Отзывы о Цифровой Фотоаппарат Nikon D5100

This is easily the finest camera that I've owned and I've owned some good cameras hailing back to the Minolta SRT-201. I seldom use the viewfinder and instead tend to use the high contrast and very sharp monitor built into the camera. Focus is quick and accurate with the kit lens. Pictures are bright and color is very accurate.Vibration Reduction is better than I expected. With the camera on my tripod and VR off, I can tap the tripod and see the image resonate with the vibration in the tripod. With VR on, there is no discernable shake even with the 70-300mm lens on full zoom. Quite amazing actually. I can hear the VR mechanism working but it's not loud, just quietly working it's magic.With AF and VR on, it takes a second to take an image since everything has to stabilize before the picture is taken. Turning them off and doing manual focus allows a much faster process per picture.I also purchased a Tamron 70-300mm lens and all features work perfectly with this camera, both AF and VR (which Tamron calls VC) work pretty much the same on it and the kit lens.It's worth every penny. I'd buy it again in a heartbeat. This camera makes ME smile.1 Month Update: (June 27)We have a couple of thousand shots out of this amazing camera now.About 1500 images out in nature with the 300mm zoom all the way out capturing birds in flight, nesting and doing what birds do. Sure we throw a lot of them out. Every photographer does. The image is good, it's just not of anything worth keeping. This is not a camera problem. This is a photographer problem. Using the camera more is the answer.In the last two weeks, we've experimented with an older fully manual 55mm Micro-Nikkor-P lens with the 27.5mm extension tube. It takes a little experimentation to get the exposure but the images are exquisite. I never expected to be able to put a 40 year old Nikon lens on this camera but I did and with the camera set to manual you can use this ultra modern camera very similarly to how we took pictures 40 years ago. The manufacturing quality of those old lenses is amazing. There are tens of thousands of them on the used market and available relatively inexpensively. I have just over $100 in the used macro lens and extension tube and that gives us 2:1, 1:1 to .5:1 macro ability with a focal distance measured in inches out to infinity. The Micro-Nikkor lenses have legendary Nikon quality and performance and it's not at all lost on this camera.If you've always wanted to get those close up macro shots of bugs or flowers breaking into bloom, don't shy away from those old Nikkor lenses in manual mode. They take wonderful pictures with the D5100.As a bonus, my wife wasn't really solid with learning the relationship between shutter speed, f stop and ISO until a week with the manual lens on. Now she's all over it. Because you HAVE TO LEARN to make it work at all. Depth of field now makes sense to her and now she knows how to achieve it. Or not.3 Month Update: (August 3)Just shot a wedding in Duluth and the north shore of Lake Superior. (not as the paid photographer) Two days, rehearsal, rehearsal dinner campfire/cabin, wedding and reception. Took 430 shots. Left the camera on automatic 99% of the time. About 20 shots were really great photos. About 15 of them were motion blurred, badly focused or missed target. The rest of them were acceptable shots. Nearly all of the motion blurred were from the Tamron 70-300 in full zoom. Half of those, the subject moved in the frame.Overall I'd rate it a success. Two of the photos were real winners. Pictures that told a story and caught emotion.I can't fault the camera or lenses for anything. They just worked. Very happy with the setup.I had an external flash on, the Nikon SB-400 AF Speedlight. I also had the diffuser for it from Stofen, the OM-400. This flash was really not up to the task for a big room like a church. Thankfully the room was well lit. For smaller rooms around 30 x 20 or less, the flash and diffuser was excellent. The room really needs a white ceiling for the diffuser to work properly since it directs a lot of light up at a 45 degree angle. I took nearly all of the church interior pictures hand held with no flash and let the VR lenses do their magic. I got a lot of good shots from the balcony with the 70-300 lens and the camera balanced on the railing.Outdoor pictures near dusk in low outdoor lighting came out way better than any camera I've had in the past. Until it got dark enough to simply not support picture taking, the dusk pictures pretty much look like the daytime pictures. The D5100 really is amazing in low light conditions.Battery life was very good. I went through two batteries in the camera. I'm sure the external flash helped battery life. I can't speak to battery life in the flash since I recharged them once that night and can't tell how far they were run down. The flash always recharged VERY quickly.Wrap Up:Cameras take images. Photographers take pictures. The Nikon D5100 is way more capable t

First of all, this camera takes very good pictures, which is the main reason I bought it. Given the price, 5 STARS for image quality, features and convenience of use.Second, I got the body (no kit lenses, which seem to have pretty mediocre ratings from users), along with the Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX (5+ STARS) and the Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX (4+ STARS for athletic events). I later added a AF-S DX NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED (5+ STARS) and the 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 ED VR (4 STARS, but a great snapshot lens).So far so good. Why only 3 STARS? Here's what I don't like.Autofocus hunts a lot sometimes, especially in marginal light. It doesn't seem to matter what lens is on the camera, so I assume it's the body. It's not a problem most of the time, but occasionally you can lose a shot because the camera is trying to figure out what to look at.The video feature, while not at all my priority, is pretty primitive as far as settings go. The major problem, however, is autofocus again, which can suddenly in the middle of a video start radically seeking focus, moving way in and out before settling back down. Occasionally, the camera will lose focus altogether. Manual focus works best, but is not always practical. Setting the camera's focus on the center point also works a little better, but the camera keeps wanting to shift to some other point in the frame and you have to keep resetting it (I haven't been able to figure out how to defeat this tendency).My last point of dissatisfaction emerged this weekend and may be the most serious. After a week's uneventful shooting, I downloaded the images, cleared the card, changes lenses and charged the battery. When I turned the camera back on, it gave the dreaded "Error press shutter release button again" message, which apparently is no rare experience for this or a number of other Nikon cameras. Of course, pressing the shutter release button again accomplishes nothing. After losing a weekend's use of the camera, I was all ready to ship it back to Nikon when I stumbled on a forum post, [...] (scroll down until you come to "Rico" and be sure to look at his subsequent posts). CAUTION: there are many reasons for this error, not all of which can be solved by the solution offered in this post, and there are some other DIY solutions out there that seem absolutely nutty to me. To cut to the chase, my problem was my mirror had jammed in the down position against what is supposed to be a stop. Some gentle prying (not for the faint of heart) freed the mirror and the camera has been working since. This design or engineering flaw has really left a bad impression.So 5 STARS for image quality and basic functionality, less one star for autofocus difficulties (especially video) and less one big star for design and reliability.I'm probably being generous.

This camera has been an outstanding upgrade from my Nikon D60, which was my first dSLR after having used point-and-shoot cameras. The D60 was a great camera entry-level dSLR when I bought it in 2008, but the more I used it, the more I became aware of its limitations. The biggest issue I had with the D60 was its low-light performance. Even with an add-on flash and reasonably good ambient lighting, there were too many indoor shots that simply didn't look very good. Cranking up the ISO helped with exposure, but it introduced too much digital noise. When a camera's inherent technological limitations are keeping you from getting the shots you want, it's time to look at alternatives.I looked at both the D5100 and the Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera and DIGIC 4 Imaging with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens, because they are closely matched in terms of price, features, and performance. Both cameras get very good reviews. You can Google "Nikon D5100 and Canon T3i" and see for yourself: most review sites give them almost identical overall scores, citing certain strengths and advantages for each camera. I was considering the Canon because I only had my Nikon 18-55mm kit lens and my Nikon SB-400 flash, so I didn't have a huge investment in the Nikon line-up. While the list price of the two cameras is similar, it was much easier to find really good discount prices on the T3i, and there are also more options for buying the T3i body with several different kit lens options (as of this writing, Nikon is only offering the D5100 with the same 18-55mm kit lens that I had from my D60).However, there was one thing about the T3i that I didn't like. The main control on the back of the T3i (Nikon calls it the multi-selector; I'm not sure what Canon calls it) is placed lower on the camera than on the D5100, which means that you have to move your thumb down to access it. Ergonomically, this didn't work as well for me as Nikon's more central placement of this control. The advantage of Canon's placement is that it leaves space for a bigger thumb grip at the upper right corner of the camera. However, since the multi-selector is the primary way you access the camera's menus to adjust settings, I preferred Nikon's placement. This is such a subjective decision that it's important for a buyer to go to a retail store, handle both cameras, and see for him or herself.The other thing that made me choose the Nikon is my goal to eventually upgrade to the Nikon 18-200mm lens. As far as I can tell, there is no equivalent lens in the Canon line-up.I also looked at the Nikon D7000 16.2MP DX-Format CMOS Digital SLR with 3.0-Inch LCD (Body Only), but at $1,199 for just the body, I couldn't justify the expense. Besides the fact that it's almost twice as much as the D5100, I still prefer the smaller size and lighter weight of the D5100, which has a form factor that is almost identical to the D60. If you routinely use longer lenses or prefer a larger camera, the D7000 is very impressive and would be an excellent choice.I've been very happy with the D5100. It offers higher ISOs than the D60 and you can use them without adding noise to your images. It performs much better in low-light shooting situations, which was my main reason for upgrading in the first place. Even with flash, my indoor photos are more evenly exposed, without the washed-out foregrounds and dark backgrounds that I was getting with the D60. The menu system is similar to the D60, but I find it more intuitive and easier to navigate. I also like the controls and buttons better on the D5100.One major upgrade that the D5100 offers over the D60 is high-definition video recording. The D60 had no video recording at all. I have only used this feature on the D5100 for a few quick tests, but for anyone interested in video, this is a major addition.The D5100 also has an articulated LCD display, which is larger than the D60's. The Live View feature allows you to shoot photos using the LCD instead of the viewfinder. This feature might be handy if you wanted to shoot with the camera above or below your own position (for example, taking photos over the heads of a crowd). Instead of aiming and hoping you get your shot, you can use the articulated LCD to view what you are shooting. The same is true if you want to shoot with the camera aiming directly down. Instead of leaning over the camera to look through the viewfinder, and perhaps casting your shadow on the image, you can use the LCD to compose your shot.In Live View, the LCD also allows you to view the effects of various white balance settings on a shot you're about to take. I haven't found that the white balance as shown on the LCD before shooting is exactly the same as what I get after I shoot, but it is helpful to give you an idea of what to expect.Several things to keep in mind if you buy this camera:1. Update the firmware, as there are reported issues with the camera having trouble with certain SanDisk

Let me start of by saying that I love cameras and photography, I consider it as a way of expressing myself when you can't describe a situation with words, an image can speak a thousand!!(A short rambling about the cameras I owned - Skip to the next paragraph for the review)So, I got a hotshot flashless camera (Rs.200 in 1993) as a kid which took a film roll and would allow me to click 24 shots (broad sunlight required for anything to appear on the photo - even indoor pictures appear very dark). Then I decided I had to get a camera with flash. So, I saved my pocket money and got a camera worth Rs.500 in 1998 (this camera let me click 36 photos - standard film roll) which I enjoyed for a while and then came the zoom cameras and I instantly wanted one. So, I took my savings of Rs.6500 and got the Yashica zoom camera in 2002, believe me it had an infrared remote! On getting busy with college, I ended up on a break with photography. Then, In 2010 came to the US for my masters and decided I had to get the super zoom cameras with certain manual settings. So, got the Kodak Z981 ($200 - 2010 BlackFriday) and enjoy the camera till date. The only complain I have about it is that it is extremely bad in low light conditions. So, I only could dream of clicking those awesome pictures you find on the internet. I again got busy with studies and work that I could not think of pursuing my hobby. Now, I finally got some time and I decided to try some dslr's out and started with the Sony alpha A57 (Instant Love) but found out that the low light performance was kinda bad through reviews. Then, started showing interest in Canon T3. Somehow, Nikon was my last choice. But, I just wanted to give it a try before I bought any camera and tried out the D3100 at a local store. This is when I really started liking Nikon (Best in class for lowlight situations) and I think there was an interest for low light photography buried deep inside of me when I was a kid ( just the fact that my first camera was not able to click in low light). So, this is when I started reading reviews and blogs and what not!! I rekindled my inner desire for photography.I decided I wanted something more professional than the D3100 and the professional full frame cameras intimidated me and that is when I decided I had to get the D5100 which is perfect for me and for my needs on the long run!! Believe me, I enjoy every thing about this camera. This is the best camera I ever had and its now helping me capture very precious shots that I could only dream of, Its making them come true!! If you are really into manual modes and want the perfect gear without being intimidated by the so called professional cameras, I say go for the D5100!! Suits the Budget, Serves the Need!!

If your number one priority is image quality, especially in low-light situations, and your budget is at $800 or lower, get this camera. It has the same Sony sensor found in the Nikon D7000, and I suspect it's similar to the highly regarded ones in the Sony Alpha 580 and Nex 5N. As the reviewers at dpreview.com stated: "At low ISO settings, the D5100 is on a par with the best of the competition, but at the higher ISO settings, it produces some of the best image quality that we've ever seen from an APS-C camera." Tests from DXOMark and reviews from several other sites confirm this assessment.I had a Canon t2i for about a week, but returned it in favor of this camera, and I'm very pleased with that decision. That's not to say that the Canon t2i and t3i (which share the same sensor and have very similar image output) are necessarily sub par. In many respects, they are superior, but it depends on what's most important to you and what you plan on doing with the camera.Here's a comparison between the D5100 and t2i/t3i, cameras that are competing for the same customers.D5100 ADVANTAGES- IMAGE QUALITY, especially at higher ISO's. The camera has a larger sensor than the t3i and fewer pixels per square centimeter. And when it has noise, it's more of the grainy type (which I prefer) than the blotchy, JPG artifact kind (which is what I got from the t2i). Being able to use photos taken at 3200 and even 6400 ISO means faster shutter speeds at lower lights, which is essential for someone like me who has kids and wants to be able to take photos indoors without using the flash. As I mentioned above, the D5100 likely has the best sensor of any APS-C camera currently available.- NICER KIT LENS. The picture quality isn't necessarily better (although the t3i's larger sensor will show more of the imperfections of a lower quality lens than the D5100's and the kit lens is definitely a low quality lens compared to the other offerings in either the Canon or Nikon line), but the build at least feels better. The movement on the zoom and focus rings were much less smooth on the t2i, especially when going from 24 to 18mm. This might not matter for functionality and durability, but it bothered me quite a bit, and that matters since I'm not planning on getting a nicer kit lens for quite some time.- BETTER BUILD/FITS NICER IN HANDS. This is very subjective, but the t2i's body felt cheap in my hands and was harder to hold. The t3i's body has been altered just a bit to improve the ease of holding it, but the plastic is the same as the t2i. In addition, the spot on my t2i where you're supposed to put your right thumb would give a bit when I pressed on it and make a small sound. I've read accounts of the t2i surviving drops and other mishaps that would have killed off lesser cameras. I also like the feel of the rubber on the Nikon better. Now, maybe how the plastic feels and whether it gives in a spot or two don't really matter as far as durability is concerned, but if you're using the camera regularly, you want to like how it feels in your hands. I should add that many reviewers prefer the feel of the Canon over the Nikon, so on this point, you'll just have to try the cameras out yourself.- SHUTTER DURABILITY. The D5100's shutter is tested at 100,000 cycles. That doesn't mean that every D5100 will last that long, but at least they provide evidence that it should. Canon doesn't do the same test (or at least post the results) for the t3i. They claim it's because it's not a guarantee of shutter durability, but I've found websites that allow users to enter in when their shutter stops working or if it's continuing to work, and Nikons were usually superior than Canons on these tests, especially among the lower end models.- CUSTOMIZATION/POST-EDITING. I feel like I was able to customize many more of the settings in the D5100 than the t2i, especially settings that affected how the camera processed the JPEGs (such as the color, sharpness, contrast, etc. of the image). There are also a lot of options for editing photos in the camera after taking them, such as correcting for chromatic aberration and barrel distortion. If you mostly use shareware photography software (like Picasa and Gimp), then having these in camera editing options might be important.- LONGER BATTERY LIFE. I didn't have both cameras long enough to really say which had better batter life, but on paper, the D5100's battery is supposed to last 50% longer.CANON T2i/3i ADVANTAGES- FASTER AUTO FOCUS. The auto focus was slighter faster in the t2i, especially in low light conditions. I find that the D5100 has to have one of it's auto focus points on some sort of contrasting spot in low light conditions. The D5100 does have an AF lamp, but it's so bright that it's not reasonable to use in settings with human subjects in the photo.- QUICK ACCESS TO SETTINGS. Although the D5100 is very customizable, it can take several clicks to change the most basic settings, such as

Hi everyone,I am new in the DSLR world and Nikon D5100 is my first camera of that kind.Like many, I guess - I did a lot of research before I buy this camera. I was looking for something that will meet my needs, something for my level of “professionalism” and something that will be easy to learn.And I am glad that I did the right choice. This camera is that and so much more.One of the first things that will help you to understand your camera is the menu. Is simple and self-explanatory. As well as the manual.I am type of person who doesn’t want to shoot at “auto” mode (that was the reason I switched from point-and-shoot cameras), so I am playing a lot with the Professional modes (M,A,S, P). Do understand all this modes better; I was using the book “Nikon D5100 – From Snapshots To Great Shots”, by Rob Sylvan.Although the manual that comes with the camera, as I said, is doing a great job – this is also a “must have book” for this camera.It’s free to download in PDF version.It’s not easy to adjust the proper settings at various situations, tough…but with good practice, your Nikon will deliver excellent photos. I purchased this camera together with 18-55 kit lens. And I expected to be heavier that they actually are, but no…the camera body fits perfectly in your arms.The photo quality is excellent (I put my setting to shoot large files) and the HD Video as well. I was really surprised by the microphone – I guess I am used to my microphone from point-and-shoot cameras, so I was happy to find that this one actually records perfect audio.The truth is, I cannot compare this camera with any other from this kind. Like I said, it’s my first.But for the money wise, quality of photos and the kit lenses – it’s just perfect.Also, the flip screen was one of the reasons I decide for this camera ( I found out that not many cameras have this) – which is very helpful when shooting from ground level (which I do)As you will read in many books and magazines (which I highly recommend when buying this kind of camera) – the camera itself will not make you better photographer. Playing with it, practicing and spending time behind it, however – it will.I hope my review helped to someone who is in dilemma what to buy.When I will became an expert in few months & years, I will write again :)Cheers!

I had this camera for about a year and got to know it very well. I had upgraded from a D60.The camera's main selling point - compared to the d3100 - was its 16 megapixel sensor which the d7000 also has. Unfortunately, the lack of all the other cool bells and whistles that the d7000 has (see below) leaves the d5100 in an identity crisis. Other minor gimmicky things are bracketing, in camera HDR, better lcd with swivel.To be perfectly honest, all these things I have found to be not incredibly useful for real world applications.Bracketing:Okay, you're in a studio, crunched for time, the editor of a magazine is on your back for the pictures for their next month's cover. You don't have time to get exact lighting levels, so you just set to bracket and viola. Sure, that's a great use for it. unfortunately, no buyer of a d5100 will be doing this. If you are doing this you will have a much more expensive camera. For the average person, the bracketing only fills up your memory card 3x faster. It is absolutely useless for anything other than posed shots, which is probably a very small segment of who would actually be buying this camera.HDR:I used this about twice in the year I owned it, and to be honest I forgot which pictures i did with it. You can't do it on a moving subject. Same situation as bracketing; only posed shots or architecture. Very seldom a use case for someone buying a sub-1000 dollar camera.Swivel LCD:Ultra gimicky. How often does anyone really need this? The ONLY time i used this was self-portrait. that's it.My other miscellaneous gripes:1. The LCD seems to get dust inside it very easily. After a year (just sold it here) there were noticeable spots of dust under the LCD on the lower right side.2. Inferior autofocus sensor seems to have trouble getting anything but kit lenses in focus consistently. This is the main reason I sold it. AF just wasn't reliable. I heard the same with the D7000. You would think after 50 years of making cameras, Nikon would be able to know how to autofocus...3. My LCD had a dead pixel. How did this get past quality control?4. No noticeable difference between Fine and Normal quality jpegs. Fine are like twice the size though.NOTE: There is NO internal AF motor, so you are barred from using any of the non G lenses. This may not be an issue for most people, but I had a couple older D style lenses, and i couldn't use them. Also, no commander mode for external flashes. I realize these two things would make it more expensive, so that's why they didn't add them.Conclusion:If you are thinking of getting this camera, my advice is to seriously consider the d3100 (now d3200) instead, as that does 90% of what this one does and is a couple hundred $$ cheaper. If you are looking to take pictures of family/friends and want to step into the world of DSLR as a beginner, go with the d3100. Honestly, the extra few megapixels is not significant.If you are getting more serious about photography and want to start using primes or external flashes, you will need to get the d7000/d7100.If you know something about photography, you will outgrow this camera very quickly and my advice is just cut to the chase and buy the higher model. you won't be disappointed.

I am a long time Nikon shooter, going back to my film days. When digital finally got to the point that SLR's were affordable (if you can consider ~$2000 and up affordable) I stuck with Nikon due to the glass I already owned. I started with the D100 and a used D1h. I then got a new D2h (which I still love in all its 4MP glory)and a D200, and now own a D300. I have also owned a Canon D30, a Canon 20D and a Canon t2i, so I have a pretty fair amount of experience with DSLR's. While I like my D300 and would marry my D2h, I have never been truly happy with the hi-iso performance of either. I shoot a lot of grappling tournaments in really bad light, meaning lots of noisy photos. A friend of mine owns a D7000 and I was a little jealous of the hi-ISO files. It just didn't feel like it was worth the money to upgrade though.Then D5100 refurbs dropped below $400. I already knew I loved the files from the D7000, and they share the same sensor, so why not give one a shot?I am MORE than happy with my decision - I LOVE this camera!Reason #1 - the beautiful files at all iso's. I'm not going to get all techie. I could care less about measurements, etc. The files from this camera are, to me, exquisite. With my D2h going above iso 800 is suicide. With my D300 I will use 1600 in most light and can use 3200 in a pinch with cleanup in Lightroom. With the D5100 I would have NO problem leaving this thing set at 3200 all the time. I'm happy with 6400 most of the time in color, and 6400 files in B&W take me back to my film days. The majority of the time I don't do any noise clean-up in Lightroom.Reason #2 - the size & weight. This thing is small and light. My D2h is a tank. Literally. And it feels like carrying one. The D300 gets a little hefty too. The D5100 does not really feel much heavier than my Olympus EPL-1. As a matter of fact, my EPL-1 has not left the house since I got the D5100. My last 2 hikes I have slapped my 35mm 1.8 on the D5100 and been happy as a pig in poop. My other cameras look much more professional and tend to make some people nervous. The D5100 looks like, well, what it is, a cheap intro camera. I don't get "the look" from security guards, etc.Reason #3 - the video. Not as many manual controls as my old t2i, but the video is still stunning when done right.What Else Do I Like - I like that it uses SD cards, just like all of my compact cameras. I like the articulating screen. I like that my 8 year old daughter can handle it without moaning about the size.What do I miss - sometimes I miss the top lcd for a quick check of settings. Sometimes I miss the dual command dials, but since I shoot mostly in aperture priority, it's rare. I have the Fn button programmed to select ISO, which works fairly well, but I do sometimes miss a dedicated button. I almost never mess with WB, so I don't particularly miss that button, but I do miss having a way to select the frame-rate/timer. Having to go into the menus can sometimes slow things down a little. I felt a little nervous today shooting in a snowstorm since the camera is not weather sealed.So, while there may be a few things I miss, mostly having to do with controls, and I do have a little concern over the lack of weather seals, for the price, I am NOT going to complain. I have had the camera for 3 weeks now and have not touched my D2h or my D300. I am enjoying it that much. I feel like it is truly an outstanding value, and I highly recommend it!

First off let me say that if you criticize a camera on these boards you will be personally attacked by an army of jerks, so its not that easy. Just take that into account when you read glowing positive reviews. Noone's paying me to speak truth about a camera.I tested a 5100 and was not that thrilled by the camera. In fact, I returned it making sure not to get stuck with it.The shutter is quiet and fast, and the menu is well designed, but the buttons are arranged in a unique fashion that someone else mentioned is different from most other Nikon dSLRS, so using it and another would not be a seamless experience. The live-view screen is almost more trouble than its worth, but it's mandatory on an HD vidcam. Dealing with it, however, can be a hassle for stills, since you're inclined to turn it face in, and then you have to turn it back every time you monitor etc.The LCD is very large and pretty, but it's also quite vulnerable if you're involved in any sort of action or even travel. You have to watch the screen like a hawk. If you're shooting concerts or street where you raise your hands above the crowd, great, but is that worth the trouble the rest of the time? Maybe so, it does provide for different shooting styles, and getting low is great, too. For video, the screen is mandatory, but back later on the video...Finally, is there a reason the camera can't come with a screen protector? You have to buy one as an accessory, and Nikon's brand name ones are no longer made. So now I have to waste time tracking down a kludge solution which may damage the screen. You pay $700 for a camera and they can't include such a critical item that's hard to find that costs 2 bucks to make? Thanks Nikon.Beyond the great value for price, I find the default saturation setting to be really flat, so while VIVID is too much on other cameras, I find it mandatory on this one, which is odd. The shots do look great at that point. The focussing doesn't seem to be what it claims. It's good for moving objects, but average at range-finding up close, at least on my 18-135 DX lens. It doesn't hang, but it doesn't seem particularly accurate either. There's a limit to how many shots I can shoot testing, and my lenses are decent, but not top of the line, but the sharpness is not really there consistently. I've been attacked on this point. Let me just say that this camera focusses noticeably worse than the D40x. I dont care if people say its the same design. Its a much worse, less robust performer in the focussing dept, despite having more points.The 16MP doesn't seem like much if any improvement over my D40X. Let the scoffing begin, but the JPEG processing on this one resultsin about the same quality in my ultra close-up comparisons. There is more data, (fewer shots per card), but the final is about 20% better. Besides, 10-16 would be 1.6 times better. I would say 1.3 times better, and still not sure. Fine lines are blurring more at the point of pixelization.With a few days spent on the video, I have to say it's pretty weak. The AF struggles, suffers even. You feel bad for your lenses being overworked. I know this is as advertised, but the video AF is definitely below camcorder quality, although not any worse than my Canon Vixia in low light, which is really terrible. At least dSLR lenses can be manually focussed easily depending on the lens. Nevertheless, this is no point and forget vidcam, and my Vixia beats it hands down in daylight and overcast.What's even worse is that no matter what you set before you launch into video, it chooses the ISO for you. You can choose aperture, and you can make the camera stop adjusting exposure by locking AE, but you cannot make it stay in a low ISO in low light, and its low light video is too grainy to be used outside of personal footage. It looks great on the LCD, and on Youtube videos, but full screen, it looks much worse. I have yet to make this camera shoot low light in a low ISO, which does not show up in EXIF data like stills. The video stays the same quality no matter what kludge you try, and there are many out there, but people keep realizing that their video ends up the same no matter what.It is NOT a low-light miracle worker in video period. Shooting video also mandates that you use battery-sucking Live-view, which stays ON until you stop) In room light or daylight, it does much better, but you still can't control the ISO. Plus if you really like shooting video, you will need the $120 in AC adapters or several batteries, because I would say the battery does about 20 minutes in video. Honestly, it even looks small, although it does charge fast, in about 60-70 minutes, which is about 1/3 faster than my EL-9.This camera is a perfectly portable size, but otherwise a major disappointments. The D5100 is sold for a fair price but promises too much. I wanted to make the video work somehow, and workarounds are fine, and it does shoot good daylight video, but a camera that takes my settings and then ignores

Both the Canon t5i and the Nikon D5100 are very good and comparable cameras. Ten years ago cameras like these would have cost several THOUSANDS of dollars, so regardless of what anyone tells you, these cameras are both good and both offer what would have been professional quality and features just a few years back.We also have a D3100 and a very awesome D7100. This is the reason we stay with Nikon... the ability to share lenses and other accessories saves a lot of money. If our first camera had been a Canon or Pentax instead, we might own a bunch of Canon or Pentax cameras right now, except that Canon does not have any camera that can compete with the D7100 anywhere near that price range, and Pentax was significantly more expensive than both the Canon and Nikon cameras we were considering when we got our first camera. Canon's closest camera to the D7100 cost 3 times more than the D7100, so in that respect Nikon smashes Canon.I would have bought 2 D7100's instead of a D7100 and a D5100, but the D7100 does not have a moveable screen like the D5100 does, and that was an issue. The D7100 is a far superior camera to the D5100, so if the moveable screen is not an issue and you can afford to spend roughly double the amount of the D5100 than I would definitely recommend the D7100 over the D5100.The D5100 fills a need for us and we are happy with it. It is a very capable piece of equipment and the quality is on par with the best of the cameras in its price range.If you are having trouble deciding what brand of camera to go with, the truth of the matter is that virtually all of the big name camera companies like Pentax, Nikon, Canon and others make truly great cameras. The biggest reason why we went with Nikon is the wide range of lenses and other accessories and the prices of those items compared to other competing companies.If we could afford it, we would own cameras from all 3 of those companies, because they all make cameras that we want. But like for many other people out there, money is an issue. I had to make a decision in regards to the best balance of quality and price (for us), both now and down the road as our equipment arsenal expands. For this reason I chose Nikon.I actually plan on buying cameras from both Canon and Pentax in the future as they both have cameras that are great, and our Nikon collection will continue to grow as well with some higher end cameras as the need arises.I hope that this honest review has helped!

Absolutely wonderful camera. I have used Nikon and Canon SLRs. My job is to sell cameras of all sorts and for a long time I have been waiting to purchase this camera. For all of the features that these cameras offer and everything they do, this camera is worth every penny. The burst and sports modes are very fast and clear. The auto focus is quick and the change from shot to shot is minimal for a delay. As far as the camera is easy to use I'd give it an 8 if you've never used a SLR before. If you leave it in full auto or no-flash modes, the camera will do all of the work for you. Of course the brilliant quality of the SLR is there. If you want to use the manual modes changing the shutter speed and aperture is simple. The dial next to the right thumb will automatically change the shutter speed and to change the aperture simply hold down the +/- button next to the shutter while spinning the dial. The daunting task is to change the iso. My assumption for the design is that they assume if you are in manual mode that the scenario of shooting will not require frequent iso change. It's not difficult to change, but if you do not read the manual or purchase the user dvd it will take some searching for.If you compare this model to the D3100 and D3200, the one thing that this adds that the others don't is a variety of scene modes and effects. These scene modes are what you expect from a camera nowadays. However the effects are a really nice addition. This offers color selection so that you can highlight one color and make the rest of the picture black and white. Other features include night vision, color sketch, high key, low key, silhouette. My favorites being night vision, low key and silhouette. Night vision makes every picture look like something from a military game. If you've ever seen a video through a set of NVG's you know what I'm talking about. Low key provides intentional underexposure, a particular effect that I love. I use this regularly for my photography to give it a more striking impression. Lastly, the silhouette feature is perfect for taking pictures of people. This effect gives the picture a beautiful dramatic look.My last subject will be the viewfinder and the screen. The screen is wonderful, I love being able to turn it around so that the screen is not used at all. This saves so much battery. To use this effect, all I say is ensure that you know the picture will come out right. Without the screen there is no preview option for your photos. Otherwise the screen works beautifully with live view if you are going for a low or a high shot so you do not have to worry about the picture coming out wrong. You can always ensure you get the shot you are looking for. My only complaint about the camera is the diopter in the viewfinder. For a person with glasses, this may not adjust correctly to your vision. With the D3100 and D3200 as well as sever Canon Rebels I did not have such a problem. However, with the D5100 I cannot properly adjust the viewfinder to my eyes. So sadly if I want to do a shot that involves manual focusing, I will wear my glasses and adjust the picture that way. Otherwise I still put my eyes to the viewfinder.All in all, I would recommend this camera to anyone, of any level. If you are a novice photographer or a skilled photographer this camera is a wonderful tool to have. Always remember that your camera is only limited by two things. You and your lens!

I am a photography teacher in NYC and online. (See my Amazon profile for my website.) I teach beginner and intermediate photography students every week. I've also been a professional photographer for the last five years with images published in The New York Times, GQ, New York Magazine, Women's Wear Daily, The New York Observer, The Village Voice and Time Out New York.(This review is for beginner photographers.)If you're a beginner, you're most likely asking yourself: Nikon or Canon? Really, I feel confident in saying that you can't go wrong with either. I've used both brand's cameras extensively and find that they both offer amazing image quality with well-built, solid cameras that, if taken care of, will last decades. There are two differences between the cameras, though, that can be taken into consideration.The user-interface: If cameras were computers, Nikons would be PCs and Canons would be MACs. PCs are built for people not afraid of technology whereas Macs are built for people who want things super-easy. Nikons excel at customization options which means you'll see so many more options with the Advanced features of a Nikon than you will with a Canon. Canons, on the other hand, excel at ease-of-use for beginners. Canons offer less advanced options and can be easier to learn on. This can be frustrating down the line, though, once you've learned a lot about photography. At that point you may want all of the options that Nikon offers and be frustrated with your Canon. If you're someone who really likes to delve deep into your hobbies or if you're intent on becoming a professional photographer, I'd say a Nikon would be your best bet. If you're someone who wants to learn the basics of photography and only imagine yourself being a hobbyist, Canon would be a better option for you.Where Nikon excels: Flash photography. I often find myself in situations where I'm shooting event photography (weddings, movie premiers, benefits and galas) where I need to use a lot of flash. For this kind of photography, I'll always prefer to be shooting with a Nikon. Nikon's flash metering (how the camera magically decides how much light to fire out of the flash) is much more consistent than Canon's. You can take a Canon and shoot the same scene three times in a row with flash and all three images will be at different brightness levels. You can do the same thing with a Nikon and all three images will be wonderfully the same. If you're somebody who plans on shooting a lot with flash (indoor photography, event photography, etc.) you'll want to consider going with Nikon.Where Canon excels: Richness of colors. I've been in numerous situations where I've been on the red carpet taking the exact same picture as the photographer next to me. I'll have a Canon and the person next to me will have a Nikon. This has provided quite a few opportunities to compare the images side-by-side. What I've found is that the colors on the Canon's images look richer and make the image pop more. If I'm doing fine art photography (anything I'd like to someday hang in a gallery), I'll always want to be shooting with a Canon for this reason.If you're set on Nikon, there are three cameras you should be considering and it all comes down to what your budget is:D7000 $1,400 without lensD5100 $750 without lensD3100 $600 only available with lens(current prices as of 2/19/11)Here's what you get for spending extra money (each camera compared to the one below it):D3100 vs. D5100:The D3100 is an EXCELLENT camera so if you only have $550 to spend total on camera and lens then go out and buy this camera. You won't regret it. If you're considering spending more money, here's what you'll get from the D5100 in comparison:-Better performance in low light situations.-A higher resolution screen on the back of the camera so you can see your images more clearly and make out if they actually turned out well.-An external mic jack. (If you're planning on shooting video with an external mic, you'll want the D5100 over the D3100.)-A flip out screen (handy if you want to put your camera anywhere but at your eye level and be able to see what your camera is about to capture before you shoot it)-Faster continuous shooting. If you're often shooting sports or any fast moving subject, continuous shooting allows you to capture multiple images in a single second. The D3100 shoots at three frames per second whereas the D5100 shoots at four frames per second.-Higher ISO options. The D5100 offers one more stop of ISO than the D3100 does. If you don't know what ISO means (or what a stop is) just know that this allows you to more easily shoot images in low-light situations.-Longer battery life. The D5100's battery will last 20% longer than the D3100The two advantages of the D3100 over the D5100 are: less expensive and less weight. Whenever a camera is less expensive, it means you'll have more in your budget for the lens. The D3100 weighs 10% lighter and is 10% smaller than the D5100.D5100 vs. D7000

I spent decades using SLR film cameras - first a Pentax K-1000 and then a Canon AE-1. A few years ago I found myself using those cameras less and less as digital cameras became affordable. For several years though I didn't have an SLR, instead I used mainly small point and shoot cameras. Though handy, they just don't give you much control over more than zoom and flash, and the image quality was, um, often marginal.A couple of months ago my wife (bless her heart) gave me a Nikon D5100 with 18-55mm adnd 55-300mm lenses. I followed the quick start guide and I was up and shooting photos in a matter of only few minutes. Yeah!This is the first DSLR I have ever owned, and I'm here to tell you that in my experience this camera is a joy to use, and it gives fantastic results. I have been using this camera now, heavily, for the past two months, and I've taken at least 2000 photos so far. I have had chances to use it during all times of the day from dawn-dusk, and into the night. It performs amazingly in all light levels.This camera gives me LOTS of useful pre-set options as well as the capability to manually control shutter speed, aperture settings, ISO (=ASA or film speed), or to go fully automatic.The camera body feels solid and comfortable in my hand. The rubberized grip and thumb pad are great. The 3" digital screen is also a nice feature. It can be flipped out, flipped over, adjusted to any angle to accommodate holding the camera high or low, wherever.I was a little confused about one of the automatic settings. The green one on the dial on the top of the camera. If you have the camera set there, whenever the camera thinks there is not enough light the flash will automatically pop up. I find this annoying during daylight shooting, but luckily there is a second fully automatic setting where the flash is disabled. This is my automatic setting of choice.I love some of the optional settings - like sports mode where you have single point focusing and the camera will shoot up to 4 frames per second if you hold the shutter button down. There are just too many features to describe here, but there are great options for night portraits, night shots, low light, high light, etc., etc.Oh, this camera also gives you the option to do some image editing right in the camera. That's nice. The camera can also be attached to a computer for easy downloading of images, and there's a cable for attaching the camera to a TV so you can show photos to a larger group, as desired.Down sides? I already mentioned the auto setting flash popping up thing. One other down side is that when you use the camera in video mode the built in microphone is only adequate. You can adjust the microphone sensitivity from high to low, but that's it. If you plan to use this camera for video purposes extensively I recommend getting an external stereo microphone that is designed to be seated on the hotshoe flash point on top of the camera.I find that the battery is reasonably good. One of the first things I did after I decided that this was the camera for me was to pick up a reserve battery. So now I always have a battery in the camera and a second charged battery in my bag. I also bought a 32GB SD card, and I have a 4GB SD card in reserve. I've never filled either of these cards up though, since I download my photos to a computer after each shoot. But it's nice to know that you have the card space if you need it.Another thing you might want to invest in is a remote control unit for taking group photos that you want to be in.So after two months and 1000s of photos I have tons of praise for this camera and lens - oh, the anti-vibration technology in the lens is also great!With only minor shortcomings here and there, this camera IMO deserves a solid 5-star rating.5 stars!

Coming from a D40 (which is the smallest "real" DSLR Nikon ever made, and verges on perfection if you work within its limits), I expected to hate the 5100.I knew the image quality would be better (it is, by an astounding margin). I knew the video would be a great feature (it's great!). I knew it would represent the best value in Nikon's DSLRs in a very long time (the D7000's legendary sensor crammed into a smaller, friendlier body with a flippable screen at half the price!).What I didn't expect is how much I'd love the tactile feel of the buttons, the humongous screen, the smartly-designed and readable menus. I didn't expect that I could let it run free on Aperture Priority with no corrections and it would get exceptional shots every time. And I sure didn't expect that it could auto-correct distortion!The 5100 is a fantastic camera. It's absolutely everything you need to take great photos. It's lighter than a D7000, shoots better pictures than anything in its class, and is blazing-fast to start up, to focus, to bracket, and to save. It automatically corrects for distortion (NO Canon camera does this, to my knowledge). It has an incredible Auto-ISO feature (and can take usable photos at ISO 6400!). And its Raw files have so much latitude, it's like you've bracketed every shot.So what are the downsides?- You should already know that it doesn't autofocus with lenses that don't have their own motors. It doesn't have a focus motor, like the D3100 and D40 before it. (For people who are only going to buy 1 or 2 lenses, this is no big deal)- The battery life isn't great: about 620 shots. I know that sounds like a lot, but it's really not. My D40 (and all pro-level cameras) tend to last for a few thousand shots, and that's putting it lightly. During a 3-month term at college I charged my D40 ONCE. So, to mitigate the problem with the 5100, I bought a second battery: expensive but necessary. Just factor that into the cost.-The color is true to life and fairly accurate, but I miss the warm, glowy tone of the D40. The 5100 tends to render greens too "neon" and struggles with purples.-The "ADL" (adaptive dynamic lighting) feature will make your shots look spectacular, but it IS ONLY MEANT FOR JPEG. If you use it on a Raw file, the resulting file will come out much too dark because only Nikon's proprietary software can "read" the ADL instructions, and no one uses Nikon's software because it's terrible. Don't use this feature if you shoot Raw.-It is often not useful to have this many megapixels. The resulting files are bigger than they need to be and more cumbersome to fling around. This is hardly a real concern, but it does bear mentioning. Especially in Raw, you should be prepared to use 32-64 GB of storage space a month, minimum. Some of you may need a faster computer, or at least more RAM, to step up to images this big.- The screen tends to get coated with moisture and grime because it is pushed very far off of the camera body to accomodate the swivel mechanism. This means that with your eye to the viewfinder, you will undoubtedly cause a hazy buildup of sweat/heat/rubbing, which you'll need to wipe off pretty frequently.- The camera has absolutely no idea how much battery is left when using Live View. It often says the battery is about to die, and then lasts for a hundred more shots.- The "record" button is mounted in a ridiculous place and is often not triggered when you need it to. It would have been better to have a switch so you knew by feel if it was on or off (most of Nikon's other cameras do this).- OK, OK, it doesn't feel as light or effortlessly designed as the D40. It also doesn't have that icy-crisp shutter sound. I've started to realize that nothing ever will.All in all, there's hardly any reason not to get the D5100. If you're still reading this, just go ahead and grab it!

I take thousands of close up macro pictures always using a 35 inch high copy stand. It was challenging for decades using SLR cameras because I had to gaze down into a viewfinder with one eye. Focusing was difficult. I've used Nikon Nikon D100 6MP Digital SLR Camera, Nikon D70S 6.1MP Digital SLR Camera, Fujis, Sonys, Panasonic, and others going back to the 1980's. Because of uncertainty of exposure caused by back lighting, I've made three sets of triple bracketed photos for each item.Recently some photos were needed using the copy stand where the camera needed to be over 3 feet high above the table of the copy stand. I had reached my limit as I used a ladder to be able to gaze down on the subject. There had to be a better way. My Panasonic DMC-FZ150K 12.1 MP Digital Camera with CMOS Sensor and 24x Optical Zoom (Black) just does not cut it for back-lit photos, but it has an LCD screen which swivels out and I would not have to climb the ladder. But the FZ150 does not work well with back lighting.Then I saw the reviews here of the D5100. It had the articulating LCD screen and was a Nikon SLR! But did it have bracketing of exposure? It does! With such a screen maybe I would not have to use one eye looking down on a ladder. I could not order the D5100 fast enough. While waiting a day for my D5100 to arrive I watched a video Blue Crane Digital zBC141 Introduction to the Nikon D5100 : Basic Controls several times to learn about the camera.Now for my experience with the D5100: It is much better than expected! The spot focusing actually works, even with back lit objects. I never could auto focus before for these photos. The AF-S stock lens is constantly focusing in auto focus mode, so I don't have to press the shutter button half way every time I want to focus. That method did not work well for macro close up shots with the older Nikons. With the D5100 use spot metering/focusing option, and move the little box around the screen for the exact spot to focus on. The auto exposure on aperture priority actually works too. I bracket anyway, but only have to take one set of 3 pictures for each item rather than three.The articulating screen is highly functional, and with the convenient position of the "live view" lever it's fast to go into that mode. The AE+- functions works in live view, so I can adjust the exposure while seeing the results on the LCD screen instantly before the picture is taken. The included 18-55mm lens does work for close-up work, and I can still use my old beloved Micro Nikor 60mm AF but without auto focus. Same with my Tamron 90mm f2.8 Macro, also without auto focus. The exposure functions work perfectly though. But it's just a matter of time that I get more an AF-S micro lens such as Nikon 85mm f/3.5G AF-S DX ED VR Micro Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras for this camera.The battery life is so long I'm not using an AC adapter, which is a first for me.In summation, for production macro close up work using a copy stand:Great swivel LCD screen with Live ViewAuto Exposure Control that works in difficult conditionsAuto Focusing on close up objects that works well in real time using spot focusingBattery life that goes on and onConvenient buttonsReal time exposure control in LCD screenUltra sharp photosTakes old lenses (no auto-focus)Accurate white balance (after calibrating preset, see pdf manual)Brackets 3 photos quickly, no shutter lagProbably a great point and shoot too, but I prefer to not change all my macro settings for that such as white balance, bracketing, exposure, so I use my Panasonic DMC-FZ150K 12.1 MP Digital Camera with CMOS Sensor and 24x Optical Zoom (Black) with the Leica Lens for that...

Let's be honest...you want a camera that responds to you and captures the pixels the first time around. As long as you get those pixels, you can get the image you want out of the digital negative.There are few things you get better with more expensive models, including more rapid focus and metering...and if you're in that kind of situation, far be it from me to criticize, you're making use of that kind of equipment.But this is a really good camera. Even factory refurbished, it's a great piece of hardware (though a refurb is better for the entry-level hobbyist). First of all, it shoots in a raw format (for the noobs, that means whatever the sensor sees, it stores...no compression or loss). Nikon produces very consistent optics, so I'd recommend getting Photoshop or at least Photoshop elements (or any Adobe product which gives you Bridge and Adobe Camera Raw) so you can apply the optical compensation.I sold my video camera to buy this model because it handles video in hi-def for casual shooting. You'll need to shoot in ten minutes at a time (that's how the file system works) or plug into a computer for long-duration capture, but you will get what you want.This is also a model with a long history, and replacement parts are still easy to find, so repairs are not impossible. I'm a DIY guy with the right tools and measuring devices, so when my warranty runs out, I can fix this.If you're a noob looking for a starter camera, or a pro looking for a camera that you can take into hazardous conditions (there are off-the-shelf diving shells for this sucker) then this is a great piece of hardware. It's on par with the Canon Eos Rebel T3i...but costs less.One quirk...it knows more about the optics than you do, but has a hard time giving you information. Sometimes it'll cycle past sharp focus if you're too close to an object for your lens. It's a conflict in the software. Just back up, adjust the zoom in a bit, and try again.

This review is aimed at people who are new to photography, as I am in the same boat. There are much more thorough reviews on Amazon for people who are already serious photographers.General Impression:Wonderful camera - gives you control of parameters (such as f/stop, ISO, shutter speed) when you want to play with them or get creative and will auto-select them when you just want to take pictures. This was important to me as I am still learning to adjust them to my liking but don't want to miss out on pictures because I'm fumbling around with buttons.Construction/Feel:After going to Best Buy to physically hold the Canon T3i and Nikon d5100, I immediately decided on the Nikon. It felt much better in my hands and just looked better in general. Both were fairly light which is nice but also means they are made from quite a bit of plastic - not a problem though as this keeps the price down and I don't drop things.Controls:I have been pleased with the placement of the physical buttons on the camera as well as the menus. I mainly shoot in the A, S, and M modes and the little wheel you turn to adjust the shutter speed/aperture is right where your thumb falls. If you're in M mode, there is an aperture button to hold down just behind the shutter button which is also easy to reach with the camera up to your eye. Lastly, the Fn button can be programmed to control the ISO level so you can hold it down while spinning the wheel to change that without putting the camera down. I have heard people complain that the Live View switch is annoying to get to but have found it intuitive.There are a few controls that I wish were changeable without having to dig through a menu though. For instance, to change the focus mode from area to single point requires you to have the LCD screen turned around, then press the I button, then scroll around to change it. This is the case for a few other things like metering, shutter mode, etc. I can't really complain, though, because those are features that go on a serious photographer's camera that costs about twice as much as this model.Auto Focus:The 11-point AF on this camera has been a dream to use. I almost always keep the camera set to single point servo autofocus so I can select the point I want it to focus to. As long as you have some contrast, it is very quick and accurate to focus. This camera does not have a build in focus motor which means the lens must have it built in. As a result, older lenses or those build for the professional Nikons may not allow for autofocus. This hasn't been a big issues as most of the lenses I would want already have the motor built in, and if they don't, people survived for a long time manually focusing - it probably builds character. I was torn between getting the Nikon 10-24mm Wide-Angle Zoom Lensand Tokina 11-16mm Ultra-wide Angle Lensand ended up sticking with the Tokina even though it would not autofocus on this camera. I haven't had any issues with focusing manually with it as the ultra-wide angles are easy to focus anyway.Noise:A lot of the reviews I read before purchasing this camera talked about how well it shot in low light - I would have to agree. Looking at pictures from my old point and shoot at ISO 800 have horrible noise while I can shoot this at 1600 without any, and can go up to 3200 with only minimal touch ups in Lightroom needed. This has to be the single biggest advantage of digital over film - being able to change ISO on the fly and still being able to get great pictures at ISO 3200 is wonderful.Image Quality:I won't offer too many opinions in this section, but I have not seen anything but great quality in the RAW pictures I've taken. Basically I understand that if a picture doesn't come out right, the fault lies with me and not the camera. The camera is capable of much better pictures than I am capable of taking. When I do everything right (which is becoming a little more frequent) I am amazed of the result. Great colors, great contrast, low noise, etc.Battery Life:I purchased an extra battery before I went on a few business trips just in case, but ended up never being close to needing it. The battery just lasts and lasts and never seems to drain. For instance, last weekend I took 381 shots (some using live view) and the battery meter was still at 75%. No complaints in this department.Flash:The built in flash is pretty puny, which seems to be par for the course. It does provide some nice fill lighting if you're outside taking pictures where there are some shadows on your subject, but for shooting inside it's marginal at best. I bought the very reasonably priced Nikon SB-400 AF Speedlight Flash and have been very pleased with the combo. The external flash adds the ability to bounce light off the ceiling and not waste the camera battery while doing so. This camera does not have the Nikon flash commander ability, but I don't think that should be expected in a camera at this price point. If I ever start buying

This review is aimed at people who are new to photography, as I am in the same boat. There are much more thorough reviews on Amazon for people who are already serious photographers.General Impression:Wonderful camera - gives you control of parameters (such as f/stop, ISO, shutter speed) when you want to play with them or get creative and will auto-select them when you just want to take pictures. This was important to me as I am still learning to adjust them to my liking but don't want to miss out on pictures because I'm fumbling around with buttons.Construction/Feel:After going to Best Buy to physically hold the Canon T3i and Nikon d5100, I immediately decided on the Nikon. It felt much better in my hands and just looked better in general. Both were fairly light which is nice but also means they are made from quite a bit of plastic - not a problem though as this keeps the price down and I don't drop things.Controls:I have been pleased with the placement of the physical buttons on the camera as well as the menus. I mainly shoot in the A, S, and M modes and the little wheel you turn to adjust the shutter speed/aperture is right where your thumb falls. If you're in M mode, there is an aperture button to hold down just behind the shutter button which is also easy to reach with the camera up to your eye. Lastly, the Fn button can be programmed to control the ISO level so you can hold it down while spinning the wheel to change that without putting the camera down. I have heard people complain that the Live View switch is annoying to get to but have found it intuitive.There are a few controls that I wish were changeable without having to dig through a menu though. For instance, to change the focus mode from area to single point requires you to have the LCD screen turned around, then press the I button, then scroll around to change it. This is the case for a few other things like metering, shutter mode, etc. I can't really complain, though, because those are features that go on a serious photographer's camera that costs about twice as much as this model.Auto Focus:The 11-point AF on this camera has been a dream to use. I almost always keep the camera set to single point servo autofocus so I can select the point I want it to focus to. As long as you have some contrast, it is very quick and accurate to focus. This camera does not have a build in focus motor which means the lens must have it built in. As a result, older lenses or those build for the professional Nikons may not allow for autofocus. This hasn't been a big issues as most of the lenses I would want already have the motor built in, and if they don't, people survived for a long time manually focusing - it probably builds character. I was torn between getting the Nikon 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED AF-S DX Nikkor Wide-Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Camerasand Tokina AT-X116PRDXN AT-X PRO DX 11-16mm Ultra-wide Angle Lens for Nikonand ended up sticking with the Tokina even though it would not autofocus on this camera. I haven't had any issues with focusing manually with it as the ultra-wide angles are easy to focus anyway.Noise:A lot of the reviews I read before purchasing this camera talked about how well it shot in low light - I would have to agree. Looking at pictures from my old point and shoot at ISO 800 have horrible noise while I can shoot this at 1600 without any, and can go up to 3200 with only minimal touch ups in Lightroom needed. This has to be the single biggest advantage of digital over film - being able to change ISO on the fly and still being able to get great pictures at ISO 3200 is wonderful.Image Quality:I won't offer too many opinions in this section, but I have not seen anything but great quality in the RAW pictures I've taken. Basically I understand that if a picture doesn't come out right, the fault lies with me and not the camera. The camera is capable of much better pictures than I am capable of taking. When I do everything right (which is becoming a little more frequent) I am amazed of the result. Great colors, great contrast, low noise, etc.Battery Life:I purchased an extra battery before I went on a few business trips just in case, but ended up never being close to needing it. The battery just lasts and lasts and never seems to drain. For instance, last weekend I took 381 shots (some using live view) and the battery meter was still at 75%. No complaints in this department.Flash:The built in flash is pretty puny, which seems to be par for the course. It does provide some nice fill lighting if you're outside taking pictures where there are some shadows on your subject, but for shooting inside it's marginal at best. I bought the very reasonably priced Nikon SB-400 AF Speedlight Flash for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras and have been very pleased with the combo. The external flash adds the ability to bounce light off the ceiling and not waste the camera battery while doing so. This camera does not have the Nikon f

I bought this to replace my D40x after the flash quit working (though I still have it as a backup). I had a few issues with the D40x, but I am extremely pleased with the D5100. There are only a few minor complaints I have, which I will detail below. I have only had it for about a week now but I think I made a great choice. I would consider myself a moderately skilled amateur but have absolutely no desire for anything bigger and better!Pros:- The colors captured on this camera are leaps and bounds better than my D40x. I put them on the same tripod and took the same picture using full auto mode. Everything on my D40x had a reddish tint and the colors were not quite true. The colors from the D5100 were simply stunning and were considerably more accurate.- There are 23 different levels of ISO sensitivity (my D40x had 6), and the pictures are considerably less noisy, even at higher ISOs. I used the same lens/shutter speed/aperture/tripod for both cameras and shot each one at 200, 400, 800, 1600, and 3200 using my remote. The picture from the D5100 seems less noisy at 3200 than what the D40x produced at 800. Anything higher than 3200 seems to produce some fairly considerable noise however, especially if cropped.- Continuous mode is finally continuous! Using the same SD card in both cameras (16GB class 10) I attempted continuous mode. The D40x will take 3 frames per second, but only for the first second. By then the buffer is full and the speed is drastically reduced. The D5100 shoots 4 frames per second and takes at least 17 photos before any buffering is required. In theory this means that you have 4 full seconds of shooting before any buffering occurs but I have never once filled the buffer (though I never tried to deliberately do so either).- I didn't purchase this with the intention of taking many videos, but after viewing a test video on my computer I was extremely pleased with the quality. The video is very sharp and the file size is very reasonable (was about 30MB for a ~30 second clip...or roughly 1MB/second at 1920x1080 and 30FPS). Note that the audio is monaural however. If you want to use this for more professional videos then you'll probably need to purchase the external mic for stereo sound (which is quite expensive in my opinion). This may eventually replace my dedicated video camera, though further testing and a telephoto lens will almost certainly be required.- Live mode finally works, if you prefer using that (note: live mode *must* be enabled to shoot video).- 11 auto focus points instead of only 3. This is great if you're using a tripod and can't really recompose shots.Cons:- The biggest annoyance I have with this camera is that it does not show up as a USB drive when plugged into a computer. It will still show up as an import source in some photography software (Aperture, iPhoto, etc.) though I have found the easiest thing to do is to insert the SD card into my SD to USB converter. Using my converter it will show up just like a mass storage drive and I can browse the files and pull the pictures and movies directly. Otherwise one must install Nikon's software just to import the files (which seems like a pain, plus I'll soon be running nothing but Linux which isn't supported).- Aperture 2.0 does not recognize the movies files so it cannot import them. I don't have Aperture 3.0 so I can't speak for that, and I have no experience with Lightroom or Bibble 5.- Aperture 2.0 cannot read the new 14-bit RAW files that this camera generates (though it would read the 12-bit RAW files from my D40x). I ultimately decided not to shoot in RAW anyway, but it's sort of a bummer that it doesn't support it as Aperture offers more editing options for RAW files. Again, I cannot comment on how well any other software handles these files.Other thoughts:- I haven't had any issues with image sharpness. Whether I use the 18-55mm VR lens or my 35mm f/1.8 lens (which I HIGHLY recommend), my pictures come out perfectly crisp and sharp.- It has not suddenly stopped taking pictures, though I did purchase an extended warranty (parts and labor) for it. I now have 4 years of protection instead of just 1.- There is no auto-focus motor on the body of this camera so make sure to purchase a AF-I or AF-S lenses. The older AF lenses will still work with this camera but you will have to manually focus every shot.- My 16GB card will hold roughly 1600 photos using JPEG (Fine) format.

For once I really researched a camera purchase. I will begin with the end: the D5100 is a superb offering that will do as much as almost all non-professional users will ever need it to do, and has more useful features than most users will ever use. There are many competing cameras at or near this price point. I cannot claim to have researched them all, but the D5100 really does seem to be the leader. This camera is basically a feature-laden prosumer camera -- a camera for the enthusiastic amateur who wants a camera that will do most (but not all) things that a professional camera will do, with as little fuss as possible, and in a smaller package.The most important attribute of this camera is its ability to produce superb images right out of the camera. And great images start with great exposure. This camera can produce outstanding images that really do not require post-processing. I have been using Nikon digital SLR cameras since the D100 was announced, through the D80 and D200. All have been superb cameras for their days and still are. However, most Nikon DSLRs really benefited (needed, really) a bit of post-processing in order for the images to reach their full potential. In particular, many users have noticed that the auto-contrast settings in Nikon or third-party software programs really brightened up images, giving them better contrast and zip. This camera pretty much does away with that. The D-lighting feature of this camera, combined with an all-around better sensor, exposure algorithm, and exposure system, really do make it possible to produce images right out of the camera that look like they have already been post-processed on the computer. And to make matters even better, the camera allows in-camera editing and post-processing! So if you are on a trip and want to email a few pictures you will not need your computer; the camera will do the post-editing job for you in most cases. And in most cases this is not needed at all. Put simply, the D5100 has about achieved the ideal for digital cameras, whereby it produces a final image right out of the camera that is about perfectly exposed, with contrast and lighting the way you want it.The camera allows for matrix, center-weighted, and spot metering, just like the pro cameras. All are useful at times. I can remember when only professional cameras had all three. We have come a long way.The D5100 continues the Nikon trend of better and better ISO performance, as light amplification technology keeps getting better. ISO roughly corresponds to the exposure ratings of film in days of yore, and basically better ISO performance means that the camera will perform better in low light conditions, making it possible to take clear non-noisy images in dimmer light. My D200, which was one of the very best Nikons in its day, degrades quickly after about ISO 640. This camera will do many multiples of this satisfactorily. For early morning photography, or taking pictures indoors, this is a decisive, tremendous advantage.Great images also require fast and accurate focusing. The auto-focusing system on this camera is very well thought out for its market niche. While professional photographers will probably not use this camera to photograph NFL games and the like, this camera features an excellent focusing system that will exceed the expectations of most users. It is an 11 point system that intelligently focuses on a subject in the foreground or tracks a moving subject or, if you wish to exercise complete control, it will allow a single point (selectable) focus which can be useful for portraits of individuals and other types of still photography. It also has continuous focusing as an option which can be great for sports or wildlife. While pros and certain amateur photographers may need (or at least want) the more elaborate focusing systems available on Nikon's higher end cameras, for all but the most demanding users the D5100 is more than up to the job. Its focusing system is better than the pro systems of a few camera generations ago. If you want to photograph your kids playing sports, this camera will do the job, and likely do it brilliantly. This excellent focusing system, combined with its available 4 frames-per-second capability, make this camera quite capable of producing quality images of difficult fast-moving subjects.Ergonomics. I bought this camera for two main reasons: less size and less weight. The higher-end Nikon cameras sport metal bodies, while this unit is made out of high-impact plastic. Given the fact that even rifles and pistols are mostly made of plastic nowadays, I consider plastic to be a virtue, not a vice. The D5100 features excellent build quality and has every bit of that quality "Nikon feel" that we have all come to expect. While some pros and a few amateurs really may need a weather-sealed metal bodied camera, most of us do not. And every single user will appreciate the very low weight of the D5100. I carried mine

What led me to this awesome camera:----------------------------------------------- 2 years back I started out as someone who simply wanted to take pictures. I didn't care about the quality that much, though I did want a decent amount of megapixels and video capability. So I bought myself a Samsung SL620 point-and-shoot with 12 megapixels and SD video capability. That camera died on me 6 months later. Christmas that year, I got a new Samsung SL820, which was like the 1st only with 720p video capability. That one also quit on me, but this time after 2 months. May 2010, I got the same camera and it only lasted 3 months, but I've taken over 1,000 pics with it. By then, I was starting to get an interest in photography and taking quality shots. Last fall, I borrowed my dad's Sony F717, which was a 5 megapixel bridge camera that he's now had for 8 years. I figured out that camera in just a few days. Unlike my cameras, the Sony had manual settings and manual focus. I was impressed by the blurred backgrounds, the color not so much. I had to fix the washed out colors in Photoshop. A couple weeks after Christmas, I had made enough money to get another point-and-shoot (Bad choice). This one was a Samsung TL240, which had 14 megapixels and a touchscreen. I got some decent shots with it, but they could've been better. A couple months later, one of my friends at school accidently knocked that camera off a table and the lens got stuck. After that, I decided I was gonna save up the extra cash and get an SLR so I could get better quality shots. I looked at several different cameras on this website. Some bridge and some SLRs. I wanted one that took decent HD video (with a reasonable amount of recording time per video), had a decent resolution, and had decent low-light. By the 1st week of April, I was gonna stick with a Samsung NX10, then I saw the Nikon D5100 on Amazon, although it wasn't actually available yet. It had everything I wanted and more.Review:---------------------------------------------Photos:This camera takes very awesome pictures and I rarely need to use the flash. This camera stomps my deceased cameras and my dad's Sony into the ground. The focusing is very fast, except in live view. The articulating display is very helpful when I want to take self-portraits. I bought a remote so I could take self-portraits that were focused right. It totally beats the self-timer. The HDR feature is awesome, although it's only meant for still scenes and not action or anything with movement. I've used the 30-second shutter speed for shots after sunset and they come out quite nice. I only wish there were some longer shutter speeds. Holding down the shutter for a minute or 2 can be very annoying when using the bulb feature because I usually get some motion blur, even when I'm using a tripod. The effects are pretty awesome too. I used the sketch feature to sketch a picture of an Ingles store and I put it on Facebook saying that I drew it myself. My parents are in love with that feature. I can honestly say I haven't had any softness issues with my pictures, after I turned the sharpening up a notch. I also haven't had any problems with the reds being exaggerated. The colors are just great and this is the first camera I've had that took pictures that I didn't need to enhance in Photoshop before I upload them to Facebook.Video:The HD video on this camera is very clear, unlike the "HD" video on my older cameras. I bought the expensive external microphone and the sound is great and you don't hear as much of the autofocus noise. The video is a little bit wobbly when I move the camera kinda fast, but I'm pretty sure the older Nikon D5000 is much worse. Video is not my goal in life (If it were, I would've gotten a camcorder). I shoot random videos every now and then. I also have a show on Youtube that I do every once in a while.Camera in general:This camera is awesome. It may not be perfect, but no camera is or ever will be unless God makes one himself. I have absolutely no desire to return or trash this camera. It was money well-spent. Unlike the Nikon D40 (which I had borrowed from my photography teacher one time), it doesn't feel so awkward trying to get a self-portrait with just one hand. I plan on using this camera in college this fall and for a long time. Eventually, when I get rich, I'll step up to a full-frame camera. I'm not in any rush to do that though. Right now, I'm just using the kit lens included with this camera and the pictures are pretty good. I plan on getting more lens, such as the 18-200mm (for video), the 55-300mm lens, and a portrait lens.(Edit: I just realized that I can use my remote for the bulb feature.)----------------------------------------------------------------------12/7/2011 Update:I've had this camera for 6 months now and it stopped working. Just kidding. This awesome camera is still working as great as it did when I first got it out of its package on June 7th. I've dropped it a few times, being the clum

This is my second Nikon DSLR (I had a D50 for almost 8 years), and I'm writing this review after about two months of playing around with the camera. I'm a fairly fluent photographer (I had my own darkroom for a while), but I wouldn't say I'm an expert. Like most people, I take 80% of my pics in Auto mode, but I like to sometimes work in manual mode and compose some good shots.Here's my initial impression:Things I like:- Having HD video with sound feels like a miracle. The image quality is excellent, the sound not so much. I bought an external mic, but it really didn't help much. Advice here welcome!- The kit lens and new sensor technology create very crisp, clean and bright images with a lot of depth. I'd say the images are notably cleaner (less noise) and brighter (better contrast control and metering) than my old D50. But the difference isn't massive, and remember the D50 had only a 6MP sensor- Color and overall balance is excellent- The controls and swivel screen are much, much better than I'm used to. They really help make you a better photographerThings I'm getting used to:- The auto focus settings are confusing and often seem to track to the wrong object in a frame. It's hard to compose a shot and establish strong depth of field without going into manual mode (but this could be user error)- The pre-programmed settings for different shooting conditions haven't made a big impression so far. Easier to create your own shot- The in-camera HDR setting has a subtle but good effect, especially useful in bringing out skies in landscapes- The form factor of the camera is great.So far, so good. One other comment - I'm expecting this will be the last DSLR I will ever buy, and not because this is the camera that will meet all my future needs. The D5100 is pretty bulky - too bulky really - and the next-generation of mirrorless cameras with interchangeable lenses and much smaller form-factors will be the way to go.

Let me state that I am an average Joe, and had no delusions that this would make me a pro photographer or make good pictures.Brief background: my friend wanted to convince me on getting Nikons, and gave me his D7000 to try out. After enjoying playing around with it, I initially was ready to fork the big bucks for it. But when I went to the store, I saw the D5100, and started handling with it, and was pretty impressed by it. Reading the specs, most are similar to the D7000 in terms of sensors, and it had a flip screen. After a little soul searching (i.e. "Am I really going to do semi-pro work?", "How much will I lug around?"), I decided to save some money and go with the D5100. After having it for 3 months, I am pretty satisfied.Weight/handling: very light when compared to the D7000; I can hold it in one hand if need be (but will usually use 2) without straining the wrists. This was one of the big sells.18-55mm lens: perfect for most pics I will take with it. I don't plan on zooming in too much, and gives me time to compose my photographs well.Modes: I mostly stick with Auto and P modes, and they get my pics well.Flash: This is the weak spot of this camera or any SLR. It will give good direct lighting, but like most flashes, it will be rather harsh. I would highly recommend the Nikon SB-400 Nikon SB-400 AF Speedlight Flash for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras as a companion flash; it is lightweight and gives good bounce capability in landscape mode to diffuse the harshness of the flash--you can even make a DIY light box out of paper for portrait views (see Ken Rockwell's site for review of this flash to see how it is done).Screen: Flip screen is best for most of us average Joes; you will not get that in the D7000. Also, if you get confused about using aperture, it will show you the f setting with a picture of the iris. Image viewing is also pretty efficient in it.Movies: I would stick with either a dedicated camcorder, phone, or point and shoot for these. Too much focusing on auto focus mode, and you will not have the time to continuously focus with it. I had no plans to use it as a video camera anyways.Images: I have been pretty impressed by the images taken by this camera. Again, I am looking for overall quality, and it has not disappointed me. One note: if shooting with the low burst on, be sure to watch how much you press the button; you may automatically shoot 2-3 burst when you wanted to shoot one. Also, the low burst is pretty decent at capturing most action shots you will need for children or mobile activities.Conclusion: The D5100 has more than enough features to satisfy 95% of the public. While the D7000 is a solid camera, I would reserve it for the serious amateur. You will also save about $500-700 with this kit over the D7000 kit, which you can always use for fixed or telephoto lenses. Most average Joes will find that this camera has everything they need.

i have been shooting with slr's for 37 years owning several. the 5100 is a typical nikon which is good. even the kit lens if quite good. excellent picture quality producing vivid, crystal clear, sharp pics. way more pixels than you will ever need even for aggressive cropping. color and exposure are easily set. this camera does very well in low light even with the relatively slow kit lenses. i have the 55-200mm as well as the 18-55.my only complaint is with the auto focus, it is not very fast and has trouble shooting through windows and screens, hunts in many situations. i called nikon and the woman told me it sometimes takes "a few tries" to focus correctly which is unacceptable. it is better if i don't try to shoot at 18 or 55mm, each end of the zoom. it doesn't compare with the AF snappiness of my minolta 5d which has never had a problem with AF. the nikon also has no focus motor in the body so you have to pay a premium for the afs lenses, each one having it's own motor. it also lacks the in body anti shake but instead the anti shake is in the lens, so you pay for it in each lens. i haven't shot enough video to even comment. all in all a great camera but i have had to use it in manual mode because the AF issues. it can be faster to just switch to manual rather than wait for the camera to figure out what to focus on. i have had way more useable photos with this camera than my minolta and i think the photo quality is a little better. the nikon feels plasticy though, kind of cheaply built.i can't figure out the prices though, the two lens kit is $45 less than the one lens kit and my kit was $270 less than the current price around christmas.