WOOHOO! Got a D50... now what? :)

[NeveSSL]

Hi all!

Just got a Nikon D50 on eBay with the kit lens.

First purchases now are going to be a bag, extra battery, extra card, uv filter, tripod, extra SD card, and MAYBE a 70-300 if I'm lucky.

Anyway, any other suggestions? I'm going to be doing A LOT of reading (already started on some of the stickied suggestions at the top of this forum ) and go from there. I bought this camera because we needed a new one BADLY and because we may be taking our first vacation soon on which I'll also be getting some SCUBA certifications.

Question: How much does it matter what speed SD card you use?

Anyway, I'm pumped and just wanted to ask a few questions!

Brandon

 

[Nick A]

Congrats on the new purchase. The speed of the SD card will mostly matter if you are shooting anything that requires fast shooting. A faster card will allow the buffer to last longer as opposed to a slow one.

 

[DougBushBC]

In my experience, (with my D70) the speed has never come into effect yet.

 

[edwing206]

Congrats man. I was super excited when I bought mine. I love my D50! I have a Tamrac 5402 bag and it's awesome. I holds all of what I need on a typical day of shooting.

 

[NeveSSL]

Awesome... thanks for the replies, guys.

I think I'm gonna pick up this accessory kit as it seems to be a pretty good deal. Only thing I need other than those is a 52mm UV filter to protect my lens.

Any D50 book or video suggestions?

Brandon

 

[edwing206]

Seems like a reasonable deal. I've heard good things about that seller.

 

[viodea]

watch a few things when picking your tripod.
Make sure the lock type for the legs can be adjust quickly and easily, clip vs twist.
the type of head, ball vs pan/tilt. I think pan/tilt is better for landscape and I love ball head for everything else. That's just me.
Don't buy the very cheap one. Make sure it's rated enough for your camera & lens combined weight. Don't don't want to lose your camera b/c of a cheap tripod.

As for speed of your card, faster the better when loading file to your PC/Mac. As for taking pictures, read the write speed of your camera. That'll tell you how fast of card you need.

 

[NeveSSL]

Crap... this was a store model... turns out I can't get it to release the lens. Anyone know if this is permanent? It looks like this little plastic dot was superglued to the lens release to prevent it from being depressed, BUT I'm no 100% sure.

Well... this sucks.

Any help would be MUCH appreciated. It is taking great pictures, though, and the lens is in great shape.

Brandon

EDIT: Turns out it was a plastic-covered screw. Thanks to my handy Leatherman Squirt P4 I was able to get the plastic off and get the screw out (TINY screw... eyeglass screw).

 

[edwing206]

Glad it came off. That would suck if it was permanent.

 

[NeveSSL]

I cannot agree more!

Brandon

 

[Thrashie]

the D50 rocks! I got mine when they first came out. and then picked up an 18-200mm VR lens.

Cameta Camera, yeah, they are a good seller, had an issue where they forgot to pack something in an order, when i called them, they didnt even question it and sent out another for me.

 

[Mako]

Don't forget a decent flash unit. SB-600 or 800 with a diffuser will come in very handy. And don't skimp on the tripod. You want something that is very stable so you can make the most of those nikkor lenses. Halfway decent set of legs and head will set you back easy couple of hundred more. Good starter would be the Bogen 055xprob with a RC2 head.

 

[NeveSSL]

Yeah, man, I'm still lovin' the D50! And the 18-200 VR is on my priority list followed by a 105 macro.

A flash is on the list, too. Probably get an SB-400, though.

All in due time, I keep telling myself. All in due time.

Brandon