Photography for beginners

[Energize]

D3200 I would say.

 

[Orange]

My girlfriend has the nikon J1 and I use to own the D5100, which is the version above the 3100 but similar to it. The J1 is a great little piece of kit, yet in manual its not the easiest of cameras to use as you have to go deep into menus to change the ISO unless you leave it on one of 3 automatic ISO modes.

The ISO performance on the J1 is pretty damn good, as is the vibration reduction which is sensor side, not lens. The lenses however can be pricey and to really get the most out of the camera it requires the F mount adapter, which is around £140. That enables all of the other nikon lenses to fit the J1, giving you some insane reach for very cost effective prices. Thats a MAJOR plus for wildlife photographers especially.

Downside is there is no viewfinder, the autofocus system takes some getting use to (has over 100 points!) and it can feel very odd to hold until you get use to it as the ergonomics seemed to be an after thought.

The D3100 is a nice starting DSLR which has vastly easier full manual controls when compared to the J1 system. Also the lens choices are easier to understand and you get better bokeh with this camera over the J1 due to the sensor size being bigger. Downsides to this camera compared to the J1 is mainly the autofocus system which isn't a patch on the CX format one, yet its good enough for everyday tasks. It definitely isn't a wildlife camera though, especially if you want to take photos of birds, although it CAN do this still, just means you need to lay out more cash on greater focal length lenses to get the same level of magnification the J1 system has.

D3100 has a crop factor of roughly x1.5 whilst the J1 is roughly x2.6. I'd say the ISO performance on the J1 is possibly better than the D3100 as it really surprised me, even at 3200 iso!

Definitely go to a shop and try both of them though before you remotely consider buying either of them as they are completely different systems with big strengths and weaknesses.

Sorry for hijacking this topic.

Thank you for your posts

Funny that you mention wildlife. One of the reasons of getting a camera is because I am going to South Africa for 2.5weeks.
I was already looking into the J1, then i got to read up on the D3100. I was thinking to have a look at them or get a decent point and shoot for just the trip.

 

[James J]

Sorry for hijacking this topic.

Thank you for your posts

Funny that you mention wildlife. One of the reasons of getting a camera is because I am going to South Africa for 2.5weeks.
I was already looking into the J1, then i got to read up on the D3100. I was thinking to have a look at them or get a decent point and shoot for just the trip.

Take a look at the talk photography thread on the J1/V1 as theres quite a few guys on there who take tonnes of wildlife shots. Its a great camera for that sort of photography as the crop factor on it is massive. Turns at 300mm lens into roughly 780mm and still at great apertures, which would cost me around £5k if I wanted the same on my full frame system lol.

Can't really go wrong with either of the camera's really, yet the D3200/3100 will give you a tad more scope in terms of flexibility and allow you to start buying into a system where you can upgrade the body when you outgrow it.

 

[roderz88]

I have also just started to get into DSLR photography. My dad gave me his old Canon D350 (i think) with two lenses. I love it so far though I need to learn how to learn some of the manual settings such as aperture also get better with exposure

 

[pecnarf]

I love it so far though I need to learn how to learn some of the manual settings such as aperture also get better with exposure

well the best way to learn manual is to first play with the shutter(TV)/aperture(AV) mode's before moving to the manual once you got a handle of those two mode's using manual mode become a lot more easier to do. than just jumping head first into Manual mode. plus their are time when it is better to use those mode's than to use manual.

the following picture was shot using the (TV) mode with a corkin P serise apdater with ND4 & polarizing filter.

 

[roderz88]

Thanks for the advice, I have mainly been using TV and AV, mainly TV since I seem to get better results that way. I pay post some pictures in the near future