Nikon D80 DSLR Camera (Body only) (OLD MODEL)

Yes, 2012 is drawing to a close in a couple of months, and I just reverted back to a camera introduced in 2006 - the D80. Why on earth did I do that? The D50 I started with in 2005 was a fantastic camera. Well, I got caught up in the megapixel marketing hype AND digital video craze, and decided it was time to upgrade. So I sold my D50 and went for the D3100. The D3100 is a great camera on paper; the specs are excellent. But the feel is much more "Fisher Price" than "Nikon" in my opinion. The grip was tiny and the camera just didn't have the "feel" I was used to with the D50 (some people would consider the lighter weight an advantage, but I found that I missed my steady old camera). And when I took pictures the D3100 didn't seem to want to focus like the D50 did (which probably could have been remedied in some menu buried in the settings, but I couldn't quite get the D3100 to cooperate). I took plenty of A+ pictures with the D3100, but I felt almost like I was carrying around a point-and-shoot camera that is dumbed down for the masses. So I recently decided to take the crazy plunge of selling my D3100 and go backwards in time to the D80. My first instinct was just to pick up another D50, but the D80 had enough improvements (yet was still similar to the D50) that I went for the D80 (more megapixels, ability to accept SD cards > 2GB, and more bells and whistles). The price for a good used one at the time of this review is well under $300, and now that I have taken the plunge I cannot tell you how happy I am with the new camera. The D80 has made me really learn more about adjustments and how to take great pictures, and playing with the settings "on-the-fly" is 100 times easier with the D80 than it was the D3100. I love the fact that the D80 has the old-school readout on the top of the camera that tells you pertinent info at a glance (even has a backlight for that). Sure, the D3100 tells you all of that stuff on the main LCD panel on the back of the camera, but it is an extra step than gets old quickly. The D80 has a few additional buttons and a wheel on the front that really speeds up the process of changing settings, viewing photos, and changing things around in a snap. In a period of about 2 mintues I took 20 pictures of the moon, and tried a wide range of ISO settings and shutter speeds. I wound up taking some phenominal shots using ISO 100 and a shutter speed of 400 (no noise and very little hand shake blurring). But with the D3100 (or some of the other newer models), I would have had to jump through multiple menus to accomplish the same feat. I would simply not have gone through those steps and my moon picture would have turned out too bright and would have been blurry, and I would have shrugged my shoulders. But the D80 has renewed my photography interest, and amazes me how great pictures can be even from an "old" camera. In summary, if you are looking to get into a good DSLR, don't think that you HAVE to buy the newest thing; if you find an older camera at a good price, give it a shot. For the money (again, 6 years after it was released), the D80 is a fantastic camera!

I am the typical point a shoot upgrader and was in the market for a DSLR for the month of may. After extensive online research, I ultimately decided for the Nikon D80 and received it 2 days ago. If you want my blessing to buy this product, you got it. If you are interested in my detailed reasoning, read on. My Sony P&S had reached its limits in terms of image quality and creative freedom (though it has a pseudo manual mode). I long hesitated to go DSLR due to their size and weight, but if you are looking for serious image quality, there is no other option (plus they came a long way in shrinking them). The consumer DSLR market is largely driven by feature craze, so let's take a look at what's out there and how useful some features are at closer inspection. Benchmark is the Canon XSI, since it has all of the latest features and is the newest on the market: 1. Live view: Coming from P&S and wearing glasses, this is obviously a feature I liked. However, it is not practical in real use, since it can cause add'l noise on the sensor due to heat and focusing is not fast enough (Sony and Olympus got canceled off my list due to other reasons). Friends who own the XSI say they never use live view. It's also a significant battery drain. Canon's 600 shot bat life compares to 2,700 on the Nikon. 2. Dust reduction: Already had dust problems on my P&S and it's a known problem on DSLRs. However, tests show that the vibration systems are mostly ineffective, with Olympus having the best and Canon the worst. Even on Nikon's web page where they showcase the feature, they say that a blower is a very effective way to remove dust from the sensor. Tests confirm this, there is no way around it. 3. Lens selection: Web pages advise shoppers to not only look at the body, but also at lenses, which is very true. I got the impression that Canon's lens selecton for APS-C sized sensors in the consumer segment is straight out horrible. Terrible build and image quality, terrible zoom ranges. They are still stuck in 35mm film stuff. 4. Mega Pixels: It's the lens, stupid! Increasing pixel resolution beyond what the lens can resolve just clogs your memory card. 5. Build quality: Yes, the Canon is lighter, but: No pentaprism, just mirrors for the viewfinder, tons of plastic, and the lenses are even worse... 6. LCD size: it's a battery drain. To really benefit from a larger screen, you would also want more pixels to keep resolution constant. Nikon and Canon both have 230k. Bottom line: The Nikon is a gorgeous camera engineered for photography! It gives me the image quality and creative freedom I want. After doing my homework, I figured it's not even worth waiting for it's successor D90, coming out between now and September. The D80 delivers solid performance w/o going over board with feature craze. It received a ton of accolades for image quality, so I don't have to repeat it here. Just a serious piece of equipment that now is available at a great price. I invested the savings into the new Nikkor 16-85 DX VR lens, making it the awesome combination that I was looking for.

Comments about Nikon D80 Digital SLR Camera Body, 10.2 Megapixel, Interchangeable Lens, USA Warranty: 1. I've used film cameras (starting with all manual and handheld lightmeter) for 35 years, including my own B&W darkroom. 2. The D80 is a pleasure to use. It has some very good serious features. For example, while there is a "portrait" setting on the mode dial, the menu offers not only more options, but bracketing ability to really hone in on your light situation. 3. At size settings Medium, Fine I can put about 800 images on a 4gb SDHC card. 4. If you are shooting alot at one time (a couple of hours using continuous shutter triggering) you need a spare battery. The Nikon one takes 2 hrs to recharge with the included rapid charger. 5. As an aside about memory, I am ordering a faster transfer card to see if it really makes a difference. Some times it seems that with continous shooting the camera gets bogged down, but Nikon says it takes the faster cards. 6. While the menus are straight forward, I find use of the buttons, main and sub control dials less than intuitive when I am actually shooting, and some can easily change other settings while you are fumbling. I hope that will change as I get use to it, but it is annoying to find out that when you wanted to change the focus mode from still to continous, you also changes which focus area the camera used. 7. I know one of the complaints is that over ISO 400 the image quality deteriorates. The D80 has a feature which I have not seen advertised. It purports to correct this -- I haven't time to try it yet. Finally, I have been using it with my old Nikon AF 35/135 lens. I have not had any problems with this combination. At this point I enjoy using it and would recommend it to others. But that is the catch to most product reviews - they are generally written shortly after the product is received, and you don't know how the item has been used. I'll write again if I change my mind. Was this review helpful to you? Yes/No- You may also flag this review.

We originally purchased a Panasonic DMC-FZ50 to be an all-purpose family camera and were sorely disappointed. The D80 is everything that Panasonic's near-DSLR is not - fast, accurate, crystal clear. Whether an advanced user or a beginner simply wanting a highly performing auto mode, the D80 exceeds expectations. Paired with an appropriate lens, the D80's auto mode catches a flurry of high-speed, action photos of our toddler. The speed and accuracy have helped us catch more fleeting smiles and funny faces than we had been able to ever catch before. It seemed as though we were always a second late with our prior camera. I stopped short of a 5 star rating because the D80 does omit some nice features that the higher-end D200 offers. Specifically, the ISO and Wb settings atop the D200 help make experimentation (and learning) somewhat easier. But, nice as they are, the cost of the D200 made those optional for us. After a month with the D80 (and about 3000 photos), we don't miss them. New users shouldn't be intimidated and experts already understand that the Nikon name stands for quality. By the way, the Nikon site offers a great online tutorial for the D80 that does not exist for the D40s or D60. Buy it. You'll love it.

I had broken my old Nikon D80 camera in Thailand a couple of years ago and tried to get it repaired before leaving the land of smiles. I had less than a day to get that done and miraculously, the technician fixed it then rode his motorcycle all the way across town to my hotel later that same evening. It worked, but not great, but good enough for the rest of my long trip. Coming back home I started looking for a replacement but couldn't find one that was in good enough condition. A couple of weeks ago I took another look and low and behold, I found a mint condition, hardly used if used at all, brand new camera exactly like the one I already had been working with, only much better!

The camera kept showing an ERR code, which prevented me from applying lenses to the camera body

We were originally looking to get a D40 or a Canon Rebel. We went to a big box store just to see how the cameras actually felt and picked the D80 up just because it happened to be next to the other two models of interest. Our immediate impression was that we like the way the D80 felt in the hand better. The top LCD screen and additional control wheel make a huge difference to the ease of use. If you intend to take the camera out of manual mode a lot then the additional control and setting readouts is nice. We ended up getting the D80 and a 18-70mm kit lens to start with (if you can do without a zoom lens I think I'd recommend starting out with the Sigma 30mm 1.4/f instead). The D80 has been an excellent choice for us. It is fine for basic shots and the auto mode works quite well for snap shots and the like. The camera really shines when you want to be a bit more creative or take more control though. I've used a D40 but have found the D80 manual mode much easier to use (due to the extra control wheel and LCD). If you're just looking for an upgrade from a point and shoot which you can change the lens on and occasionally control manually then the D40 should be perfectly all right. If you intend to run in manual mode more often or expect to get more into photography I think the D80 is an excellent camera to grow with.

I own the D70 and have enjoyed it tremendously. I do quite a bit of event work and picked up a D200 last year (owned by another photographer) and was convinced that it was too heavy to carry. Another friend owned a D80 and had nothing but good to say about it compared to his D70 so I decided to give it a try. The D80 seems to be the best option for those considering weight and contemplating an upgrade or first time investment in a digital SLR from Nikon. I love the larger lcd display and am getting used to the differences in the way the camera responds to light and records color, both are fine but different. Many new options -- some needed and some for the 1st time user who doesn't know how to work with photoshop. . . such as black and white, other color shifts, in camera cropping and exposure adjustments (I'll probably never use these features) Overall I give it 5 stars. I highly suggest you get a DVD on how to use the camera. . . even if you already know a lot. It is great to sit down and go through the features to familiarize yourself with the camera -- visually on DVD where you can stop and review with camera in hand rather than reading a manual that doesn't give you the same type of introduction. It takes a great deal of familiarity with the camera to be able to answer your questions using the manual. I personally like the Elite Video Series (Nikon D80 Made Easy).

I bought this Nikon D80 camera body and I’m really happy with it. Even though it is an older DSLR, it still takes very nice photos and feels solid in the hand. The controls are easy to use, and it gives that classic Nikon image quality that I like.

Je possédais déjà un Nikon D80 depuis plusieurs années mais il était devenu inutilisable et j’aurais voulu le faire réparer mais c’était impossible à un coût raisonnable, 150$ ou moins. J’ai donc acheté de nouveau un D80, je suis totalement satisfait, il est presque à l’état d’un neuf et avec plus ou moins de 3000 déclenchements. Je recommande fortement ce vendeur.

Arrived from Tokai Camera (Japan) to Canada in just over a week. Camera in very good condition. Battery in like new condition even after all these years. Must have kept it charged and never used more than 25%? All I had to do was change Menu language from Japanese to English and clean LCD protector with diluted alcohol. Comes with battery, battery charger and power cord but not SD card. Charger has North American plug and uses same voltage. Improvement of Nikon D80 over D70 or D70s worth the upgrade and of course all models can use the same lenses.

I am very pleased with the quality of this purchase. Also very pleased with all the communication from the seller to me. Highly recommend this seller and their products.

The camera was defective and returned for full refund.