Camera upgrade

[andicole0]

I've been using a Konica Minolta A200 for some years now and it does the job well as I only use it for recording events rather that taking artistic photos.

For some time now I've been missing a longer lens capability so I think I might upgrade to a DSLR. It looks like a D7000 would fit the bill giving me flexibility and capability. However is there a cheaper solution that would give good picture quality and lens choice but closer to the £100 my wife wants to spend, rather than the £800 I think I might have to spend.

Second hand D7000 prices are not much lower than new these days so I guess there's some room for used prices to drop. I'm looking for a good macro capability as I take close ups of things being built - ranging from PC's to Kit cars. Very useful to be able to do a quick bit of video with sound and the ability to take a picture of a Woodpecker that visits our garden but never close enough to get a good image with the 135 equiv lens on the A200.

Any helpful advice is welcomed.

Andi.

 

[K.C. Leblanc]

The D5100 has just been replaced and has the same sensor as the D7000 so might be worth a look. I expect used D7000 prices will drop shortly, it's likely to be a next Nikon dSLR to be replaced.

However the kit lens is shorter then the lens on you Minolta. You would need to look at adding something like a 70-300 as well as the kit lens.

You could get a cheap bridge camera, it will be a more convenient package. But you won't have the level of control and you certainly won't get the image quality due to the much smaller imaging sensor.

 

[PhotoPixels]

The D7000 body can be bought new for less than £630 now (UK prices) & is a great camera & is certainly a step up from the D5100. (the new D5200 is about the same price, maybe a tad higher)
Re lenses, don't forget to consider used ones, as long as they're from a reputable source.