Nikon D3100 Review (work reliably and well)

Nikon d3100 review, In addition to the always reliable 18-55mm VR kit lens, I shot with the new pro-level 28-300mm f3.5-5.6 ED VR and consumer 55-300mm f4.5-5.6 ED VR, as well as the older 35mm f1.8 lens. Similarly, for a relatively cheap lens, the 35mm f1.8 fares pretty well overall. Mounting the camera to the head took about a second. You slide the camera onto the head, like you would slide a
flash onto a hotshoe. It instantly locks into place.

The D3100 has a very good noise profile; it matches (and perhaps bests) the current leader in the budget dSLR category, the Pentax K-x. It produces exceptionally clean JPEGs up through ISO 800 and very usable ones through ISO 3200. Adobe Camera Raw doesn't yet support the D3100 and Nikon Capture NX 2 doesn't provide sufficiently granular enough noise reduction for me to do raw versus JPEG comparisons). The camera delivers excellent color reproduction in its default SD mode as well--a nice change from some overly saturation-pushing competitors like Pentax and Sony--and its metering and exposure system work reliably and well.
A quick turn of the lock-knob on the side of the panhead securely mates the camera to
the socket, preventing an accidental dismount. When it comes time to
remove the camera, unlock the knob and press the lock button while
sliding the camera out. It's made of a dense cast metal, with steel lock lever, and 3 bubble levels. Aiming the camera is a snap.

Squeeze the lever, aim the camera, and let go. I really like the adjustable-tension leg locks. The metal leg-lock levers seem pretty heavy duty, and
look like they will stand up to many years of use. With the camera mounted, this thing is rock-solid.