Nikon D3100 + 18-55mm VR Lens + 55-200mm Non VR Lens + 8Gb card + bag for £500 at Jessops.

Its for my daughter who’s starting A level photography in September. I know very little on the topic (but keen to learn with her and use the kit too!). She’s held a few cameras and liked the feel of the Nikon, and I was impressed with the ‘show me how’ features of the on-screen manuals.

Questions really are:
Is this camera good enough for A level photography and possibly beyond?
Is the zoom lense zoomy enough (apologies for non-technical description)
Is a non-VR lense going to make a difference?

That’s a very good starter pack for any budding photographer. I had a D40 for a while and loved it, I can only assume the D3100 is better still. Of course it’s mostly about lens’ and those are basic, but they will do very nicely. You have to spend the same again to get a significantly better lens. The lack of VR will be a problem for handheld shots at slowish shutter speeds and extreme zoom, but a tripod will solve that.

For the record I have a D90 and just love Nikons. As you note the help assisted menu is brilliant, my D40 basically tought me the basics of photography. Took me a while to teach myself about exposure and how to control it with my camera, the best help I got was Bryan Peterson’s book ‘Understanding Exposure’. Third edition now and a brilliant book for anyone wanting to learn. My advice is to get it as well.

Edit;

Camera is perfectly fine for A Levels
Zoom is zoomy enough unless you want to shoot ‘nature’ in the wild

+1.

Speaking as a Canon owner, you’ll not go far wrong with that.

I’ve said this before, but IMHO the biggest practical difference between Canon and Nikon isn’t features, it’s the “look and feel” of the system. If she likes it, you’re on a winner.

Is this camera good enough for A level photography and possibly beyond?

Yes, Excellent first SLR choice.

Is the zoom lense zoomy enough (apologies for non-technical description)

You don’t need any Zoom. A prime lens is the best bet for learning photography, you just takes steps forward and backward to get the object in the frame.

Is a non-VR lense going to make a difference?

You only really need VR on long zooms eg 200mm, in most cases (strong light), the shutter speed will be so fast it isn’t needed.

The 3100 is a nice camera I nearly bought one for mrs rocket.

The only thing I would say is that the on-screen tutorials are of limited use and once your daughter gets the hang of it she will be wishing for the better LCD & internals of the 5100

The std 18-55 lens is adequate but totally non-zoomy esp if you are used to the epic zooms on compact cameras. A 100mm lens is still not zoomy (it allows you to zoom in to the roof of your house for example). A 55-200 is getting there you can at least zoom in on wildlife that is not too far away and see some good detail.

The bigger lenses are difficult to keep still when zoomed when the shutter is operated and the VR does make a difference but if you use a tripod and switch the VR off the sharpness and clarity are excellent.

I have been thinking getting one of these too, and after much deliberation and indescision I’ve come to the conclusion that all the other options are limited in some way. I’ve had a play with this too, and like it.

And, as this kit has a Zoomy extra lens, and the requisite bag of bits, My mind is made up.

I don’t know anything about the requirements of an A-Level, but surely a pack like that will cover all angles.

My only worry is that it wont allow experiments with narrow depth of field and low natural light. To fill this gap, I’d want a cheap fast prime lens (a Nifty Fifty). I assume that the new Nikon works with the budget bodies because it’s an AF-S, but my Nikon knowledge isn’t great.

Unfortunately this lens is £150, whereas the Canon equivalent is £70.

You get what you pay for – you can spend £50 – £400 on a 50mm Prime, loads of choice from Sigma, Tamron and Nikon.

Questions really are:
Is this camera good enough for A level photography and possibly beyond?
Is the zoom lense zoomy enough (apologies for non-technical description)
Is a non-VR lense going to make a difference?

Yes
Yes
Yes

If its going to be used for A level Photogtraphy, see what kit they use, then she will have use of their lens too 😉

[edit] I started with a Zenith TTL, taught me the basics, great lenses, not so good body 😉

Have you thought about eBay?

I recently sold my 350d on ebay with 18-55 lens, 4 batteries, lowepro bag, filters, and a couple of memory cards for about £190. It took very good photos, and this would leave you with £300 spare to buy other lenses – such as a 50mm f1.8, a zoom, etc. In a few years she may want to upgrade the camera, so better to get some decent lenses

But if you want to buy brand new, then that is a very good deal

Also check out the canon outlet on eBay – they sometimes have some cheap deals on there – all with 1 year manufacturer warranty.

Canon 1000d kit for £240 Linky…..