BootsnAll Travel Community

So I'm looking to buy a DSLR and I wanted to know what you guys though about the D200....

I have read many reviews etc and seems everybody is raving about the camera and the new lens. The lens gives a good range and I'm def not one who changes lenses etc etc...a very amateur photographer.Also the price seems great..for the combination.

Let me know what you guys think.

It's a fantastic combination. The camera offers awesome quality at that price point and the lens is a very good performer from the examples I've seen.

The only possible bug is an issue with banding on a limited number of D200 bodies that is apparent when shooting high contrast subjects. I believe Nikon has addressed the issue with the current production run.

Pete..Any recommendations on where to buy a camera on the net. No idea where to start.

Let me know if you guys have some good or bad experiences buying electronics on the Internet.

GO Canon - they are the best D20 or D30 if you can afford it -- D5 is also good - or for less money, the Rebel XT.

buydig.com is a good retailer. try www.mysimon.com to compare prices. they rate the retailers, too.

be wary of "too good to be true" prices - they are probably "grey market" cameras and will not have a USA warranty, so if it breaks, you are stuck.

be sure to read the site's "fine print" - about return polices and what not - and call then on the phone and test their customer service. usually a good sign of a quality company.

many of the 'grey market' retailers have horrible, if any, customer service.

good luck.

Well for the price the Nikon D200 is a 10.2 megapixel seems to be a good deal. The 5D Cannon is 13.3 pixels but at a whopping $3300..vs the Nikon D200 @1700.

The reason I picked Nikon is the versatility of the lens 18-200mm...Canon does not seem to make one in this range. It seems to be a good consumer lens..am looking for a lens that would be a good enough one for all kinds of shots without changing lens etc.

I should read up on the Canon vs Nikon debate.

I'm joking about the Nikon vs Canon thing -- in the big scheme of things, they are rather equal. while the super-techno people tend to think the Canons are slightly beter/faster, it really comes down to which feature set you prefer, and which lenses. I'm not familiar with that 18-200 lens you mention, but typically, such a wide focal length lens loses something in sharpness/clarity. I carry an 18-55 lens and a 70-200. I'd love an 18-105 or so to replace the 18-55 as my basic lens.

to each their own - good luck with the search and keep us posted!

/Steve

Canon is better. Kidding.

My only gripe with Nikon (and one that they will inevitably fix) is that they don't offer a full frame body. With Canons 5d and Mark II, you get no crop factor. On the D200, your 18-200mm lens is actually a 27-300... great for the long end, bad for the short end. For the consumer and "prosumer" that isn't too much of a problem, especially since 27mm is rather wide, but if you really start wanting to do specific things with your camera and need specific angles, having a full frame is priceless (or rather $3300 for the 5D).

Along with what Steve said on sharpness for such a massive ranged zoom, you'll probably experience some minor issues at the extremes - wide open or closed down aperatures like f4.0 and faster and probably f18 and slower at 18-22mm and 200mm. Again, no huge deal, but issues nonetheless. I think for you (speculating) having the convenience of one lens for walking around, more than outweighs the cons of this setup.

Can't wait to see some images from it! Also, check my email regarding online retailers wortha damn.

Another thing Madhu -

I wouldn't focus too much on the megapixel count, unless a primary goal is to make poster sized prints. For computer use, two or three megapixels is really all you need. Montiors only show 72 dots per inch (dpi) - a measure of resolution. Anything much beyond three megapixel is simply a waste.

However for printing photos, you have to ratchet up the resolution to 200 to 300 dpi. For this high of resolution, now you need some high meagpixel numbers.

See this page for a good discussion of all this.

Have you considered the Canon 350D? - An excellent camera, for only $798.00. And you can get two excellent lenses with the money you save overall.

However I have read up on the 18-200 VR Nikon lens you have your eye on and it seems to get good reviews. So if that's really your goal to just carry one lens, then go for it - I'm sure you'll be happy.

I recommend you go to a camera store and handle a number of different cameras, Nikon and Canon, and get a feel for the features, settings, and how they operate. How does it feel in your hands? How easy and quickly can you find and change the settings you plan to use most often? These are important things to know.

Madhu,
There are a few good places to buy camera gear online. B&H (www.bhphotovideo.com) and Adorama (www.adorama.com) are the 2 biggest stores located in New York. They have "decent" prices, but are not usually the cheapest. Other smaller online retailers are Roberts Imaging (www.robertsimaging.com), Norman Camera (www.normancamera.com), Canoga Camera (www.canogacamera.com) and Penn Camera (www.penncamera.com). All these places are very reliable and will treat you well. Shop around and compare prices/package deals from these retailers.

Also, try calling the stores directly. You can sometimes get better prices by calling, especially if you can get them to beat the price of a competitor or add an accessory to the deal. Good luck!

As for the Nikon vs Canon debate, it's all a matter of personal preference. Technically they both make fantastic cameras with varying features. You just have to find the one that fits your needs. Ergonomics is the main reason I've been using the Nikon system for the past 20 years. I'm much more comfortable with the control layout and logic of Nikon SLR bodies. Also, control layouts tend to be very similar across different models in the Nikon line. That means there's less of a learning curve when moving from one body to the next with Nikon. I would suggest that you get your own hands on both if you're still debating which brand to go with. Try them out for size and see which one you prefer.

You're right, Capt Steve. My camera is "only" 4 megapixels, and I've made very nice 13" x 19" prints of photographs I shot with it and they're indistinguishable from film.

My camera is only 3.2 megapixels.
It has made some very nice 8 X 10s, but I would be a wee bit happier with 4 megapixels.

Okay okay..you guys have me thinking again about the body.I have a Canon 5 Pixel camera right now. I'm set on the lens though...i think its a good consumer lens. So I guess I should keep looking to see if the other Nikon bodies will work.

Thanks guys.

I bought the Nikon D50 w/ 18-55 lens ($698) and carried it around Israel recently, and am very happy with it. I also have the 28-200 lens I bought with my Nikon film body, and carried it also. The 28-200 is a great lens imho, effectively about 35-300 with the digital body.

Had my wife not been watching, I would probably have bought the D200 (just kidding bout the wife), but didn't really want to spend the money. The D50 does very well unless you want poster size prints as someone else has said.

Even if you do want poster size prints a 6 megapixel camera should do just fine. The point is you're not supposed to look at a poster size print from 2 inches away.

As an alternative to the D200, take a look at the Fuji S3Pro. It takes Nikon mount lenses and is an excellent travel camera. One of its best points is great skin tones, wide dynamic range, and I like the fact that it takes AA batteries as opposed to expensive custom batteries.

Its downsides are slow autofocus and fairly slow card write speed, making it a bad choice for things like sports.

Madhu...

Did you buy the Nikon?

Yup and its here..finally..safe and sound.

This is how I relate to my purchase...I brought a high power manual stick shift Ferrari and am only used to a automatic Honda civic...so if my driving is bad I really cannot blame the Ferrari now.

Oh my what have I done :-)

Madhu, congrats on the new D200. Now go out and shoot some photos. :-)

I will...they will be on Flickr. Still need to get the whole gizmo set up etc and read the manual. Some of the Flickerites from the D200 group have already assisted with some tips.

I can't wait to snap away either...over the weekend I will take it out for a test drive.