D90 or D300s?

[Matt Green]

I recently passed on my D5000 thinking I could get by on a smaller compact, trouble is I miss it something rotten!!!! ...the good news is I got a great price for it and now have the chance to upgrade to something with a better lense. Been looking at the D90 with the 18-200 VRII or the D300s with the 16-85 or again the 18-200VR....haven't had the chance to actually handle any of these yet so just scratching around for suggestions.

Are the latest improvements on the D300s worth the extra cash over the cheaper D90? I'm only interested in landscape and architecture.

Matt

[surfg1mp]

I have a d90 and am totally happy with it! There are so many reviews out there comparing the two, just do a quick google search and you will find plenty.

From what i read The d90 and d300 share the same sensor so images are comparable in certain conditions.

The d300 has a metal body and weather sealing which helps against dust and water.

Shoot with higher iso's with less noise....( the d90 is still pretty competant here though)

There are other differenses....as i say read some reviews mate!

Not sure the 18-200 will be to good for landscapes at the 18 end as I believe they suffer from barrel distortion.

hope this helps.

[andy_s]

Hi Matt I use a D90 as a main body along with a D40X. The D90 is a brill camera and is ideal for trekking with. I've used a D300 when I worked and although it's superb it weghs a ton. If you're going to do landscapes and a bit of walking it'll load you down. Get a Sigma 10-20 or 28-125 lens though. You won't regret it
Andy_S

[yelvertoft]

Originally Posted by andy_s

Get a Sigma ............ 28-125 lens though. You won't regret it

I'm surprised to see this recommendation. It's not got the best reputation. Convenient, yes, but is known for being very soft, especially wide open.

[nirofo]

No competition, go for the D300s, it's an outstanding camera in every way you can imagine. While I agree the D90 is a very good camera it's in a different league to the D300. If you have the money and you're in the market why go for a good but lesser quality camera and regret it later.

The 16-85 Nikon lens is a cracker, go for it.

nirofo.

[Alex1994]

If I were you I'd go for the D90 and spend the difference on a nice lens.

[surfg1mp]

Originally Posted by Alex1994

If I were you I'd go for the D90 and spend the difference on a nice lens.

Id agree with that....The d90 is more than capable, and a nice lens will be money well spent imo.

[Matt Green]

Thanks for the replies everyone, plenty to think about!! On the subject of lenses I've been thinking about how much fun I could have with the Nikon 12-24 DX ultra wide angle, it's pretty pricey though and would probably influance on which camera body I budget for ...I could just get the wide angle and the D300s but the price would be around £1950, a bit more than I was originally considering but who knows!!

Matt

[surfg1mp]

May want to consider the tokina 11-16 2.8, supposed to have better IQ than the nikon and is faster.

Thats my next purchase!!!

[Matt Green]

Originally Posted by surfg1mp

May want to consider the tokina 11-16 2.8, supposed to have better IQ than the nikon and is faster.

Thats my next purchase!!!

Thanks for the suggestion, will look into some reviews on this!

Had a chance to handle the D300s with lense last night at the local jessops, had a quick look around the menu system etc...most of it made sense but did find the manual mode a bit confusing, on my previous camera the jog wheel adjusted the shutter speed while the aperture was adjusted doing the same but holding down the button, on the D300s this seemed to adjust the exposure so couldn't quite work out how you set aperture in manual mode? The D300s has two jog wheels (one at the front and one at the back) so maybe one sets shutter speed while the other sets aperture?

Will seek out some more youtube tutorials!!

Matt