whatdat Loc: Del Valle, Tx.

Fellow UHH's:
I am looking at nikon 5000 series cameras. I believe the 5600 and 5500 are very similar with the major exception being that the 5600 has a touch screen. Is this important enough to choose the 5600 over any of the other 5000 series Nikons? I thought I would start out with one of these cameras with the 2 kit lenses (18-55 Nikkor and 70-300 Nikkor as-p ED lense; all refurbished). I am retired and have a limited budget, but want to move up from a bridge camera. Any suggestions or thoughts on the above or any of the other series 5000 cameras? My bridge camera has an articulating screen so I am wanting to keep that feature. Currently Cameta Camera has the above setup at $699 refurbished. I have read a lot of great info on this site, so I am looking forward to some good info.

Thanks,
Whatdat

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

Not quite the answer you are seeking...I bought a refurb from Cameta and would not hesitate to do it again. If I was to start over and behave, I would most likely go with a D7200 refurb, an 18-140 and a 70-300 refurbs. One lens at a time if necessary. The 18-140 is so much more versatile than the 18-55 and 18-105 and I have all three. The touchscreen is neat, but no big thrill on my D500.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

I can only speak for myself, but a touch screen and/or tilt screen is no big deal to me.
I have 2 cameras, both Nikons, a Df and a D7200 neither has a touch screen and I can still take pictures.

Howard5252 Loc: New York / Florida (now)

Keep in mind ... small screen - fat fingers.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

I try to keep in mind my fat head and skinny wallet!

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

As far as touch screen, if you chimp or review images with the camera a lot, the touch screen comes in quite handy. If you make menu changes often, the touch screen comes in quite handy. If you aren't into learning a new different and most likely better was of doing certain things with your camera then a touch screen is no big deal. I have the touch screen on a several of my cameras and I personally like them. It really is a user preference thing.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

While I agree somewhat, I make a few of the common changes on my 500 without taking my eye away from the viewfinder. Plus, there are some pretty neat setting for chimping on Steve Perry's site: http://backcountrygallery.com/ Check out the "7 Best Nikon Tricks Ever" if they are applicable to your camera.

whatdat Loc: Del Valle, Tx.

Thanks for the replies. 7000 series prices stretch my budget a bit too much. Would anyone suggest a 5000 series other than the 5500 or 5600, such as the 5300? Thanks for the suggestions on lenses as well. I may have to go with the two kit lenses I mentioned until I can afford more.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

Two kit lenses will do most everything that I shoot. It is no secret that we don't require a more expensive camera to satisfy our needs, so don't feel like you are settling for second rate.

Spider223

I have a D5500 and it does have a touch screen also. I've heard the ML-L3 IR remote does not work on the D5600, but that is something you should verify from someone that has the D5600.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

First, read comparisons of the two and decide if the extra cost would be worth it to you. You must also consider resale value. I look for refurbished first.

(Reviews) https://www.youtube.com/user/TheCameraStoreTV/videos
http://www.cameradecision.com/
http://cameras.reviewed.com/
http://camerasize.com/
http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM
http://snapsort.com/compare
http://www.dpreview.com/products/compare/cameras?utm_campaign=internal-link&utm_source=mainmenu&utm_medium=text&ref=mainmenu

queencitysanta Loc: Charlotte, North Carolina

I have a D5500 I bought in December and January I bought a D7200 so I am not using the D5500. The camera only has 477 activations. $450

ELNikkor

the reason I don't like the 7200 is the lack of an articulating screen, the 5600 can also make videos one frame at a time...

SparkyNYC Loc: NYC & Coconut Creek,Fl

I love my D5300.
Light weight,built in WI-fi,and tilt screen.
Will more bells and whistles make you a better photographer.

Boris Ekner Loc: From Sweden, living in Guatemala

This is all about your budget. How much are you comfortable spending?

From my point of view the 70-300 lens is too much, too long. On a cropped sensor it equals a full frame of 105-450. Do you really need those 450mm's? At that length you have to have a tripod in order to shoot straight and steady. On top of that most reviews of that lens tells that it is not as sharp at maximum zoom as a shorter lens, like the 55-200.

Some may tell you to get an 18-200 or 18-300. Both are "one-size-fits-all" lenses. As such they are great lenses - if you accept the flaws that comes with them. Because, the same things appears with these two in the reviews. Both have a reputation of being less sharp at the far end. To my understanding it has to do with the zoom range, it's too long in order to create a sharp picture through the entire range, i.e. design compromises have been made.

Regarding pricing I recommend you to compare prices on Amazon, eBay, as well as other locations in order to get the most for your buck.

My recommendation is to get your best choice of camera with the kit lens, for starters. Then get books to update your knowledge from the past to the present. (I too started off with film. My first was a Kodak Instamatic in 1968.)

--

The most important subject in photography is not the equipment, nor what is in front of the camera. The most important subject in photography is what is behind it, the photographer.

--

Here's my answer to a similar question in another thread.

Here's what I did:
-Budget: no more than $500. (This was the most important criteria I had.)
-Searched for $500 DSLR's on eBay & Amazon in order to understand what I might get.
-Found some favorite models that I compared at cameradecision.com. I refused to have any brand preferences.
-Read plenty of reviews on the cameras I found interesting.

My priorities were; very good professional reviews, the highest pixel count possible, RAW format option, wifi, built in GPS, fair prices & f/values on future lenses.

Nikon D5300 turned out to be the final option. With my personal preferences, and budget, it was by far the best option. Price paid: $449 on eBay, including an 18-55mm lens, plus some other (now useless)-stuff in the bundle.

I've had the camera for since January 2017, and I have no regrets on my purchase. On the contrary, I'm very happy with what I got for the money spent.

Later I've bought a 55-200mm(used) and a 35mm(used) lenses. A better speed light/flash, a good tripod, petal lens hoods, third party battery grip, extra batteries, twin charger, better/faster memory card, and some other stuff. All from eBay who time after time confirms to have the best prices.

Your best option is probably not my best, and vice versa. It is not about the camera as much as it is about the photographer. Just as a good stove and pan isn't enough to cook you a good dinner, right?

In order to update my knowledge I started off with reading Nikon D5300 For Dummies as well as Stunning Digital Photography by Tony Northrup. The third book was Secrets To The Nikon Autofocus System by Steve Perry, which is my favorite so far. It was all well invested pennies. Next book will be Understanding Exposure. As knowledge has no weight it is easy to carry...

http://backcountrygallery.com/secrets-nikon-autofocus-system/

Best of luck on your persuit of your best camera. ...and don't rush it to get one. Take your time, i.e. weeks, to learn about your options and what you favor.

A very informative D5300 Review:
https://sleeklens.com/nikon-d5300-review/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly-blog&substat=blog

Examples of pictures I've shot are found under my name at 500px.com as well as at Instagram.com.

www.instagram.com/borisekner

www.500px.com/borisekner

PS
I had the same procedure when I looked for, and bought, my sons camera. (He turned 6 at the end of July) The budget was no more than $80, had to be fully automatic, as well as having manual features to grow with as he gets older and if his photo interest persists. Best option: a used Fujifilm Finepix S8600 (it's a bridge camera), for $76 on eBay. And there are instructive videos on his camera on YouTube for him to watch later.

PPS
Here’s a different opinion on this issue.
https://petapixel.com/2017/03/24/battle-micro-43-camera-outsold-full-frame-dslr/