What type of camera to buy?

I'm a film student and I'm looking for a really nice, high quality camera to work with, preferably something that can shoot professional-ish grade stuff. I'm fine with most cameras, but I'm thinking something like a Nikon 3200 or something like that. I need something durable and can last but also shoots well.

If you have a camera you like and think it'd be good for me to use, please let me know! My price range is from around $200 to $600- $700, but I'd prefer it not to go higher then $650

The Nikon D3300 and D5300 series cameras can produce professional quality images. Unless you drop them or leave them out in the rain, they will give you years, maybe decades of service.

If you have visited the Nikon website, you will see that there are NO $200 digital SLR cameras made. A Nikon D3200 refurbished by NikonUSA costs about $380 with lens and a refurbished Nikon D5300 costs about $490 with lens.

Buying refurbished cameras from Nikon is a pretty sweet deal and can save you many hundreds of Dollars.

Adorama currently has some D3300 and D5300 refurbished cameras for sale at those prices

Does "film student" mean that you need a video camera?

D3200

Lol wants professional grade stuff chooses a beginners entry level dslr which 7 years olds have

I know that you may not want to hear this, thus I'm possibly just wasting my time typing it up BUT, on the off chance that you are not the typical amateur "film"maker and are willing to put aside your whims for true investment in success, I'm going to keep going.

If you are a film student, this leads me to believe you are attending some sort of school with a film department. Said film department should have "really nice, high quality camera[s]" for you to check out and use for days and weeks and months on end, in spades. Your tuition helps to pay for your use of cameras that you would probably never be able to afford to buy personally out of pocket.

$650 barely covers the cost of most GOOD DLSR lenses, in short, this indicates to me that you don't have a lot of disposable income. If you want to put this money into a personal use camera, fine, but just be aware that this is nowhere near what you should be using for important projects and learning FILM, not video, making. Why? Because DSLR's function very little like professional motion picture cameras. There are some fundamentals there, sure and those are necessary, but I'm just saying, don't fool yourself into thinking you have some high power tool that is going to lead you down a golden road. That path is best taken by spending hours upon hours with equipment that should be provided by your school.

Buy your DSLR (the D3200 is fine enough) or 35mm SLR (if you want to be a filmmaker, you probably love the look of real film and enjoy the process of using it) for the basic photography classes that will be requisite. Or for fun. But don't lose sight of the Arri or Aaton 16mm cameras that a filmmaker typically learns on.

Even if you are actually studying to be a videographer, the point remains that there are much nicer video cameras out there like Sony Cine Alta, RED and even Black Magic products that you should be spending your time with.

The more time you spend studying and using professional equipment, the more comfortable and valuable you will be on professional shoots. Spend your time on consumer grade equipment and you will limit yourself right out of the gate.

Also, that $650 would be better used to pay for food for your cast and crew during a project that is being shot with a serious film camera. Make your cast and crew happy to work with you and you'll go far.

Best of luck at whatever you choose to do and please accept my apologies if there's something about your situation that I'm misunderstanding. Also, don't forget to choose a best answer!