>>203139>get a nikon d5100Get a better body; specifically one with an internal AF motor. That one part is worth the price of an upgraded body.
Without that motor, the only lenses that'll AF on that body are lenses with an AF motor of their own. Which pretty much limits you to the AF-S glass, and excludes most Tokina, Tamron, Sigma, and the older D-series Nikkor lenses.
Nikon's 12-24 f4 AF-S ultrawide is about $700.
A Tokina 12-24 f4 will run you about $400.
One lens just paid for the upgraded body.
On the topic of glass .... the camera body's the cheap part of a DSLR. Buying used lenses can save a lot of money, and as long as you take care of your equipment the glass will hold its value. But you're still looking at $500-1000 for each decent zoom lens. Primes can be a little cheaper till you get to the longer end (85mm+) since there's a lot fewer elements and moving parts.
I shoot with a D90 and love it, though I've got my eye on the D7100 in a year or two and keep the D90 as a 2nd body.
>Pic related, shot a moto race last weekend>shot paid for my expenses that dayAlso have a Sony P&S (DSC-H2), had it for about 6 years and it takes great shots but it's starting to show its age. Good small throw-n-go camera when I don't want to lug around the Nikon.
On my helmet is a Contour Roam. Waterproof, stupid simple to operate, and because of that I can get some shots that I could never get otherwise.
Then there's my phone camera which doesn't really count.
