2269 replies to this topic

[Red Willow]

My husband had an accident with my camera whilst on holiday and I want to upgrade to a DSLR for a Fuji 5700.

I want something that is easy to learn, has auto for when I feel lazy but has scope to grow with me.

I am comparing Canon, Nikon, Olympus cameras and wanted any comments.

Budget is around £500

Edited by Red Willow, 12 June 2008 - 06:59 AM.

[gingerjon]

I have a Nikon D40x which has been superseded by the D60. It's a superb, light camera which has the right mix (to my mind) of auto features and manual control.

The only downside, and it is a major one, is that lenses for it must have an AF motor on the lens as the camera itself doesn't have one. This means that for Nikon badged lenses you're restricted to AF-S and from Sigma they have to be HSM ones. These are comparatively new systems which means there's no secondhand market as such so getting more lenses once you've got your initial bundle won't necessarily be cheap or easy.

Jessops are currently offering a bundle of a D60 with 18-55 and 70-200 lenses plus bag, battery and memory card for £603.

Exiled Townie has a Canon that I'm sure he'll praise and Kenilworth Tiger likes Sony. It's horses for courses ultimately, go with what you're comfortable with.

[shrek]

I've got a Cannon 400, now superseded by the 450d.

Whilst I am happy with mine, a lot of reviews I've read of the 450d whilst complimentary do point out it the range doesn't seem to have kept pace with rivals such as Sony.

That said you may be able to pick up the Cannon 40D for around your budget, which is coming down in price of late.

I found with mine that what ever you spend on the camera you better have 3 times that amount tucked away for the lenses you'll be buying over the coming months!

[l'angelo mysterioso]

My husband had an accident with my camera whilst on holiday and I want to upgrade to a DSLR for a Fuji 5700.

I want something that is easy to learn, has auto for when I feel lazy but has scope to grow with me.

I am comparing Canon, Nikon, Olympus cameras and wanted any comments.

Budget is around £500

your price range is about right-but you should be able to get deals less than that, for instance nikon are doing a cash back scheme at the moment.

there is little or nothing to choose between the cameras that the main manufacturers put out.
shop around and see which one suits you.

Edited by l'angelo mysterioso, 09 June 2008 - 12:39 PM.

[candlestickchimney]

I also have the 400D, with the kit lens and couple of others. It's a great camera and I've learned a lot about photography in the 6 months I've had it. You could certainly pick one up for around £300 second hand now including a lens, and once you've learned how to use it, it'll p!ss all over a point & shoot in terms of quality. You can get a 40D which is the next obvious step up (I could see little reason to move from a 400D to the 450D) for around £500 now, including Canon cashback, but you'd still need to spend money on a lens, and thats before bags, tripods etc

My 3 best recomendations are:

1) Join the Talk Photography forum, as even if you're buying new, you'll find better prices from the forum members than you would on ebay, and they are very very helpful about everything photography related (a bit like the people on here ).

2) Buy a copy of Understanding Exposure by Bryan Patterson - changed the way I thought about photography and taught me a lot about taking light readings, white balance and exposing, and is really easy to read.

3) If you get a Canon, spend £50 on a 50mm 1.8 lens (a nifty fifty) and have some fun with it!!

Edited by candlestickchimney, 09 June 2008 - 12:51 PM.

[gingerjon]

2) Buy a copy of Understanding Exposure by Bryan Patterson - changed the way I thought about photography and taught me a lot about taking light readings, white balance and exposing, and is really easy to read.

100% agree. Fantastic book.

[Exiled Townie]

GJ (happy birthday to you-ooo) is right, everyone seems to prefer a certain make, and once you have bought one you tend to stick with it because the lenses are expensive and only fit that brand of camera. I have an 'old' Canon 300D, I love it, it still does everything I require, but it is so 'comfortable' and easy to use, I don't think I'll be changing for a little while yet - I did however splash out on a very expensive lens, and together they give me good photos The advice I would give, is get out into the shops and handle as many as you can. If friends have cameras, ask to have a feel of theirs. Read up on websites and ask questions about them, and slowly you will start to make your mind up and favour one sort above others. Here's a few different types of photo I have taken with my camera, ( and remember, mine is waaay behind the latest ones) just to show how versatile these digital cameras are:-

[Severus]

Cracking RL shot. Crystal clear.

[Exiled Townie]

Cracking RL shot. Crystal clear.

Cheers Sev, just trying to show Red Willow how a reasonably cheap digital SLR camera does so many things. It's mailny down to the camera, as I still think of myself as a 'happy snapper'. GingerJon might stick a few of his on here as well..... getting a bit of a rep behind the camera is our Ginge.

[Red Willow]

Got a couple of mags on the subject and there seems little between the systems. I knew once I made a choice I had bought into that system, which was why Sony had me a little worried as you seem limited to their lens.

Any comments about the image stablisation on the lens or the body?

What does the lens do?

Great photos!

I am due to get a long service award of £150 in vouchers and thought this would be an ideal chance to use them.

[candlestickchimney]

Love the colours on the windsurfing pic, ET!! What expensive L glass are you using, so I can call you a jameater in jealousy???

[candlestickchimney]

Got a couple of mags on the subject and there seems little between the systems. I knew once I made a choice I had bought into that system, which was why Sony had me a little worried as you seem limited to their lens.

Any comments about the image stablisation on the lens or the body?

What does the lens do?

Great photos!

I am due to get a long service award of £150 in vouchers and thought this would be an ideal chance to use them.

The lens is probably the most important bit of your set up - you could have the worlds best camera but stick a cheap plasticky lens on the front of it and you probably get worse results than a point & shoot. If you can afford £200 for a sharp lens and a camera, then do that as opposed to a better body and cheap lens.

With regards to image stabilisation, it depends on what kind of photo's you're planning on taking (if you're taking landscapes, a tripod would be 'stabalising' the camera and lens most probably), but if your looking for it on a body, then a Pentax or a Sony might be a better option. None of my lenses have IS, and you don't necessarily need it if you get 'fast' lenses ie those with a wide aperture like F2.8 or faster.

Sony cameras have good reviews, as do Olympus and Pentax, but with Canon & Nikon being market leaders, there are a lot more 3rd party lenses and products available, which tends to bring prices down. That said, it was a toss up between the Pentax K100D and the Canon 400D when I bought mine, and I would have been happy with either

[gingerjon]

I used a Samsung GX10 (essentially a rebadged Pentax) when 'On Assignment' with Amateur Photographer last year. It's a very good camera although a bit heavier than I would like if out on a long shoot. I think it's GX20 now but it's well worth a look and the lenses that go with it (Schneider I think - but also rebadged as Samsung) do get good reviews.

[Severus]

OMG. And you lot call me a geek.

[gingerjon]

you lot call me a geek

Geek!

[Red Willow]

I have a Pentax waterproof point and click and am impressed with the photos it produces.

When I asked about the lens I meant 50mm lens!

I suppose I am looking for a camera that isn't bulky or heavy, but has high quality pictures. I am looking at this becoming more of a hobby in the future.

Amazing what you learn about people by asking a simple question!!

Edited by Red Willow, 10 June 2008 - 12:38 PM.

[Exiled Townie]

Any comments about the image stablisation on the lens or the body?

I have IS (image stabilisation) built into my lens as a fair number of my photos tend to be of rugby league or my dog bombing about, some at a fair old distance. All it is for is that it stops that little bit of 'shake' and blurring on the photo when photographing quick moving objects or objects that are far away.

Love the colours on the windsurfing pic, ET!! What expensive L glass are you using, so I can call you a jameater in jealousy???

You should recognise the windsurfing location, it's at Allonby - in November!!
(Smug mode//) My lens is a Canon 28-300 EF f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM (End smug mode.) Great piece of kit (should be for how much it cost) but the thinking behind it its that for the kind of photos I take, I shouldn't need any another lens for a long, long time.

[candlestickchimney]

I have IS (image stabilisation) built into my lens as a fair number of my photos tend to be of rugby league or my dog bombing about, some at a fair old distance. All it is for is that it stops that little bit of 'shake' and blurring on the photo when photographing quick moving objects or objects that are far away.

You should recognise the windsurfing location, it's at Allonby - in November!!
(Smug mode//) My lens is a Canon 28-300 EF f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM (End smug mode.) Great piece of kit (should be for how much it cost) but the thinking behind it its that for the kind of photos I take, I shouldn't need any another lens for a long, long time.

Aye, I'd recognise them waves anywhere....... Nice lens, especially given the zoom range it covers, though I would have to sell a couple of goats and the wife to get anywhere near affording one!!

Jameater!!

[Severus]

OT a bit but I thought you might enjoy these pictures.

Linky

[Kenilworth Tiger]

I use a Sony ALpha 700 - the dogs nuts BUT way over your budget - you could do worse than look at the new Sony Alpha 350 which has LiveView - perfect for those new to DSLR who have experience of standard digital camera

Some of my pics are on http://www.carlmitch...ery_136279.html