Nikon D5100 or D7000?

D40 Guy

D40 Guy

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Steve
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Hi
I am currently using a D40 and have three DX lenses, the 18-55 non VR, 55-200 and the 35 f/1.8.

I would like to upgrade the body but I am in no rush. Hobby photographer only.

I have a few questions:

1 Would the D7000 show my lack of technique and the lesser quality of the lenses more than the 5100

2 I was went for the 5100, I have seen the D5100 with a 18-55vr lens for £50 more than just the body.
Would it be better to keep my 18-55 and sell my D40 body then buy a 5100 body or include my 15-55 with the D40 and ask £50 more for it and then buy the 5100 with the kit lens

thanks in advance

Steve
 
They both have the exact same sensors so if one manages to reveal your lower end glass or technique problems then the other will too.

I think before considering upgrading the body of the camera you should start looking into getting some better lenses for them. For the 600-900£ for the body you can get any of the combinations below with cash to spare:

Tamron 17-50 2.8 + Nikkor 70-300 VR
16 - 85 VR + Nikkor 70-300VR

If you do not need the reach of the 300 check into the 50-150 2.8 Sigma.

Any of those will give you a much greater benefit over upgrading a body even if the D40 is quite ancient by modern standards.

If you are intent on getting a better body though ask yourself why you want one then it will become clearer if there is any reason spending the money for the D7000 / D5100 or maybe you would be equally well served wit ha D90/D5000
 
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considering you are asking about both I'm assuming the price difference is not the deciding factor.

As such I would go for the D7000 as it introduces additional handling elements that the D5100 is still missing. The top LCD, the dual command wheels etc are really good and provide great control.

To me those points alone, and the lack of in-built motor, makes it so not to consider anything below the D90.

In my experience from moving from my D70, the lenses is not what is holding it back at all. Sure it can get even better, but definitely not worse to your 'old' body. Technique does require adjusting depending on how it was, I definitely needed to up my game. But once I did, and that is the fun part as well to be honest, quality can be stunning.

I went and just bought the body. Also got the 55-200VR and the 50 f/1.8 and a 70-300 Sigma (find that really hard to hand hold now), a 18-70. But also treated myself to a tamron 17-50 f2.8 which is rapidly becoming my favourite, and a sigma 8-16 which is great too.

If you have the money, the D7000 should see you through quite a number of years :-) I had my D70 from new for 7 years before I felt the urge this year to upgrade, if the D7000 serves me like that as well I'm a happy bunny.
 
Shouldn't stop you popping in a show now and handle both! See which you like best to operate. Try them in manual mode as well and play with the two control wheels for example.

Oh and one is magnesium alloy and the other one is plastic. But some people prefer the smaller size and lighter weight. So try it.

Then make up your mind :-)
 
You could, still very good, bit long in the tooth for my liking. And the high-iso performance of the D7000 sensor is out of this world in comparison.
 
If you have the funds certainly go for the D7000 but the D90 gives the control and in built motor at the expense of a newer, and better performing sensor but its still a great piece of kit.

Im waiting on enough pennies for a D7000. Main reason is frustration at the lack of controls on a D5000, lack of in built motor and high ISO performance not being as good as I anticipated.
 
You can always find an excuse to upgrade. Mine was the diopter correction on the D40 (not enough for me without my glasses).

Got a D90 - the motor aspect is good but everything else is gravy really.

D90 is a capable camera and as a hobbyist probably all the camera I'll ever need - or maybe not...........;)

I spent ages pontificating about getting a D7000 but I doubt that upgrade would improve my images by much.

Before you rush in have a look at the Flikr D40 pages and ask yourself are those images good enough - I think there's more to photography than the tools (and I have lots of tools!!:))

Have fun deciding!!
 
The choice is definitely D90 or D7000 in my mind. The D7000 has superior controls ( the two user defined modes are very useful) better AF and better high ISO performance. Against that if you go with the D90 you can invest the difference in better glass. Depends what you shoot in my mind.
 
I was in exactly the same boat as you about 6 months ago Steve! In the end, I ended up going for the D90 body only and 'better' glass in front from the savings I made instead of buying the D7000.
The D90 is more than capable of framing excellent shots. And remember, a good eye for photography coupled with a little bit of knowledge goes a long way! ;)
 
Hi Nikon Newbie
that's the way I'm leaning too (well on paper that is), I shall have a good look tomorrow, I'm in no rush so I may hang on to get the D90 in a coulple of weeks (hoping prices will start to fall) then I can sell my D40 body, it only has a 2k shutter count so a great deal for someone and use the 3 dx lenses I am using with the 40
thanks again
Steve
 
I recently also got a D90 "body only" after using a D40 for a couple of years.
The superior usability given by the extra external controls is a real improvement.
I also later went for a 50mm f1.8 which is a nice lens for around £100.

Don`t get me wrong I didn`t have any complaints about the pics I was getting from the D40, I just wanted to get the D90 while it was still available ( and it was a good price ) as I expect it to be discontinued soon.
I also considered the D300 but I decided that the extra cash would be better used for some decent lenses.

By the way I won`t be getting rid of the D40. It`s a great little camera, it makes a good backup, and it`s handy when my grandson wants to take some pics as he`s only 4 and I don`t want him dropping my D90. :)
 
I also give thumbs up to the D90, the D7000 is lovely but just doesn't seem worth 80-90% more than the D90. If money's no object I'd have the 7000, but I'd rather have the D90 and 16-85mm VR :)

Not sure about prices falling, I got my D90 body new a year ago for pretty much what they're costing currently, around £550. Never know tho.

Oh ,and I kept my D40 body too... for the £100 or so its worth I'd rather keep it!
 
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Went for the D7000 myself... I was almost going to jump the gun on the D90 but saw a refurbed D7000 for 650 and got it :)
 
I'd go for the d7000 if you can. Mate here has one and loves it. Should last for years.

If you want something right now, check out the d90 or if you feeling a little more flush the d300(/s). Whilst not having the huge megapixel count nor high iso of 12.5k, the 300 is the prosumer camera. Has loads of options (including auto/program).

For images check kon flickr (or follow the link in the siggy).

Also consider if you'd require an upgrade on lenses and what you shoot the most. Always nice to have a crisp lens :)

If I were starting afresh - d7000 + 35mm f1.8 nikkor - 105mm micro or sigma 150mm (macro work) and I'd still get the tokina 11-16 for ultra wide/creative... but I'd need some serious dosh lol :)
 
I have both the D90 & the D7000, and to be honest I've found that there's not much in it in terms of image quality, handling, and general performance to separate the two. Ok you've got more focus points, a faster frame rate, and a few more MP on the D7000, plus a few more shooting options and adjustments that are not present on the D90, but really they're not deal breakers.

The D7000 has the edge on ISO performance, but in my experience it's not as groundbreaking as people would have you believe, with the D7000 being only slightly better than the D90 at ISO1600, and the D90 is no slouch at ISO1600.

If money isn't a problem then go with the D7000. If you can afford the D7000, but the D90 would be less painful for your bank account then go for the D90.

Edit: One thing I forgot that may sway your decision is that if you intend to shoot sports, BIF etc, then there are a couple of options relating to the focus system on the D7000 that will make your life a bit easier
 
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How about above 1600 ISO Slaphead, is the D90 still comparable?
 
I've been to compare the 7000, 5100 and 90 today. All in all I think the D90 is the camera for my personal needs. I like the feel of the 90 and I can't ever see me wanting to shoot at an ISO even approaching 1600, but who knows.
The viewfinder on the 90 was incredible after my D40.
Steve
 
Rubbish light like today, a not too fast lens say a long zoom, needing a faster shutter speed and bang up goes your iso or a very dark photo :) D7000 viewfinder shows even more information ;)
 
dejongj said:
How about above 1600 ISO Slaphead, is the D90 still comparable?
Click to expand...

All in all I'd say the two cameras are similar up to ISO800. 1600 is where the D7000 is pulling ahead, and then thereafter it's got a clear 1 stop advantage over the D90. This as it seems to my eyes.

There's no doubt that the D7000 is the better camera for a whole host of reasons, but in truth the improvements over the D90 are incremental rather than phenomenal. I would say it would be a rare situation indeed where the D7000 would beat the D90 hands down.

I own both so I can afford to be objective about this. I only bought the D7000 so I'd have two reasonable cameras in case one fails, and also because I wasn't prepared to pay twice the price for a D700 which is likely to be replaced in the next year or so.
 
D40 Guy said:
It was the quality and brightness that struck me not the info in the viewfinder
Click to expand...

Got lost in translation, that is what I meant. D7000 has got bigger viewfinder, less crop thus more information as in brighter and the whole picture.
 
Some may think me mad, but i've just gone the other way,
D7000 to D5100.

I'm over the moon with the D5100, same quality pictures yet it's simpler, smaller, lighter and has the flip-out screen, for me this is a real bonus.

But I do have an excellent lens for it, the Nikkor 16-85.

D in W
 
Don't think you are mad. If you need the flip-out screen, prefer the smaller size, don't mind giving up on the better controls and viewfinder etc....

Whatever works for you...
 
Actually I was hoping that the d5100 would be enough for me when I had a play at JL last week. The tiny ovf, lack of motor and the general quality not much better than my d40 pushed me to a d7000. Just waiting for it to arrive :)
 
I chewed it over for ages when I got the itch to upgrade my D3000, between D90/D7000, then the D5100 was looming so waited for that to be launched, there is no doubt about the D7000's capabilities and I came within inches of buying one, the D90 reputation speaks for itself, when the D5100 was launched with the same sensor as the D7000 I thought that it would be the answer, but without inbuilt motor and lack of extra external controls and no infa red remote option, it fell short of the mark. Got a D90 2nd hand off of the forum and absolutely love it, great controllability,great low iso performance etc etc, it is for me just a great camera cannot think realistically what the D7000 would do for me for the extra bucks, and don't have that guilty feeling if I don't use it every day, which reminds me that i have not got round to selling the D3000 yet!

JON
 
Well just got the green light from the other half,I just orderd a Nikon D90 body, from Tescos at £537 and then got £50 off for buying electrical goods over £500 and my delivery date is: For delivery on Friday 31st December 9999 between 11:59pm -11:59pm

It's coming direct from their supplier. But I got a free Vivanco cleaning kit (for what it's worth) and that will be delivered on Wed.

Tesco's state delivery of the body is within the next 14 days. Does anyone know if I get the Nikon 2 year guarantee or a 1 year Tesco version

So excited, D40 will be up for sale now :clap::clap::clap:

thanks once again
 
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