Upgrading cameras . What would you do?

[maxman]

Gents, I'm asking this on behalf of my Dad who is looking to upgrade cameras.
I know very little about cameras.
He has a Nikon D40 with one of the better Nikon lenses (18-200? is that right?).
We are looking to sell the D40 with the original kit that it came with.

Ok, now he's looking at one of two cameras to utilize the lens and filters that he has.
A Nikon D300s (that a store is clearing out) or a Nikon D5100.
The 5100 is on sale regularly and it comes in a kit for just about as much as the body alone costs.
The D300s is just the body.

I personally would go for the D300s, but it's kinda big for him. He is wanting something similar in size and weight to the D40, just more updated.

Does anyone have any comments on these two cameras?
They are the only two that he is looking at.

He wants to buy local and we don't have a lot of options.

Thanks for your time.

 

[thebikingengineer]

I would go for the nicer body (D300s). The D5100 is good but it doesn't have the controls of the D300, if your Dad is one to play around with all of the controls the D300 won't limit him in that regard. If he's got an 18-200 then he's set on general use zooms, the kit lens that comes with the D5100 will likely gather dust. The D300 will also have a better in-camera processor, not a huge deal if he's shooting RAW, but very useful otherwise. The weight difference isn't really as huge a deal as you would imagine, it's a pretty easy transition to a slightly larger body and the bigger cameras are, in my experience, more comfortable to hold when you're shooting for an extended time.

 

[Brewha51]

+1 what thebikingengineer says. The D300 has all the controls you would need on the back of the camera instead of burying them in menus like the D5100 does.

I just picked up a D7000 around Christmas and love it FWIW

 

[lu20vt]

My advice is a D7000, a stunning camera

 

[Nova316]

I went from a D40 to D7000 and highly recommend it
D7000 by far is my favorite camera to use
Its so versitale
Plus dual switch and has configurable buttons as well

 

[thebikingengineer]

The D7000 is very nice. A friend of mine has one and I've gotten to play around with it a bit. If only I didn't have anything better to do with $1200...

 

[djh]

Gents, I'm asking this on behalf of my Dad who is looking to upgrade cameras.
I know very little about cameras.
He has a Nikon D40 with one of the better Nikon lenses (18-200? is that right?).
We are looking to sell the D40 with the original kit that it came with.

Ok, now he's looking at one of two cameras to utilize the lens and filters that he has.
A Nikon D300s (that a store is clearing out) or a Nikon D5100.
The 5100 is on sale regularly and it comes in a kit for just about as much as the body alone costs.
The D300s is just the body.

I personally would go for the D300s, but it's kinda big for him. He is wanting something similar in size and weight to the D40, just more updated.

Does anyone have any comments on these two cameras?
They are the only two that he is looking at.

He wants to buy local and we don't have a lot of options.

Thanks for your time.

Depending on what your father is looking for in a camera, I could suggest either option here. I would, personally, always go with the camera which provides the best image quality, but it sounds as if your father would rather have something a little more portable. The world's greatest camera is worth nothing if left at home because it is too big and heavy.

 

[maxman]

Depending on what your father is looking for in a camera, I could suggest either option here. I would, personally, always go with the camera which provides the best image quality, but it sounds as if your father would rather have something a little more portable. The world's greatest camera is worth nothing if left at home because it is too big and heavy.

This is what I tell him. He doesn't really use the D40 much anyway.


Thanks gents for all your input. I spoke to him yesterday and it looks like he's more interested in a mirrorless camera now.

 

[djh]

This is what I tell him. He doesn't really use the D40 much anyway.


Thanks gents for all your input. I spoke to him yesterday and it looks like he's more interested in a mirrorless camera now.

That sounds like a great solution.

 

[Alacrity59]

I just upgraded myself. I picked the D5100 Nikon with 18 - 55 and 55 to 300 lenses. I think this pretty much has it covered.

 

[Timo]

I upgraded from a D40 to a D90 last year and I love the 90.