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110 of 111 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
So good its pointless reviewing it:, 7 May 2007
It does seem pointless I feel to review this camera, as if you have got this far you've already read oodles of reviews in all the magazines and they will have said how fantastic this camera is. BUT if you are thinking about buying a DSLR online, now, without going into a shop as I did, then this really is the one for you. Ignore all the fantastic features, ignore the sensor robbed from its bigger expensive brother, ignore the 11 point focusing system, (or better the movable 11 point single focus) ignore the enormous crisp LCD, the bright well laid out top mounted display, the gorgeous crisp bright viewfinder, ignore all those well placed buttons. The simple fact is, if you are toying with this or the Canon equivalents (as most will be) then buy this for the glorious build quality, the weight and the way you wonder if the Nikon designers have the same sized hands as you (and anyone you pass this camera to) as its simply the best in build quality and ergonomics, the smaller Canons (350 & 400) just feel like plastic toys, and unless you have very small hands you'll find your last finger flailing around with no-where to go, whereas the bigger ones (20 & 30) are built like a brick outhouse, but sadly look and feel like a brick outhouse.
This is what it boils down to, on spec for £ they all run a photo-finish, on build and handling this ones has got them all well and truly licked.
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30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I love this camera!, 8 Jan 2008
I love this camera, having had it for almost one year. Yes, it is a bit heavier than similar offerings from Canon, Sony and Olympus but this is due to it's build quality! Dslrs are not pocket cameras! They will have to take some rough and tumble and the extra weight helps the camera balance when used with larger lenses. I particularly like the extra bright viewfinder, very important and much superior to the Canon Eos 400D.
I bought this camera with the excellent 18-200vr and really love this lens. This is not a lens review but remember, when you buy a Dslr, you are buying into a camera range. It's essential to look at what accessories are available and Nikon do not disappoint in this area.
There are 11 autofocus points which should be enough for anyone.
Noise control at 400 iso is excellent and is available up to 3200 but is very noisy, so only for emergencies. The D80 has a whole host of in-camera adjustments for adjusting images although I prefer to do this in Photoshop.
I think I will be happy with this camera for a few years yet. This does everything I want it to (takes sharp, low noise, well exposed pictures) and of course, reading the manual is essential to make the best use of all the features but it still isn't difficult for someone used to film SLRs to pick this camera up and start shooting straight away.
I have bought the SB600 flash which is superb and the 50mm 1.8 lens which is superb for low light. The camera has reduced in price and the weight is not an issue unless you're a total wimp!
I bought this instead of the Canon 400D as it has better build quality, a better viewfinder and spot metering, Canons usually only have a partial metering option. It is very comfortable to hold, whereas it's competitors can feel too small and plasticky. And then there is the 18-200VR lens. Canon have nothing like this and as most people have concerns about lugging lenses around, this is an almost do-it-all solution! The Canon 40D has great build quality but in reviews appears to have no better image quality than the 400D and comes with a hefty price tag.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Prosumer Digital SLR, 26 May 2008
In short, an excellent choice if you're an enthusiatic amatuer who can't justify the cost of a professional DSLR.
I bought this camera to replace my ageing Minolta film SLR, having promised myself that I'd wait until good quality DSLRs broke the 10 mega-pixel barrier at a reasonable price before parting with my cash. Minolta stopped producing SLRs a few years ago (replaced by Sony I think, which is an unknown quantity to me), so I decided to look at other brands. I've had a Nikon Coolpix point-and-shoot digital for some years which I've been very pleased with, so I plumped for a Nikon DSLR.
As an amatuer, I wanted a camera that is versatile, reasonably portable and of high quality. I also wanted something that would allow me to explore Digital SLR fully (point-and-shoot digital isn't the same of course, and the fast feedback you get with DSLR compared to film is wonderful). Given my budget and the current Nikon range, this came down to either the D80 or the D200. The D200 is very impressive, but I just couldn't justify the extra £300 or so that it costs and decided this was best spent on a better lense. Not only that, but the D80 is very close in specification to the D200. For me, the additional features of the D200 were just not worth the extra £300 given what I will use the camera for. So I went with the D80 and the excellent Nikon 18-200 VR lense and have not been disappointed. Nikon don't offer this body/lense combination as a kit, so I had to buy separately which of course ups the cost somewhat, but it's worth it I think.
Most of my images stay on the PC and the exceptional ones get printed up to A3 format for display. Resolution wise, the D80 seems to handle this with ease. The camera is a dream to use, and in the short time that I've had it I've had excellent results. As others have said, the camera oozes good quality, and this applies not only to the finish/controls but also under the hood as well. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
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