Shopping for a new camera
 

I am looking for a new camera. My son is really pushing me to get a DSLR. I am always taking photos but until now I have used point and shoot cameras. I want a light weight camera. He suggested the D3100. I was at Best Buy yesterday and was amazed at the light weight of this camera. Unfortunately I was distracted by the display of the Sony NEX5 (not a DSLR). Has anyone had experience with either of these? Are they easy to use and learn about? Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry... I can't offer any suggestions on either camera's. Perhaps some of the other ladies will have some good insight for you.

I love my Sony camera, but it can be big and bulky. ;)

DH bought me a new camera back in December. He wanted to get me the Nex5. But after talking to the salesman at the camera store, and checking it out myself, I came to the conclusion that the NEX5 is just a P&S on steroids. It really doesn't do much more than a regular P&S, certainly not any of the really cool things you can do with a real DSLR.

In the end I got a Sony a55, and I LOVE IT!

We have a Nikon D500 and we don't use it like we should. We still take most of our photos in automatic, but they are by far better than our P&S which is a Sony Cybershot. We are working through a blog now on how to use your DSLR over the next 30 days so we can take better advantage of it. If you get a DSLR, I'd recommend putting some time into a class or online tutorials. Good luck!

We looked very seriously at the NEX series and Olympus Pen series of cameras. They are very much like a P&S but do have the ability to use interchangeable lenses. The biggest downfall for us was that while they take great photos, they don't do so well in action mode (ie if you have kids that move a lot, its much harder to get a non-blurry picture than it is with a DSLR). I am a short person with small hands so for me I needed to find the smallest most light weight camera I could. I ended up with the Pentax k-x and I love it. It is a bit smaller and more light weight than anything else I looked at (which was all of the models in the beginner level DSLRs). The best piece of advice I got was that at my price point the cameras were all mostly the same in features, and what it really boils down to is how it feels in your hands. Don't forget too that cameras take on extra weight with the type of battery it has and the size lenses you use. Bigger lenses can be much heavier, especially if you are going to want to carry more than the one on the camera around. I got lucky this past Christmas and my husband got me a 18-270 lens so I really only have to carry that one around.

Thank you so much for the input. I think I am going to have to take the DSLR plunge. After cruising on the Dream in January I thought several of my pictures using my Nikon coolpix disappointed me. I love to travel and want better quality photos.

I have the Nikon D40 and D90, and I love them both. Look into this site it may help u

http://www.kenrockwell.com/index.htm

Yup, that's the reason I got my camera too. We went on the Disney Wonder through the Panama Canal and I wanted awesome pics like I saw other's had taken on our previous cruise. My P&S cameras are fine for day-to-day stuff, but for the major moments in life (and on vacation) I want great pics to look at and to share.

I am so glad scrappers think the same. My husband is amazed how particular I am for my photos. At this point I am leaning toward the D3100. I have made 2 trips to the Best Buy store in 2 days. I am really getting excited at the better quality photos from this DSLR. Thanks for all your input.

My dh bought me a D3000 for Christmas. The only difference is that the D3100 has a camcorder feature which does videos. I absolutely love the D3000. Great pictures. I've taken almost 2000 since Christmas day. I used it for my dd's softball games and with the addition of a lens, it took outfield shots from the bleachers great. I like the sports setting which allows you to hold the button down and it keeps snapping pics. The only thing I have had to adjust to is not being able to slip it in my pocket, or a tiny pocket book. I have to have a backpack or carry it around my neck. But, I can either have my little one to slip in my pocket and take so-so pics or my big one and take great pics!