Nikon D3000 DSLR Camera

Nikon’s latest DSLR has broken out of the mold that were restraining some of the previous entry level models, which is about time considering that the competition is getting stiffer. How well does the D3000 fare in a (now) crowded market of consumer DSLR cameras? And is it worth an upgrade if you already own a Nikon D40 or a D60? Those are the primary questions I have in mind as I write this review.

The size and weight of the Nikon D3000 is almost exactly the same as the D60, and frankly, there isn’t much difference physically as well. The grip feels exactly the same and the button placement is similar as well. The LCD display this time is slightly bigger than usual at 3-inches, but the LCD resolution stays the same at 230,000 dots. The problem here is that while in most consumer cameras, the LCD display enhanced the reviewed images with brighter colors and crisper details, the reviewed images on this one actually look a bit discolored and rougher than they actually are.

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The D3000’s 10.2 megapixel sensor resolution doesn’t give you much reason to complain, as that’s pretty much the standard going at its price range. However the D3000 does have a few new tricks up its sleeve that make it an upgrade over the previous models in this category.

Firstly is the absolutely newbie-friendly guide mode, which not only helps you select the right shooting mode for your scenario, but also gives you a step by step guide about the settings you should be using. This can be changed between Easy mode and Advanced, where you have better control over your shot settings. I think this feature is a long-time coming in Nikon DSLR cameras. If you want entry-level consumers picking up your advanced cameras, you do need to make it as friendly as you can for them.

The second immediately noticeable upgrade is the autofocus, which has jumped from the measly 3-point AF (on Nikon D40 and D60), to a great 11-point AF, as in the D5000. Frankly I’d love to be happy about this, but again this is a feature that should have been implemented a long time back, especially considering that a majority of their competitors have been boasting 9-point AF and above since quite a while.

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The high ISO performance of the Nikon D3000 is not outstanding as we’ve come to expect from Nikon DSLR’s, but shooting darker spots in ISO 1600 will give you an image usable in smaller sizes. ISO 3200 (with boost) should never really be touched as with any ISO level with the word “boost” attached to it. You can see our ISO comparison test results by clicking the image below.

One problem I faced with the Nikon D3000 is that under most low-light indoor scenarios, shooting in “no flash” mode almost always jumped up the sensitivity to ISO 1600 to keep the shutter speeds fast. Though I appreciate the effort to keep the images blur-free, I would have preferred that the camera keeps ISO 800 as the standard sensitivity for indoor shots. I used the camera to take a night-scene shot (without flash) using the camera’s preset and then took the same shot again, in manual and the following were the results.

The above shot, taken using the preset used ISO 400 sensitivity and a shutter speed of 2 secs, which resulted in a clear, yet slightly under-exposed image with slight discoloration on the sky area.

This image was shot using the same sensitivity level, but at a slower shutter speed of 5 seconds, which brings out the colors in the image.

The overall image details seem to be slightly sharper than the previous models. The minute lines and dots appear more visible this time, reducing your need to sharpen in post processing.

Once again the Nikon colors seem to go more towards the natural tone rather than being overly punchy. Natural colors are always more appreciated than saturated tones.

The 3 FPS shooting speed is also a slight upgrade over the 2.5 FPS of the previous models and this is much appreciated.

A fully charged Nikon D3000 battery gave us 535 shots before it locked the shutter release. These shots were taken both with and without flash.

Nikon has done a good job of giving a very user-friendly camera to its entry level segment, but its MOP of around Rs. 32,000 makes it pretty expensive for the segment it is catering to. If you already own a Nikon D40 or a D60, you should probably look at the D5000 as an upgrade over this one. But if you’re new to DSLRs and want a camera that will practically hold your hand through the learning process, the D3000 is a pretty good option.