Name of product:
Nikon D5000 DSLRApproximate date of purchase:
August 2009My Review
I have lived with this camera for some time now and have recently upgraded to the Nikon D7000. The reason being was that I required some other features that the D5000 does not have, like the wireless commander.
That being said, I have taken in excess of 20,000 frames with the D5000 and never had a glitch thus far. It has served me at rock concerts, family occasions, landscapes, and I have done a lot of creative work with it. I especially like the in-camera photo editing as this has served me well taking some journalist photos and converting them to black and white, then downloading them immediately to a press office.
Even though the D5000 is deemed to be a beginner entry-level prosumer camera, I find it easy to work with and light to carry around (the difference between working with the heavier D7000 vs the D5000 at a full day rock concert can be felt the next day).
Nikon offered a morning "get to know your camera" session, and the pro who presented it said to invest in lenses, a decent flash, and some strategic filters (circular polarizer).
What I love about the D5000 is its ability to just get on with the job. Yes, one can do the menu "fiddly" things, but I do a few test shots and then settle on a "standard" strategy for the day. This works for me.
The D5000 now fills a backup camera status and has helped me increase my capacity at functions. I now put the 18 - 105 Nikon kit lens I got with the D7000 on it and then put the 70 - 300 zoom on the D7000. Between the two cameras, I have a lens range of 18 - 497 mm, and at shows and band outings this, well, does it all.
Now about those Nikon neck killing straps ...
Camera "pros"
Light, vari-angle screen, easy to use
Camera "cons"
270M pixels screen, no autofocus with Nikon AF-type lenses
