Nikon D5000 12.3 MP DX Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR Lens and 2.7-inch Vari-angle LCD by Nikon
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Digital camera reviews of Nikon D5000 12.3 MP DX Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR Lens and 2.7-inch Vari-angle LCD
Digital camera Review: Disappointed
Summary: 3 Stars
Purchased the D5000 about a year ago to upgrade from my Panasonic DMC-FZ28 & found the Panasonic had some better features! Though it's not suppose to replace a video cam, the Nikon is clumsy when trying to take video. Unlike the common sense method of using the shutter button to start & stop video, you have to push a button on the back of the camera. Try doing that while hand holding & you get shake when turning off. Also taking video deactivates the auto focus feature unlike the Panasonic. For twice the price, Nikon should do better! Also my Nikon over exposes on Auto & there is no adjustment...according to Nikon..without returning for service.
Also purchased a used Nikon flash attachment...Speedlight SB-600.. that works great, BUT when I ordered the owners booklet, the charged $10 to ship something that could have been mailed.
Though the Nikon has many wonderful features, I would suggest people look at the Panasonic line if not going professional, & save money & get ease of use.
Digital camera Review: Do NOT buy it. Still has the power problem and the worst customer service ever!
Summary: 1 Stars
I was so excited to receive the D5000 since I had thought about buying it for a long, long time. What a disappointment!
The camera cannot be operated when the power switch is on, even with a fully-charged battery. This is exactly the same problem as the service advisory Nikon issued back in August 2009, HOWEVER, my serial # is NOT included in this advisory. So this problem still persists!!! Be aware.
The worst part is, when I called the customer service line, the guy's attitude was impatient and wouldn't even tell me why this problem exists in serial # outside Aug09 Service Advisory. He repeated telling me to send it to service and he hang up on me when I asked to speak to another agent or a supervisor. How rude! It didn't end here - I called back twice but was put on hold for 70 minutes and still didn't go through.
Digital camera Review: Easy to use
Summary: 5 Stars
I have owned this camera several months now, and I wanted to make sure I had actually used it for some time before reviewing.
If you want to be able to take AMAZING photos, right out of the box, then you should buy this camera! I am by no means a professional. This is my second DSLR and the difference between my older DSLR and this were shocking. The picture quality is stunning. It is not as simple as a point and shoot camera, but it's pretty close. If you do not want to learn the more detailed functions you can use this in a very similar way to a point and shoot. Find your target, make sure they are in focus (hold the button lightly, lights will pop up inside showing what is being focused on), zoom in or out if you like, and then hold the button to take the picture.
If you are an advanced user the amount of options and manual control is HIGH.
The reason I purchased this specific camera was that it takes video. Most DSLR cameras when I purchased this did NOT have that ability. The video function is fairly simple and it takes decent video.
The body is dense and has a rough texture to help keep it in your hand. I've bumped and banged it several times and no ill effects have shown up.
Overall, I would HIGHLY recommend this camera.
Digital camera Review: Everything I wanted and more...
Summary: 5 Stars
In my teens and early 20's, I had an Nikon SLR that was practically attached to me, I took it everywhere. I pondered going to college for photography, so it was a serious hobby for me that I've been missing since the advent of digital photography. I've had a variety of great point and shoots, but they never gave me the control of my old Nikon.
I did a lot of reading up on the various models and found an easy to read comparison chart on the Nikon site. While I was drawn to the D90, I found the D5000 was very nearly the same thing, for at least five hundred dollars less. The only difference that stood out to me was the D90 had 4.5 frames-per-second, D5000 had 4 frames-per-second. The D500 has the awesome vari-angle LCD screen and I knew I'd get some great use out of that. The downside was it wouldn't auto-focus with my old lenses(I believe because there is no built in AF motor in the body of the D5000), but that wasn't a huge deal breaker for me, being I usually like to manually focus anyway.
I got the D500 as a surprise for Christmas(you know how sometimes you put ridiculous things you know no one will buy on your Amazon wish list?!)and haven't put it down since. And the super awesome part? You can take as many pictures as you want and you don't have to develop film. Plus, there's the added bonus of being able to manipulate your digital images in a photo program, which I was never able to do with my 35mm camera.
All my old lenses(sigma, etc) work wonderfully, but the lens it came with is multi-purpose and easy to use. I'm a big fan of macro and found I could get quite close with the standard lens(18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR Lens) that came on the D5000. The camera has bells and whistles galore, but out of the box, it's easy to figure out and begin. The more you use it, the more you figure out what you like, and all the cool things you can do with it.
I do love the settings such as beach/snow, pet portrait, dusk/dawn and candlelight, though I'll mostly stick with manual mode. But those setting are perfect for the moments you just need to get the shot and don't have time to fiddle around.
The pop up flash works well, though I hope to get a speedlight eventually. The vari-angle LCD is shockingly cool. I'd never know I needed one if it wasn't offered, but once you get used to it, you'd never be able to live without it.
Some interesting,diverse options for in-camera editing, like adding fish eye after you've taken the photo! When I was younger my fish eye lens was one of my favorites, now it's almost an unnecessary lens to lug around. Otherwise, I like to do most of my work on a larger screen, and so far have been loving the Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo x2 Ultimate. I really get into photo restoration and also just doing fun color/hue/contrast manipulations of my digital images. That software is very easy to learn and gets the job done.
Overall, there's nothing I've found about this camera that I don't like!! I'd get the same model again in a heartbeat.
Digital camera Review: Excellent Camera despite recall
Summary: 5 Stars
Okay guys, what is the issue here. That D5000 has a recall for power switch that has nothing to do with its "picture taking" capability. I got one of the earliest batches of this camera, bought in Jun 09. Serial # 304...... It does fall into recall and I sent it few days ago. So far it has been working flawlessly and I have taken more than 2000 pictures. I did fair bit of research including reading all professional reviews and comparison with peers especially D90 before shelling out 800$. Its picture taking capability is nearly identical to D90 based on several professional reviews. The only difference is that it does not have depth of view finder or internal focus motor. Battery life is awesome and I have taken more than 500 pictures on single charge. Active D lighting options, Bracketing, 11 point AF & 19 scene modes are all great options. Portrait mode works great both indoors and out door. Party mode is great to capture effects of indoor lighting and I have taken pictures side by side to see the difference. I have used this camera with 18-55, 55-200 and 18-250 sigma lens and it has produces some great results. I am confident that Nikon will not screw-up their reputation on one camera even if they end up taking loss on it to satisfy customers. I work in a consumer related industry and I know how seriously customer satisfaction is taken. My company bought me a 15k $ HP workstation that took 2 returns and 3 months to get it finally working. Things happen. We should not discard an otherwise excellent camera in this price range.
Update after recall (Aug 31, 2009): I sent my camera on Tuesday, received in CT on Thursday; I received my camera back on Monday!! They must have fixed / inspected it Thursday and ship same day or next day (Friday). The camera was nicely packed in a plastic bag, wrapped in bubble wrap with rubber band and stuffed in the box with bubble packing. In the box was a photo copy paper that says "Your enclosed camera has been corrected for the D5000 service advisory issue. We appreciate your cooperation". The camera had no sign of mishandling, smears or any scratches what so ever. I am very particular about taking care of my stuff and they usually stay in pristine condition for a long time. The tiny screws barely had the sign of being touched with screw driver but you have to do that in assembly plant also. I had put an LCD screen protector and flipped it outside. The camera came back with screen closed and protector taken out. The camera was also reset as I had to enter date and time upon first power up. Seems like they may have cleaned it also (for whatever dust there may have been as it was already in mint condition). I took about a dozen pictures and it works fine. So far I am very pleased with quality and speed of service Nikon has provided.