nikon d3100, d5000, or canon d500?

[05thomcr]

im an entry-level dslr user and i am looking for a camera with which i will take pictures of people mostly, at parties or outside etc., but also a lot of landscape (sunsets, scenery, cityscapes etc.).

I am not too bothered about super-high quality video recording and I am more concerned with being able to take really good quality , but the three models;
Nikon d3100
Nikon d5000
Canon d500
are the models which I have found myself as options but obviously you guys are the experts so if you have any better ideas, please suggest any!

I have a budget of around £450 MAXIMUM, (around $690), so please come forward with help!

thanks alot!

 

[jcrob33]

D5000 Hands down...

 

[NateS]

:banghead: Why do people post when they have no knowledge and no information to back it up. I own a D5000 and even I wouldn't say D5000 hands down.

The Canon 500d (not d500) is the same as our T1i. Great little camera, does very well at high isos (as good as D5k) has a few more megapixels (not that important, but still), and can do basically anything a D5k can.

d3100 has a newer updated sensor over the D5k which gives it 2 extra megapixels and the D3100 has better video than a D5k. If those things matter to you....there you go...though you should still compare the D3100 to a T1i/500d.

Do some quick internet searches like

T1i vs D5000

T1i vs D3100

D5000 vs D3100

and you will quickly see the pros and cons from each and be able to decide what is important to YOU....only you will know that. Lastly go to a store and see how they handle....when I was buying I didn't like how Canon's felt and didn't like the controls...ultimately went with Nikon...might not be the same for you.

 

[Light Artisan]

No Canon experience, but I have owned both the D5000 and D3100 and if I had to pick one to own again it would be the D3100 but you can't go wrong with either one. There are just some functionality thing I prefer about the D3100 over the D5000.

 

[Formatted]

D5000 has been discontinued there is talk for a new D5000 with a detachable screen coming around the corner! May I suggest getting the D3100 or just waiting

 

[NateS]

D5000 has been discontinued there is talk for a new D5000 with a detachable screen coming around the corner! May I suggest getting the D3100 or just waiting

....and again

D5000 has not been discontinued. If it was, it wouldn't still be listed on Nikon's site (like the D80/D40/D60 which are no longer on there under their DSLR tab.
D5000 from Nikon


....and B&H wouldn't still be selling them.....
Nikon D5000 Digital SLR Camera Kit with 18-55mm VR Lens 25454


I'm sure it will be discontinued soon, but they will not discontinue a model until one comes out to replace it....even then maybe not for awhile after to get rid of surplus.

 

[flea77]

Does that budget include lenses and flash? If so, you might consider older models like the Nikon D80/D70 etc.

Allan

 

[NayLoMo6C]

D5000, having owned one before, I would say it's the best out of the bunch. You're gonna be using the vari-angle screen more than you will think...

 

[sam.woolfolk]

I have the D5000 and I love it. So easy to use, takes amazing pictures. I'd go with the 5000.

 

[KmH]

D5000 has been discontinued there is talk for a new D5000 with a detachable screen coming around the corner! May I suggest getting the D3100 or just waiting

....and again

D5000 has not been discontinued. If it was, it wouldn't still be listed on Nikon's site (like the D80/D40/D60 which are no longer on there under their DSLR tab.
D5000 from Nikon


....and B&H wouldn't still be selling them.....
Nikon D5000 Digital SLR Camera Kit with 18-55mm VR Lens 25454


I'm sure it will be discontinued soon, but they will not discontinue a model until one comes out to replace it....even then maybe not for awhile after to get rid of surplus.

Check this out at Nikon Japan's web site "Old Products" page: Google Translate - Click on Digital SLR Cameras

Note the D3000 is also on that list, but not the D90.

If you click on Speedlights - the SB-600 is listed.

 

[Ken Rockwell Fan]

For $690 you should be able to pickup a D90.

 

[JG_Coleman]

For starters, I have no Canon experience... so I can't really say much about the Canon D500.

I own a D5000, which I'm happy with, and I've had a few opportunities to play around with a D3100. Both are nice cameras... but between the two, I would opt for the D5000.

You mention that "super-high quality" video is not a big priority for you, and that happens to one of the new selling points of the D3100. The D5000 only records at 720p, while the D3100 records at 1080p. Overall, I'm not exactly impressed with the D5000's video capabilities... the clips just don't look all that impressive, really. It's clear that you're not using a camcorder when you produce videos with a D5000... and although that may be a "no duh" for many, I think some people actually expect HD video comparable to a unit dedicated to video. The D5000 is a photography camera... it's video capabilities are definitely not too refined. I have not had an opportunity to see if the video functionality and quality has been upgraded for the D3100. Both cameras produce their highest quality video at a relatively poor 24fps, by the way.

The D3100 has a larger screen, goes to 12,800 ISO (unlike the D5k's 6,400 ISO max), and gets two extra megapixels.

The D5000 produces slightly better image quality, detects a bit more dynamic range, and gets 1 extra frame per second burst shooting rate over the D3100. It also has the articulated display, a feature which some love and others seems to roll their eyes at in disgust...

At least one thing that I noticed right off the bat when I used a friend's D3100 for a few minutes: it doesn't offer bracketing. Of course, some people use bracketing all the time, while others rarely bother. For me, that one bit of missing functionality from the D3100 is a huge down-side in my book. While I don't remember many more details of the D3100's menus, I can say that the available options and settings seemed to be somewhat sparse in comparison to my D5000. Again, some people that own a D5000 almost never explore the buried menus of settings and functions. I, for one, use them all the time. So that aspect is important to me.

As you can see, there's quite an assortment of advantages and disadvantages for each model which you'll have to sort through to determine what works best for you. But, as has been suggested earlier, make an effort to actually go to a store and hold each camera. You want a piece of equipment with the features you need, but you also want it to feel right while you're shooting.

 

[mswiech]

Have you tried going to your local camera shop and seeing if they rent cameras first? This way you can test them out in real life settings and get a feel for what you want to achieve with your camera. You have to way your pro's and con's of each one. I was looking for a good 3-4months before I settled with my camera, but that was a lot of research and testing before I made the purchase. Hope it goes well.

 

[Nikato]

Here is something that may help you: Nikon D3100 Review: 16. Compared to (JPEG): Digital Photography Review

Another forum member linked this to me. Basically it is a website that reviews cameras. Not only that, but the specific page i linked you (and the next 2 that follow it) compare cameras. Its set to the D3100 but has drop down menu's so you can compare other camera shots of the same picture side by side.

Personally I thought the canon T2i looked better then the 3100, though that is the T2i not T1i.

 

[KmH]

what camera should i buy...??? I'm a beginner

The one that does what you need it to do, that fits within your budget. :er: