Nikon D3000 What You Need to Know for Best Performance

Table of Contents

Original Price& Current Used Price

The D3000’s original MSRP was $599.95

Used D3000 cameras fall into a price range of $125 to $200. The difference will be due to condition and accessories included.

Nikon D3000 Battery Type & Replacements

The Nikon D3000 uses a Lithium-Ion EN-EL9a rechargeable battery & charger.

The battery can not be charged via USB. This means a battery charger will be necessary.

Third party battery chargers will be less expensive than OEM Nikon chargers. There will usually be an option to get one bundled with a third party battery purchase.

Memory Card Compatibility & Recommendation

The Nikon D3000 is compatible with SD/SDHC memory cards.

That means compatible D3000 SD cards can have a maximum storage capacity of up to 32GB.

My recommendation is to get a 32GB SD card with UHS-I. These cards will have the fastest transfer speeds, which improves compatibility with newer cameras and other devices.

Nikon F Mount Lens Compatibility

The D3000 is compatible with Nikon F mount lenses. This opens up a wide range of lens possibilities. A full range of lenses exists including circular fisheye, ultra wide angle, perspective control, macro, telephoto, mirror, bellows, and all kinds of zooms.

There is a list of the best Nikon D3000 lenses that covers lenses for all different types of photography.

The camera has an APS-C “crop” sensor that has been designed to use DX lenses. These lenses are smaller and less expensive than FX lenses, which are designed to be used on full frame cameras.

The D3000 can also use full frame, ‘FX’, lenses. However, the downside to these lenses is that they tend to be larger, heavier, and more expensive than DX lenses.

Notable Features

  • Active D-Lighting
  • 3.0 fps continuous shooting
  • Auto Active D-Lighting System
  • Custom Setting Options
  • Red eye correction

Sensor & Image Processor

The D3000 has an APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sized sensor. This is paired with the Expeed image processor. The Expeed image processor is also used on the Nikon D5000.

Video Capabilities

The Nikon D3000 can not record video.

Can the Nikon D3000 be used as a webcam?

No. The Nikon D3000 does not have clean HDMI out.

The Nikon D3000 can not be used as a webcam. There is no software or video capture device that will allow the camera to be used as a webcam.

Does the Nikon D3000 Have Wireless? Wifi, Bluetooth, GPS?

Specs Table

ManufacturerNikon
ModelD3000
MSRP$599.95
Body typeCompact DSLR
Max resolution3872 x 2592
Other resolutions2896 x 1944, 1936 x 1296
Image ratio w:h3:2
Effective pixels10.2 megapixels
Sensor photo detectors11 megapixels
Sensor sizeAPS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm)
Sensor typeCCD
ProcessorExpeed
ISOAuto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, (plus 3200 with boost)
Boosted ISO (minimum)None
Boosted ISO (maximum)3200.0
White balance presets12.0
Custom white balanceYes (5)
Image stabilizationNo
Image stabilization notesNone
Uncompressed formatRAW
JPEG quality levelsFine, Normal, Basic
Autofocus['Contrast Detect (sensor)', 'Phase Detect', 'Multi-area', 'Selective single-point', 'Single', 'Continuous']
Manual focusYes
Number of focus points11.0
Lens mountNikon F
Focal length multiplier1.5×
Articulated LCDFixed
Screen size3″
Screen dots230000
Touch screenNo
Screen typeNone
Live viewNo
Viewfinder typeOptical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder coverage95%
Viewfinder magnification0.8× (0.53× 35mm equiv.)
Minimum shutter speed30 sec
Maximum shutter speed1/4000 sec
Aperture priorityYes
Shutter priorityYes
Manual exposure modeYes
Subject / scene modesYes
Built-in flashYes (pop-up)
Flash range12.00 m (at ISO 100)
External flashYes (Hot-shoe)
Flash modesAuto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow sync, Rear curtain
Continuous drive3.0 fps
Self-timerYes (2, 5, 10 or 20 sec)
Metering modes['Multi', 'Center-weighted', 'Spot']
Exposure compensation±5 (at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps)
AE BracketingNone
WB BracketingNo
FormatNone
Videography notesNone
ModesNone
MicrophoneNone
SpeakerNone
Storage typesSD/SDHC
USBUSB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMINo
Microphone portNone
Headphone portNone
WirelessEye-Fi Connected
Wireless notesNone
Remote controlYes (Optional ML-L3)
Environmentally sealedNo
BatteryBattery Pack
Battery descriptionLithium-Ion EN-EL9a rechargeable battery & charger
Battery Life (CIPA)500.0
Weight (inc. batteries)536 g (1.18 lb / 18.91 oz)
Dimensions126 x 97 x 64 mm (4.96 x 3.82 x 2.52″)
Orientation sensorYes
Timelapse recordingNo
GPSNone
GPS notesNone

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