Which would you buy if you Had 1,400 dollars? D60 or D80

Question

If you look on line they have bundle packes for these two camera's...this would be my first dslr...I need sum help...should i buy the d60 and spend money on lenses or should i buy the D80 and buy better lenes?

Answer 1

First of all they both are great cameras.

Ken Rockwells site is a good place to start. Also look at purchaser reviews on store sites like ritz or best buy. Look at sites like DPreview.com . Go to store that have them and see how they fit your hand. Which is most comfortable and which has controls easy for you to get to. Think about the weight of each one.

That said the D60 give you a number of things you want. It has newer firmware and image processors, designed for the 10 mp sensor. It has an "Active Dust Reduction System with Airflow Control ". Nikon not putting a system on the D40 to deal with dust is one of the biggest drawbacks I see to the D40 ( though I think its still a great camera for the money) If you change lenses dust will get in and the camera needs a system to deal with it. With the D60 you get a VR lens. That will help with low light situations ( they may offer that now with the D40 but originally it was not) . The D60 has Adaptive Dynamic Range. Nikon calls it "Active D-Lighting," it lets you save some highlights that my otherwise be lost.

So I would say get the D-60 and an 18-200 VR lens then spend whatever you have left on a speedlight, tripod and extra battery. with that you are off to a good start. The exception to this would be if you ran across a relly great deal on a used D80 the D80 is more robust and will give you more shots per battery charge and the built in flash does a great deal more

As I said at first though they are both great cameras so either way you go life will be good  

Answer 2

My personal choice would be the the D80 but I would want some of the advanced features and the better build quality. If this is your first DSLR I would probably go with the D40 or D60 though. Either of these are great cameras to start out with and learn on. The cheaper price will also allow you to invest the extra money in good quality lenses. Whichever camera you buy will be outdated in a year or two but your lenses will last a life time. Buy the cheaper model and learn everything about it. Buy a nice lens or two and have fun. When you have learned all about your camera it will be time to upgrade to the latest greatest model.

Answer 3

All three above answers are excellent.  

I just want to add one more bit of info that may help your decision.  The D80 is a 3 year-old design that's due to be replaced by the D90 very soon, probably at Photokina in September.

http://www.bythom.com/

What does this mean to you?  First of all, you now have a third option.  Second, expect a drop in D80 prices.  Third, you'll find many reasonably priced D80's on Craigslist and Ebay, as users upgrade.

The same thing happened when the D300 was announced.  D200's dropped in price and soon became readily available from upgraders.

Answer 4

Beware of the D80 for its metering. It's not right on.

Answer 5

For me, the difference between the D80 and the D60 is that the D80 is a little bigger and heavier, can auto focus older NIkon AF lenses and has more auto focus points. The D60 on the other hand is lighter, which makes it easy to carry for traveling and the lower price allows you to buy lenses and dedicated flash.

My suggestion is to go to a store and handle these 2 and which ever is more ergonomic for you, get that one (or order that one). You can not go wrong with either one. I tend to like the heavier cameras as I have a D300 and a D100.

I have the link at CNet comparing specs between D60 and D80.