Nikon D5100

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	Price

	Body only $349 - $449 With 18-55mm lens $409 - $490
	all D5100 prices

	Snapsort rank

	Within its price range #n/a of 1 details Among similar cameras #n/a of 12 details

	Key specs

	Sensor size APS-C 23.6x15.6mm Screen resolution 920k dots
	Megapixels 16.1 MP Movie format 1080p @ 30fps
	Screen size 3.0" Light sensitivity 6,400 ISO
	see all specifications

	Lenses

Browse Nikon D5100 lenses at LensHero

Nikon has replaced the D5100 with the D5200.

Nikon D5200 announced October, 2012

	Lower frame rate movies
	Much higher true resolution
	Significantly more focus points

Compare the new Nikon D5200 vs the D5100

"Unintimidating interface, but with plenty of manual control."

dpreview.com | talking about the camera's button-layout

"Image quality is definitely the D5100's trump card. It offers effectively the same image quality as the higher-end D7000, at a lower cost."

dpreview.com | talking about the camera's image-quality

"Judged on its own merits the D5100 is a great camera, but we're concerned that an enthusiastic beginner might outgrow it faster than some of the competition."

dpreview.com | talking about the camera's overall-performance

Canon EOS 600D (T3i) vs Nikon ...

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Nikon D5100 Basic Guide

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Nikon D5100 Hands-on Review

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The Nikon D5100 vs other recent entry-level DSLRs

	Flip-out screen
	Great for movies

	More lenses available
	205 lenses

	Inexpensive
	$349.00

	Movie continuous focus
	Makes it easy to get in-focus movies

	External mic jack
	Record higher quality audio with a microphone

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The Nikon D5100 vs other recent entry-level DSLRs

	Small viewfinder
	0.51x

	Poor maximum light sensitivity
	6,400 ISO

	No touch screen
	More buttons

	Slow continuous shooting
	4 fps

	Fewer focus points
	11

	Old
	April, 2011

	Below average viewfinder coverage
	95%

	Thick
	3.1"

	Full HD
	1080p @ 30fps

	No image stabilization
	Risk of blur

	Lower true resolution
	16.1 MP

	No weather sealing
	Need to shelter it from weather

	Longer shutter lag
	273 ms shutter lag

	Fewer cross-type focus points
	1

	Slow shutter speed
	1/4000 of a second

Image quality data for the Nikon D5100 provided by DxOMark

D5100

Nikon

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Showing 25 comments

wavesummit

(10:47 PM, July 18, 2014)

I just just assisted a wedding on the weekend. I've had the d5100 for two years now and with my sigma 30mm 1.4 I had well over 1000 shots (raw), no battery grip either.

Khaled Hassan

(3:19 PM, May 02, 2014)

Youtube contains lot of videos for D5100 :)

VK

(1:28 PM, March 07, 2014)

Hi,

I am using Nikon P500 since last 3 years and planning to upgrade to a DSLR. This will be my first ever DSLR.

My Questions are :-

1. Which is the best entry level DSLR with Budget below 30K ?

2. Preferably Made in Japan (not sure if it makes sense) ? Where can I get it in India (preferably in Pune)

3. Nikon or Canon ?

4. What kind of lens?

5. I will use it for atleast next 10 years. So please suggest which will be the best one in my budget

6. I am an amateur photographer. But have keen interest in photography. I want to grow and learn better photography, so upgrading to dslr. Also planning to join some professional photography school once I get a new camera.

Thanks in advance!
Best Regards

M.Ismail Mohamed

(9:51 PM, November 24, 2013)

i cant take shots at night what i do ...i have nikon d5100

Himanshu Gupta

(5:35 AM, October 16, 2013)

Hello everyone,
What will be the best lens combination (within budget) with Nikon D5100 for wildlife photography?

Pepe Le Pew

(11:05 PM, September 26, 2013)

Pentax K-30

Dany

(8:06 PM, July 28, 2013)

I absolutely love this site but I have a question for you snapshot.

I have a Nikon coolpix S3100 and I was looking at Nikon D5100 because I want to get into photography and I was wondering if this would the camera to start off with, since I already have my Nikon coolpix S3100.

Jay

(1:42 AM, July 22, 2013)

I have a d5100 and I love it! but does anyone know any sources or websites that could help me figure out more techniques, tricks, ways to use the camera?

Alex Deschamps

(1:39 AM, June 13, 2013)

Should I take D3100 with one lens 50-200 mm OR(WHERE) D5100 with the basic lens???

lilprince

(0:46 PM, May 30, 2013)

which is better canon 600d or nikon 5100 for beginner

Lagos Gradnja

(11:17 AM, March 01, 2013)

D5100!

Gus Kalashnikov

(8:48 AM, February 16, 2013)

i have it

Pawan Sharma

(1:15 AM, January 18, 2013)

great camera, only missing dedicated buttons for frequently used settings

Francisco

(9:27 PM, November 22, 2012)

Which ir better D5100 or T4i ?

Aaditya Kalia

(4:48 PM, June 17, 2012)

whatz the price right now!! i think 550$??

Alaa AlSayed

(4:51 AM, June 03, 2012)

I think one way around it is to use an external microphone. I also think it's possible to edit the video and trim out the frequencies of the audio the lens make, but I haven't given it a shot =).

Kamal Gaur

(0:00 AM, June 03, 2012)

The D5100, unfortunately, does make the autofocus sound which gets captured when you're shooting video. I wish there was a way around it, but I'm not aware of any.

Kamal Gaur

(11:57 PM, June 02, 2012)

I own a D5100 which came with the 18-55mm lens. I also purchased the 35mm f/1.8G and I must say, that it's become my go-to lens for almost everything I shoot. Admittedly, I don't shoot a lot of landscapes, but for everything else (parties, outings, portraits, low light, etc), the 35mm surpasses what you would expect from any normal camera or lens. I highly recommend it - it's an investment that will last you a lifetime.

diabetologist

(3:01 AM, May 24, 2012)

i have been using point and shoot and now i am ready to upgrade.i have a number of questions.a. shud i go for dslr or try mirrorless. my photography expert friend said ......dslrb. i was disappointed to read that video shooting is not that good in dslr coz video continuous auto focus is a problem....and audio might catch the lens focusing noise.c. now amongst dslr, i have to decide between d3200 and d5100. both cost same. difference is d3200 is 20% lighter in weight, has expeed 3, 24 mpixels, wifi, guide mode and so on, while d5100 is time tested, it has auto bracketing, screen tilts and adjusts and so on. which one to go for.what am i looking for?well....i was looking for a device to shoot both video and pics.....but after reading that videos wont be that great.....nw i am looking for nice pics.....i have a research mind....and i tend to like the idea of bracketing. this gives me more chances of getting the perfect shot coz i wud be getting 3 shots. now right here i wish to clarify.....is it dire necessity to have a tripod to shoot those 3 pics....i am told ....all 3 shud be taken without shaking camera....i wont use tripod......but i can try to keep hand stable. like i said...i did like the idea of having one over and under exposed shot. now the software that comes with the nikon....will it be enough to do the editing for final pic on laptop or will i have to purchase another software.in real life...is bracketing done frequently...or no.
what i like in d3200 is light weight, guide mode and so on.....but i dont know.....if d5100 is technologically more advanced.
last thought.....d3200 is recently launched while d5100 is old and therefore d5200 is expected. but i guess it will be significantly more than d5200......may be it will be too costly for me. so lets stick to 700usd mark and decide between d3200 and d5100.
kindly guide.
thx
k

Yusufbelen

(0:36 PM, May 19, 2012)

most significant reason if you are still photographer is the sensor image quality. sensor quality rating on d5100 is 80 whereas it is 60 in 600d

Yusufbelen

(0:27 PM, May 19, 2012)

IS not on the body but on the lens that you buy. so there is no problem if you buy a lens with IS. in nikon IS is called VR so make sure when you buy your camera, it has a VR kitlens withhin.

Yusufbelen

(0:23 PM, May 19, 2012)

Not only consider how much fps , but also consider the "buffer". I mean that once buffer is filled after lets say taking 20 raw or (raw+fine jpeg) photos, buffer will be full therefore your speed will go 1 fps even. if you compare d5100 and canon 550d, nikon has more buffer. see the video http://youtu.be/zsLsOjeRkAg . starting from 7:00 you can see the action photo performance as well as buffer performance.

Regards,
Yusuf

guest

(9:01 AM, May 19, 2012)

Hi thanks for the great site. Based on your reviews I am interested in the Nikon D5100 as an entry level DSLR. My only concern is that it only offers 4fps compared to 10fps or more offered by the sony models. A major use for the camera will be taking surfing pictures and other sport related activities. Be grateful for snapshort's views on whether the Nikon D5100 would still do a good job of taking those types photos or whether we would be better off with a camera that offers a higher frame per second feature. Many thanks.

Betty

(5:46 PM, April 04, 2012)

I was wondering the same, and first I tought Nikon would be the right DSLR for me. Then i watched some videos where they compared the Nikon 5100d and the canon 600D, and I realized that the Canon took much better photos (and videos) than the Nikon. Of course it depends on the photographer a bit more than on the DSLR, but I think I'll choose Canon. If you want to go for photography, you should choose Nikon. (My opinion is still that Canon is better, but it's your choice.) The special effects on the Nikon 5100d aren't that great, but ok. If you want to go for videos and stuff you should buy Canon 600D. I also think that the Canon fits better in your hands and feels more "safe", but i would recommend to test both cameras before you buy one of them. The Canon lenses are much cheaper than the ones of the Nikon, and if you're a beginner and never have had an DSLR before, I would choose Canon. It's much easier and friendlier too use, I think.

Good luck, I hope this helped you at least a bit. :-)

zaheerul

(5:32 AM, April 02, 2012)

hye snapsort,i have question,what is the best lens for movie mode, for d5100.and which one is better,60d or d5100.

Nikon D5100

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