Camera Review by Nikon D5100 user || Monidipa Dey

I went to pickup a DSLR when I decided to restart my photography in the digital era. I wanted to choose a camera which suited my particular style of photography which is intuitive and purely artistic. I don't indulge too much into the technicalities of photography (unless the shoot demands it). 

So I did not want a camera that weighs me down with an awe-inspiring set of setting options. My priority was to have a camera with a good sensor which captures low light images as well as portrait / close up macros well (when supported by appropriate lenses). I also wanted it to be light-weight with easy handling abilities. 

I chose D5100 which came with it's 18-55mm kit lens and a 50mm AF-S lens. Later I augmented these with an 18-105mm lens and a 55-200mm lens, both from Nikon. Below are a few results with this camera. 

This was shot with a 18-55 mm lens on a foggy winter morning in low light

this was shot with a 18-105 mm lens on a cloudy day (copyright Monidipa dey)

this was shot at mid day under harsh sunlight with ISO 250 and a 18-200 mm 

this was shot early morning with a 70mm at ISO 100 (copyright Monidipa dey)

I use a 18-105 mm lens with this and occasionally shoot with a 50 mm prime for portraits. The 18-105 mm lens though a kit lens, gives superb optical performance and takes care of most of my needs. For people portfolios, I love the 50 mm lens. 

This was shot indoors, under very low light conditions at ISO 3200 and 1/40s (copyright Monidipa Dey)- this camera is especially good for shooting under low light conditions

shot in the evening under very low light at ISO 5000, 18-55 mm and 1/60s

a portrait shot under direct bright sunlight with a 50mm

This was shot on a sunny day, but at a particularly shady spot, ISO was set at 800  and I used a 50 mm

I am delighted that I chose this camera. It's sensor is indeed superb and the camera is easy to handle. It has an elaborate menu (which I rarely use) and a short menu which can be accessed by the "i" button on the back plane. It is light enough to be carried everywhere yet heavy enough to prevent camera shake at low shutter speeds. When used with VR lenses, the camera allows extremely low shutter speeds (as low as 1/15s). At high ISOs, the noise is within reasonable limits. An ISO as high as 2000 is really usable for some serious shoots and the camera limit of ISO 6400 is also usable for some casual pictures. 

Thanks a lot to those great technicians from Nikon who have delivered this gem :)