which nikon is best for my budget?

[WPHOTOG]

My budget is £900 could stretch to £950. Second hand is fine also.

I have a Nikon D5100 at the moment with a 50mm 1.8 and 70-300mm. I know lenses play a major part to photography but please note I am on about camera's so no lens talk please. I have used a Nikon D300, D3200, D7000 but not sure on which one to go for.

I shoot equine, fast moving sport and looking for a camera with a fast focus, sharp images (again, I know lenses play a massive part!) ect. I was looking into a Nikon D610/700? I want a professional camera, of course not a D4 as such but a nice camera to see me through the next few years which gives me great results. I am not a novice therefore know how to use a camera.

Thank you.

 

[jaomul]

To help better, what is your d5100 not doing to your satisfaction?

 

[WPHOTOG]

To help better, what is your d5100 not doing to your satisfaction?

I find that when I take action shots, such as a horse jumpings, it's not focusing fast, or focusing on something else. I shoot manual mode and always have done. Hasn't got the best ISO for indoor shots, picture quality and I'm not liking the feeling of the camera anymore either. I want to go a few steps higher as I feel I need to be getting out and covering events but the D5100 just isn't my cup of tea anymore.

 

[JoeW]

To help better, what is your d5100 not doing to your satisfaction?

I find that when I take action shots, such as a horse jumpings, it's not focusing fast, or focusing on something else. I shoot manual mode and always have done. Hasn't got the best ISO for indoor shots, picture quality and I'm not liking the feeling of the camera anymore either. I want to go a few steps higher as I feel I need to be getting out and covering events but the D5100 just isn't my cup of tea anymore.

The best Nikon photojournalism bodies (D3s, D4s) are out of your price range. I suspect that some of the issue is a combination of having to shoot at a slower shutter speed (to avoid grain/noise) combined with a kit lens. So a professional quality lens will make a huge difference for shooting sports and mobile animals. That said...you asked about bodies....I'm going to assume that you'd like all of your lens to be compatible with the new body if possible. So that means looking at DX options.

...The D7000 will easily fit within your price range. You can get the body now for as low as $500 USD. Good performance at high ISOs, range of FPS options, will work with all of your D5100 lens options.
...The D7100 is a better/upgraded model but may be out of your price range.

 

[jaomul]

Any of the crop sensor cameras you mentioned won't give better iso or picture quality. The d7000 has better focus system as does the d7100 but neither will be much better image quality wise

The d700 second hand has great focussing and speed and high iso performance if 12 mp is enough

 

[pixmedic]

you can easily get a lightly used D7100 for $900 or less.
you get a fantastic 51pt autofocus system (like the D300) and you get the added benefit of the newest 24mp sensor tech.

 

[jaomul]

you can easily get a lightly used D7100 for $900 or less.
you get a fantastic 51pt autofocus system (like the D300) and you get the added benefit of the newest 24mp sensor tech.

Would the d7100 image quality be better than the d5100 though (same sensor as d7000 , did you have 7100 and 7000 at one stage?). I always though resolution was the only real improvement. ISO is a mentioned problem with current setup

 

[pixmedic]

you can easily get a lightly used D7100 for $900 or less.
you get a fantastic 51pt autofocus system (like the D300) and you get the added benefit of the newest 24mp sensor tech.

Would the d7100 image quality be better than the d5100 though (same sensor as d7000 , did you have 7100 and 7000 at one stage?). I always though resolution was the only real improvement. ISO is a mentioned problem with current setup

maybe...
maybe.

honestly, there wasn't any noticeable difference between shots taken with our D7000 and our D7100.
you get a little better ISO performance out of the D7100 compared to the D7000, so that probably carries over to the D5100, but as far as actual non-pixel peeping viewing.....i doubt there is a huge difference.

 

[wezza13]

The D7100 is going for £579 at the moment on Digitalrev.

Bought one last week and it's fantastic, a massive improvement over the D3200 I upgraded from.

Then again, I don't know if your D5100 is a lot better than the D3200?