Nikon D3000 Digital SLR Camera

Outstanding Starter Camera

Looking over several cameras and choosing one for someone who has outgrown point and shoots, I came back to the Nikon D3000. By no means will this model blow away the seasoned photographer, however it does cover the basics and more. We picked it up and tried it out over the weekend.

First time DSLR users will enjoy the Guide Mode. It literally walked us through different shoot scenarios via the fixed 3" LCD screen. An excellent tool, its step by step instructions allowed my niece to move from the operating booklet in no time. After a few more runs, I am sure that she will feel quite comfortable shooting in the manual mode. The quick shutter release was a nice surprise.

Excellent first DSLR

My good old point-and-shoot camera (one of the Canon PowerShot series) had served me faithfully, but I was growing frustrated with its limitations. It seemed SO slow -- I was always missing great shots of my kids. The low-light performance was not particularly good. And I knew if I ever wanted to take more than basic family snapshots, I was going to need to bite the bullet and buy a DSLR. But they seemed so intimidating!

After doing a ton of research online and trying out my sister-in-law's slightly older Nikon D40, I settled on the new D3000. And I love it! It really is easier to use than I could've imagined, and the shots I've gotten so far are amazing. I have no photographic training, but I am really delighted with the pictures I've been getting so far. I never could have imagined there would be SUCH a huge difference. I've actually gotten -sharp- pictures of my toddler in motion, rather than just kid-shaped blurs! I took it to a local park last night for a couple hours and took some really nice photos there, too.

Another great DSLR from Nikon

I've had my Nikon D3000 since it was first released about 4 weeks ago and I'm really pleased with it. I'm an amateur/hobbyist photographer and for a year or so I haven't really been sure what DSLR to get. The Nikon D60 was a great camera, but I just didn't want to be stuck with it's basic 3-point AF system. Now that I've had my D3000 for a while I'm really glad I waited. The 11-point AF system (the same as what's in the D90 and D5000) was really worth the wait. Also, while I wasn't really too sure about the CCD sensor I have no complaints about it and I'm really pleased with image quality. The only problem with the image quality is low light performance, which is not the greatest, but I can't really complain - for the price it's great.

The button layout is great (just like all the other Nikons), I really like the 3-inch display, and some of the in-camera editing features have proven to be really useful. Also, though I don't really like compact DSLRs that much, I have to say that once again, Nikon has done a great job at it, and even though it's small, it's really comfortable to hold. If you're in the market for a DSLR, regardless of your level of photography, I'd highly recommend this camera.

Nikon D300s 12MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera
(Body Only)

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II Lens