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Old 09-10-2010, 08:08 PM
 
Location: Anchorage, Alaska
3,840 posts, read 4,491,456 times
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With the number of shiny new cars that don't look like Barrow beaters yet.

A Volkswagen Beetle here, seriously?
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Old 09-10-2010, 08:18 PM
 
Location: Bethel, Alaska
21,368 posts, read 37,942,379 times
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Photos!
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Old 09-10-2010, 08:21 PM
 
Location: Anchorage, Alaska
3,840 posts, read 4,491,456 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by warptman View Post
Photos!
ZOMG still no camera!!!

I am eyeing the Nikon D5000 though. What do you think of that for a new photographer wannabe, Floyd?
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Old 09-10-2010, 09:50 PM
 
Location: Bethel, Alaska
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Go to the AC store and get a point and shoot for now.
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Old 09-10-2010, 10:54 PM
 
Location: Barrow, Alaska
3,539 posts, read 7,610,609 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wynternight View Post
ZOMG still no camera!!!

I am eyeing the Nikon D5000 though. What do you think of that for a new photographer wannabe, Floyd?
It will probably be okay... though it depends on what you wannabe.

Unless, for example, you are inclined play with techie things for the sake of playing with technie things. If that is so, the D5000 does not have an in-camera AF motor required by the first generation of AF lenses (referred to as AF-D as opposed to those called AF-S). So things like the cheap 50mm f/1.8 or the fabulous 85mm f/1.4D, or the older 80-200mm f/2.8 AF-D won't work with that body. In each case there is a newer AF-S lens that will work, but the newer lenses are all at least 2x the price too.

So it's a toss up. If you will be forever satisfied with a couple of lenses, the D5000 is pretty good bargain. All of the kit lenses and all of the superzooms(with a 10x range) are the newer AF-S versions.

But if you'll be experimenting with various types of photography and want to do it as cheaply as possible, spend a little more on a better camera body to start with and it will save a lot of money when you go looking for special lenses. One really significant case in point would be if you'd ever want to own an 80-400mm lens, there is no equivalent that works on the D5000. An when Nikon eventually does produce an AF-S version it will cost about twice what the 80-400mm AF-D does. (And the 80-400mm is a very useful lens to have in Barrow, because it can actually be handheld and everything with a longer focal length that can auto focus gets very large and very expensive.)

There are also some problems with the light meter working with really old manual focus lenses, but I don't know if the D5000 is good there or not. Old manual focus lenses can be a very inexpensive way to do some things that are very interesting. Around here a lens longer than 400mm is very useful, but AF version (which are also very nice) cost many thousands of dollars too. And for macro work AF and VR are useless, so the really old manual focus macro lenses are just as useful and cost far less.

A used D90 or D300 might be a far better deal if you really want to get into photography for the sake of photography.
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Old 09-10-2010, 11:03 PM
 
Location: Anchorage, Alaska
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Quote:
Originally Posted by warptman View Post
Go to the AC store and get a point and shoot for now.
My mother sent me one but I'll have to mail it back to her to get the pics developed. I will be buying a DSLR very soon.
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Old 09-10-2010, 11:17 PM
 
Location: Barrow, Alaska
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wynternight View Post
My mother sent me one but I'll have to mail it back to her to get the pics developed. I will be buying a DSLR very soon.
I'm sure he meant a digital Point & Shoot.

But even if you decide a small pocket camera is handy, don't buy one at AC! Their prices for little cameras are about twice what you can get one mailed to you for, and that only takes 4 or 5 days to get here.

And there's a lot to be said for them too. A friend of mine picked up a $300 Sony point and shoot down in Anchorage in July, and is really pleased with it. It has a 10x or 12x zoom, will focus up really close, and produces 14MP JPEG images. It may not be the thing to learn the "art" part of photography with, but for either snapshots or documentation it is just fabulous. This guy uses it for work, as a memory adjunct! Need a part for something he's working on... it gets photographed and then when he's in the office looking for parts on the Internet he's got three or four pictures of whatever it was. Works like a charm!
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Old 09-15-2010, 12:11 PM
 
Location: Barrow, Alaska
3,539 posts, read 7,610,609 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wynternight View Post
I am eyeing the Nikon D5000 though. What do you think of that for a new photographer wannabe, Floyd?
I didn't say anything previously about the rumored Nikon D7000 because was all just a rumor then.

But Nikon has just announced the D7000 to be available in October. It's a real advance over the D90 that it will replace. A 16MP DX (1.5x crop) format body that can shoot at 6 fames per second and buffer 100 shots, unlike the D5000 it is fully compatible with AF-D and manual focus lenses.

The catch, compared to the $700 D5000 is that the D7000 will go for $1200.

However, the D7000 will function with the 80-200mm f/2.8 AF-D, 50mm f/1.8 AF-D, 85mm f/1.4 or f/1.8 AF-D, and the 80-400mm f/4-5.6 AF-D lenses and the difference in the cost of a newer replacement for any of those (except the 50mm f/1.8) is more than the $500 difference between the D5000 and the D7000! Hence the D5000 is only less expensive if it is restricted to use with the kit lens. For most people, and certainly anyone interested in "learning photography", the D7000 is a significantly better and less expensive bargain in the long run.
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Old 09-15-2010, 01:18 PM
 
Location: Seattle
1,938 posts, read 3,902,613 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wynternight View Post
ZOMG still no camera!!!

I am eyeing the Nikon D5000 though. What do you think of that for a new photographer wannabe, Floyd?

The D5000 is an excellent choice as an entry-level DSLR and one that you can stick with for quite a while. I picked one at through Amazon in January and did a lot of research on the right camera before I did. There are a lot of reviews.

I started with the kit and got the base, 18-55 & 55-200 lenses. It's a good place to start at a resonable price. A longer lens like the 80-400 would be nice and I will have one eventually but I'm very pleased with my purchase. You may also want to consider photo editing software before purchasing a very expenses lens.
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Old 09-15-2010, 02:14 PM
 
Location: Anchorage, Alaska
3,840 posts, read 4,491,456 times
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Thank you for the info, Floyd and Chil; I think I'll wait a paycheck or two more and go with the D7000.

Do you know a Mr. Tidwell, Floyd? He's local and does wildlife and has a lot of his pictures up at the AC. He got a pic of a Short Eared Owl that needs to be seen. Stunning picture.
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