Upgrading from a Nikon D3000 Help =l

tommelleo22 · Nov 12, 2011

Well i've had my d3000 for a little over a year now with my only lens being the kit 18-55 i've just recently been really shooting with it at some of my mx races and some car shows such as h20 and import alliance. I've gotten bitten pretty heavy by the photography bug and was looking to start getting another lens or 2. After some searching was put off by having to spend over 200$ for a 50 because the 1.8 i beleive doesn't have auto focus so i figured before i drop serious cash on lenses i might take a look at upgrading and then acquiring some lenses. I have a friend who has a ton of canon lenses of which i could use or buy for a fairly decent price if i were to switch cannon but i'm not too sure on where to go. Here are a few cameras i've been looking at.

Canon t2i-efs-Canon-T3-Basically any nikon up from the d3000 to the D90 is max price range and the pentax K-r. I've read great reviews on all of the cameras listed and a lot of my friends shoot canon but i purposely bought nikon because everyone shot canon near me and i wanted to be different so any help or advice would be greatly appreciated and budget let's keep it under 1k because i am a college student. money is of the essence =D

thereyougo! · Nov 12, 2011

The only real reason to upgrade the body would be to increase shooting speed or resolution. Personally I would upgrade glass (lens) before bodies. The lenses can generally come with you. I'm not a Nikon shooter but if it's a modern 50 f/1.8 it will have autofocus. You have only the kit lens so far but I want to warn you off changing bodies as photography is an expensive enough hobby as it is. Get the best glass you can afford and wait until you've grown out of your current body is my advice

rpm · Nov 12, 2011

actually in the case of the D3000 there's more than resolution or fps on offer with an upgrade. ill also contradict the above comment about changing bodies; you have a kit lens. nothing more. if you're going to change systems now is the time before you move onto 'real' lens purchases. as for the 50 manual focusing a 1.8D isn't too bad or hard to do really but there is a more recent G version that has been released albeit more expensive that would autofocus on your body.

with the money you have id consider getting better glass...save up for the 17-55 2.8....

or get the 50 1.8G for now and save up for the above lens....

if you want to get a new body...the world is your oyster...if you're sticking to Nikon...D5100 or D90....depending on what features you value most...otherwise the Pentax i heard is best bang for the buck but personally id stick to the main two systems (Nikon or Canon). personally i know little about Canon to make any solid recommendations either.

don't be afraid to look at second hand options to get this lens or the bodies for that matter. im a student myself and if you want to get most out of your budget second hand isn't a bad alternative...

thereyougo! · Nov 12, 2011

I guess I didn't make my point clearly enough. Of course the OP could upgrade his body now as he has only the one lens. I was trying to advise against upgrading the body in preference to getting good glass. He definitely shouldn't blow the whole budget on a new body and it would be worth getting a used body/ lenses to keep it in budget.

tommelleo22 · Nov 12, 2011

i agree with rpm but thereyougo you have a good point also. Where i was going was before i started to buy some nikon glass realize if im going to stick to nikon or switch know before my pockets are ruined by one of those 3 companies lol

tommelleo22 · Nov 12, 2011

do you guys have any sites that offer refurbs or used gear? at the moment i've only seen used and refurbs going on here and ebay, just looking for another outlet if possible to save some money on glass or if i do upgrade my body

thereyougo! · Nov 12, 2011

Go to some shops and have a plan of what you are looking for: whether it be high FPS good performance at high ISO or whatever. Try out your friends' Canon's or Pentax's and see what you like or not like so much as you may be stuck with that system for some time. It's definitely worth looking at good quality used gear, as that will make your money go further. Good luck!

tommelleo22 · Nov 12, 2011

2 of my close close friends shoot canon one friend is currently enrolled in the art institute for photogrpahy and i'm not sure what he's using i think the t3i or the 60D along with his fifty and he has a fisheye which i love when he shoots some stuff with that. it's just a touch decision =l wish i was independently wealthy lol

thereyougo! · Nov 12, 2011

tommelleo22 said:
2 of my close close friends shoot canon one friend is currently enrolled in the art institute for photogrpahy and i'm not sure what he's using i think the t3i or the 60D along with his fifty and he has a fisheye which i love when he shoots some stuff with that. it's just a touch decision =l wish i was independently wealthy lol

A 50mm lens is always a good start. Canonwise I have the 1.4 and it's very sharp, and unlike the 1.8 the element doesn't move during focussing. the L 1.2 isn't worth the extra outlay. When I got my Pentax 645D I had 2 prime lenses, a 35mm and a 55mm and it forced me to zoom with my legs rather than my lens which made me think about my photography more. Even if it is the inexpensuive 1.8 you should always have one in your camera bag. Fisheyes are more complex, and although fun, you may find you don't use it that much. There are companies that hire out gear, so this could be a way of using a lens that you wouldn't use often.

Geaux · Nov 12, 2011

my question is...why the change of bodies? You never really gave a real reason to constitute an upgrade yet. I had the d3000 and got some awesome shots with it coupled with the 35mm 1.8

post some example shots.

Edit, here is an engagement shoot strictly done with the d3000 and 35mm

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nola2t/sets/72157624583522476/

MTVision · Nov 12, 2011

rpm said:
actually in the case of the D3000 there's more than resolution or fps on offer with an upgrade. ill also contradict the above comment about changing bodies; you have a kit lens. nothing more. if you're going to change systems now is the time before you move onto 'real' lens purchases. as for the 50 manual focusing a 1.8D isn't too bad or hard to do really but there is a more recent G version that has been released albeit more expensive that would autofocus on your body.

with the money you have id consider getting better glass...save up for the 17-55 2.8....

or get the 50 1.8G for now and save up for the above lens....

if you want to get a new body...the world is your oyster...if you're sticking to Nikon...D5100 or D90....depending on what features you value most...otherwise the Pentax i heard is best bang for the buck but personally id stick to the main two systems (Nikon or Canon). personally i know little about Canon to make any solid recommendations either.

don't be afraid to look at second hand options to get this lens or the bodies for that matter. im a student myself and if you want to get most out of your budget second hand isn't a bad alternative...

Nikon d5100 isn't really an upgrade and it still needs the lenses with autofocus motors in them. The d90 and the d7000 would be upgrades and do not need the af-s lenses. Nikon does have an af-s 50 1.8 for 220.00 new and there is also the 35 1.8 for under 200.00.

KmH · Nov 12, 2011

Because your friends use Canon gear it makes sense for you to change brands, so you can all share lenses.

Canon's T3 is their newest starter camera - Canon EOS Rebel T3 12.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with 18-55mm IS II Lens and EOS HD Movie Mode (Black)

Compared to your Nikon D3000 you will lose Spot metering mode with the T3, but gain a little bit of high ISO performance.

The T2i Canon EOS Rebel T2i 18 MP CMOS APS-C Digital SLR Camera with 3.0-Inch LCD and EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens has the Spot metering mode the T3 doesn't have, but the T2i doesn't have color-aware metering which the T3 and D3000 both have.

The T3 and T2i have virtualy identical ISO performance.

tommelleo22 · Nov 12, 2011

geux great pics with the d3000 but changing bodies or thinking about it because not really wanting to start buying glass for something i may not want to shoot with. canon lenses are more readily available to me and cheaper than the nikons i want and along with the pentax i really wouldn't use any more than the 18-55 a 50 and a 35 for now. which is why i was thinking about changing and to outlay the money on a 50 for my camera with the af i'd rather upgrade to something where lenses are more available and better priced such as the canon 50's -_- jealous...

flatflip · Nov 12, 2011

I like Nikon but if my friends had Canon I would probably go with Canon too. I would enjoy borrowing an awesome lens but I would not want to buy my friends kit lenses.