I’m soooooo excited! Monday I finally received my Christmas/B-day gift…a new Nikon D3100 DSLR complete with the stock 18-55mm Nikkor AF-S VR Lens as well as the AF-S DX VR Zoom-Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6G IF-ED Lens and some other assorted goodies. Can you say kid in a candy store!
Now I can say I am by no means a photographer. Until recently I had little interest in photography and never owned anything better than a point and shoot camera; and I wasn’t even particularly good with that. This started changing when my daughter was born 8 months ago. I started to enjoy taking pictures of her especially, but also of other things. Then I started Eating Bangkok and yes I realize it’s my skill that will make the most difference in my photography, but I felt I should at least have decent tools to help me be all I could be as a photographer. Plus I’m a guy and you know how we love our expensive electronic toys!
I spent quite some time looking at the differences between digital SLR’s. Canon’s Rebel XT series is a very nice camera, but at the end of the day I felt Nikon was a better camera overall, not necessarily because the body is better, but I felt the Nikkor lenses are better (although waaay expensive in many cases). So, at this point I was left choosing between the Nikon D90 and the Nikon D3100 (which is what I got). How did I choose between the two?
To be honest by most accounts these are quite similar camera’s. The major differences are sensors, lens compatibility, monitors, HD movie capability, and full-time autofocus for video.
The D3100 beats the D90 by 1.9 megapixels with it’s 14.2mp sensor. Not huge, but it’s something. The D3100 also has better high ISO performance, important if you are taking pictures in low light which I will be.
In terms of lens compatibility the D90 is the winner hands down, with one caveat. I say its the winner because the D90 will auto focus with any Nikkor lens, while the D3100 will only auto focus with the newer (and more expensive) AF-S lenses. If I already had a bunch of older lenses this might be a concern for me, but since I’m just starting out, not so much. I also think that getting an older lens that I am forced to manual focus (I’m thinking the prime 50mm f1.8 lens) will be good for my development as a photographer.
The monitor is a big difference in these two camera’s also. The D90 has the professional grade 920,000 resolution monitor which is sweet, while the D3100 comes with a much lower resolution monitor. I plan on using the viewfinder anyway, so this for me is another non-issue. The high resolution monitor would surely be nice, but not necessary.
Next up we come to HD movie capability. The D3100 has brilliant 1080p full HD movie capabilities while the D90 falls short with just 720p capabilities. To be sure the D90 is an older model and was the first Nikon to feature HD movie capability at all, but in this day the D3100 wins. And to sweeten the pot the D3100 has full time auto focus to go along with the 1080p HD movies!
Considering that I will be using the camera both for food photography here as well as doing short movies (yep I’m doing movies from Bangkok) the HD movie functionality was a game changer for me. Plus the D3100 is a couple hundred dollars cheaper than the D90, which always helps.
So, that was my thought process in choosing a new DSLR camera to help me become a better photographer for all our sakes. 
I am guessing that many of you take photos for your blogs as well and I’m curious to know what type of camera you are currently using. Also, if the cost wasn’t an issue what camera do you think you would LIKE to use? I’ll be looking forward to the responses and I can tell you that tomorrow you’ll get a glimpse at some of the first pictures I’ve taken with my new baby.
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I own a DSLR EOS Rebel XT which was my fun camera from when I did freelance years and years ago (I also carried around whichever camera my boss had me use at the time which was on a much higher tier than my little Rebel.), but I can’t use it for my blog anymore since I lost the charger!
And I’m too stubborn to spend the 50 bucks to get a new one (I know for sure I’ll find it eventually, even though it’s been missing for years)
Right now, I have a little best-buy pocket camera (Insignia 10 MP) that I use. It’s not great, but it does the job just fine.
Having an SLR would be great, because I can manually adjust things like the ap and shutter speed, but other than that, it’s all about the set-up for taking pictures. I’m sure I could make perfectly nice shots with the insignia if I took the time to fix the lighting and stuff, but most of my pictures I take are on the fly as I struggle to get a picture of the cookies before my son snags one off the plate.
When I was in photography school, we had a guy that was a friend of the man who was in charge of the dark room. He was a very good, professional photo-artist and, while he still did a lot with 35mm, he did a lot of very good stuff with a simple pocket camera. He didn’t even own a DSLR, but his stuff came out great because he had complete control of the lighting and composition and he knew what he was doing. I learned a lot from him.
Anyway, I’m done sounding like a smart-ass now. Good luck, and have fun with that camera.
Lubos from slovakcooking.com here. Haha, looks like we both got new cameras
Yes it sure does
Looks like we’re both pretty pleased too. The long exposure shot of your neighbors house was quite impressive!
wowowoooow!! love your camera features.. and am sure that your daughter will appreciate all her photos when she grows up – thanks for inspiring me – i still take photos with my point and shoot – and i am an extremely addicted taking picture of my two kids – i suck.
oh well, really good thing to see the specs. who knows?
LOL…I suck too, but I’m hoping to improve now that I have a better tool for taking the pictures.
I use a Canon DS-40 most of the time, when I remember to charge it, which is a few years old but not a bad camera. I’d love to upgrade in the next year or so. When I don’t remember to charge it, or I’m out at a restaurant and I’ve got good light coming in the kitchen, I use my iPhone4 cam which does a surprisingly good job.
I’ve heard that the iPhone cam does a pretty good job taking pics even in the low lighting found in restaurants. Judging by the pictures on your site the Canon DS-40 is pretty nice too, even if it’s a few years old.
Thanks! I’m looking forward to reading about what you experience and learn with your new camera set up. Tips are always useful!
Congratulations on the new DSLR! Expecting more and more drooling pictures from now on! =D
Thanks and I can say I’m looking forward to taking more drooling pictures too!
I’m using a Nikon CoolPix L110 that my husband gave me for Christmas this year. It’s perfect for me at this point. I’m not all that techno-savvy, so this is all I can handle. LOL We’re expecting our first grandchild this June, so we will definitely get a lot of use from it. I am looking at improving my photography skills for the blog. Do you have any tips on lighting, backgrounds, etc.?
Hi Tammy,
I think the Coolpix is a very good camera, especially if you don’t want to be bothered with all the camera techno babble that comes along with using a DSLR. I’m sure you get great pictures from it and will enjoy using it to photograph the new grandchild…congrats in advance!
I am a rank beginner when it comes to photography, but plan on learning as much as possible so while I don’t have tips now on lighting, backgrounds, etc., I will be learning and posting my experiences and new knowledge here so stay tuned.
Thanks for this! Some time in the next few months I will be purchasing a DSLR camera. I’ve been wanting one for years but am still completely overwhelmed by the purchasing process. Right now I’m using a Canon Elph SD850 – a few years old. Time to upgrade! Enjoy your new toy!
Thanks! I’m completely overwhelmed by the features at this point, but am enjoying it immensely. I’m sure if my daughter could talk she’d be telling me to “knock it off already”.
I think the Canon Elph SD850 is a pretty nice point and shoot so I’m sure you’ve had fun with that. I’ll be looking forward to see what you choose to do in a few months time. The DSLR’s are definitely fun!