I'm gonna keep my story short, sweet, and to the point.




-I'm very passionate about photography and have been for a long time
-I've felt like I've been limited for the longest time equipment wise with just P&S's
-I want a dSLR for:
a) I am finally ready to move that step up to improve my skills
b) I will be minoring in photography when I head off
-I want to have something that I will be happy with (which I know both will do) and I won't regret not getting the 'other' one, whatever that may be
-I know as far as quality goes, generally speaking Glass > Body
-I know I will get the response "Well what if you end up not liking formal photography classes and you got the more expensive one???" I realize that risk exist and I am willing to take that risk for whichever camera I get, however I will have the camera forever for my own pleasure regardless
-I intend to become serious with photography, maybe even using it as a side job thing so I will be getting ALOT of use out of the camera



The D80 was the camera I orginally planned on getting, but when the D300 came out, all I could do was . I've slapped myself a few times trying to tell myself to come back to reality thinking the D300 is a little too much for now, but then I think "Is it really....will it be too much camera in 6 months?? Will the D80 be 'just under' what I want in year?" My big thing is that I don't want to get the D80 wishing in a year or two that I would've bit the bullet and bought the D300. Like I said, I know that glass is more important than body. And the other side of the story is that I don't want to get the D300 realizing that I could get very similar and close quality with the D80 and saved $1,000 or more.


High points:
-High use camera
-Minoring in photography
-Don't want to regret either decision




With that said, should I get the D80, and later if I really REALLY like photography save up for a D300 or similar later down the road, or do you think it would be better for me to bite the bullet and buy the D300 knowing that it has anything and everything I could want for a long time?

 

just to help you out...

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/comp..._d300&show=all

...that being said, i'm a D80 owner and love this camera! with the D300 you get more FPS, higher ISO, CF media, larger sensor, etc....if those are worth the extra grand, go for it...

i just know when it's time for me to move on from my D80 nikon will have something better out than the D300...and maybe the D3...

 

www.flickr.com/LcrazyaznL checkout my pictures had the d300 for about 3 weeks.
Great improvement indoors. High ISO low noise

I owned the d80 and loved it, I also convinced my friends with the d80.

I opt for the d300 since i wanted more, and the indoor high iso low noise control.
increase fps.

The d80 spoiled me with all the external controls, so when i hopped to the d300 it wasn't a too big of a jump.

The rugged d300 body was a plus to my outdoor adventures, the d80 isn't too bad but its still plastic and I pamper it.

If your really crazy 1800 vs 800 body wise its a big difference.

 

Might as well go big or go home.

 

I think the d80 is good for entry slr, d300 might be a bit much such a features wise and controls.

 

If you can afford either, I'd go with the D300. You will use the features as you learn them, so don't worry that the D300 has more features.

I'd rather have my camera exceed my wants than the other way around.

 

Only reason why i say it is that some people use the d80 or even the d300 in program mode, and don't take full use of the flexibility of manual mode.

just because its and slr doesn't mean you take good pictures, I just think a young person would be better small then work his way up. Least what i did.

Sony t33 > canon xti (stolen learned my lesson) > D80 1.5 years and job with college newspaper wasn't cutting the indoor scene. > d300 now.


I don't think the d80 will be inferior in 6months because the d60 and d40x still lack the af motor for non af-s and af-i lenses.

 

bizump

Just trying to get more votes and responses.

 

When it comes to d/slr's at least what I know with Canon, figure out what you want to do; sports, landscapes, macro whatever and figure out which body has the ability to do what you want.

I've giving a lot of advised to some to get the older camera and GET THE BEST GLASS.

 

If I got a side job photographing sports or something, that would be cool, but I would mainly be doing landscape, scenery/nature, and macro.

 

Landscape - fast wide angle lens. Most kit lenses go fairly wide (to 17 or 18mm), but I find that on my crop body cameras (D70, D200) the 10-20 is my preferred lens for these kinds of shots.
Scenery/nature - probably the same as above, depends. If by "nature" you mean pictures of wild animals, then some long fast glass is in order.
Macro - macro lens.

For macro, you're going to want a tripod for long exposures with ambient lighting. You will probably find it very handy for the landscape/scenery shots too -- to take multiple exposures for HDR post processing, and for effects like running water or wind-blown motion.

 

I don't know the fps of either camera, I know the D300 will have a better AF system. So which one do you really need? I know many compare the D80 with the Canon Xti, I don't like the slow AF (compared the higher end) and fps so it would be the next step up for me.

So if you need the faster AF the D300 is the one to get. If not get the D80 and some good glass.

 

d80 3fps d300 6fps with batter grip (200) 8fps.

D80 is a great camera with some good glass i don't think you really want to back step into a d200, but thats an option if you find a nice used body it give you more power than the d80 but not as far as the d300,

 

Last bizump

 

My brother just got a D300. I'm considering selling my D200 and D70 to get one.

Finances aside, get the D300 -- you won't regret it as your skills improve. Just make sure that whatever camera you buy, you leave money to get decent glass.

 

I think you've already answered your own question. If you can afford it, get the D300, keeping in mind that the real cost of an SLR system lies in the glass. By a long shot.

 

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