Nikon N55 35mm SLR?

[GilbertsGrape]

Does anyone know anything about Nikon N55 35mm SLR. I was thinking of getting this camera. But I haven’t been able to talk to or find any reviews of this camera. Is this a good SLR camera or cold someone recommend another good SLR camera Sub $300.

Thanks,
GrapeDude

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=1881787&cat=4417&type=1&dept=0&path=0%3A5426%3A51184%3A4417

[faither]

I haven't seen the N55 but I picked up the N60 for my brother's birthday in February and he loves it. It cost about the same as this 55. Remember, if you don't already have any Nikon lenses, you'll need one of those too.

[Nija]

I'm getting PG a SLR camera, because she is really intrested in taking some photography classes, and I was gonna be asking what are good SLR cameras to get, for someone who will be taking beginning and intermediate photography at a college level? I had been looking around at www.ritzcamera.com and they seemed to have some good prices, what the hell do I know, except they won't develop pr0n :(

[Leon]

http://www.photographyreview.com/pscCameras/35mm/Nikon,N55/PRD_130533_3105crx.aspx

Here are a few. Personally, I'm biased towards Canon, but Nikon is a great company. If Canon didn't exist, I would buy all Nikon stuff.

[Leon]

Originally posted by Nija
I'm getting PG a SLR camera, because she is really intrested in taking some photography classes, and I was gonna be asking what are good SLR cameras to get, for someone who will be taking beginning and intermediate photography at a college level? I had been looking around at www.ritzcamera.com and they seemed to have some good prices, what the hell do I know, except they won't develop pr0n :(

Good places to look for camera equipment are www.bhphotovideo.com and www.adorama.com. If you look at their prices, they aren't going to be the absolute cheapest, but then again they won't try to rip you off like some of the others. I've been through all that crap with grey market items and bait and switch tactics. I had to dispute a charge and get my credit card company into it. It's really not worth the hassle.

Both BHPhotoVideo and Adorama will be a lot cheaper than places like Ritz.

What is your price range? Also, you need to figure out how seriously you think you are going to take photography. If you buy something too low end, you might end up having to sell it and buy a higher end camera down the line. Might as well go a little higher now.

[Nija]

Originally posted by Leon


Good places to look for camera equipment are www.bhphotovideo.com and www.adorama.com. If you look at their prices, they aren't going to be the absolute cheapest, but then again they won't try to rip you off like some of the others. I've been through all that crap with grey market items and bait and switch tactics. I had to dispute a charge and get my credit card company into it. It's really not worth the hassle.

Both BHPhotoVideo and Adorama will be a lot cheaper than places like Ritz.

What is your price range? Also, you need to figure out how seriously you think you are going to take photography. If you buy something too low end, you might end up having to sell it and buy a higher end camera down the line. Might as well go a little higher now.

Well it's not for me. It's for the g/f. I'm thinking of spending no more than $325 at the most. I know she is going to need at least an extra tele-photo lens (ok i think that's what it's called, last time I used a camera like this was in '95) So i'm guessing that would be a good price. I looked around, albeit briefly on that photographyreview.com site, and I saw the Nikon N65 which seemed to be a fairly well-balanced camera, for the beginner/intermediate photographer. That sounds like my g/f since those are the class' she will be taking. I didn't want to go too-low end because paying a little more and getting something that can be used longer is better, than just something that works for now, and probably not later.

I'll be checking out those other places tonight, any suggestions are more than appreciated. :)

[Burzhui]

Originally posted by Leon


Good places to look for camera equipment are www.bhphotovideo.com and www.adorama.com. If you look at their prices, they aren't going to be the absolute cheapest, but then again they won't try to rip you off like some of the others. I've been through all that crap with grey market items and bait and switch tactics. I had to dispute a charge and get my credit card company into it. It's really not worth the hassle.

Both BHPhotoVideo and Adorama will be a lot cheaper than places like Ritz.

What is your price range? Also, you need to figure out how seriously you think you are going to take photography. If you buy something too low end, you might end up having to sell it and buy a higher end camera down the line. Might as well go a little higher now.

I am totally with leon on everything he said, including the canon vs nikon thing.

I can vouch for adorama and B & H since i've shopped there many-a-times.

Also this is a good place, i started shopping there recently
kmcamera.com

All these places are in new york and they are the 3 biggest stores around these parts, and are highly respectable

[GilbertsGrape]

ok i am stuck wetween the N55 and the N65. i dont know enough about SLR to make the decisions the differance in price is like 20 bux. below is the link to a side by side compairson. any suggestions?


http://www.nikonusa.com/comparison_jsp/printPreview.jsp?type=detail&department=Cameras&category=SLR%20Film%20Cameras&product=N65&product=N55&product=&product=&product=

[Burzhui]

N65

[GilbertsGrape]

some of the reviews say N65 does not have a spot meater do i need that in the camera?

[GilbertsGrape]

ok now what kind of lense. stock on a kit 2x-80 or Nikon 28-105 D

or other sugestion

[GilbertsGrape]

ok Nikon 28-105 is out of my price range how about another choice>?

[Leon]

I'm not sure about Nikon, but I know that the typical 28-80mm lense from Canon and most other companies are pretty cheap. By cheap, I mean in quality. You might be better off with a 50mm prime lense unless you absolutely need a zoom lense. The Nikon 50mm/1.8 lense is one of the highest quality lense you can get and it's just $110 at Adorama.

Photo.net seems to recommend the N80 has a huge jump over the the N65 and it has a two-wheel interface over the one-wheel N65. As you mentioned, the lack of a spot-meter could be a problem. When I first got my Canon Elan 7E, you started off using the newbie fully-auto function of the camera. This meant that the camera defaulted to evaluative metering which means the camera took readings from a huge chunk of the viewfinder. This was fine for most pictures taken in ideal conditions. However, when I took a picture in darkness, the evaluative metering process grossly overexposed the subject in order to compensate for the darkness around the subject. This is why a spot meter is pretty important.

http://www.photo.net/nikon/n65

Again, I don't know too much about Nikons. Perhaps Burzhui could give his opinion.

[kimchicowboy]

i got an N70 as a gift awhile back and the dang thing had such a huge instruction manual. i'm glad i had to return it. i'm with leon though. if i had the money, i'd get a canon elan IIe. old model, but my friends love theirs.

[penguintrix]

is it just as a gift or is she getting into photography as a serious hobby? (or are you getting her this as a gift b/c she's going into photography as a serious hobby? :D )

the $325 is quite a bit to work with as entry level cameras go,... but, it matters what the camera's for. if she's going to simply point and shoot her way with your gift, then you can easily look for the best package and range (heck, maybe an slr isn't even what you should get?). if she's actually doing photography and lab work (i.e. school or otherwise) then it doesn't become so easy. if she's actually going to take the time to learn the camera, then you might want to consider at least the n80 or the 7e so that she can grow into it and not have to worry about getting bored with it. on the other hand, if all she's going to do point and shoot once a quarter at birthday parties and family get-togethers, and then get the film developed at costco,... a n80 or 7e,... or even an n65 may only frustrate her. i've seen people with f5's take the crappiest pictures on the planet,... and then have the gall to blame the camera.

bottom line, get something that she'll enjoy.

i would stay away from adorama if you have a choice between b&h and it. in the photography forums (and amongst ourselves as well) there have been quite a few "clients" who've been crapped on by adorama. b&h, a different story. also,... photo.net is canon biased (of course unofficially),... and have great articles on canon equipment and users. not so much on the nikon end. before i babble further,...

on a side note (i just reread your post, sorry),... do you know what class she's taking? like, what is it called? (i.e. intermediate b/w, intermediate, studio, int pj, blah blah blah)

hope that helps. :)

[GilbertsGrape]

Is it so bad to get a gray mkt camera. if it is stated in Ad that it is a Factor Fresh camera. I found the n65 kit about 80-100$$ cheaper than at B&H and that other store.

[Burzhui]

Originally posted by kimchicowboy
i got an N70 as a gift awhile back and the dang thing had such a huge instruction manual. i'm glad i had to return it. i'm with leon though. if i had the money, i'd get a canon elan IIe. old model, but my friends love theirs.

that's what i have, i swear if that camera had a vagina i'd do it ;)


Elan IIe is Great camera

[Burzhui]

Originally posted by GilbertsGrape
Is it so bad to get a gray mkt camera. if it is stated in Ad that it is a Factor Fresh camera. I found the n65 kit about 80-100$$ cheaper than at B&H and that other store.

the diff between grey market and non-gray market is the warranty... otherwise they are exactly the same, so if you want the warranty get US if not then get Grey Market

[penguintrix]

Originally posted by GilbertsGrape
Is it so bad to get a gray mkt camera. if it is stated in Ad that it is a Factor Fresh camera. I found the n65 kit about 80-100$$ cheaper than at B&H and that other store.

it's not bad. i have a few grey market lenses and they looked and operate exactly the same as the us version. the warranty is an issue though,...

$80-100 less than b&h?? do you still get the rebate with that? :)

b&h has it for $249 with the $30 rebate.
if you get the kit with the 28-80 lens,... you can get the whole package for $309. and the 28-80 that it comes with is considered by some to be one of those weird goof-ups where the company was going to just sell it off as a cheapie lens, but it takes surprisingly good pictures. you just gotta find it's sweet spot. ;)

[GilbertsGrape]

I can get the kit

Contents of kit include:
N65 SLR body
Nikon 28-80 F3.5-5.6 G AF lens
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This product is brand new, factory fresh and includes full manufacturer's warranty

For $289 - 30 rebate Grand Total $269.00 Is that a pretty good price for that camera or can i get a differnt camera for about that price?

[Nija]

Originally posted by penguintrix
is it just as a gift or is she getting into photography as a serious hobby? (or are you getting her this as a gift b/c she's going into photography as a serious hobby? :D )

going into as a hobby that she is serious about :D ;)



the $325 is quite a bit to work with as entry level cameras go,... but, it matters what the camera's for. if she's going to simply point and shoot her way with your gift, then you can easily look for the best package and range (heck, maybe an slr isn't even what you should get?). if she's actually doing photography and lab work (i.e. school or otherwise) then it doesn't become so easy. if she's actually going to take the time to learn the camera, then you might want to consider at least the n80 or the 7e so that she can grow into it and not have to worry about getting bored with it. on the other hand, if all she's going to do point and shoot once a quarter at birthday parties and family get-togethers, and then get the film developed at costco,... a n80 or 7e,... or even an n65 may only frustrate her. i've seen people with f5's take the crappiest pictures on the planet,... and then have the gall to blame the camera.

bottom line, get something that she'll enjoy.

I've been probing her for information, but i have to seem non-chalant<sp?> because she doesn't exactly know what I'm getting her. She knows it not a computer tho, and it doesn't plug in :P
[/quote]


i would stay away from adorama if you have a choice between b&h and it. in the photography forums (and amongst ourselves as well) there have been quite a few "clients" who've been crapped on by adorama. b&h, a different story. also,... photo.net is canon biased (of course unofficially),... and have great articles on canon equipment and users. not so much on the nikon end. before i babble further,...

on a side note (i just reread your post, sorry),... do you know what class she's taking? like, what is it called? (i.e. intermediate b/w, intermediate, studio, int pj, blah blah blah)

hope that helps. :) [/B]
I think it is Elementary Photography at ECC and it doesn't give any kind of description =\

I figure she's gonna need the camera part, a couple of lens (but to hell if i know what kinds) a shoulder strap (i'm thinking something very touristy :P ), and a bag for her to keep she stuff all safe.

[penguintrix]

Originally posted by Nija
I think it is Elementary Photography at ECC and it doesn't give any kind of description =\

I figure she's gonna need the camera part, a couple of lens (but to hell if i know what kinds) a shoulder strap (i'm thinking something very touristy :P ), and a bag for her to keep she stuff all safe.

ECC wouldn't happen to be El Camino would it? if it is,... might be interesting for me to find out what teacher?? *lol* anyway, if you get the kit that gilbertsgrape is talking about, you'll prob get a strap with it (if not, demand it since they usually all come with one). the strap isn't the most comfortable, but it certainly is durable. and if you've got the money, i would actually suggest going for the n80,... i have one and it serves me well for 99% of the shots out there. i believe one quote by a reviewer went something like "the nikon n80 is 99% of the camera that 99% of the population will ever need".

depending on what teacher she has ecc (if it is the same ecc) then i could suggest what type of coursework will be asked of her. and ultimately what sort of shots, with what type of lens would be most versatile (both for her class & normal usage). :D


Originally posted by GilbertsGrape
For $289 - 30 rebate Grand Total $269.00 Is that a pretty good price for that camera or can i get a differnt camera for about that price?

that's a pretty darn good deal. where are you getting this? i may start my christmas shopping early,... ;)

[speedracer120]

Originally posted by Burzhui


that's what i have, i swear if that camera had a vagina i'd do it ;)


Elan IIe is Great camera

I swear, that camera had to be the best one to just fool around with while I worked at Ritz.

I agree with Leon that Ritz doesn't have the best prices. If you live in the LA area, Samy's seems to be cheaper and more well known. I don't claim to much other than to say I loved messing with new cameras like the Elan IIe, and clicking up a storm with some camera's with some fast shutter speeds.

[Nija]

Originally posted by penguintrix


ECC wouldn't happen to be El Camino would it? if it is,... might be interesting for me to find out what teacher?? *lol* anyway, if you get the kit that gilbertsgrape is talking about, you'll prob get a strap with it (if not, demand it since they usually all come with one). the strap isn't the most comfortable, but it certainly is durable. and if you've got the money, i would actually suggest going for the n80,... i have one and it serves me well for 99% of the shots out there. i believe one quote by a reviewer went something like "the nikon n80 is 99% of the camera that 99% of the population will ever need".

depending on what teacher she has ecc (if it is the same ecc) then i could suggest what type of coursework will be asked of her. and ultimately what sort of shots, with what type of lens would be most versatile (both for her class & normal usage). :D


yeah, it's el camino. I don't know which teacher she is going to have, because she is planning on taking in the spring, so she hasn't deicided yet, so I can't answer fully.It will probably be a night class though. I am almost assured of that. All I know, is that I want her to have something that will be able to do damn near everything for her, as a beginner/intermediate student. She will probably want to go outside *shudder* and take a bunch of pictures that are really cool ( i must have missed the memo about trees being cool :P ) to her n stuff, and just be generally very happy. n80 you say, eh? 99% sweet... :D

[Burzhui]

Originally posted by Nija


yeah, it's el camino. I don't know which teacher she is going to have, because she is planning on taking in the spring, so she hasn't deicided yet, so I can't answer fully.It will probably be a night class though. I am almost assured of that. All I know, is that I want her to have something that will be able to do damn near everything for her, as a beginner/intermediate student. She will probably want to go outside *shudder* and take a bunch of pictures that are really cool ( i must have missed the memo about trees being cool :P ) to her n stuff, and just be generally very happy. n80 you say, eh? 99% sweet... :D

N80 is ok, my main beef with nikon is that the friggin lenses are too expensive... you can either pay little and get a POS or pay over a grand and get a good lens... there really isn't anything in between.

On another note i got to play around with a canon 1Ds .

I swear to god it made me sexually excited

[penguintrix]

Originally posted by Nija


yeah, it's el camino. I don't know which teacher she is going to have, because she is planning on taking in the spring, so she hasn't deicided yet, so I can't answer fully.It will probably be a night class though. I am almost assured of that. All I know, is that I want her to have something that will be able to do damn near everything for her, as a beginner/intermediate student. She will probably want to go outside *shudder* and take a bunch of pictures that are really cool ( i must have missed the memo about trees being cool :P ) to her n stuff, and just be generally very happy. n80 you say, eh? 99% sweet... :D

well, if it's at elco, and it's night, there's a good chance it's going to be one of two teachers. :D if so,... i would definitely get a decent body (n65 or n80 would be great - one of my classmates a while back had an n65 and did VERY well),...

but might i suggest the 50mm 1.8D. it's $100 and in theory, is supposed to be the lens that every beginner should start with. the low (and high) f-stop will allow her to do the various depth of field assignments that those night teachers will want. if you go with the 28-80 G lens that comes with in the kit, then the sweet spot for that lens is at f/8-11 and does VERY well for a cheapie lens. :)

but,... bottom line,... it's never the gear that makes the photographer. it's the photographer who makes the gear what its worth. :)

[Nija]

Originally posted by penguintrix


well, if it's at elco, and it's night, there's a good chance it's going to be one of two teachers. :D if so,... i would definitely get a decent body (n65 or n80 would be great - one of my classmates a while back had an n65 and did VERY well),...

but might i suggest the 50mm 1.8D. it's $100 and in theory, is supposed to be the lens that every beginner should start with. the low (and high) f-stop will allow her to do the various depth of field assignments that those night teachers will want. if you go with the 28-80 G lens that comes with in the kit, then the sweet spot for that lens is at f/8-11 and does VERY well for a cheapie lens. :)

but,... bottom line,... it's never the gear that makes the photographer. it's the photographer who makes the gear what its worth. :)
Hrmm.. sounds like your one of the teacher.. eh? ;)

ok..so this (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bh1.sph/FrameWork.class?FNC=ProductActivator__Aproductlist_html___224225___NIN80J___REG___CatID=0___SID=F1B6 AFCAA50___call=acc) is the n80 ya'll are talking about right?

I couldn't find that lens, but already, I'm kind of out of my price range =\
then the n65 (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bh1.sph/FrameWork.class?FNC=ProductActivator__Aproductlist_html___236615___NIN65J___USA___CatID=0___SID=F1B6 AFCAA50) is a little more in my price range. but to hell if i know anything about cameras. or lens' (besides the ones in my glasses :P )

I'm not sure what to do. i love having people guide my buying habits :P

hrmmm when do these things have coupons available? :P BTW thanks for all the help

[penguintrix]

Hrmm.. sounds like your one of the teacher.. eh? ;)

uhh, definitely not. although, i did do well in those classes. ;)

ok..so this (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bh1.sph/FrameWork.class?FNC=ProductActivator__Aproductlist_html___224225___NIN80J___REG___CatID=0___SID=F1B6 AFCAA50___call=acc) is the n80 ya'll are talking about right?

I couldn't find that lens, but already, I'm kind of out of my price range =\
then the n65 (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bh1.sph/FrameWork.class?FNC=ProductActivator__Aproductlist_html___236615___NIN65J___USA___CatID=0___SID=F1B6 AFCAA50) is a little more in my price range. but to hell if i know anything about cameras. or lens' (besides the ones in my glasses :P )

sorry, must be my comp or something but those links didn't work,...
http://www.nikonusa.com/usa_product/product.jsp?cat=1&grp=6&productNr=1776NCP
(that's the n80)

http://www.nikonusa.com/usa_product/product.jsp?cat=1&grp=6&productNr=1713NCP
(this is the n65)

I'm not sure what to do. i love having people guide my buying habits :P
hrmmm when do these things have coupons available? :P BTW thanks for all the help

there's a $30 rebate for the n65 and a $10 rebate for the 28-80 lens that comes with the kit @ b&h from nikon usa. as coupons go,... uhhh, might want to see if apex knows of anything. i come here like everyone else for the cheap stuff and funny news guys. ;)

i don't know how much of time a crunch you guys (nija or gilbertsgrape) are in,... but another option is to buy used from photographers who have way too much money and buy stuff just to try it out, only to find that they don't like it, and end up selling it for a much more reduced price. the warranty stands (usually either 5 or 7 years) and the gear prob has at most 5-10 rolls run through it, be it lenses, flashes, bodies, etc. they look, feel, operate, smell brand new,... they may or may not be missing boxes,... and so on and so forth. some times, these guys sell back to the place they bought it from (i.e. the local camera shop that they paid full retail price at) or will go to a place like : http://www.keh.com/ who specializes in such things with a whole grading system.

for grey market stuff, http://www.deltainternational.com/ these guys have been known to be pretty good,... although i'd personally rather deal with a private dealer then.

anyway, before i babble on further, feel free to pm me since i don't want to take up valuable server space to rant about stuff i love, but only a few people are even interested in. :D i'd be more than happy to help out in any way i can.

[Burzhui]

http://www.nikonusa.com/pdf/fallintosavings.pdf

here are some lens rebates man, they've been doubled so it should be good fot you

[Nija]

Originally posted by Burzhui
http://www.nikonusa.com/pdf/fallintosavings.pdf

here are some lens rebates man, they've been doubled so it should be good fot you

wow thanks!

how do you find out if they are a "authorized nikon dealer" so you can get these phat deals.

Still don't know what lens' to get... =\

[GilbertsGrape]

I just got the kit

http://www.etronics.com/product.asp?stk_code=nikn65kit


$288.95
In stock. Usually
ships in 1-2 Days Manufacturer's
Rebate -$40.00
Your final price: $248.95


I say the same kit at bestbuy for $399 So i think this is a good deal

there is a place called AppleCamera.com that has the camera too and they take the rebate and just sell it to you cheap... sounded fishy so i went with Etronics.com mine is on the way. Well i got it for my GF so i guess it is not mine.

Ps search for n65 Kit at Etronics.com and there are several differnt kits available. from what i read it is worth paying the extra Bling bling to get the Nikon lense not the tamaron lense. from what i read Tameron lenses are trash.


L8R,
GrapeDude

[GilbertsGrape]

Oh yea there is a differnt rebate form on Etronics.com may want to check that out.