[jyl]

I think it is about time to try out a digital SLR. Now, I know this stuff is pretty new-fangled and may turn out to be a passing fad, like automatic transmissions and them little cellphones. So I don't want to spend a lot of $.

I'm planning to buy a used Nikon DSLR that will accept my manual-focus Nikkor Ai/AiS lenses, and also buy one (1) fantastic plastic auto-focus zoom do-everything slow-as-molasses lens for everyday use.

The Nikon DSLRs that I'm looking at, and which will meter with Ai/AiS lenses, are the DX-sensor D200 and D300, and the full-frame D700. (The D1/2/3's are more pounds than I really want to tote around, in addition to being either way obsolete or way expensive. The D300S doesn't seem like a big improvement over the D300.)

A used D200 body costs about $600 (eBay price). A used D300 body costs about $1,100 (eBay price). The D700 costs $1,900-2,000 for a used body (eBay prices).

Which would you get? I can pay up for the D700, but would need a really solid reason to do so.

Next, which lens would you get for everyday use? I don't want the crappiest kit lens that Nikon's beancounters ever squeezed out, but I don't need pro-level stuff either.