My sweet wife ordered me a Nikon d5100 for an early Christmas present. It’s currently on back order but should arrive within two weeks. I did quite a bit of research, but it did not occur to me to get on a forum when seeking advice. I’m feeling a little of buyer’s remorse. Now I’m a little concerned about the video quality. Those of you who have the d5100 what are your thoughts?
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Just ordered a D5100
(17 posts) (10 voices)-
Posted 1 year ago #
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If you want a Nikon there isn't any camera that shoots better video. The D7000 is probably going to be exactly the same except you lose the articulating screen. Canon is and has been ahead in the video department...so if you want to focus on video I hate to say it, but they are probably better options. From what I have seen though I think the new Nikon bodies shoot pretty good video though. Some others here can probably share more on it...I don't shoot video on mine and actually get just got a new camcorder to shoot video with.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Welcome to the forum PapaRoe, the D5100 is a nice camera, and the only Nikon DSLR to feature a swivel view screen which can be quite useful when filming. I wouldn't have any buyers remorse if I were you, enjoy your new camera, and welcome to the Nikon owners club!
Posted 1 year ago # -
I think I had the upper hand yesterday evening while recording my kids singing outside at a Christmas tree lighting ceremony. The program started near sunset while there was sufficient light for decent video. Most people were recording with their cellphones, mini-recorders, and one guy was holding up his iPad. As the sun began to disappear the cellphones and hand recorders began to be lowered while the children continued to sing. Between songs, I adjusted the shutter speed and ISO on my D7000 and continued to record. Was a good feeling to capture the whole program using the 35mm 1.8 lens.
All that to say this. If the video function on the D5100 is similar to the D7000 you'll enjoy it and appreciate the capabilities.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Hi and welcome,
I have the D7000, not the D5100, and I'm told the video is similar.
While somewhat retired, I shoot both video and photography and teach Adobe software.
A couple of weeks ago, I shot video on the D7000 in some rather rugged conditions in Glacier National Park (it doesn't close - although most of the roads that cross through the park are closed). The temps ran from 0 to 20 and the winds gusted to 50mph, with freezing rain, but the D7000 did fine (better than me).
Other than the articulating screen (which I wish the D7000 had), I don't have a clue as to the features of the camera or if you'll be happy with it, but generally Nikon makes good stuff.
The video quality is pretty good. The grips are valid, but mostly have to do with interface, lack of clear instruction, and for professionals - there are a slew of control issues (audio, brightness readouts, bit rates, etc.) that are concerning. Many of these things are not trivial, but OTOH, for everyday users they are not insurmountable.
Once you 'break the code' the camera is pretty easy to use. Of course, you wonder why it's encoded it the first place.
My best,
Mike
Posted 1 year ago # -
I may have misrepresented my planed usage of my Nikon. My main focus will be shooting pictures: action, candid, and nature, with an occasional video. I did a ton of research and the Nikon won me over from Canon, which I currently own a little S3is. I am very excited to find this forum and getting some advice from all of you. This brings me to another point. I want to get an UV filter, mainly for lens protection, and was considering Tiffin or Hoya. Any recommendations?
Posted 1 year ago # -
There should be several threads on filters if you do a search.
Nikon does tend to have better picture quality over Canon. I think you will be pleased. If you get it in 2 weeks it won't be that early of a Christmas present :) Enjoy.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Welcome to the forum, PapaRoe. You'll love your camera; stick around and share some of your pictures. Here are a couple of threads on filters:
http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=1367
http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=730Posted 1 year ago # -
I like using a Nikon NC filter on all my lenses. It seems to "disappear" best while protecting the lens.
Adorama and B&H will have them also.
I assume you will be getting the 18-55mm VR lens with our D5100. That lens uses a 52mm filter. http://www.adorama.com/NK52C.html
Posted 1 year ago # -
Don't have any remorse. I think you'll love the D5100. I wound up getting the Nikon 18 - 200 VRII lens, which cost more than the camera did, but I wanted one good all-purpose lens, so I wouldn't have to switch lenses often. I think you'll be really happy with the camera. I did a lot of research on filters and wound up getting B&W MRC UV and Circular Polarizer. They are expense (about $130 for the pair @ Amazon.com), but I felt if I had decent glass, I needed good filters and from what I read, B&W is highly rated.
Video on the camera is excellent, but like yourself, I got mine for still photography and I couldn't be happier.
I think your early Xmas gift from your wife is a great choice.
Posted 1 year ago # -
donaldejose, Yes I'll be getting the 18-55mm VR lens, there wasn't another option. I would have preferred to have just bought the body and order a good prime glass separately. However, the price was so good. $697 with no tax or shipping. Yes that's correct. AAFES, which is the department store through the military had it on sale. Of course they sold out quickly, but it's on the way. I can hardly wait. I figured that I would just wait and get familiar with the camera,and how I use it before buying some nice glass.
Posted 1 year ago # -
PapaRoe: The 18-55 "kit" lens you will be getting is a great lens and will do 90% of everything a normal person wants to do with a camera. At 18mm it serves as a wide angle for scenery, groups and interiors. At 35mm it serves as a normal lens for anything you would photograph with a 50mm lens on a 35mm camera. At 55mm it serves as a portrait lens for head and shoulders shots plus as a macro lens when focused to its closest focusing point. You can get even closer by cropping your image in post processing. Since you have a 16 megapixel sensor and a HDTV or computer monitor can only display about 2 megapixels anyway you can safely crop off about 2/3rds of your original image and not see a degradation in image quality.
Here are some examples of photos taken with that 18-55mm lens.
A flower in my front yard.
Nikon D40, 18-55 lens at 55, f/5.6, -0.7 exposure compensation, ISO 200, 1/125th second.The following links are to the full size images:
A stream in my backyard.
http://home.comcast.net/~djose1/pwpimages/DSC_0084.JPG
Nikon D3100, 18-55 lens at 18, f/4, ISO 100, 1/60th second.A watch.
http://home.comcast.net/~djose1/pwpimages/DSC_0147ww.JPG
Nikon D80, 18-55 lens at 55,f22, ISO 200, +0.7 exposure compensation, 1/60th second.Now a cropped close up of just the dial so you can see how much you can crop.
http://home.comcast.net/~djose1/pwpimages/DSC_0147wwa.JPG
Nikon D80, 18-55 lens at 55, f/22, ISO 200, +0.7 exposure compensation, 1/60th second, off camera flash TTL, wrist watch in light tent.All photos in this photo book were taken with that lens on either a D40 or D3100 body. The book is 12 inches wide and the D3100 image could full two pages (24 inches). Your D5100 will have a better sensor than any of the cameras used in the examples I have posted. http://www.adoramapix.com/donjose/book/hawaii-2011
The one "disadvantage" of the 18-55mm lens is a slow f-stop range of 3.5 to 5.6. You can compensate for this by increasing your ISO setting as needed. In fact, your camera has an Auto ISO setting which will do this automatically for you.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Thanks for the links. I can hardly wait for the arrival of my new camera. I figure that it will take me a while before understanding how to use it before considering buying another lenses. I really want to find a local photography class to obtain some good pointers. I learn pretty fast on my own, but the learning curve within a class who be so much better.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I just changed the links in my last post so you can better see the images full size.
I am using Google Chrome as my internet browser. Here is how it works in Chrome (it may be different in your browser system). Just click on the link, the image will fill your screen, and then click on the image and it will enlarge to full size.
This way you can better see what the senor can produce and how you can crop half of your original image away and still have enough pixels left. Thus, moderate cropping can serve to double the telephoto or macro range of your current lens. Taking an image large size with fine detail in the first place and then cropping about half way to get closer costs nothing and most viewers won't notice the difference once that senor is above 10 megapixels. This is a technique rarely spoken of and instead people are urged to buy new lenses when those people may not need to spend a penny to get what they are seeking.
Posted 1 year ago # -
B&W filters all the way.
Posted 1 year ago # -
please read any of the already discussed topics:
http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=3795Posted 1 year ago # -
topics with filters:
http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=1367
http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=4368
http://nikonrumors.com/forum/topic.php?id=730Posted 1 year ago #
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