Nikon D3300 Impressions

The Nikon D3300 has become Nikon's starter DSLR, and offers up incredible photos at a fairly small price tag. At around $400 for a basic kit with an 18-55 lens, or $500 for a two lens bundle, it's hard to top this camera in terms of sheer value. With a 24.2 megapixel crop sensor, you're going to get some amazing shots with it - especially if you have a more diverse range of lenses.

The all-plastic body has no weather-sealng, so you do want to be careful with it outdoors. The un-tiltable screen is another reason to be careful where you're using it because if you drop it, the screen will likely be damaged. If you're outdoors, make sure to shoot with covers on the lenses, or at least a filter on the lens, then you would at least have some protection there.

It feels very natural in the hand, with a logical layout that is easy to use quickly. The viewfinder size is a bit on the small side, but it does offer up a reasonable representation of what you're taking a photo of. Having five frames per second of continuous shooting is solid, and makes this is a good option for a Jack of all trades camera. Wi-fi isn't included by default, but you can buy a wi-fi adapter for around $60 to add that functionality.

The D3300 is available in red, grey, and black, with red and black being more prevalent for the two lens bundles. The red is a bit garish, but it does come in handy to have a camera in another color if you ever leave it somewhere and need to find it at a lost and found. It's also nice if you have a few different bodies as you can tell them apart by color a bit easier than by trying to look for the model number on the camera itself.