Thinking of buying Nikon D300S, alternatives?

I'm not the best in cameras but what I want is something simelar to Nikon D300s but cheaper.

Features I'm looking for is HD-recording video.

Added (1). Thank you too everyone for helping me!

But taylor, would you prefer the d7000 over d5100?

D5100 and d3100 for beginners. They even support hd 1080p 30fps, they are even cheap!

Nowadays there's very little reason to consider a D300s. You pay a lot for features that you don't need, or of which very most are available in cheaper cameras. Especially for recording video it has been long since superceded by is newer siblings.

Consider the D5100 or D7000. Both give the D300s a run for its money when it comes to recording video, and also for very most photography related applications.

D300s is a very fine camera but not for video. A d5100 or D7000 blows it away on video

Nikon D60 is great.

While the Nikon D300s is an excellent choice, the D7000 sensor out performs it. If you are willing to wait until the third quarter of 2012, the new D400 will become available which promises to be a technological leap into higher resolution and Full HD video (as the D7000 has now)

Nikon D7000, Canon EOS 60D and Pentax K-5.

Canon has the best HD recording, it has 60fps in it and better manual audio control levels.

Here's a DSLR Buying Guide - http://www.the-dslr-photographer.com/2009/11/which-dslr-to-buy/

D7000, or if in a pinch, D90 (which has the same sensor as the D300s).

I would not go to a D3100 or D5100 as they are entry level cameras, and if you are expecting the flexibility of a D300s, you will be missing our on many features with the D3100 or D5100 (focus motor, CLS commander, and so on).

Camera choice - especially in a DSLR - is a lot more than just pixel counts.

I agree with most people here. I'd say go with the D7000.It shoots really good full 1080p HD videos and crisp and clear photos. I wouldn't talk much about the features and would simply recommend you read this very detailed review and let it do the talking. Its a great review and will be really helpful as it compares the D7000 with D300s and some other models too.

http://www.amazon.com/...1CMQJYE4S/

I would also suggest you watch the video sample from here and see how amazingly it works in low light. The price details etc are also here, this is the best price i could find:

http://www.amazon.com/...0042X9LC4/

Yes, i would prefer it over the D5100 because it has many more focus points, much larger viewfinder, has a built-in focus motor (which means you don't have to pay extra money to get a lens with a in-body focus motor. Its better to pay for the same thing once than pay for it again and again later, right?), has many more cross-type focus points, significantly longer battery life, much better viewfinder coverage, shoots faster, has a pentaprism viewfinder, weather sealed, less shutter lag, has more storage slots, slightly more dynamic range, much faster max shutter speed, less startup delay and is slightly thinner. All these things, little or not, matter alot, atleast to me they do. And because we're comparing these cameras with D300s, D7000 surely is the one that can give you that kind of quality, not exactly the same but closer.