DSLR Shopping? Skip The Nikon D5000 And Buy The D90
A colleague of mine recently came to me expressing his interest in moving into the world of digital photography by purchasing his first DSLR. As a lifelong Nikon point and shoot owner, he started digging into the current line of Nikon DSLR cameras. As a Nikon user myself, I was happy to help him out.
Quickly he narrowed his decision between the D5000 and the D90 originally leaning toward the D5000 from a price standpoint but after comparing the bodies side by side my recommendation to him was to get the D90.
Here are my four reasons that I would spend the extra $150-200 on the D90 over the D5000 and why you should too:
- The lack of a selector wheel on the front of the D5000.
This was a missing feature that drove me nuts when I first learned what I was doing on my D40x. It prompted me to step up to the D80 within only a few months after my original purchase.
- The D5000 does not have a top mounted display.
I know that with both camera bodies you have the option of viewing this data on the LCD monitor on the back of the camera but personally, I don’t like using the LCD to display the information.
- The D90 has a built in motor for non AF-S.
Autofocus lenses that are not AF-S will only work in manual focus mode with the D5000.
- The D5000 feels cheap.
Simply put, the D90 feels much more substantial and sturdy in your hand.
These reasons may not seem as important to a buyer as saving a few bucks but if you are anything like me (I replaced a D40x for a D80 after 5 months), you will long for these features once you get to know the camera and wish you would have purchased the D90 from the start.
