Which is better camera - Nikon Coolpix 8800 or Nikon DSLR D50?

Answer 1

I had the CoolPix 8700 for two years. It's the model before the 8800 - the same camera but it didn't have image stabilization. It's was a nice camera but a few limitations drove me up the wall. Mainly:
* poor low light performance
* slow AF and no practical way to focus manually (you need 2 minutes to set it up.)
* lag due to the electronic viewfinder
This made the 8700 a terrible camera for action shots and the 8800 is no different. In all honesty, no compact camera is any good for action shots. It is a great camera for landscape pictures and portraits however.
Given the choice between the 8800 and the D50, get the D50. It has less megapixels than the 8800 and only the more expensive lenses have image stabilization, but it´s a vastly more responsive and better tool. (I eventually got a D200.)

Answer 2

I have both cameras so I can give you an answer from having used both and not just looking at the specifications on a piece of paperp.People make the assumption that just because a newer camera has more megapixels then it must obviously be better. Not true. Both these camera have the same size sensors. There is only so much megapixels that can be squeezed into a sensor size before having diminishing returns and I must stay that is what these newer cameras are suffering from.the more features and more mp's that are crammed in, then the harder the processor has to work. My D50, which incidentally can not only use the older lenses but the new dx vr ones too, works great and consistently outperforms the d3100 every time, especially in low light. Don't be fooled by the megapixel count on a camera. I would choose a used D50 over a newer d3000 range Nikon every time. For all intents and purposes, these cameras are more than adequate and even better than most new ones.

Answer 3

It depends on what you want to do. If you just want a simple point-and-shoot style camera, then go with the Coolpix. If you want to be able to change lenses (to use super telephoto, Macro lenses, fisheye lenses, etc...) then go with the D50.

Answer 4

Nikon Digital SLR fo sho! Hands down

Answer 5

nikon d50 for sure been looking at vthem myself will be getting either d50 or d70s

Answer 6

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Nikon/