Nikon D3000

	Design & Handling Summary
• Solidly built compact camera with well-designed grip • Minimal quick-access buttons for camera settings • One programmable Fn button • Quick-access shooting menu plus standard Nikon system menu, without menu customization options • Very good manual plus online learning system
	Controls	Page 11 of 17	Nikon D5000 Comparison

Handling (7.00)

The D3000 body measures 5.0 x 3.8 x 2.5 inches (126 x 94 x 64), making it identical to the D40 in size. The D3000 is a bit lighter, at 16.1 oz (485g) versus 17 oz (475g) for the D40, but we'd be hard pressed to tell the difference blindfolded.

The camera's handling is a definite strong point -- this feels like a serious Nikon camera. The righthand grip is large and deep enough for a comfortable grasp and, while it isn't rubberized, the plastic is textured effectively, with a top lip that balances well against the top of your middle finger. There's also a well-positioned sculpted thumb rest on the back, above the four-way controller. Combined with the front finger rest, this produces a very secure hold, even if you're shooting one-handed. And unlike some flyweight SLRs (the Canon Rebel series springs to mind), the Nikon D3000 has a nice heft in your hands, avoiding that uncomfortable feeling that the camera body was crafted by Fisher Price.

It's compact and we have large hands, but we found the D3000 surprisingly comfortable.

Controls (8.50)

There aren't a whole lot of buttons on the D3000, which keeps it from looking intimidating, but also cuts down on the instant accessibility of certain key controls. There's no direct access to ISO, white balance, drive mode or autofocus settings, for example, all of which we frequently adjust.  Many cameras use the four-way controller for this purpose in addition to its menu-navigating functions, but Nikon chose not to take this practical route.

Instead, you have a quick menu on the LCD while shooting, brought up by pressing the button left button on the back of the camera. This is a shortcut, but it still requires cursoring around a menu to find the setting you're seeking, which is much more time-consuming than just pressing a button labeled "ISO" and making the change.

There's one control dial placed conveniently for right-thumb access on the camera back. When shooting in full manual exposure mode, the dial changes shutter speed by default, and holding down the exposure compensation button while turning the dial changes the aperture setting.

There is a single programmable Fn button, which does offer a user-selected shortcut to some of the controls mentioned above. However, it's been banished to the left side of the camera, along with the flash control button, where it's inconvenient to push and easily forgotten altogether.

Back Controls
	Playback Enter playback mode
	Menu Bring up menu system, back out of menu screens without making changes within menu system
	Zoom Out/Thumbnail Playback/Help Lowers magnification level when zoomed in during playback; brings up thumbnail and calendar views when viewing at full size. In shooting mode, accesses on-screen help text
	Zoom In / Information Edit Zoom in during image playback; brings up direct access settings menu while shooting
	AE-L / AF-L Can be programmed to lock both exposure and focus, just exposure or just focus. Can also be set to keep the autoexposure reading locked until it's pressed again. The AE-L / AF-L button can also be set to initiate autofocus, replacing the shutter button.
	Control Dial Adjust shutter speed and/or aperture setting, and set exposure compensation level.
	Multi-selector  Moves cursor during menu navigation
	OK Confirm menu selections .
	Delete Erase stored photos

Top Controls
	Mode Dial Turns to access main shooting modes, scene modes and Guide mode
	Info Turns the LCD infomation display on and off
	Exposure compensation Press and turn the control dial to set exposure compensation
	Power Turns camera on and off

Left Side Controls
	Flash Raise the pop-up flash if it isn't already up; accesses flash mode settings when the pop-up flash is deployed
	Fn The programmable function button can be set to toggle the self-timer on and off; select the release mode, image size and quality, ISO, white balance, Active D-Lighting settings and set the viewfinder framing grid.

Menu (6.50)

The D3000 offers both a standard Nikon menu system plus a quick access shooting menu that transforms the LCD information display into an interactive panel for changing key shooting settings. After pressing the zoom in button on the bottom left of the camera back, you can navigate to each of the settings listed along the right and bottom of the screen, press OK, and choose from a screen of settings options.

The quick access menu offers shortcuts
to most shooting settings

The main menu system follows the tried-and-true Nikon design, with its lefthand tabs for navigating from section to section and clear, easy readability. We're not fans of having to scroll down several screens to see all the options in a given category, but at least the Nikon strategy lets you jump immediately from menu tab to menu tab, without having to scroll all the way back to the top of a page.

Menus
	Overview The menu system is organized in seven tabbed parts. To move between them, you move the cursor to the far left, then up or down reach your destination..
	Playback Playback mode options include single or group file deletion, setting playback screen options (highlights, RGB histogram, detailed data) on or off, and turning image review on or off (oddly, though, the length of time the image appears is set via the custom menu). There's also a basic slide show utility and the option to create a DPOF file for service-bureau printing.
	Shooting Most of these settings here are faster and easier to reach through the quick access menu. The shooting menu adds the ability to set a manual white balance, control color space and reset all shooitng options to the default.
	Setup This menu is mostly made up of core camera settings you're likely to change infrequently, plus the option to format your memory card.
	Retouch An extensive array of image retouch utilities are provided here plus in-camera RAW image file processing.
	Recent Settings Automatically lists your most recent menu selections.

Manual & Learning (9.50)

You can't fault Nikon when it comes to providing every snippet of information needed to make the most of your D3000 camera purchase, even if we were briefly baffled by what to find where.

You get a one-page fold-out Quick Start Guide (in English and Spanish) that's basically limited to camera setup (attaching the strap and lens, charging and inserting the battery, taking a picture in Auto mode) plus software installation, and using USB to copy photos and print.

There's also a printed 68-page User's Manual (again in both languages) to introduce users to the basics of the various camera modes and features. It's a nicely prepared publication, including lots of clear diagrams and screen captures, instructions that are step-by-step enough for anyone to follow, and a good balance between full explanation and fear-inducing complexity. The only significant problem here: there's no index, and even with a decent table of contents, there needs to be one.

Also in the box is a CD-ROM with a PDF version of the 216-page Reference Manual (in English, Spanish and French). This manual includes everything in the User's Manual plus further details on advanced camera operations, again with a well-structured words-and-pictures approach (and yes, a complete index, which even manages to have the terms you're actually likely to use when searching for information). For no apparent reason, this document is called the D3000 User's Manual on the Nikon web site, where it's available for download here.

Nikon D3000 Manual

But wait, there's more, as the man in the informercial says. In addition to the printed learning materials, there's a built-in Help system, accessed by pressing the question-mark button when "?" is displayed at the bottom left of a menu or shooting screen. The screens that pop up via this help system are brief and to the point, not an entirely adequate substitute for an actual user manual but a good step toward defining the choices at hand.

Finally, we can't find a thing in the D3000 box that points to a useful web-based learning system Nikon provides, which is a shame. The Digitutor site for the D3000 (available by clicking here) basically provides a video-and-text walkthrough of all the camera's functions and capabilities. It's a painless way to get acquainted with all the camera features, almost like turning the camera manual into a lean-back-and-watch experience. And if the English language announcer seems to think he's working for Nick Cohen instead of Nikon, that only makes it more fun.

Controls	Page 11 of 17		Nikon D5000 Comparison
Nikon D3000 Digital Camera Review Navigation
Intro	Product Tour	Color	Noise
Resolution	White Balance	Sample Photos	Playback
Hardware	Controls	Design & Handling	Nikon D5000 Comparison
Canon XS Comparison	Olympus E620 Comp	Pentax K2000 Comparison	Conclusion
Specs & Ratings