Scottish Elises

I know there are a few budding photographers on the forum with some crackin photos being produced so theres plenty of you to offer advice.

Santa is bringing me a DSLR camera so what one do i go for?

I have no knowledge on them so whats the best entry-level camera for me?
What do you guys use?

TIA
Ross

Ross I have had Canon SLRs for 30 years and love them. My digital one is the 300D which is a few years old now there are later and improved models.

I would recommend going to a traditional camera shop such as Jessops and spending some time trying various ones out to see which suits you. You will find the guys helpful in a shop like that.

I'm with ExigeKen and use Canon DSLR's to make a living.

Can recommend the 400D (the latest version of the 300D) or for more cash the 40D is an excellent machine.

Nikon's latest camera's are a match for the Canons, especially the just launched D300 and D3.

To be honest anything from Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Olympus and now even Sony should be pretty good and it's good advice given above to go into the likes of Jessops and try them all in your hands to see what feels right. Also have a read at http://www.dpreview.com ; there's a load of info there and the camera reviews are excellent for getting ideas on what you might be looking for.

Any specific questions feel free to ask or send me a pm.

Andy.

thanks guys

Ross,

I got my DSLR for Xmas last year, from she who cares, and did research from about August last year through to the middle of December.

I am not with the others re Jessops, as it is very hit or miss with them, some branches seem good others full of muppets reading off the 4 line features list with the price on it, but then others have a couple of really knowledgeable well trained and enthusiastic sales people. Being in Sales, I hate being sold to, so maybe i am overly critical.

Anyway, i thought after a year of ownership of my Nikon D50 it might be worth posting some thoughts, and leave the pros to point you in the right direction camera and lens wise.

If I am honest i spent far too long researching it, got far too obsessed by it, i knew I didn't want to spent too much on my first camera, as i will upgrade it, and as such would find it harder to justify if I spent over £500.

I went for the Nikon D50 with kit lens (18-55mm) and also got a telephoto Tamron 70-300mm lens. Neither are brilliant, but both absolutely adequate for what i need right now. The D50 was on its way out, and there were some brilliant deals going about. It has been absolutely fantastic and has not missed a beat, and a joy to use. As has been said use Jessops to go in and do the most important thing, which is make sure that the camera feels good in your hands and comfortable. I have quite big hands, and as such the 400d is quite fiddly, the D50 felt really good, with a large grip, whereas they say Canon make the cameras for the Japanese who have very small hands and thin fingers! The trend is definitely for smaller bodies, and Nikon has brought out the D40, superseded i think now by the very nice D40X, which incidentally is getting very good reviews, albeit not great if you have older lenses as they wont work.

My list would be:

Nikon d50
d40x

Canon350d
400d

To be honest the bodies are not the important aspect to be honest, as you will read on nearly every photography forum or magazine, it is the 'glass' so invest wisely in some good lenses and you will notice the difference.
The more you pay with a lens, the better quality and faster it is usually. I am still feeling my way about regarding what next but my thoughts as to useful replacements or just a new lens would be:

Prime(fixed) lens - Nikon 50mm
Sigma 10-20mm - would be awesome for New York at Xmas
Better quality telephoto of some description, maybe with VR or IS (stabilisation to help reduce blur on shots)

As for useful places, you will stumble across thousands of billions of camera sites, there are hundreds of books on starting out in photography as well, but DP review is very good, excellent forum, Pistonheads forum also has a good photography section, and there are some excellent monthly magazines to add to your direct debit of car magazines that appear on my door step every month!

In summary, it has been a frustrating first year but enjoyable at the same time, I have very rarely if ever used the camera on Auto, I don't see the point, and have tried on every occasion to use either Aperture or Shutter speed and work out what is suitable for the situation. It is a million miles away from my Canon Ixus in terms of pointing and shooting, but when you get it right, and people comment positively on your work then it makes the hours of standing around at Knockhill in the cold and the 450 shots out of 500 you took that were sh*te and not worth keeping as out of focus, worth while.

So I guess whilst it has been frustrating, it has also been immensely enjoyable, a huge learning curve and that curve it still going. I have found Flickr a really useful and good site for burning away hours of free time, as you can host your pictures, join groups with others who will then as you progress critique your work. I have met with two guys online who live 10 minutes or so from me, we all post in the same group 'Dundee and Roondaboot' and they are both extremely good photographers and have always sent me a PM or added comments to my photos when i post them on my page or add them to the group. http://www.flickr.com and you will find my pictures at http://www.flickr.com/photos/dgmhay

Andy has also posted already and Stewart is very good. Also check out http://www.stevecarter.com as he is an inspiration, and not just his photophraphy, but is also faily handy with a camera.

Lots and lots to learn matey, so if you don't understand aperture, shutter speed, composition, depth of field, the rule of thirds, the list goes on get your head stuck in a book, as your time will be much better spent reading up on that, rather than reading more reviews about this camera and that camera, and this lens etc etc!!!

I cannot believe i have written so much, mostly rambling rubbish, and i doubt even you Ross, let alone anyone else has bothered to read all of it, but you did ask!!! It has helped while away this year without a Lotus, and I fear that once Lotus keys in hand early next year, my photography may take a back seat so to speak!

Good luck whatever you choose!

Dave

One more thing to add - and Dave hasn't left much out......

Best for buying when it comes to splash the cash is Warehouse Express at
http://www.warehouseexpress.co.uk , pretty much the best prices and a great service as well - we buy all our gear from them!

Agree with Dave re the sales team at Jessops although there is a chap in the Sauchiehall Street branch called Dave who knows his stuff or you could also try Calumet in Oakbank Industrial estate, off Garscube Road in Glasgow for having a try.

Andy.

Dave has more or less said all that needs to be said. I would echo that there probably isn't too much to choose between Canon and Nikon. Like Dave I chose to go into a shop to see how both cameras felt in my hands. I came away preferring the Nikon. I have a D70. The Canon 300D was the comparable camera at the time and it felt a little more "toy like".

Unless you are aiming to make a living out of it, don't go over board. There is much to learn. A bit like buying a Ferrari after just passing your test when a fiat uno will still get you from A to B. You may well tire of it after a couple of months and your £800 camera will have halved in value.

Steve Carter is also an inspiration as is Matt Watkinson http://www.mattwatkinson.com/portfolio/index.htm both are regular posters on the Pistonheads photography forum clicky

I must admit to being in the Nikon camp since the mid 90's
perviously having been a Canon fan with a manual focus T90 and collection of Pro len's ~until Canon made them obsolete over night as none are compatable with Canons A/F mount's

Whereas even an old manual focus Nikon len's will fit and work to some extent with Nikon's D SLR'S and almost all Nikon fit auto focus len's will work giving a 1/3 longer focal length over that given for 35mm film fitment

A S/H Nikon D50 has just got me dusting off a collection of len's after years in the dolbrums with a digital still camara and 3 X zoom

ross,
i use a Canon 400D and highly recommend it. meanwhile u can also check out http://www.dpreview.com for detailed comparison of different models.

came home from Dublin last night after a sh*t week and santa had left a 400D with a Tamron 55-200mm with a 2GB card and carry case...


now marks the start of the steep learning curve on how to use the thing...

I use a D200 but I think it's overkill, I don't understand half the settings. I think if I were more competent with it, It would be a cracking setup.

G.

Rag_It wrote: To be honest the bodies are not the important aspect to be honest, as you will read on nearly every photography forum or magazine, it is the 'glass' so invest wisely in some good lenses and you will notice the difference.

Wise words, but.... one thing to keep in mind.. if you decide to fork out for proper glass (lenses), you will find that the lenses will be getting rather heavy and big.
A body like the 400D will be very small when it's combined with bigger lenses (I'm using a 70-200 L 2.8 which is too big for a 400D)

You will have a practical need to move to the 40D (or similar size) to work with these lenses.

I jumped camp from Minolta earier in the year and after putting WAYYYY too much thought into it went into Jessops in Sauchiehall street to buy a D200., After speaking to a very nice man who was very helpful I walked out with a D80 with a 50mm lens. I picked up a 18-200 VR in China last month (bit cheaper than here).

I love my new camera.


Pete

Sony A-100 is a nice bit of kit. Minolta internals originally, breathed on with some Sony electronics and improved external build quality, 10mp CCD.

I bought a 2-lens kit from an eBay shop this summer for sub-£500 and have been really, really pleased with it.

Was formerly a stoic Minolta user/supporter so it's hardly surpising.

I guess I have to add that a close friend and also my Dad have both bought Canon D-somethings (maybe 400s?, not sure). Dad is a professional landscape photographer also normally pro-Minolta, so maybe he knows something I don't. Or has more cash. Or both

Enjoy the choosing.

Campbell

In other words spend loads of money and just buy what feels nice in your hand a bit like women really enjoy