Is this DSLR a good choice for me

[jackiewebb6]

Hello everyone,
So i'm looking at buying a Nikon D5000 at the end of this week. I've never owned a SLR camera but i really love talking pictures and i'd like to have my own so that i can start taking pictures that actually turn out nice... insted of using a digital camera that doesn't tend to give me the results i'm looking for. Somthing i'd be using it a lot for would be at horse shows so it would have to be good for that. I've done a lot of research and so far and the nikon d5000 seems like a good decision i heard that it's a good SLR for beginners and it also allows you to advance once you get better which is what i'd like. I guess i'm just looking for a little more advise and commets on what you people think of this.
Thanks : )

[Frog]

Its a good choice. Best is debatable as choosing is a very personal decision.
Are your horse shows inside or out?
Much of what you get out of the camera will depend on "lens" choice.

Welcome to these forums and stick around and ask questions and share your photos.
If you want advice on how to make certain ones better, put them up in the critique forum and you'll get honest opinions on the good and bad and how to improve them.
There's a big learning curve and the most important thing about a camera is the person clicking the shutter.

[jackiewebb6]

okay, yes i relise that different cameras are better depending of what the person likes i guess it all preferance really. The horse shows can be inside or out depending on the weather and if there is a indoor arena. But sometimes it can be a little dusty in the arena depending on the weather. But mainly i want a camera that can caputre action clearly because my digital camera could not do that and there would also be like dust specks in the photo. But i guess the dust reduction on the d5000 would help me to get clearer photos? right?

[Franglais]

okay, yes i relise that different cameras are better depending of what the person likes i guess it all preferance really. The horse shows can be inside or out depending on the weather and if there is a indoor arena. But sometimes it can be a little dusty in the arena depending on the weather. But mainly i want a camera that can caputre action clearly because my digital camera could not do that and there would also be like dust specks in the photo. But i guess the dust reduction on the d5000 would help me to get clearer photos? right?

Hummmm.. you get dust specks in the photo on a point-and-shoot? These things are sealed. There should be no way for dust to get in there.

This "dust" - does it appear when you do photos indoors and disappear when you do photos outdoors? If so it's not dust - it's noise. Your point-and-shoot is trying to amplify the weak signal coming off it's very small sensor and it appears as coloured speckles in the image.

Yes the D5000 (or any recent DSLR) should do much better. The sensor is huge compared with a point-and-shoot so it captures more light and it can be made much more sensitive to light without having noise appear.

If you find that you still can't get a good shot indoors because the subject moves, all is not lost - you can change the lens and use one with a wider maximum aperture. Wider aperture = much more light collected by the lens so you can use a shorter exposure and freeze action (BTW be warned that wider aperture = more $$$).

And finally if you were having problems in focussing your point-and-shoot indoors, the D5000 has a much more sophisticated focussing mechanism which normally is able to follow a moving object like ahorse with no problem.

[jackiewebb6]

thanks a lot charles this helped a lot.
Yes i thought the little dots in my pictures were just dust particals in the air but now i see what you mean i've seen the term "noise" a lot in the past couple of days while surfing the net about SLR's i never knew what it ment but it makes sense now.
It comes with a w/18-55 vr lens do you think that would work okay? or would i have to buy a better one?

[Frog]

The 18-55 should get you started. You'll soon find out if you need something with more zoom and/or faster. Not being one that shoots horse events, I wouldn't know.
There are a few here that do and I think you'd find them mostly in the sports forums.
Dig around in there or just ask what lens(s) would be good.

[jackiewebb6]

okay thanks a lot for the help!

[Ray Dockrey]

All the horse arena's I have been in aren't real well lit so i would imagine that you will find you will need a faster lens. I do think that the D5000 is a great choice for you and it has low noise levels at higher ISO's. But I wanted to share this with you. When I got my D40x I was so excited. Here I had bought this great DSLR and could not wait to see the pictures. I started taking shots and viewing them and realized that the shots weren't any better then the point and shoot I had. I was greatly disappointed. But as i used it and learned more about post processing the pictures began to come alive. I now shoot with a D200 and it is just incredible to me to have come from those first meager pictures to what I am taking today..

[Franglais]

Generally for sports with large dangerous things like cars and horses the public is kept at some distance from the subject. An 18-55 is fine as a walk-around lens and for doing family portraits in good light. But it just isn't telephoto enough to reach out and pick out the subject at a distance.

I would go for the D5000 kit with the 18-105mm VR or (even better) with the 18-55 and 55-200VR lenses. The longer lenses should allow you to zoom in on the subject outdoors.

Indoors you may have problems freezing the action with these consumer zooms. The maximum aperture of these lenses at the tele end is small (f5.6). Less light coming in the front = the camera will leave the shutter open for longer. If your shutter speed drops below 1/200s a moving subject may be blurred. However the D5000 can go up to 6400 ISO so you may get away with it. If not then start looking at the 80-200 f2.8

[jackiewebb6]

okay yea i see what your saying.
People that own Nikons do you find they ever need to be repaired? because henrys where i'm buying my camera offers a 3 year warranty and i know usually warranty's are just money pits for the companys do you think i really need this?? I don't imagen it's gonna break in the first three years i own it anyways..do you think i'm right on this one?

[Ray Dockrey]

When I bought my D40x I bought the extended warranty. I used it once to replace the battery. So for me it wasn't worth it and I won't do it again. I own a ton of Nikon equipment and I have yet to have to send off anything for repair. I did burn up a SB600 flash but that was my fault and not Nikon's plus it was out of warranty anyway. I have been meaning to send it off to get it repaired but I now have another SB600 and a SB900 so I put getting it repaired on the back burner.

[Frog]

Most extended waranties are not worth it. Of course, there is the rare time when something does go bad. If you're buying new and you're not getting a gray market camera, you'll have Nikon's warranty.
Before buying the extended, find out where the camera has to go for the repair and what the turn around time is.
IF YOU ARE BUYING ONLINE, be sure to check our dealer feedback forum http://forums.photographyreview.com/...splay.php?f=10

[jackiewebb6]

Okay yea im thinking it is just extra easy profit for the company i'm buying it from henrys brand new so i don't think there will be any issues with it breaking, a least i'd hope not!
Thanks everyone : )