i have it and it is a really great lens when i do use it..in fact it is a terrific start off lens and a must have in your primary lens group..personally i find it a bit limiting for my style of photography but occasionally i will bring it out and play around with it...if you're looking for clarity it is a sharp lens..the only difference is the aperture ..do you really need it a tiny bit more open for low light situations to justify the difference in cost?...you won't be unhappy with the 50mm f/1.8...enjoy it..

nikon no longer does any repairs on cameras that are not professional cameras ..they themselves will send them out to a third party.they do not give any estimates over the phone..only base fees like cleanings etc...buying a new camera is not a bad idea..repairs for a camera like yours may end up costing close to what you would pay for a new one anyway...besides i agree that the low price to repair any camera lis too good to be true..don't fall for it..if you're still determined to keep that camera then do look into those new local stores that fix iPhones computers etc..it just may work out..

i love Nikon and have the D810 which i love..and the D7100 for my backup..i never liked the kit lenses and usually wait to buy what i need ..start with a good prime lens..50mm then build from there..personally i use the tamron 70-200 for most of my work..an amazing lens on amazing cameras..but whatever you do choose you should start with just the body and one good lens..but heh ..that's only my opinion..

i agree ..i have the d810 and love it..however for my own personal taste i try to never go over ISO 800..not that i haven't tried to go over it..but it does seem to be better at very low ISOs..

get over yourself ..it wasn't in my General chit chat yet....do you have to be so harsh ...it is JUST a forum ....lately i found that people are getting so up tight over the stupidest stuff..

ugh...

i have it in with the regular forum..it hasn't hit the general chit chat on my end..but heh ..I'm not looking to start a riot just wishing people would just get over themselves with politics and get on with life in general..that's all..

Raw is just more info on your photos than a jpeg..it gives you more options on editing your photos..personally i don't understand why people are so afraid to at least try to shoot in Raw..if you don't feel comfortable with it then just go back to shooting jpeg...

use whatever mode you feel like...i shoot manual almost exclusively..however there are times when i try the aperture setting and if it doesn't give me the look i want then i just use that as a baseline to see what other settings look best for my photo..i just am used to doing most of my work on manual since that is how i started out way back in the day...

and here i thought this was a photography forum..not a political soap opera..ugh..I'm so glad that this election is over..now let's focus on some other topics .

i personally don't like shadows in photos like this..to me it is very distracting ..the model is in fact beautiful but the shadow takes away from her..why not try to do another photo session and start over trying different lighting techniques..i don't know how you can rid the shadows in post processing on this one other than making the entire background black...

i have the tamron 16-300mm and was amazed at how good this lens is..of course it isn't perfect for a professional level job but for an all around with a great range and really good sharpness this lens is just right ..i usually use it whenever i just go around for the day to take some relaxing fun photos..great for vacations where you just want to take shots of the touristy spots etc..check it out ..you will be pleasantly surprised..since high ISO is really good on the new cameras then bumping it up in the low light situations the lens performs quite well..i wouldn't use it in very dark indoor situations but you can always throw on the flash ..or change to a 50mm f1.8 indoors..

i LOVE my d810..the quality on this camera blows me away

i think people just like to shop around..maybe at the time they said they would like to hire you they did..but then they may have liked someone else's style a little better..don't take anything seriously from people ..most think that a cell phone image is good enough ..so if they hired someone else ..who cares..i used to let that stuff bother me..but now i figure if they call me all well and good ..if not then that's their choice..i do a lot of volunteer work for animal shelters and get asked all the time if i would do their animals ..when i tell them i charge they don't bother to follow up..yes lots of folk want it for nothing..example ..while visiting my grandkids i was asked how much i would charge to do a head sheet for someone..(obviously he realized i did pro work.).i gave him a price..a month later he approached me and asked if i would do some family shots for the holidays ..he saw me taking loads of photos of the kids..during the shoot he was stunned to realize i was charging him for the job..he said he thought i just liked taking pictures...hmmmm.how about getting hired to a prom for ONE kid and 9 show up..needless to say i got stiffed out of 8 other jobs..i was put on the spot at that point..now i gave out my cards to all the kids i did not get one other job from that ..even though they all took photos with the original girl i was hired to do the job for..so there are many horror stories that us photographers share..none of us are immune..it is very competitive out there so don't let the small stuff get to you..

i use the nikon d810 and the tamron 70-200mm lens..i found this to be my best combo ever to do either a head shot or a full body photo..love the 36megapixels and the sharpness..heh if you want to upgrade that is just fine..i have both cropped and full frame cameras ..useful for different situations..buy what makes you happy..