Well, I’ve gone and done it! After a lot of debating back and forth both with myself and my boyfriend I’ve now bought a digital SLR camera. Amateur photography has been a hobby in my family for generations and I’ve been wanting to buy a good camera even since my mother’s old Praktica broke a few years ago. The reason I’ve waited so long is that digital SLR cameras are very expensive. Spending 500 Euros at the least for a camera (not including lenses, flash, tripod etc) is not all that viable when you’re a student with multiple interests.
But since I’ve got a job now (albeit a part-time one) I decided to do some research and see what camera might fit me. Boy was I in for a ride!
What shocked me the most was the multitude of alternatives and the incomprehensible amount of information out there. I spend a few hours every day for three weeks reading reviews, photography forums, product information and what not. What did I learn from all that research? Two things mainly:
1. All digital SLR cameras on the market today are good. At an amateur level the camera will almost always be better than the photographer behind it. Basically you’re the one holding back the camera’s potential, not the other way around. Which brings me to the second point:
2. Go for the camera or brand that feels best. Digital SLR cameras are quite heavy (the housing alone usually weighs around half a kilo), so having a good, comfortable grip on the camera is essential.
With these two lessons in mind I went shopping for a camera and ended up with the Nikon D3000 with an 18-55 mm VR lense. VR stands for Vibration Reduction – Nikon’s own technology.
I chose the camera because of two reasons: Firstly it is Nikon’s latest product, released during 2009, which should mean that I won’t have to upgrade any time soon. Secondly, it comes with a Guide function, where the camera does all the thinking, but instead of just letting you press the shoot button, it guides you through all the settings you need to adjust. This means that you can shoot reasonably good photos from the start, while learning the camera’s functions. This being my first digital SLR camera I found this very useful. Of course you can learn that from a book, but I like the idea of being able to learn small things as I go along.
The lens was trickier, since lens reviews always seem to contain more technical terms than camera reviews. What I was able to make out though, this particular lens is one of, if not the best, at entry level. The Vibration Reduction technology helps prevent motion blur in low light conditions. The basic mechanics of the lens are also based on new Nikon technology – it has more parts, which is supposed to make it more accurate and increase the range of use.
I ordered the camera yesterday, together with a remote trigger, a bag and an 8 G memory card. All in all it cost me just over 500 Euros, which after having looked around seems to be a very reasonable price.
Now I’m waiting for the camera to arrive so I can test it and see for myself how well it fits me and my amateur needs.
I’ll keep you updated!
Good Socks 
