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July, 2025

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Nikon d5100?

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mr.houston
Posts: 535 - Karma: 29
Ok NS so I finally have enough money to buy my first dslr camera. I did some research and found the nikon d5100, seems pretty nice and has fairly good quality pictures and video.
I am currently upgrading from my gopro which is fine but I want something that is easier to get a clean shot with.

Do you think this camera is any good? I will be shooting some skateboarding, skiing and a little wake skating. My price range is no higher than 750$.

If you could please recommend me a camera that would be great

Thanks.

+K for good feedback/recommendations -K for kids who just wanna hate
14 years ago
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erikK
Posts: 3245 - Karma: 2,329
You might want to consider getting a cheaper body to buy nicer glass. D80 would be a good choice, but honestly for $750 you're pretty restricted. The 18-55 lens that the d5100 comes with will be fine for a while, but you will probably find yourself wanting something nicer pretty quick.
14 years ago
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michael_bc
Posts: 1400 - Karma: 814
Sounds like you want to buy a camera for video, is that right? In that case, don't consider older Nikon bodies because they don't do video or are terrible at it!!

The D5100 is a fine camera, especially if you are leaning towards photo + video, it is very compact with a stunning sensor (same as the D7000).

You might also want to consider getting the more expensive D7000 or looking at Canon. The D7000 will give you better manual controls in video, and better support for older and non-Nikon lenses (built-in AF motor, AF fine tune, metering through non-CPU lenses). If you are planning to get more lenses later on, you can actually save a lot of money by getting a D7000 + older glass.

Canon is generally better for video, and cheaper.
14 years ago
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mr.houston
Posts: 535 - Karma: 29
Thanks +k to both of you, I actually just started to look into a t2i. seems like it has pretty nice quality video for a reasonable price. Any one know how user friendly a t2i is or does it take a while to get comfortable with using it?
14 years ago
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
i have never used a t2i but i know there are a lot of people that really like theirs so im assuming that it doesn't take to long to get used to and they have a lot of the manual controls that some of the more expensive dslrs have. hope this helps
14 years ago
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mr.houston
Posts: 535 - Karma: 29
Thanks guys

14 years ago
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S.C
Posts: 3072 - Karma: 2,546
If you have a $750 budget, you're really going to have to choose between film and photography. Any DSLR setup for video is gonna cost you a lot. If I were you I'd just go for photog, and then get a 1dmkii and 17-35L lens. If you shop around for that, that will cost you about $1k and last a long time. For a cheaper option, get a 20/30d and a used tamron 17-50. also very legit
14 years ago
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erikK
Posts: 3245 - Karma: 2,329
For the price of that lens I think he look into a more general purpose lens. Restricting yourself to UWA only is not a very good idea.
14 years ago
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