Sunday
Oct042009
The Little Camera that Could, a review of the Nikon D3000
Sunday, October 4, 2009 at 1:21AM OK, I am impressed. Mind you that doesn't happen that often when it comes to photo gear, and especially gear in the affordable end of the price scale. I mean anyone can be impressed with a $5000 lens or camera, but a sub-$650 camera now that's something else.
↓ The new Nikon D3000
The D3000 has a substantial amount of cool, useful features trickled down from it's much more expensive bigger brother, the D300s.
↓ Despite it's slightly inferior (to the 12 MP CMOS sensor of the D5000/90/300s) 10 MP CCD sensor, the D3000 can still produce some great images.
Read full review published @ Future Shop.
Reader Comments (23)
hi, nice video, i am a newbie and was about to buy this baby, but then i read that the pentax k2000 beats it in image quality and is less expensive, if you could throw some light on this subject..
thx.
@ rohit: glad you liked the vid.
Sorry, I haven't shot with the Pentax K2000, so I can't say comment on its image quality. Though the D3000's 10MP CCD sensor is capable of producing some really nice image quality, I still prefer the 12 MP CMOS sensor of the D5000/D90/D300s, but that's also a bit more expensive.
Having said that I have to point out that it is also the other features mentioned in the video (some trickled down from the much more expensive D300s) that makes the D3000 such a great little camera.
I hope you can make up your mind. Happy shooting.
Klaus
thx a lot for the advise, appreciate it. it may be asking too much, and i'am sorry for that, but this is my first dslr so i want it to be perfect, whats your take on the canon 1000d, which one's better..?
thx again.
@rohit: sorry for the slow reply. My wife just recently gave birth to our first child, so I have been occupied with diaper changes and burping rather than photography.
Anyways, I understand the predicament you are in choosing between similar offerings of two largest DSLR brands. Some years ago I was in the exact same 'predicament' (if you can call getting to spend +$500 on a camera for a 'predicament') choosing between the Canon 300D and Nikon D70. I eventually ended up in the Canon camp, and was truly happy there until switching to the Nikon D300 a couple of years ago.
My (lengthy) point being that buying your first DSLR you will almost certainly get something you like and enjoy the image quality of. So in my eyes when buying your first DSLR it is much more important that you 'get a long' with the camera's ergonomics, button layout, menu system, viewfinder, etc. than what the label on the camera says. Canon or Nikon (or Sony or Pentax for that matter) will produce great image quality for you to enjoy.
So my advice is to pop by your nearest camera store and try out the different models you are interested in. Which one feels the best, has the best viewfinder, has the most comfortable menu system, etc.
Happy camera shopping.
Klaus
yo compre la nikon d3000 y esta fenomenal.. la calidad de imagen es muy buena y demas podes manejarla con muhca mas fasilidad que otras reflex y no sentis como que si estas cargando un ladrillo como pasa con la d300, es demasiado pesada.. la d3000 es espacial para aquellos viajeros que quieran una buena camara reflex con la que se puedan tomar muy buenas fotografias y sea muy fasil de llevar y manipular..
en resumen.. es la camara ideal para aquel que solo quiere una reflex para tomar fotos en momentos especiales y no para usarla como erramienta de trabajo..
Hi Klaus,
I'm just getting into photography and received a D3000 for Christmas. I wasn't certain that I wanted to keep this camera after reading some of the review on Ken Rockwell's site. He called the D3000 the worst DSLR Nikon has ever made. That's quite a claim. As I read more reviews I started to get the sense that this camera really has a lot to offer. Your review is the only review that talks about some of the neat features the D3000 inherits from some of the professional models. Thanks for putting the time into this. Also, congratulations on your new family member!
Take care,
Dan
@Dan: Glad you liked the review. I haven't read KR's review of the D3000, but I cannot see how such a great camera can be considered the "worst ever". A bit of advice on Mr Rockwell. When I started out with photography, I was drawn to his site as many others. Primarily due to his no-nonsense writing and (probably much more important) his success in search engine optimization. Honestly, he seems to be better at SEO than photography.
I am not out to bash KR (as many others), but in the end I never learned anything from his site neither did it help me grow my photography. So the question bodes, is he really worth our time?
Enjoy your new, great camera!
Klaus
hi
hi klaus, im glenn from philippines, im not that good when it comes to photography but im interested and planning to buy nikon d3000.my mind was set before that i was going to buy d3000,read many reviews. but then, like what happened to dan, i read the review of ken rockwell and he stated there that d40 is much better than d3000(where he also said that it is the worst dslr ever) and d40 is less cheaper than d3000. im a bit confused when i read his reviews. is it true that d40 is better than d3000?
a repsonse for you would be a great help !
thanks !
hi klaus, im glenn from philippines, im not that good when it comes to photography but im interested and planning to buy nikon d3000.my mind was set before that i was going to buy d3000,read many reviews. but then, like what happened to dan, i read the review of ken rockwell and he stated there that d40 is much better than d3000(where he also said that it is the worst dslr ever) and d40 is less cheaper than d3000. im a bit confused when i read his reviews. is it true that d40 is better than d3000?
a repsonse from you would be a great help !
thanks !
@glenn: easy answer. Get the D3000 and don't look back. You will not regret it, and once you start shooting with it and enjoying all its features you will forget all about the D40 and (hopefully) Ken's <sarcasm>advice</sarcasm>.
Klaus
okei ! thanks for your advice ! im going to buy that d3000 this april 1st .thanks !
Im trying to find out how to meter this camera, please help :)
@shelby not quite sure what you are referring to? The camera aut0-meters. Or are you asking about how to change the metering method (evaluative, spot and center weighted)? By hitting the INFO button twice, you should be able to change that setting when shooting in a non-scene mode.
Hope this helps.
Klaus
well as long as im facing toward good sunlight I can change the metering from negative to positive or ZERO where it needs to be.. and I do this with my little wheel from left to right however in bad light I cannot move it with my wheel it changes the shutter speed instead.. this is in manual mode
@shelby oh! I see what you mean. You are referring to exposure compensation. Yes, when you have plenty of light (either by being in daylight or having a fast lens), you can dial in exposure compensation without any 'problems'. But when you run out of light, so to speak, the camera has to adjust some setting to reflect your selected compensation, in this case the shutter speed. You can also up the ISO value if you want to add over-compensation.
Klaus
okay so your saying only way to adjust that if there isn't enough light is go to iso or shutter speed.. your so helpful.. what if I keep taking black pictures randomly.. what am I doing wrong?
Hey Klaus!
I recently saw your vedio and I decided to contact you if you'll hopefully be able to help me.
For example when I switch to Manual (M) I should be able to adjust both shutter speed and aperture, this might be a stupid question but I just can't find an answer to it. So when I choose the Manual mode I can adjust the shutter speed by scrolling the circle just above rhe OK button and next to the AE-L AF-L button, so my question now is how can I switch from shutter speed to apetrure?
Thanks for your answer and have a nice day,
Matic
@Matic you can select aperture in manual mode by pressing and holding the +/- button while turning the command dial. For further reference, check page 71 of the manual.
Hope that helps.
Klaus
1) Shoot at longest focal length (55mm)
2) Set aperture to maximum opening at longest focal length (f5.6)
3) Maximize space between who you are photographing and the background behind them
4) Get as close as possible to your subject, but be careful not to get to close to loose your composition.
That's it. If you are looking for more soft out-of-focus background, try a longer focal length, like 200mm and still apply the rule above. Or try a lens with a larger maximum aperture, like the Nikon 50mm f1.4 G. Be mindful though, that both the older Nikon 50mm f1.8 and f1.4 D lenses will not autofocus on the D3000, as they do not have AF-S built-in.
Read more about aperture (http://www.seeingthemoment.com/photoblog/2009/4/20/hands-off-the-auto-mode-really-i-mean-it.html) and 50mm lenses (http://www.seeingthemoment.com/photoblog/2009/5/25/50mm-and-more-a-closer-look-at-50mm-lenses.html).
Hope that helps.
Klaus
Klaus