I know these threads come up quite a bit but now that the dSLR race is heating up even more with the D70 about to hit the market, I'm trying to finalize my research on what to purchase. (used D60 vs. 300D or wait until the final reviews come in on the D70 and take it from there). I don't have any lenses yet so I'm currently not brand dependent as far as cameras go. My previous research led me to the D60...which I've wanted for a long time now but has always been just out of my price range. A couple of questions now that I'm getting closer to making the plunge (general camera questions):

1. From what I've read, the D60 has low-light autofocus problems....have you guys figured out workarounds ("Don't use AF, focus manually!")?

2. Aside from uw shooting, I'm getting into concert photography and I'd prefer a camera that has spot metering. How is the D60's partial spot metering? Would it be better to invest in Nikon which has full spot metering?

3. Any opinions on deciding between the D60 and 300D?

Any advice or help you can throw my way would be really appreciated.

--Pete

P.S. When the site was migrated over, were any of the old threads deleted? I tried searching for all the old D60 threads and couldn't find much.

1. Use a spotting light while diving. Don't shoot in low-light? The AF on the D60 is acceptable if you recognize it's limitations. It was significantly improved on the 10D / 300D.

2. Partial metering is ok. It's not spot-metering though. That said, if you're shooting manual a lot, esp. UW, it doesn't matter as much.

3. Get the 300d if it meets your needs. Housing support looks like it will be better, and if you go Aquatica you can get TTL! Image quality is at least as good on the 300d as the D60, and the AF is better. Yes, you lose things like exposure compensation, but it's always a trade-off. You might also consider the 10D, but it sounds like budget limits you, so in your shoes I'd go 300D.

Take all this with a grain of salt though, it's just my opinion.

Tom