1. solid body construction

2. can accept vintage and new lenses

3. can accept third party lenses; i.e., zeiss, tokina, etc.

4. easy to hold

5. good low light photography

6. great remote flash operation

7. well balanced

1. viewfinder too small

2. not waterproof nor splashproof

3. needs automatic internal dust removal and cleaning.

The D80 from Nikon is a small marvel of computer science married to well engineered optics. Relatively easy to use, it has programmed modes for the uses that prefer that the camera adjust itself to suit their shooting needs, apart from the usual manual and semi-auto modes. The automatic focus, when used with both classic and modern Nikon lenses, works well and works quickly. it does help if the user practices using the half pressed shutter button to get the cam to pre focus.

I prefer to shoot with manual exposure and manual focus, but thats just me.

Apparently the camera does a multitude of things internally before it finishes shooting, including looking up focus and exposure tables and other things, and I am of very little patience, so I keep it in manual and bypass the six computers in it. I trained on a seagull 120 film TLR For years and can set the assorted dials by intuition, but for some people it might be a reasonable way to start.

the images from the D80 are very crisp. The color tones change according to the glass you use on it, Nikon glass is a bit warmer and softer than my Zeiss lens. the Zeiss has a touch more blue in it and saturates less, gives a clearer photo than the stock nikon.

Nikon will not support third party lenses. shame.

The D80 is a sturdy camera, designed for a clean intuitive usage.

Coming from the medium format world, the viewfinder for ALL DSLRS are abortions, every one - all are too small and they should be optically tiltable built on the camera on at least a two inch optical viewfinder [ no video plz!], that for the D80 no exception. I have yet to figure out how to clean that viewfinder, it traps everything in there.

Featurewise, its a deep deep machine. depending on your usage for the camera, its loaded.

it has outstanding command of both wired and wireless systems of flash, and with my sb600 and a circular diffuseer on that, it takes insanely gorgeous photos.

it comes really close to the 120film photos from my Kiev 88e medium format camera.

that's what it needs, a nice viewfinder like this or a Hassyblad has! that would be so nice.

other than that, its a wonderful camera and I would replace it with the same model if I lost it into a volcano or something like that.

it does have a steep learning curve to really do a great job, but I was able to use it ten minutes after opening the box. then I read the 300 page manual. and bought the training video sold on it. and read a book or two about how to use all those features.

its like the english language, just because the dictionary has 20 million words doesn't mean we use all of them each day, some people live off a vocabulary of ten. sure I can do things with just ten features on the D80, but learning the rest is fun and there's a LOT you can learn to do with this nice concoction of technology.

Customer Service

great web site, has a traveling school that tours the country.

Automatic mode
Fast focusing
Light weight, feels good
Good photographs
Vivid colors reproduction
Viewfinder has that grid thingy, that helps me level my photos

Must purchase more expensive lenses for different shooting styles.

I'm a total newbie so bear with me.

I received this camera as a gift from my boyfriend.The first thing that comes to mind is that this camera is very light, feels good in my small hands.Easy to use, it takes great photographs.

As I am a beginner,I would say this is a great entry level digital camera.

Customer Service

not needed

Similar Products Used:

None

Good shots and quick response time. Noise free till ISO 800 and after that its usable.
Exposure compensation faults were fixed from the old firmware 1.01 by the latest one 1.10.

None, as far iam concerned. Iam too personal for Nikon Cameras, as i own D80, L3, L12.

Nikon D80 is one great piece of DSLR. It takes great pictures at all occasions. I have used this camera for more than a year now and its awesome product. Iam not boosting for Nikon, as i have used Canon, Konica Minolta and Olympus before going for Nikon D80 and i find the D80 has lots of user friendly menus and operations. Its Great Camera for its Price. I would strongly recomend this camera.

Customer Service

Good

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Speed,Handle great, overall great camera If you want to see what the camera can do check out my website at http://visionsofmemories.ifp3.com to see what the camera can do and the great picture quality you can't beat

Done

This Camera the Nikon D80 SLR is a amazing camera with great features heads down that you can't find else were great camera handle great and great picture quality

Customer Service

great

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Nikon D40X Nikon D 40 nikon D 70 all great but the nikon D80 is a must have camera and for the price you can't beat

Great battery life
Very good grip
Excellent image quality
Easy to use options and button layout
three frames per second and not having to wait for processing.

owners manual jumps from page to page to cover one subject. Go to the Nikon site and click on the Digituter for your model Nikon and it will show a video covering each operation of your camera.

None on the camera so far.

I have used a Nikon F since 1970 until about four years ago when I purchased my first digital camera. Last year I bought my Nikon D80 to step up the quality, versatility and speed to be able to get the pictures I had been missing.

I purchased the D80 with an 18-200VR lens along with a Nikon 50mm 1.8 lens and SB600 flash.

I have been very impressed with both the camera and the lenses. The camera has a great grip on it and is easy to hold and the buttons and menus are nice as well. I will say that going from a 35mm film camera to digital has a bit of a learning curve. This camera has many options that let the user control every aspect of how the picture will be taken, end up looking in print, or look on your computer screen. The hardest thing for me so far was remembering that I have all the many options available and remembering to actually try them while shooting. In the beginning, all the options seem a little overwhelming but are really quite easy to use after trying them a few times.

This camera combined with the Nikon 18-200VR zoom will give you outstanding pictures. I have enlarged my pictures up to size 20x30 inch prints and they are still very sharp. This combination of camera and lens will cover almost every picture-taking situation that will come up. The battery last for a VERY LONG TIME even when the using the camera daily and you forget to turn it off.

I would highly recommend both this camera and lens to anyone wanting a versatile easy to use camera that is capable of giving you stunning pictures.

I would like to add that this camera and lens combination focuses fast and allows three frames per second up to 100 pictures as long as you have enough memory and power to accomplish this task.

Please do yourself and the camera a favor and learn the different shooting modes. Buying this camera and leaving it in auto mode should be against the law and doesnt do the camera justice.

Customer Service

Haven't had any problems but have called to ask questions and they were very knowledgeable and helpful

Feels strong and the pictures are razor sharp and tasty

None - so far

Love this camera. My wife just purchased it about a month ago and I've read some very good books from Casper Tybjerg (danish Nikon photograph) to get startet the right way. In the 80's when I was studying graphic arts, I learned some basics about photography and I bought a Pentax, but my interest wasn't really turned on at this point. A couple of years ago I bought a Canon ixus 4.0, but I regretted I bought a point and shoot camera because I could feel that I wanted to do more.
So when my wife told me that she needed a new SLR camera I got the job to find the right one. And I must say I'm not disappointed that I chose the Nikon D80 Kit. Love the pictures I'm able to take today. Actually I've been waiting for year to get into to semi-prof photography.

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Build quality is great.
Image quality is fantastic.
VERY long battery life.
Great menu system.
Big, bright screen.
CLS compatible.
Good AF.
Nice size with a really nice grip.

No anti-dust system.
Metering sometimes gets it wrong.
Doesn't shoot uncompressed RAW like the D200.
Uses SD cards. I'd rather CF.

After much reading I was torn between the D80 and EOS 400D. I was swaying towards the D80 but when I felt the camera in my hands I knew that it was the camera for me. The Canon felt so cheap and flimsy by comparison.

So I opted for the D80 with the 18-135 kit lens and have never looked back. The whole Nikon system is fantastic. I now have 1 50mm f1.8 & Sigma 15-30 to compliment the D80 and the handling is great. I also have an SB800 speedlight which is great as the D80 supports the Creatlive Lighting System, which means wireless control of your flash from your camera.

The metering can sometimes unpredictable, which has actually forced me to start shooting fully manual whenever possible, which I'd say is a good thing. It's not as big a problem as you might think, as I always have the camera set to histogram view so you can assess the expsosure level as you shoot.

Customer Service

Not needed so far.

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Pentax K10D.
EOS400D.

Didn't like the Canon. Pentax was good but the handling of the D80 is spot on.

There are enough options to keep the beginner and intermediate pleased. The automatic features will work for those who don't want to learn about aperture, shutter speed, depth of field and other lighting details. However, users should not get intimidated about these terms. Get to know your camera.

The 10 megapixals and sensors generate a strong, clear image.

Invest in the optional Nikon 18-200 VR lens. See if you can purchase the body with this as the included lens. It will be an available option with some dealers. It will be an extra cost over the standard "kit" lens but it is very flexible and creates a wonderful image. You won't be disappointed with this choise.

I experienced a few problems with shutter release when the camera failed to grab a photo quickly enough. I have also had some minor problems with getting the image displayed on the camera back but that may be related to times when my optional battery pack is attached and one battery is almost drained.

I would consider moving up to the D200 or D300 to take advantage of faster frames per second for sports photograpy. However for most users the 3 or so frames per second you get with the D80 should be sufficient.

The other reason for upgrading may be the camera body is solid but I wonder if the professional version would hold up to heavy abuse.

First a bit about the reviewer... I shot a lot of 35 mm from the late 70's to late 80's. I shot for a newspaper and college. I took off about 20 years and just re-entered the digital scene.

The Nikon D80 has been a great introduction into digital photography. I originally compared it to the D40x but soon found I wanted a bit more than the introductory camera. The D80 is a great product for the price point. I found most reviewers I researched agreed.

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11 point focus area easily change to single or use dynamic area.
great battery life
easy to learn controls well placed
Nikon support and updates with the online digitutor program.

that little plastic hot shoe cover is too easy to lose
also the veiwfinder cover.
overexposes sometimes but easily fixed with exposure controll

I bought this camera in August of 2006 with the 18-135 lens.
II'd owned one digital camera before,(nikon 8700), and though I got some nice pics was very discouraged with shutter lag.
I did a lot of research on currnt models and between canon xti and nikon d80 I chose the nikon.
The camera feels right in my hands.
The controls are well laid out and once I got used to them and learned what did what, I had no trouble.
The large lcd screen withe protective cover is pretty easy to see, though I seldom use iit.
The battery life is great and I've made hundreds of shots without needing to recharge.
I like the focus options,with the 11point or I often use single point, focusing on what I want and then composing. The metering is easy to change from wide area to center weighted or single point.
II usually use aperture priority but have been using manual more now also.
I've got some pretty nice shots with it and am very satisfied

Customer Service

A+

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Battery life and image quality when the camera is properly set up are both outstanding. The saturation can be excellent, especially with a polarizer. I sometimes have to turn the saturation down with software. The camera just FEELS solid. The built-in flash is adequate for most casual situations. And even at 6 MP, which I normally shoot at (The camera is capable of 10.2 MP), a 1 GB card goes a long way (over 230 images). I've heard some users say they are using 8 GB cards; they must last forever.

The battery door feels kind of flimsy, and the metering leaves something to be desired. It just flat gets it wrong, and sometimes very wrong, when the lighting is uneven. Setting up the camera can be daunting. The camera feels out-of-balance when the zoom lens is extended. I would recommend the 18-200 VR lens, which has Nikon's version of image-stabilization. I've heard it's fantastic. There's no way to secure the lens cap once it's put on, and I KNOW I'm going to end up losing it eventually. The f-stop has to be adjusted on the camera; not on the lens. And if you adjust the wrong button, like I did on a shoot last week, you can wreck some very good shots. Once in a while, if the lens is not turned 100% of the way onto the camera body, the camera will refuse to work. The shutter will not push down, and the f-stop reading will just flash for a few seconds when you try to push the shutter.

Let me start by saying this is the 5th digital camera I have owned, and so far it's the best. The D80 is a nice, heavy camera that feels very solid. I love the crosshairs in the viewfinder for lining up shots. It's a fairly complicated camera to set up, and if you don't get it right, you can end up with lousy results. I was fortunate enough to find a guide to setting it up. The 18-135 lens works fine, but when fully extended, the camera feels out-of-balance, and it can be difficult to avoid camera shake. The battery lasts forever. I left the camera turned on for almost 2 weeks before I had to recharge it, and I was using it during those 2 weeks. Overall, this is a whale of a camera with a few minor faults.

Customer Service

Haven't had to use it yet.

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None