Any Photographers Out There? Need Advice...

I am in the process of deciding which camera to get for myself! My Nikon D60 was stolen :(...Anyway, my top two picks are the Nikon D5100 or the new Sony SLTA57K. The Sony is 12 FPS and takes a picture soooo fast, plus it has 3x Optical zoom built into it. They both take HD video. I would absolutely reccomend getting a DSLR or the Sony that is a DSLT(Single Lens Translucent) Which helps it to take pics so fast. The DSLRs make getting those shots of squirmy, fast moving kids SOOOO much better. Once you have a DSLR you never want to go back to just point and shoot! :)

I have the D3100 which does everything the D5100 does. I think it has less megapixels but unless you are going to transfer it to a billboard you don't need that much. They are so similar that the class at the camera store is for both.

The good news is if you get one I can tell you what the different settings are. :) It is an amazing camera. If I had a do over I would buy the same camera.

I was deciding between Canon Rebel T2i or T3i or the Nikon D3100 or D5100 around this time last year. I learned that the AF is built in the lens of the Nikon X100 series so lens compatibility with another brand as well as cost would come into play later. With Canon, you can use other brand lenses more easily as the AF is built in the body (a little heavier not much). That being said I researched prices & all and had decided to get the D5100 with the larger lens kit and had it in my cart @ Costco and was hemming & hawing over the price when I looked up and saw the Canon Rebel T2i for about $200 less with comprable large lens.
Took it from the ball fields to Rushmore, Grand Tetons & Yellowstone - the pics were amazing.

Unless you are a total pro after you get above I think it is the 12 MP mark, I don't think for regular photos it will make a large difference. I used my photos to create a beautiful photo album through one of the online site - definitely could see difference from my point & shoot photos there.
Make sure you get a couple of good quality and large memory cards and a good case to haul it with you easily.
I think we are local - you can always message me & I can show you some of the pics if you want.
As for the Nikon when I looked at the stats if it is the one that Mr. Ex Demi advertises it looked like it did not offer as much functionality or bang for your buck as the others - just looked cool & was smaller - kind of a souped up point and shoot.

You can check out reviews on dpreview.com.

The D5100 is here and you can see it compared to the D3100.
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond5100/

The Canon mentioned is reviewed here:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos1100D/2

I didn't see a review there for the P510, but you can do some searches on the site for any of the cameras and see what others think.

In terms of continuous shooting for sports, it looks like the D5100 is 4 fps (frames per second) for continuous shoot, the D3100 is 3 fps, and the Canon is 2 -3 fps depending on which file format you are using. The P510, according to the Nikon website, looks higher. The other factor is how many pictures you can take in a row at that speed. That usually depends on how fast it can process and write the images to the memory card. For example, the P510 says it can to up to 5 shots at 7 frames a second. That means you couldn't do another burst of shots until it had finished with at least some of the previous ones. Depending on your needs, that may not matter.

I wouldn't expect you to notice the difference between a 12 megapixel or 16 megapixel camera unless you are doing poster size or something.

If you have a chance to play with the cameras in a store, I would do that. Practice trying to take pictures quickly with both and see if/when you notice a delay in continuous mode. Also check out other things that might influence your happiness with the camera. For example:
- How heavy does it feel? Does it feel bulky. Is the DSLR with the lenses on going to bug you with respect to size and carrying it around.
- How soon after turning it on can you take a picture?
- Is there a delay between the time you press the shutter and when the picture is actually taken. Point and Shoots cameras, particularly super cheap or old ones, are really bad in this category. Newer ones are less of an issue.
- What kind of optical zoom does it have? For a DSLR that will depend on the lenses, but you can check it out for the lenses that come with it. Please ignore any specs about digital zoom. Digital zoom can always be done after taking the picture and it's true for any camera.
- See if you can take a picture that gives you a feel for how well the flash works. I had a Point and Shoot once that took great outdoor pics, but all the indoor pics were terrible.

If the P510 does the continuous mode in a way that you like, then I suspect it might best fit your needs, especially if you won't be fiddling with any manual settings.

I have an older DSLR that I used a lot for sports and I suspect I will use again once my kids are old enough to participate in them. But I also have a small point and shoot that I prefer when out and about as it's much easier to carry. My DSLR gives better pics than my point and shoot, but it's also more work. So I will use it if I want special pictures, but for day to day, I use the point and shoot.

If you don't use the manual setting and you are usually just a "point and shoot" photographer, you aren't going to even USE all those megapixels. But if you're wanting to get started with something user-friendly...

For an easy, entry-level DSLR, I suggest this one: http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Rebel-T3-Digital-18-55mm/dp/B...