Need Help Buying a Nikon D90 Kit

[thegumbootman]

Well first of all, I am fairly new to photography. I've been using a Canon EOS 500 film SLR and a Holga 135BC and I'm getting a bit annoyed with having to wait for the film to be developed to see the results while I'm still learning how everything works, so I've decided to get a DSLR. I've spent the last two weeks researching and I've decided I want to get the Nikon D90 + 18-105 VR kit (the 18-55 VR lens looks good too though). I had a few questions about prices etc.:

1. Is it worth buying grey imports (from Citiwide more specifically) over local Aus stores?


2. Where can I get the best price for this kit in Aus at the moment?
- There is a $200 cashback deal with Nikon until August 31st
- If I can get Officeworks to price match, I've got a Coles staff discount card which will save 5%
- Also, I'm really not much of a haggler. Hopefully this wont be too much of a problem!


3. I don't know much about SD cards. What would you recommend for under say... $40? (I wont be doing any sporting photography so I don't think I'll need anything too fast)


4. I have read on the internet that there may be a replacement to the D90 coming out soon. Will the D90 drop in price when the replacement comes out? If so, is it worth waiting for?


Thanks! :th3:

[campo]

1) Grey Imports: Depends who you ask. Some people think it's the bomb, some people refuse to do it. I avoid certain grey market products (ie. camera bodies/lenses) but not others (eg. non electronic accessories like straps). It all depends how much risk on warranty you want to take.

2) ECS (http://cameras.net.au/) in sydney offer very good genuine aussie stock prices. On some products they're not as cheap as other places - my advice, shop around.

3) Having not need to buy SD cards in a while, i'm not sure what's under $40. CheapChips (AP site advertiser/sponsor?) does cheap memory cards. I'd personally stick to a reputable brand like Sandisk, Lexar etc.

4) There will always be a new camera around the corner. Go out and buy what you want now, the D90 won't disappoint. Those people in the know about new gear (eg nikon employees) don't say anything, and those that don't know anything will. That said, Nikon does tend work to "semi-regular" schedules like replacements every two years for certain products lines etc. Thom Hogan discusses this on his website.

[Tikira]

If you buy grey you wont get the cashback from Nikon, so that lebels the playing field a little more.
When we were looking for our d300s a few weeks ago, given we had no stores in our area, we had to go via the internet, so asked for feedback on various stores, checked prices on a lot of websites which offered Nikon warranty, and then emailed them all saying we were checking prices and was that the best they could offer. No haggling. Then you could go armed with these emails and see what happens. It may work, it may not, but the store we chose in Brisbane offered us a cheaper price than elsewhere, and now know we will go to them first in future- so they get a bonus.
Di

[kiwi]

Id never buy a camera body "grey", I just dont think its worth the risk. Much more to go wrong than with a lens that Im happy to buy grey

Never wait for a replacement, imagine all the shots you go without.

[amexav]

I got a D90 a couple of months ago, I did what Tikira did and went into Ted's with emails from their online department saying that they would price match for $1275, I just got my cashback from Nikon, so it was just over $1K after cashback. Ted's currently have their online price as $1225, but say it's online only, the in store price is $1399. I am not much of a haggler either, so took cash into the store lol and it worked :)

I got my lens grey from Camera's Direct and a 4GB Sandisk Extreme Card 30mb/s from Cheap Chips ($50 shipped).

I agree with Kiwi on the grey market body, much preferred to buy with an Australian warranty.

[Mr Zee]

I just got the kit a couple of weeks ago. Paid just under $1500 with the CB offer including a 4gb 15Mb/s card.
One pre req for the CB offer is that it must be purchased from an approved Aussie reseller but I'd dare say you'd get an import for way less than this - I found one for under $1200 by just googling.

For the few hundred saved I opted for Aussie warranty instead. :)

Btw, ya don't have to be a great haggler to shop at TGGs ;)

[judybee]

I bought my D90 2 weeks ago from Digital Camera Warehouse at Canterbury. I bought the body only and (after $200.00 cashback) I paid $1,029.00 which I thought was a great price. Service was great too. I called them and they put one aside for me, quoted a receipt number and within 1 hour somebody called me to confirm the camera was ready to be picked up.

www.digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au

[thegumbootman]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Digital Camera Warehouse seems to be very reasonably priced. After some looking at prices, getting the 18-105 as a grey import sounds pretty good to me.

I was thinking about getting the Nikon 50mm f/1.8D also (they are cheap enough in Australia so grey import wont save too much $). With the funds I've got at the moment I could order the D90 + 50mm today from DCW. I'd have to wait a week or 2 for the 18-105 though.

[maccaroneski]

As I was reading this I was going to suggest that you shelve the 18-105 for now and just get the 50 anyway, so that's a great plan.

I'd how you go with that combo for a couple of months, and then you'll be in a good position to know whether or not you should grab the 18-105 or maybe something else with a constant aperture (like say a Tamron 17-50 2.8).

[thegumbootman]

Well I bought the 50mm f/1.8 from eBay for $145 posted. Should be here within '2-7 business days'. If I can't get to Digital Camera Warehouse this week, I'll just buy the D90 + SD card online.

Any opinions on this?:
http://www.digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au/prod4795.htm

[I @ M]

Any opinions on this?:
http://www.digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au/prod4795.htm

Yep, my opinion is to stock up on cards from site sponsor Cheap Chips, service is excellent and prices are more than competitive.

http://www.cheapchips.com.au/memory/sandisk-ultra-sdhc-card-4gb-15mb-sec-class-4.html

[thegumbootman]

Thanks. Bought the SD card from them. :th3:

[thegumbootman]

The D90 arrived today. I ended up buying from Ted's and I got the 24 month extended warranty with it. The lens should be here tomorrow or the next day.

Ted's sent me the 18-105 VR lens kit box (along with the warranty for the lens...) but they took out the lens because I only ordered the body. Will this mess anything up with the $200 cashback offer? For the cashback you need to:

# Photocopy your purchase receipt that lists the items and date of purchase
# Photocopy the barcodes from the camera box
# Photocopy the Distributor's Record Warranty slip for the D90

The barcode on the box and the Warranty slip will both be for the kit version but my receipt says 'body only'. :confused013

[amexav]

I don't think it will - I bought my D90 body only from Ted's and got my cashback a few weeks ago. I just sent in a scanned copy of the barcode from the box of the body, copy of the warranty slip (completed) and the receipt from Teds (they printed out two copies for me). I had my cashback in the bank pretty much exactly 60 days after sending it in (that's what they had in the T&C's).

Are there two separate warranty slips, one for the lens and one for the body?

[thegumbootman]

Yeah there are two different warranty slips. The body warranty slip says 'body kit' on it though.