Getting a Nikon D80 this week... Starter Necessities?

Question

I have thought, researched, and plan to buy a Nikon D80 this week, and i would appreciate suggestions from "real people" on important things to have to a first time SLR / digital-camera-that-cost-more-than-$300 owner (Please omit the obvious suggestions such as a case, screen protector, ect). I am so excited and i can't wait!

Answer 1

a spare battery, a telephoto lens i suggest a minimum focal length of 300mm sigma make good lenses that are cheaper than nikon, a flashgun (nikon call their's speedlights) its a great camera have fun!

Answer 2

What do you want to do with your camera? What subjects would you like photograph?

Answer 3

I would suggest that you get a Nikon flash, Sb800, sb900 or sb600 to carry with you when you want to take pictures of people and you need a fill flash. Although the d80 has a built in flash, it has a small guide number and would work only if you ar close to the subject and since the built in flash is close to the lens, your subjects are susceptible to red eyes (I don't like to use red eye reduction in cameras).  I recommend getting Nikon Lenses,(the real reason one buys NIkon is because of its lenses) like the 55-200mm VR for use in portraits and telephoto work.

Get a huge memory card, like 4 GB or higher so you can take pictures in the highest Jpeg or in Raw mode. You will then need a sotware program that can capture and edit Nikon Raw pictures, like Nikon Capture to handle Nikon Raw images.

Have fun with your camera.