When to Upgrade? A Newbies Guide

[Derrel]

Great story. But you should have just bought a decent Canon body instead--everybody knows Canon's the best.

 

[Goontz]

Great story. But you should have just bought a decent Canon body instead--everybody knows Canon's the best.

Nah, then he would have gone through 5 Canon's before getting all these Nikon's. :greenpbl:

 

[Atlas77]

All that said...

I have a D5000 and a D90 in front of me, trying to decide which will be the winner.

Image quality is identical between the two.

D90 feels like it has a little better build to it.
D90 doesn't require the rear LCD to be on to see your settings.
D90 feels a little better in my hand.
D5000 is quieter.

BAH!

Going to stop typing/reading and start taking photos... I think that's been the problem all along.

Isnt it an obvious choice?! Two words: Focusing motor.

I cant belive you gave back a D300s :meh:

 

[kundalini]

Baby steps, kundlini.. baby steps

:lmao::lmao::lmao:

 

[Darkhunter139]

All that said...

I have a D5000 and a D90 in front of me, trying to decide which will be the winner.

Image quality is identical between the two.

D90 feels like it has a little better build to it.
D90 doesn't require the rear LCD to be on to see your settings.
D90 feels a little better in my hand.
D5000 is quieter.

BAH!

Going to stop typing/reading and start taking photos... I think that's been the problem all along.

You're out of control haha. And are you seriously trying to decide between the two??

 

[Derrel]

I have a question about these eight bodies in one year; how were these purchase decisions actually arrived at? Was it mostly hands-on, in-store buying decisions that guided you? Or was it internet forum comments and on-line research? Or was it price mostly? I'm not trying to judge you on this, but it seems like a lot of the purchases really were not "good buys" in the sense that the equipment you acquired was sold off quite rapidly, either because you had outgrown it, or it wasn't meeting your needs, or you just wanted something better-spec'd.

For example--at any point did you go to a big brick and mortar photo store that had a wide range of Nikon bodies and lenses and actually get to handle the stuff? Or was your buying based on web-based info,product photos,etc? I'm just trying to understand how this type of progression occurs.

 

[Andrew Boyd]

This is interesting, and good to consider: why buy a new camera if what you have is really working for you? I've written a post at my site, The Discerning Photographer, that discusses some of the non-technical 'big picture' things to think about when you're considering an upgrade or purchase. You might want to check it out!
Andrew
TheDiscerningPhotographer

 

[PhotoXopher]

Derrel,
Your guess is as good as mine... The only camera I did not thoroughly research was the D40, but every review I read was positive - and the price was right. Initially I didn't want to spend over $400 total, so anything else was out of the question really.

Once I got over the intimidation and learned more about aperture, shutter speed and ISO I really started to dig photography like I thought I would. Adding a couple hundred dollars onto an investment is easier (to me) than just plopping down that extra $200 to begin with, especially when I'm not real sure where I'll go with it.

The D90 was always in my face though, but it was seriously over my budget. Everything up until the D90 was paid for with cash. I guess the 18 months/no interest lured me in and I finally got the 'right' camera.

For those that have never owned or shot with a D5000 before you can't begin to imagine how hard it is to pick between a d5000 and a D90. There are advantages to both, it's truly not a cut and dry decision to make.

Do I wish I still had the D300s, of course... but true to what I've posted here many times, I just can't justify the cost difference. There are people here more talented than I am, posting pictures I can only hope for at this point in time, and using technology that is 5 years older than what I have.

Funny you mention it though, Derrel... I almost started a thread along the lines of what you said. If it weren't for the Internet, how many of us would be content with out gear for a longer period of time? Without instant comparisons, latest information at your fingertips, 'Buy it Now' mentality, and 24/7 opinions from people who may or may not actually know fact from fiction.

I'm glad that most, if not all of my opinions/advice have been based on experience, and not just some random comment I read and passed along. I guess in some ways it's kind of nice to have the hands on knowledge of all those camera bodies.

I guess that about covers it...