I've seen the D200 camera body on sale for around $1,399.00, but if I remember correctly, I think I paid $1,699.00 plus tax (and then got a $100 rebate). I also use the optional dual-battery pack which is another $200.00. The lens I usually use for R/Cs cost even more than the camera body (it's about $1,500.00 plus change). Then there are accessories, i.e. protective filters (which I have cracked and aren't cheap either), a different strap, extra batteries, compact flash cards, a bag, and so on.

Consequently, if a racer crashes his $1,000 plus change buggy near me because he can't drive or crash near a turnmarshall, there should be no doubt why I won't bother to flip his R/C over when I'm taking photos with $3K+ in camera equipment. The next Nikon camera up is the D2Xs which is around $4,500.00 and the next lens up is around $6K or so. But heck that is nothing compared to the Hasselblad H3D-39 (39 megapixel) that I tried out in LA, which is just under $30K now at B&H in NYC. It was around $47K.

However, if you are interested in taking R/C photos, you can get by much cheaper as long as you shoot outside in good light. I started with a D50 and a two-lens Sigma kit which still took some great photos. Basically, that camera is just slower and has less megapixel. The Sigma lenses, that I still have, were also slower which means they craved light and if the light was poor, they couldn't focus. As in R/C, the "faster" camera equipment is usually more expensive. Everything is also usually dependent on the "light" and/or the amount of light that a lens can take in. For example, the F/2.8 lenses are usually more expensive than something around F/4-5.