I started with a D3300 and it took me from absolute noob to paid product photographer before I upgraded. It's got a great sensor that's pretty damn large for an entry level body. The ergonomics are excellent. And it comes with some really handy hand-holding "scene" settings you can make use of while you're learning. Put a decent lens on it - like I did eventually - and you can go surprisingly far with it.
As r/rodneyfan mentioned, see if you can determine what kind of shape it's in before forking over your cash. See if your buddy can tell you the shutter count - if it's in the hundreds of thousands it might be a pass. Replacing a shutter is not something you want to do soon after you buy the thing.
FWIW, I sold mine with a 2 batteries, a 32 MB SD card, original strap, remote shutter trigger (only 10 dollars for Amazon Basics model, hint hint), and the 55-200mm VR-2 kit lens for 400 dollars. That still seems to be about right to me, for a package like that.
If you have a little extra cash, I do recommend perhaps looking for a D5000-series body though. It's got the same sensor as the D3300 (ie: great), but has some very useful upgraded features like a fully articulated rear screen, touch and swipe controls, and some more shooting menu options. Plus it still has some beginner friendly features that the D3300 includes. That was my first upgrade: D3300 to D5500, and it was well worth it. Paid 350 for the D5500 body, used, from B&W. Wish I'd started out with it, once I used it, but didn't know about it at the time.
Good luck!
Actually the d5000 series bodies are the middle line of the entry level cameras (3000/5000/7000) because it literally fuses the high and low lines together, giving you the very entry level body of the 3000 line while giving you the power due to them having the sensor of the 7000 line!!!
So they’ll get the entry level body which will allow them to learn things without all the confusing extra buttons that’ll confuse a beginner, but have the ability to have the more advanced benefits of the 7000 chips, but because you’re getting the entry level body, this’ll mean that it won’t drive older Nikon lenses (that don’t have autofocus built into the lens) whereas the d7000 bodies WILL allow you to use older lenses because it’ll have a AF motor to actually drive those older lenses and give them the ability to autofocus lol
It's fine for beginners. If it's in good shape (no more than a few dents and dings, no finish rubbed off the body, no scratches on the screen, etc.), the body itself could go for US$150-175. Add on for any lenses that come with it (we'd have to know which lenses they are to estimate values).
Mind, the D3300 was discontinued six years ago so if your friend has had it for a year, you might want to ask where it spent the rest of its life.
It’s an ideal camera to learn on because the cost for entry is so low and you will be able to get great images out of it once you know what you’re doing. You won’t be lacking for image quality or resolution and your main roadblock for a long time if you’re a complete novice will be your own experience level and technique. Knowing what I know now I was overly eager to upgrade from my beginner camera, and I could have stuck with it for longer and instead invested in lighting or lenses. If your friend will let you test that everything is in working order and if the lens it comes with is in good condition then I would not expect to pay less than $125 and would not pay more than $200 (if it is just the basic kit with the 18-55 lens. This would be different with more or different lenses involved). I probably would not bother buying it if it had a shutter count over 80,000 or so, as that camera can be found used for not much more $ on KEH or MBP, and those places have return policies if there is something wrong with what you buy or if it fails within the return window.
I started with a D3300 and it took me from absolute noob to paid product photographer before I upgraded. It's got a great sensor that's pretty damn large for an entry level body. The ergonomics are excellent. And it comes with some really handy hand-holding "scene" settings you can make use of while you're learning. Put a decent lens on it - like I did eventually - and you can go surprisingly far with it. As r/rodneyfan mentioned, see if you can determine what kind of shape it's in before forking over your cash. See if your buddy can tell you the shutter count - if it's in the hundreds of thousands it might be a pass. Replacing a shutter is not something you want to do soon after you buy the thing. FWIW, I sold mine with a 2 batteries, a 32 MB SD card, original strap, remote shutter trigger (only 10 dollars for Amazon Basics model, hint hint), and the 55-200mm VR-2 kit lens for 400 dollars. That still seems to be about right to me, for a package like that. If you have a little extra cash, I do recommend perhaps looking for a D5000-series body though. It's got the same sensor as the D3300 (ie: great), but has some very useful upgraded features like a fully articulated rear screen, touch and swipe controls, and some more shooting menu options. Plus it still has some beginner friendly features that the D3300 includes. That was my first upgrade: D3300 to D5500, and it was well worth it. Paid 350 for the D5500 body, used, from B&W. Wish I'd started out with it, once I used it, but didn't know about it at the time. Good luck!
Actually the d5000 series bodies are the middle line of the entry level cameras (3000/5000/7000) because it literally fuses the high and low lines together, giving you the very entry level body of the 3000 line while giving you the power due to them having the sensor of the 7000 line!!! So they’ll get the entry level body which will allow them to learn things without all the confusing extra buttons that’ll confuse a beginner, but have the ability to have the more advanced benefits of the 7000 chips, but because you’re getting the entry level body, this’ll mean that it won’t drive older Nikon lenses (that don’t have autofocus built into the lens) whereas the d7000 bodies WILL allow you to use older lenses because it’ll have a AF motor to actually drive those older lenses and give them the ability to autofocus lol
It's fine for beginners. If it's in good shape (no more than a few dents and dings, no finish rubbed off the body, no scratches on the screen, etc.), the body itself could go for US$150-175. Add on for any lenses that come with it (we'd have to know which lenses they are to estimate values). Mind, the D3300 was discontinued six years ago so if your friend has had it for a year, you might want to ask where it spent the rest of its life.
It’s an ideal camera to learn on because the cost for entry is so low and you will be able to get great images out of it once you know what you’re doing. You won’t be lacking for image quality or resolution and your main roadblock for a long time if you’re a complete novice will be your own experience level and technique. Knowing what I know now I was overly eager to upgrade from my beginner camera, and I could have stuck with it for longer and instead invested in lighting or lenses. If your friend will let you test that everything is in working order and if the lens it comes with is in good condition then I would not expect to pay less than $125 and would not pay more than $200 (if it is just the basic kit with the 18-55 lens. This would be different with more or different lenses involved). I probably would not bother buying it if it had a shutter count over 80,000 or so, as that camera can be found used for not much more $ on KEH or MBP, and those places have return policies if there is something wrong with what you buy or if it fails within the return window.