you just a hair over $1200. If I had $1200 or so to spend, that's what I would get. The D90 is a great camera and the Sigma is super sharp, and only $419.
 
Thanks for the help everybody :D I tend to carry my camera around with me just about every where, but weight isn't a huge deal. Before I had my nikon, I constantly carried around my dad's old vivitar 35mm, talk about heavy! :lol:

I'm not only biased to nikon products either, since everything I had was stolen I lost my lenses, I just had luck with my D40. :D

I'll take a look at the t1I, the d3000, d5000. thanks for the help :D
 
Digital Cameras will go down in value very quickly. As soon as the replacement model is released, your camera will worth much less. Lenses tend to hold their value and often go up in value due to the weak dollar. I realize your camera gear is not an investment, but still I would agree with Patrick that spending less on the camera and more on the lenses is wise.
 
I'm not a fan of the new d5000 since they took out the internal focus motor and the top mount info screen and since your on a college budget you'll want a internal focus motor because it opens you up to many legendary older AF lenses that are cheap, such as the 85mm 1.8 which is awsome for portraits I know you shoot flowers just saying lol. You can get a lightley used d90 for about 750, my friend just bought one for 770 and you can't tell it was used at all and it would give you about 450 for a awsome third party lens. You have nikon and canon people who will say don't buy sigma but I see so many photos in magazines using sigma lenses and they always have a closure focusing distance thennikon which would help you shoot flowers ect.
 
You could get a 40D/D80 or another of that level camera plus one good quality walkabout lens such as Sigma/Tamron 17-50 f2.8
 
There is more than one way to skin a cat when you want to buy something, and if you know what you are doing, could work out very well for you, and be fun doing it.

I prefer to buy used equipment (or anything else for that matter), and buy stuff as a whole kit, then sell or trade what I don't want to reduce cost of what I do want to keep.

For example, someone was selling a Nikon D80, including two lenses and some filters, a flash, and a camera bag for a certain fair price, which I offered cash and negotiated that price down some more from what they were asking for it.

I then sold what I didn't want to get some of the money I spent back, kept what I did want to go into my own personal camera bag.

When all was done, I had a nice D80 body for about $275.00 net, so I thought I did pretty good at that point. Then, when I had the D80 checked out further, it only had 900 some actuations, which is not hardly broken in, so I ended up buying an almost new Nikon D80 for next to nothing.

Thought I did pretty well.

Also bought a D200 from BestBuy for that $599 online price they had running, couldn't see enough in D200 that (for me and what I do) was better than my D80 for the price difference, so I put D200 on eBay and made a little money on it when I sold it.

I am nearly 60 (Dec) and when I was growing up, this technique was known as "horsetrading" where the toys you buy cost little or none of your own money, and you seldom sell or trade something for less than "you have in it" usually making money doing it.

Over the years, I have used the technique on all kinds of stuff, ranging from cameras to cars... In my college years I was driving a different car every couple of months, people always wondered...

And it's a lot of fun to do!
 

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