what to buy??

[gunn parker]

Hi all
I am looking at (fingers crossed) getting my first Nikon in the post xmas sales, or online some where.
I have been looking at a d70s but now I see the d40 is around, so I am wondering which way to go? and with all this talk of warranty and how bad their service is should I go with a Nikon anyway?
If anybody has any thoughts on this that would be great
Thanks
Andrew

[shutterbug]

Why not a D80?

However there are heaps of bargain price D70(s)

[gunn parker]

Why not a D80?

However there are heaps of bargain price D70(s)

I had thought of that but thought it out of my price range, $1300 ish
Thanks

[losfp]

IMO there's nothing wrong with the Nikons, not moreso than any other mass produced bit of electronics.

Get the D40 if you want something light, cheap and easy to use, and you don't intend on getting many more lenses or delving into the more complex areas of photography. Note that "Interested in photography" is not the same as "want to get good photos"

Get the D50 if you want something light and cheap, and you wouldn't mind getting more lenses.

Get one of the D70 or D80 if you are reasonably serious about photography

Best value out of that lot IMO is a used D70s. Wouldn't be more than a year or two old, and quite cheap because people are upgrading to D200 and D80. If you have a bit of extra cash, the D80 looks good (D200 even better)

[Oscar]

Andrew, have you had a look at the D40?
I saw one in my lunch time stroll. A guy and his gal were checking it out and looked impressed enough to buy. I had a quick look at it as they were handling it.
I am not the largest of guys but the D40 did appear to be smaller than the D70. It did not look as though it would be as comfortable to hold - unless you have small hands.
Have a play with a few of the cameras in your budget and see what feels best and which one has the features you would like. Do you have any CF or SD cards already?
Price wise (in the bargain section) - the D70s body is $825 and in kit set up is $1140. The D80 body is $1165 and kit $1500.
You may have a preferred lens and then you could buy the body only and a lens to keep for any future upgrade you may make.

Cheers, Mick

[jdear]

last year a whole bunch of DSLR's (D70's I think) were available after all the santa photographying had finished... at quite a reasonable price. Forget which store had them, try doing a forum search, or maybe one of the other members will remember.

J