Nikon D3000 or D5000?

[30lbcarpplease]

Hi all,

I’m a novice photographer wishing to buy my first DSLR. I’m looking at 2 Nikons.

The first one is the D3000 which Jessops are offering for £369. The second, a D5000 which costs £530

The D5000 is HD? Without sounding ignorant, does this mean a lot? The difference between 10 or 12mega pixel will probably make no difference to me but the extra £170 does?

Any thoughts much appreciated…

[Mr_Bump]

HD will only be for video, how often will you use it for that?

The D3000 is brand new but does not have live view or video.

The D5000 has the edge on features too.

The D3000 is pretty closely related to the D5000. There are important differences though, which are detailed here.

10 MP CCD sensor (D5000: 12.3 MP CMOS)
Fixed LCD screen (D5000: Tilt/swivel screen)
No Live View (D5000: Live View with contrast detect AF)
No movie mode (D5000: Movie Mode with contrast detect AF)
More limited ISO range (100-3200 as opposed to 200-6400)
No control of Active D-Lighting intensity (D5000: choice of 'low, normal, high')
No automatic lateral chromatic aberration correction (available in D5000)
No choice of JPEG quality in RAW+JPEG shooting (JPEG basic available only)
Slower continuous shooting (3fps compared to 4fps from the D5000)
No exposure bracketing (available in D5000

[Les_Paul]

The D5000 also has a flipout screen though not sure if it flips right the way around, not that I think thats important in a camera. The 5000 is definately a better featured camera and its better to have those options rather than want for them at a later date.

Make sure you only get AFS lenses as well, the older AFs will only be manual focus.

[30lbcarpplease]

It sounds like I better save a little more cash and but the 5000 then?

[DAC84]

I recently had the same choice after narrowing it down to those two cameras. I went for the D3000 in the end as I personally thought that video and liveview wasn't worth the extra £120 for what Im going to use it for, which is general picture taking, holidays etc.

Liveview is handy and works in the same way as a normal digi camera, I just feel more comfortable holding the camera up to my eye instead of out in front. The viewfinder on SLR's are far better than on digi cameras too, whereas I used to use liveview on the those.

If you're planning on learning photography then the D5000 might be best as it has the better features as listed above, but the D3000 is well spec'd for the price and im very happy with my purchase.

Also make sure you get the VR lens as they sell it with and without in the kit.

[MartinJ]

I think Live view is a gimmick designed to win over compact users who have used nothing else.
Looking through the viewfinder in a DSLR gives you more information than looking at a LCD. You are actually looking through the lens and What You See is What You Get (WYSIWYG) on your photo.

On the D5000 you are paying for the Video function, ask yourself do you really want this?

I think the D3000 is a highly specified camera, perfect for learning photography without too many distractions... Also Nikon are the market leader (with Canon (debatable)) so good choice of manufacturer ;)


I recently had the same choice after narrowing it down to those two cameras. I went for the D3000 in the end as I personally thought that video and liveview wasn't worth the extra £120 for what Im going to use it for, which is general picture taking, holidays etc.

Liveview is handy and works in the same way as a normal digi camera, I just feel more comfortable holding the camera up to my eye instead of out in front. The viewfinder on SLR's are far better than on digi cameras too, whereas I used to use liveview on the those.

If you're planning on learning photography then the D5000 might be best as it has the better features as listed above, but the D3000 is well spec'd for the price and im very happy with my purchase.

Also make sure you get the VR lens as they sell it with and without in the kit.

[30lbcarpplease]

Thanks for the info guys.

In brief, the info given has persuaded me away from the D3000, although the price tag of the D5000 is not ideal on the back of Christmas etc.

In this month Carpology they recommend the Nikon P90 (Bridge Camera). The spec of this camera seems great but obviously it’s a bridge camera, not a true SLR.

As a novice photographer, who is not intended on ever changing the lenses is this a bad choice? It’s half the price (£259.99) of the D5000 (£529.99) and seems excellent spec in comparison to the D3000.

Thanks very much for you advice and knowledge, it is genuinely much appreciated...

Adam

[Les_Paul]

I think Live view is a gimmick designed to win over compact users who have used nothing else.
Looking through the viewfinder in a DSLR gives you more information than looking at a LCD. You are actually looking through the lens and What You See is What You Get (WYSIWYG) on your photo.

On the D5000 you are paying for the Video function, ask yourself do you really want this?

I think the D3000 is a highly specified camera, perfect for learning photography without too many distractions... Also Nikon are the market leader (with Canon (debatable)) so good choice of manufacturer ;)

I used to think live view was a gimmick also, but in reality I found some situations where it was genuinely useful. Photographing still objects on a tripod especially in low light or at awkward angles is made much easier with LV. Most DSLRS should have an option as well for displaying the most important info on the big LCD.

[Les_Paul]

Thanks for the info guys.

In brief, the info given has persuaded me away from the D3000, although the price tag of the D5000 is not ideal on the back of Christmas etc.

In this month Carpology they recommend the Nikon P90 (Bridge Camera). The spec of this camera seems great but obviously it’s a bridge camera, not a true SLR.

As a novice photographer, who is not intended on ever changing the lenses is this a bad choice? It’s half the price (£259.99) of the D5000 (£529.99) and seems excellent spec in comparison to the D3000.

Thanks very much for you advice and knowledge, it is genuinely much appreciated...

Adam

The P90 may be well specced and look attractive but its performance will fall very short of a D5000 or D3000. You say you have no need to change lenses but as your interest grows and your photography improves you will most certainly be looking at other lenses. the main advantages of DSLR are image quality and speed.