Woody1101 wrote:
Hi everyone, I have been following this discussion for about a year and have really enjoyed it. Now I need some advice. I want to upgrade my D5300. The D500 is my choice but not my pocketbooks. I am debating between D7500 and a D610 full frame. They are more in my range. I have a Nikon 18-200 lens that is my carry around and a 40mm micro and don’t know if they would work on D610. Any advice would be appreciated
I would suggest that you look carefully how you shoot now and how you would like to shoot differently. All Nikon cameras made in at least the last 6 years have been capable of taking beautiful photographs. Buying a new camera will not magically improve your photographs, but it will make the work of doing so much easier, and it may extend your capabilities (either a little or maybe quite a bit). This can be one of the best reasons for buying a new camera anyway. I am retired from a career as an industrial engineer, which was all abut making choices to make work easier, simpler, or otherwise better, so this is important to me.
What is markedly different among camera models is their "usability," what functions they offer and how the photographer accesses those functions. The design and durability of the higher placed camera models is also markedly better. For example, the D500, which is almostly completely misunderstood by almost everyone on this site, offers maximum usability to the photographer. Functions and adjustments are quickly available, and the camera itself is very rugged and durably constructed
As an example, a few months ago, I worked with several teachers at the local high school where I substitute as they were working to purchase some new cameras. These cameras were to be used by the yearbook staff and also by students learning photography. We had two primary considerations as choosing what to order...good available light performance and proper controls for manual photography (two command dials, not just one). Although the D500 would have been a perfect solution, we decided on the D7500. Unfortunately, folks in the purchasing office decided that they would only authorize the D5300, which really did not meet either of our requirements.
You haven't really told us enough to know what you shoot or how you work, and that's OK. But you need to think about it and think about what you would like to improve.
By the way...the D610 is a good camera. Many here use it. I owned one for about a week, but decided quickly that it wasn't going to work for me. It didn't offer enough of the operational improvements that I was looking for, and the compact camera bodies just "don't do it" for me.
And your lenses will work fine if you decide to get a full frame camera. They will not allow you to reap all the benefits of the larger sensor, but they will allow you to make use of all of the improved "usability" of the full frame body while you are saving for new lenses.
Good luck as you decide.