About to jump off of the diving board, first dSLR (D3100)

[DarkAeon91]

Hey guys -- I've just realized that I want to get back into artistic photography after taking a course back in high school and after doing some research I'm almost settled on the D3100 since I'd be content with Nikon's upper end offering and also due to their reputation for good optics. A few questions though.

1. Is not having exposure bracketing a big deal if I want to try HDR photography?

2. What control do I have over the exposure during filming? Can I turn auto focus off if I want a dramatic, shallow DOF?

3. How good is the kit lens for long night and low light exposures without flash or an extreme ISO?

4. Are 3fps bursts versus 3.5 or 4 fps bursts on the D3100's competitors going to be an issue?

[zona5101]

hi and welcome!

Originally Posted by DarkAeon91

1. Is not having exposure bracketing a big deal if I want to try HDR photography?

Not really, just bracket using your exposure compenation dial or using shutter, aperture or manual modes and adjusting manually

2. What control do I have over the exposure during filming? Can I turn auto focus off if I want a dramatic, shallow DOF?

Filming such as video? no idea, i'd buy a video camera. For photographs, auto focus and depth of field are not related. In virtually all instances you are going to want your subject to be in focus. Whether the surrounding areas are in focus is a function of the aperture setting.

3. How good is the kit lens for long night and low light exposures without flash or an extreme ISO?

on the first... not so much. With regard to the second (extreme iso), it is a function of the body not the lens and the 3100 performs as well as the others in its price range

4. Are 3fps bursts versus 3.5 or 4 fps bursts on the D3100's competitors going to be an issue?

There is not significant difference between 3.0 and 4 fps.