My thoughts on the Nikon D3300 6 months on: a mini review

So it's been around 5 months since I bought my Nikon D3300, and I wanted to write a follow up post on how I've been getting on with it. This was my first DSLR and I'm a total newbie at photography, so if you're a camera expert then this post is probably not going to be helpful. But, if you're a beginner like me, and you're wondering if I'd personally recommend the D3300 as a good first DSLR, then read on!

(TL:DR I'm really enjoy it so far and I'd recommend it)

I'd researched 'good first DSLRs' a fair bit beforehand, and the D3300 was recommended a lot as a good starter DSLR. It's fairly inexpensive, but has some good specs- check them out on the Nikon website- and I bought it together with the 55mm lens, which is apparently a good versatile lens (and a 50mm ish lens is often recommended by other bloggers). With the 55mm lens, you can zoom in, and you can also get a really nice bokeh effect. It came with a lens cap, a manual, and also some editing software (which I still need to have a play around with). However, it has a way better sensor than my ipod's camera, and the pictures do look a lot better (especially compared to ones taken with the front camera... eek). The battery life is also so good! I can get a good few days of use out of it before I need to charge the battery again.

Before you jump in and buy it, consider whether you even need a fancy camera in the first place. There are a tonne of tutorials floating around on the web on how to take blog photos with an iphone or your smartphone, so you should weigh up whether you really need it. It is an expense, after all. Also part of the expense is any extra kit you might want to buy: SD cards are a must, but things like camera remotes, tripod, spare battery, wifi adaptor (I think the latest model has built in wifi but you need to buy the special adaptor for mine). Another potential cost is any extra lenses- they can get really pricy. Personally, I'm really happy with my lens, but it really depends on what you're going to be using it for.

A thing to think about before you buy it (if you're a beginner like me) is that just having a DSLR doesn't necessarily mean your photography will get better straight away. You have to learn how to use manual mode (or one of the 'aperture priority' or 'shutter priority' modes, to get the best out of it, and I have still got a tonne to learn.

For me personally it's been a great decision, I've got loads of use out of it and taken some really cool photos, if I do say so myself. I really wanted to improve my blog, and better imagery is such a big part of that. Having a 'fancy camera' has made inspired to get better at photography!

Thanks for reading~
-Amy xoxo