- All
- New
- Refurbished
- Pre-Owned
5stars
192ratings4stars
53ratings3stars
3ratings2stars
3ratings1star
4ratings
Easy to use95% agree
Good image quality97% agree
Good value97% agree
240 Reviews
Excellent Camera Overall!
For years I've wanted to get my hands on an SLR, but I settled for digital point and shoots. I've taken photography for a year in school, so I found myself constantly attempting to manipulate the manual mode on the compact cams for awhile (with a very handy Canon Powershot cam). It went ok, but I knew for better results an upgrade would be suitable.
The past few days I've had with the Nikon D3000 has been a vast experience, surpassing the compact cameras and the 35mm days I had in photography. So far I've pulled off some great scenic photos, portraits, and close up shots of various things. There are plenty of options to help you achieve quick shots of scenes, people, action, etc. Of course, my favorite is the manual mode where I can customize my shots according to my preferences to the fullest.
This camera does take better quality and faster shots than any digital camera I've used. There are a couple of quirks I want to make clear in case this is a deciding factor for anyone.
-No live view on the screen. This means you have to use the viewfinder to take your shots. I'd rather use the viewfinder anyways.
-On automode, if the lens can't find the right focus/lighting depending on your shot or zoom, it will simply refuse to take the picture. Even if you want the picture and it could possibly turn out bad (so you have to switch to manual focus). Then again, having the option to control your pictures manually is one of the high points of an SLR.
Overall, there's a new avenue of discovery and surprises I am pleased to find everyday with this camera. It will definitely accompany me along my travels across the globe. Thankfully, it is not that large or heavy.
I also understand the minor limitations of this camera in comparison with more professional SLRs, which is why I gave this a "Good" rating instead of "Excellent" (I would rather choose between, because it's better than good). If you have the cash to dish out for a better camera, that's always an option. There's no shame in carrying around an "entry" level SLR like this one, because it still delivers awesome results. To be honest, I'm sure most entry level DSLRs are worth it. This camera definitely has a great price compared to others. Keep in mind that the camera only serves the function of capturing photos; the lenses are more important to achieving certain types of shots.
Also! Nikon has a great picture viewer software that accompanies the camera. Their website also has an online tutorial which is pretty awesome to get you started.
Would I recommend this camera? Yes... but only really if you're looking to obtain certain aspects of photography that evolves beyond taking a pic with your pals while you're out. Otherwise, stick with your compact point and shoot.Read full review...
Love this Camera But had to Upgrade to D5000...
love the picture quality on an entry level DSLR, Usually under exposes which is great for editing with picture editing software.
I upgraded to a D5000 becaue this Camera does not have LiveView, you can NOT take pictures using the LCD, the only way to take a pictue is by using the Viewfinder. My wife has bad eye sight so this camera was not the best choice, if only for the lack of this feature i would have stayed with this camera.
Highly recommend as an Entry Level Camera, Takes Exellent pictures go to www.dpreview.com and lok for the review on this camera which also includ photos.Read full review...
Nikon D3000 Digital Camera
This camera is superb. It takes absolutely amazing pictures and has many different features that allow the photographer to change whatever they want about the picture. It is very easy to use and get to know well. The manual explains everything you need to know about the camera in great detail. I would recommend purchasing another lens for the camera. The 18 - 55 mm lens is great and all, but there are other lenses that allow for sharper details, wider ranges, and more powerful zooms to make the pictures even better. Overall, great product...highly recommended. Nine out of ten.Read full review...
Nikon D3000 is just right for baby boomers who are traveling these days.
I am a retired electrical engineer after working at aerospace and construction companies for almost 30 years. After I search and read several reviews of this Nikon D3000, I decided to buy it although it is refurbished because I had good luck in using refurbished electronics items before. The refurbished Nikon D3000 currently sold by Cameta Auctions is equipt not with CCD, but they upgraded it with CMOS that is commonly used by Canon and higher-end models of Nikon. However, this is not the main reason why I bought this camera. My plan is to buy lower pixels camera, like from 6MP to 10MP only because for many years I have not ordered any print larger than 7" x 10". With this camera body I planned and bought the Nikon lens AF-S 18-105mm DX VR in order to free myself in carrying two lenses when I travel. I knew this camera does not have a live view, but I seldom look at the live view on the LCD, as I experience that on my old point & shoot Canon PowerShot S3 IS which is only 6.0MP. I'm now using this D3000, and still testing it and coming to like it. The sharpness of this Camera & Lens combination is not very bad, although they cannot outdo the sharpness and colors of $700 to $1,200 Nikon lenses that I observed while looking at the pictures on Flickr.com and Picasa.com. I'm not a professional photographer who earn my living on very sharp and superb color of my photos. For my purpose this is the camera, like my old Canon PowerShot 6.0MP and Olympus 3.3MP, that will serve my purpose of taking interesting close-ups of flowers, taking portraits of my family and taking awesome landscapes. For those people who are owners of Canon and Olympus cameras, they will find that this camera with zoom lens like mine, battery and nylon shoulder bag will be a little heavy; about 2.0 Lbs. For an older person like myself, I do not want to carry a load more than that while traveling in other places on tours.Read full review...
Good camera, slightly lack-luster in low light.
This is a good entry level DSLR, the autofocus and the shutter response are wonderful. it also works with most of the high end accessories. The 18-55mm kit lens will give you some great images.
Of course I would of liked to have seen a video mode, or live view, but at this price point you can rest assured you'll have an excellent camera for years to come.Read full review...
Good camera for beginer photographer
alot of function for taking picture and it can be learned by our self, it has Guide mode which can teach you how to operate this camera easily, also auto mode to take simple picture such as mostly digital camera with the great picture result. many thing i still didnt learn about this camera to make you fun and happy to use it, thanks to nikon has produce this stuff for beginer to learn how to take picture with the best result.Read full review...
Great value
I went for it because it was cheap and included the 18-55mm vr lens. I added
the 55-200vr as well as the 35mm lens. All for less than $1000. The good: The camera is as sensitive as film and works well. VR is cool, no problem getting sharp images at 200mm which with the 1.5 lens factor is 300mm in 35mm speak. Will make nice photos of your kids sports games. Negligible shutter lag. The camera is small and light and with the 3" screen you can actually see what you took reasonably well. The in camera editing features are cool and work pretty well. Here is another good feature, a cheap, $12 4 gig SD card will hold over 400 images and do it on a single charge and still have power to review your images several times. It will blow away any of the pocket point and shoot cameras. The image quality is good enough to go larger than 11x14 with most pictures. The self cleaning sensor is wonderful! Should keep your images clear and avoid costly sensor cleaning. The not so good: I am not thrilled with the focus, sometimes it just won't focus on auto. Example, was standing in front of a white wall and asked my secretary to take a mug to renew my passport. It just could not focus and at best she is a point and shoot photographer, eventually it worked, but gimme a break. Sometimes if your subject is in front of a brick wall or other contrasty background it just may decide to focus on the background. The manual focus works but is pretty cheesy, no real assist like split image on your old manual camera and the focus rings feel like they should not work but they do. I doubt seriously if you drop your D3000 on a hard surface the lightweight plastic body will survive. For my taste I would like to see a few more dials for adjustments rather than having to dig through a menu. For example an ISO dial would be nice as well as some adjustment for how the camera decides to focus, average, spot etc. One of the features they bragged on with this camera was like 9 point auto focus. I might like to switch it to one and focus lock and compose. Oh as far as that to my eye 800iso is nice, 1600 is best left to "in a pinch" situations only. Oh, one other tidbit, the $200 35mm f1.8 is a decent investment, it becomes the classic 50mm lens on all of Nikons APSC sensors and passes about 5 times the light of the zooms, nice to have in the evening and could be an all purpose lens making the camera as small and light as possible, easily worth the money. Personally the way digital cameras fall in value I just did not want to invest that much money, did I get my moneys worth, yes, but maybe I should have gone for the D90. I would say if you have not owned an SLR or do not know a whole lot about photography and want to learn a little more and really want to step up your images, this is a great purchase. The camera offers alot for your money, figure the 18-55 lens is easily worth $150 so you are paying about $350 for the camera. A serious value and if it were perfect in every who would shell out 1-3000 on some of the "better" Nikon bodies?Read full review...
Great Camera
This camera takes excellent pictures. I have always been an owner of Sony brand, but now that i own a Nikon, i absolutely love it... I have been shooting all different types of scenes at different locations and the picture quality is terrific... I plan on doing my own photography with this camera by shooting portraits of children, families and pets... I have taken some portraits recently and i give this camera an A+.. It's highly recommended and a great deal for the price i paid.Read full review...
Very Happy
This camera is absolutely awesome. Physically, it's beautiful and it fits my hands. It's not too big, it's not heavy, and it looks professional. My clients are impressed with the Nikon name and the quality of the photos that I deliver with this camera. Technically, it is a fairly simple camera to learn and the guide is a great help if you are new and need a hand. It is easy to use and has all the features that I needed. It doesn't have the live view on the lcd, but I am okay with that. I like the auto focus feature it does a great job, but it really shines in manual. It is a great camera! My Nikon D3000 is a refurb, but I have never had a single problem with this camera. It was refurbed by Nikon and is guaranteed to perform at or above standard, and it does! Don't let the refurb scare you, it can save you money and it doesn't mean that the camera is lacking in any way.Read full review...
Purchase by a newbie DSLR photographer
This is my first DSLR camera. I did quite a bit of research before buying and decided on the D3000 as being the best for my price range.
I bought a refurbished model and cannot see anything different than a new model. It came with a 16G memory card, 3 rechargeable batteries. It is plenty of space and electricity for me!
I did end up purchasing a bag and a lens cap holder. I have learned a ton about how to use the camera from YouTube and other websites, but will likely invest in a class in the near future. The good thing is that the guide feature and auto feature let me take great pictures right out of the box.
The downsides...
** I miss the video from my old digital camera. Unfortunately, I just couldn't swing the extra money for a D5000 but if you like the video feature and can afford it, I would definitely pay the extra.
** The quality of the indoor pictures doesn't match that of outdoor. I don't think this is the fault of the camera as much as it is the built-in pop up flash. My next purchase will likely be a better flash that I can turn and bounce the light off the ceiling. It also might be my fault in not knowing a better setting. I would NOT let this stop me from buying the camera, though. The inside pictures are still 1000 times better than my old digital camera!Read full review...