I was worried that you might be slightly offended by my post, but you have asked for an advice and I gave it to you, and I was quite honest with it too, so no reason to be so aggravated by it.
If you are thinking of buying a camera that could serve you for decades, think again. This is a digital age we are living in and no camera could last that long.
If you have the budget go for D300, but you should really consider buying better lens instead and buy one or two that will work on full frame if you can afford it, it will make much more difference than D300, it is not the AF micro adjust that will give you sharpest pictures it is the lens you are using.
And I really mean that you will be able to buy way better camera than any of these in a year or two, and you will still be able to sell today’s newest Nikon model like D5000 better than an old one like D300.
D300 too much for newbie?
(69 posts) (19 voices)-
Posted 4 years ago #
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I don't totally agree with heartyfisher. Why buy one camera just to outgrow it and buy another. If someone really isn't sure that seemingly complicated instruments are their thing, well, go for the less expensive, less complicated thing. But if you relish a challenge, why not get what you'll probably end up with anyway? Yes, you "lose" less money on a D90 if you find you're just not into photography, but if you are, you lose the money you spend on the D90 when you buy the D300. (Yeah, I know about ebay and all.) In KGs case, it just sounds to me that he's going to be more into the adjustability features (not to mention the better construction, better autofocus, weather seals, etc.) of the D300. If KG described himself differently, I may well have recommended TO HIM, to go for the D90.
Posted 4 years ago # -
@ KG : Saving custom setting are in the pro level D300, D700, D3 D3x levels for good reason. Its for when you have Specialized! and want the convenience of setting up your specific scenes that you shoot ALL THE TIME eg 1:2 macro photography of flowers with LED lamps. Before you reach that stage there are Thousands of scenes that you will want to try and manual adjustments and tweaking of the manual settings based on your experience with the "standard" scenes is the best way to prepare for these. The D90 will allow you to do all the manual tweaking you want. The D300 will allow you to do the tweaking a little bit quicker but being an amature, brain time thinking up the required settings will make the difference irrelevant. I know you have limited the discussions ( sign of a good tech brain !) to not include lenses but lenses play a big role in the choice of camera settings as well! And I have to mention light sources(Tungstan lamps, Flash, Florescent tubes, LED) all effect camera settings!
Another advantage of the D90 is when you get frustrated with setting up manually and failing miserably you can always switch to one of the scene modes and chill out! LOL. The most important thing in the technical aspects of photography is that it does not get in the way of taking a photograph. The most important part of photography is creating pictures and that takes a lifetime( I have heard people say).
I still use my D70 even though I have an S5pro and will probably be getting the D400 when it is available. The D70/80/90 range is a great camera to learn photography on. It will remain a great backup(being a tech head you will appreciate backups !) When I am out for a shoot, I take 2 cameras with me each with a different kind of lens suited for the subject. either the D70 and S5 or the S5 and a Film camera. (oh, we have not discussed film and film cameras and settings yet! lol)
Posted 4 years ago # -
ROAR!!!
Posted 4 years ago # -
"I don't totally agree with heartyfisher. Why buy one camera just to outgrow it and buy another. If someone really isn't sure that seemingly complicated instruments are their thing, well, go for the less expensive, less complicated thing. But if you relish a challenge, why not get what you'll probably end up with anyway? Yes, you "lose" less money on a D90 if you find you're just not into photography, but if you are, you lose the money you spend on the D90 when you buy the D300. (Yeah, I know about ebay and all.) In KGs case, it just sounds to me that he's going to be more into the adjustability features (not to mention the better construction, better autofocus, weather seals, etc.) of the D300. If KG described himself differently, I may well have recommended TO HIM, to go for the D90."
warprints, that's pretty much why I said after a while for kg to just go for the D300. He's made it quite clear what type of person/learner he is and what matters and doesn't matter in this case. Therefore, being a similar person to kg, I agree that he should get a D300 whether the rest of us thinks he should or not. Based on what kg has already said I think it will be enjoyable after a while. Guess you gotta be into electronics to fully understand.
KG, I get it.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Of course its really up to our friend KG to decide.. Being a tech type guy doent mean that they are allthe same.. lets take cars for example( most tech guys like cars too lol)
He is obviously not a holden barina type of guy.(D40?) !! LOL
But is he a 4WD (Land Rover Diesel?) off roader kind of a tech, or a city hotrod( Subaru WRX/STi? You can upgrade it to 419 BHP wow! ), or is he a Classic Car( 1967 Shelby Super Snake Eleanor Ford Mustang) kind of tech. Ie will he keep his one true love and use it till he cant get parts for it or will be upgrading to the latest and most interesting technologies.
Get an FM2 or F6 and you will still be using it when the D300 can be bought for $1.( sorry I exaggerate lets say $25 ;-) )
Oh one more thing which of these 3 cars would you recommend learning to drive on?
Posted 4 years ago # -
"Of course its really up to our friend KG to decide.. Being a tech type guy doent mean that they are allthe same.. lets take cars for example( most tech guys like cars too lol)"
ummm...don't oversimplify the word "tech". A car is a mechanical device, hence the term mechanic. We're talking about electronics which is a completely different creature. I'm great with electronics but suck at mechanical things. Moving parts aren't my thing, electrical components and connections, I'm a bit more comfortable.
Digital SLR's are better compared to computers; both have microchips and use storage devices. Neither work by using a series of moving parts like pistons, belts, cylinders and pumps.
Posted 4 years ago # -
I'd say get whatever your budget and concience will allow you to get. Learning to deal with a dSLR or an SLR anyway is very hard but not really harder with a D90 or a D300. The biggest advantage of a D300 over any of the simpler cameras is that once you have learned the basics you can keep experimenting more. In the mean time you can still use the D300 at full auto until you have mastered setting your own settings for the really important moments.
For me it would really come down to what you think you can pay for a camera or what you think your hobby will be worth in terms of financials. Even with my high demands for quality and speed I still can't find any possible justification to buy a D3X.
Oh and do consider your significant other, they might have a totally different view on what you would need... just aim high and then settle for what you think is right while giving them a good feeling ;)
Posted 4 years ago # -
EdEnd "In the mean time you can still use the D300 at full auto"
The D300 does not have full auto.
Posted 4 years ago # -
In the mean time you can still use the D300 at full auto until you have mastered setting your own settings for the really important moments.
The D300 does not have a full auto mode, but it does have Program mode, which I've seen lots of newbies not even understand, especially once they get way far off of the far edges of P* and can't dial their way back to P.
-- Dave
Posted 4 years ago # -
"Guess you gotta be into electronics to fully understand." - gentoo - i have a double M.S. degree from computer science, and engineer degree from networking, so I presume I'm one of the kind You mention, still doesn't support Your arguments. If You starting with photography, and with any other things You do in your life, the most important thing You want to do is to have a solid ground. Sure KG might have the fundings for d300, maybe even for d3, moreover for sure he/she will enjoy the camera a lot. But the question is, does he/she really need this kind of camera, will he/she be able to use all it's features and learn all its limitation till the time the current model will become obsolete. For most of us the answer is no - mostly due to lack of time. as heartyfisher wrote "The most important part of photography is creating pictures..." and for me this is the core. I don't care either my camera is 1st gen, 2gen, 3gen or something else - the only one thing I really care is that I like the picture I take. If You are new to photography the most important thing is to see the results of Your work (it's also the best way to learn, taking picture and then evaluating), and for this, any camera with amateur features (like scenes/themes, i.e.) will be a much better performer than a camera that doesn't have them. Sure, You can learn all the settings, You can use Your custom settings, but if You concentrate only on settings and features of Your caera, You can come to the point, where the time You spend on all of this garbage, will take Your time from the most important aspect of photography - PICTURES!
Posted 4 years ago # -
I hope that KG just stops worrying about which camera to get and buys one ... any one ... which will be better than no camera at all.
Posted 4 years ago # -
adamz:
We'll never agree so I'll just leave it at that :)
Posted 4 years ago # -
I am going to get a new camera next week KG, its the Lumix TS1/FT1. It will complement my dSLRs and I will be able to take it to places and use it when I cant use my DSLRs. With it I will probably be able to take 20% more Pictures. Once you are on this path one camera will not be enough!! lol. Recently I just picked up a 35-70 F2.8. for $140. Old lens, small range, flares, BUT SHARP !! and Brighter than my other Zooms. I have had the following cameras. Pentax Spotmatic, Olympus Pen, Olympus Om 10, Nikormat, Nikon F601, NikonCoolpix5000, Nikon D70, FujiFilm S5pro(same body as the D200), Olympus 700SW, ( soon to be LumixTS1, Nikon D400)
Moral of this meandering story.. Your first camera wont be your last. Get one that is suitable for you Now. Complement it later with other gear. Lenses are VERY important. My 35-70 and Nikkor 50mmf1.4 Ais was created before there were DSLR cameras. They are sharper than the Fancy modern $$$ zooms. they will work on the D400 and the D3x and my F601 film camera. They will most probably work on the camera that obsoletes the D300. and they work on my D70 my first DSLR... Get the D90 and spend the difference on Good Glass. Good Glass Like the Nikkor 50mm AIS ( but get the modern equivalent! (nikkor 24-70?)
Posted 4 years ago # -
I think we really did our best to help young KG with his first camera.
If he don't buy one in a couple of days and start shooting his first pictures right away he will seriously offend us all.
And I could not agree more with mister heartyfisher here.
KG buy whatever you can afford right now and you have came to a conclusion is a good choice for you after reading all this (if you had the patients to read it all), after a while you will find your own way in all this mess and that is the most important thing I should say.Posted 4 years ago # -
Well, KG was very specific about what he/she wanted to hear in terms of cameras. Not the way he/she should spend their money and even said lenses were beyond the scope of this discussion. I gave just the information asked. Over the years of communicating with different people (even was paid for this for a while) I've found people only listen to information they ask for and ignore everything else.
Having said this, heartfisher is right about the fact that photographers never own just one camera. I also agree with getting some good lenses. This is why for me, I've changed my mind about waiting for the D400. Instead I ordered a D90 as my second camera and decided to get the 12-24F4 lens. I'm needing a good wide angel as right now, when I want to capture a scenery, I use the 18-55 kit lens I got with the D40 I used to have. I rarely buy anything when it first comes out anyway. I waited a year after the D40 came out and did the same with the D300. This is rather soon for me with the D90 but I want a second body. So I decided to get a good wide lens and wait a while for the D400. Perhaps next year.
Posted 4 years ago # -
I do as a matter of fact consider program mode to be auto mode :) Besides the fact I expect people to actually read the manual to at least operate the camera there should be no problem getting nice pics in most occasions in program mode. And even if you accidentally turn the dial, just switch off/on and you're back in business, even if you didn't read the entire manual.
Posted 4 years ago # -
"if you accidentally turn the dial"
If you accidentally turn what dial?
Posted 4 years ago # -
Guys, thanks for all the comments. I'm a guy, so you can stop with the he/she. Also my wife is buying the camera for my birthday in a few weeks. Some of you are more impatient than I am!
Posted 4 years ago # -
Lucky you, at least you won't have any issues convincing the wife then, saves a lot of potential trouble!
Once you have it, your wife will probably have some more time on her hands since you'll be busy shooting, learning, shooting, learning... for the next year at least!
Posted 4 years ago # -
.. good... err .. so is it time to talk about high key vs low key and white balance and focus stacking and pano stitching ......... (takes a deep breath) ... and multi exposures and sharpening and up sizing and printing dpi and super resolution and HDR and reversal rings and strobes and black and white conversion and IR conversions and HR conversions and layers... and noise.. and (wheeze .. .. wheeze ) ... Yet?
Posted 4 years ago # -
Get the D90 and spend the difference on Good Glass!!
I think the D300 is a bit much for you right now. . .and frankly, the D300 is going to be the first to be replaced since it came out when the D3 was out. . .so the D90 is "more new" and won't loose value as much.
This might all change if they announce the D400 on April 28th and the D300 market drops significantly. . .
Posted 4 years ago # -
28th of April - can someone else confirm this?
Posted 4 years ago # -
I think the argument that any camera is "too much" for someone is not true. I bought a D80 about a year ago and quickly out grew it within a few months. The picture quality was not what I wanted. It took me a few months to realize it but once I did I ended up not wanting to use it. I ended up buying a D700 then selling the D80 to partially finance a D300. If I had just got the D300 at the beginning I would have saved money and had better pictures all along. I personally wouldn't consider anything less than a D300. The picture quality is great and all those "pro" features are ways to make quick adjustments with extra buttons on the camera instead of having to go into the menu - very annoying. Just get the D300. It's worth it.
Posted 4 years ago #
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