Nikon D5000 12.3 MP DX Digital SLR Camera with 2.7-inch Vari-angle LCD (Body Only)

This was first available in 2009. Its not the latest interchangeable-lens Nikon SLR. I couldnt afford that. I was using a Nikon N6006 when the Digital Camera Revolution started. I have 3 real nice lenses for the N6006 that I couldnt use any of with my digital cameras. I saw this at Amazon.com and bought it because: the price is low, about $200 for a high-quality Nikon digital camera and because I wanted to use my lenses with it. They fit and work, as do all Nikon lenses, but of course I have to focus manually. Remember this was first available about 7 years ago. Big advances have happened since then. Considering the price, and its age, I rate it a 4. The reason why its not a 5, is the clock battery. Mine gave up the ghost after one week of use. To replace it, you have to take the camera to a Nikon service center. You cannot replace it yourself. This is a minor inconvenience, but its not fixable. Every time I turn the camera on, it asks me to specify the time, which I dont. I just push OK. I dont think its worth getting this fixed. I estimate the cost would be around the price that I paid for the camera. This is NIKON quality, and it shows in the pictures. If youre willing to put up with a few inconveniences, this is a good choice.

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Im not into taking photos with any degree of regularity. Lets start there. In the past, Ive relied on point and shoots and cell phones to capture the moment so this giant leap into the D-SLR world was, for me, sailing into unchartered waters to put it mildly. If youre looking for all the technical jargon and in-depth analysis of the various features, it aint me Babe. I do appreciate the efforts of the more learned and their comments/reviews which actually convinced me this D5000 was the best camera value out there and so far, that feeling hasnt been compromised. I got the camera and quickly viewed the accompanying DVD from the Nikon school which helped me understand the cameras capabilities along with the basics of how it operated. The menu system is fairly straightforward and anyone with basic computer skills shouldnt have any problem in finding their way through the various modes although, at first, I found all the selections and options somewhat daunting so I left the main selector wheel on automatic and snapped off a few pictures to get a feel for the D5000. The first thing I noticed was the speed and accuracy of the act with no worries about vibration or causing the pictures to blur. Taking clear photos of fast moving objects was another new experience that caused me to warm to the unit. Through trial and error, mainly the latter, Ive also learned the basic skills of zooming in, focusing, and using the various modes for sports action, twilight and a few other modes. So, for a disinterested photo guy, the D5000 has delivered and actually made me want to search out more photo ops which was the purpose in getting this advanced (for me) camera in the first place. Im still trying to figure out the continuous photo mode where youre supposed to be able to take 3-4 pics in a row but that capability is buried somewhere in the various menu options which Ill sort out by reading the manual. A word about the actual choice of the camera over the competitors: I elected to go with Nikon because of its name recognition, reputation for technical excellence and because of the various reviews I read prior to the purchase. Maybe the other manufacturers are of similar, lesser or greater quality in this regard, but the Nikon name, to me, has been well worth the purchase price paid. To me, it was sort of like buying a Toyota car over a Kia if you know what I mean? At any rate, first time D-SLR buyers will be heartened to know that I made the plunge with the Nikon D-5000 and am glad I did with no buyers remorse and the D5000 has my recommendation.

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Ive had my D5000 for almost a year. Ive shot several thousand pictures of a variety of subjects: landscape, family, sports, portrait, still life. I upgraded from film SLRs and compact digitals. This is a whole new world. It took me a little time to get all the features and settings where I want them, but Ive got the hang of it now. The D5000 is a compromise: its the sensor from the D90 and a user interface similar to a compact digital. Its right for me, because I wanted better pictures than a compact, taken over a wider range of lighting and action than a compact is capable of. The dynamic range is a huge improvement: no more treading the fine line between blowing out the highlights on one end and losing everything to noise on the other (sometimes doing both at once). I intended on using the articulating screen for taking candid shots of people, but it doesnt work for two reasons: shutter lag and the time to autofocus. In live view, I took pictures of a stopwatch and measured the shutter lag at 0.6 seconds. Thats with manual focus and exposure, so I dont see a way to get reduce it any farther. The source of the lag is the mirror flaps down and back up again before the pictures taken. It seems silly, but theres no way around it. At any rate, the delay is too long to capture the moment in street photography. Not in live view, looking through the viewfinder, the shutter lag is very low - too small to accurately measure this way. The other disadvantage to live view is the time it takes to autofocus. If the subject isnt stationary, you have to use manual focus, preset the focus (using either manual or the AEL button) and - this is important - put it in AF-C mode (Continuous Servo Autofocus), so the camera takes the picture BEFORE it decides that its focused. That last part is casually mentioned in the manual, but without it the camera cranks back and forth on the focus and you get a picture of your subjects hind end as they leave your field of view. One more thing: since it wont trigger flash remotely, this may not be what youd want for a studio camera. There are several ways to work around this: wired flash, Pocket Wizard, etc. but youd cut yourself off from being able to fully use CLS. If you think youre going to get serious about studio photography, you probably dont want to set that limitation for yourself right off the bat. All in all, I still like the camera. It takes great pictures, its flexible and pretty easy to use and it works for a lot of situations.

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Equipments: Nikon D5000 + Nikkor 18-200mm VR II Experience: Amature Usage: 1 Year 6 Months Clear your mind and remove all -ve thoughts about this lense. JUST BUY IT. Use it and then you will realize what is the potential of this lense. Even a lot of PRO photographers are using this lense 70% of the time when they want to travel light. A perfect lense for all situations. Definately not a PRO Lenase, but can do more than required for an amature / semi-professional photographer. I want to start my photography career with a decent investment and want to buy a lense that works fine in most of the conditions. I spent months reading reviews for this lense. See the website list..... - Amazon - B & H Photo Video - Adorama - Abes of Maine - Ken Rockwell - DPReview - Camera Labs - Nikonians - Shutterbug -------- and list goes on. Here are some Pros-Cons based upon real life scenarios that I faced..... -- Can not use in-built Flash of D5000 when 18-200mm lense is set to the widest angel of 18mm. Gives a ghosty lense shadow at center-bottom of photo. Flash works fine with 24-200mm range even when barral is fully extended at 200mm. -- Nikon D5000 is a not too heavy (only 560 gms). Nikon 18-200mm is heavy (again 560 gms). When this combination is around the neck, because of weight of the lense, it doesnt stay in place. A user feels unsecure when constantly lense is pointed towards ground. Also creeping of lense makes condition even worse. Make sure to use 18mm LOCK more frequently. -- There is significant BARREL and PIN CUSHION distortation (In General: BENDING) acroos focal range. After reading a lot of reviews, this came to my attantion and now I am observing it more frequently during photography practices. THIS IS NOT A BIG DEAL. Not a big deal unless someone photographs straight lines, architectural systems or buildings. ---- Camera has inbuild correction menu, where this can be corrected. Bending can also be corrected thru PhotoShop or other similar softwares, but can not be removed 100%. -- Focus ring has very small movement. Average focusing distance is 4~6 inches. -- Lense uses 72mm filter. They are not tough to find, but they are not widely used. A buyer can easily find cheap filters (to start with) on Amazon. ++ Camera is designed very well ergonomically. Only person with bigger hands needs some adjustment time initially. Overall very much satisfied with size and design. ++ Lense is super sharp and focuses extremely quickly in average to bright light situations. It has some lag when light is not sufficient. AF illuminator is very handy in certain situations. But keep in mind that AF illuminator can be disturbing for a close potrait shoots and for wild life photography. UPDATE: Nikon has introduced Nikon D5100 with slightly higher price. But some of the additional features are, - Display opens up side-ways. Much better for a tripod mounted camera. - A better, brighter LCD - All buttons are moved to the left of the camears. One handed navigation and photography is possible. - Captures 10880p full HD movie - Auto-Focus during the movie VERDICT: Just buy the combination and head to the field.

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I bought this camera last year, after owning a D60 for just a few months. The D60 was an ok camera, but I quickly outgrew it. I wanted a camera with more features and better ISO performance. The D60 pics would get noticeably grainy after around ISO 800. With the D5000 I can set auto ISO to 1600 and be totally happy with the images. Even ISO 3200 is usable. My camera was part of the recall, but I never had a problem with it. I sent it back anyway to have it repaired, and got it back in about a week. Ive taken almost 10,000 images and have yet to experience any problems. My only gripe with the D5000 is having to go through the menus whenever I need to change something. It would be nice to have dedicated buttons for my most frequently used settings. That D7000 looks pretty tempting... :)

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