Digi SLR for beginner
Discussion
I know there's already a thread for digi SLR's but am new, I have a Casio Exilim for work and 'snapshots' but would like to get a bit more involved also the idea of changing lenses appeals - I go to a lot of air shows.
Local photoshop has recommended:
Nikon D50
Konica Minolta 5D (have heard a rumour that they have been bought by Sony, anyone know about this?)
Any other I should be looking at and what lenses should I be thinking of for a. general photography and b. airshows
Advice greatly appreciated, thanks.
Safety Engineer said:
Konica Minolta 5D (have heard a rumour that they have been bought by Sony, anyone know about this?)
Konica Minolta have announced that they are pulling out of all things photographic over the next year or so, which is a shame as I recently discovered their very high speed 35mm films that seem to offer great performance. But I digress ...
KM apparently have an agreement in place with SONY for some joint camera systems development. I have never checked up on what exactly but got the impression it was related to high end digital pro-sumer systems rather than digital SLRs. This part of the business will, apparently, be passed over to SONY for the work to continue.
From what I have read the Minolta 5D is a good piece of kit and unique in having anti-shake capability in the body rather than in the lenses. If the price is good it could be a decent purchase, the only limitation being the lack of development of the body and software (not necessarily an issue if it works ok now) and likewise lenses and their availability in the future. The upside to that is that, frankly, few cameras hold a high value for long anyway so if you are looking for a starter system but may upgrade later its resale value will be little different to that of any other system. But the availability of lenses at low cost new or used could be rather good, though the range on offer might be restricted. Of course the lens costs will not be elevated for anti-shake versions since the anti-shake is in the body so available for all lenses. Depending on how your photography develops this could offer useful savings, lenses being generally the higher expenditure over the long term.
To put that into perspective, I still use 35mm film SLR's (I have digital pocket cameras though) and can get some excellent lenses for a fraction of the cost of the latest equivalents. Against that I have to put up with manual focus but that doesn't really worry me. Mrs. LongQ still prefers her elderly Olympus AZ200 35mm zoom camera to the idea of a digital system. For what she wants it does produce some excellent results. Both systems are obsolete (even though in those examples the manufacturers are still around) and still giving good service.
If SONY decide to use the opportunity take on more of the KM set up than seemed to relate to the pre-existing agreement they would expand into markets they had not previously approached. That could be interesting.
The 'safe' money would would point to Nikon or Canon but the other maunfacturers would be worth considering if you try and like the systems and the Minolta, at a competitive end of line price for a fairly recently developed high spec system, could prove a good purchase as a 'buy and keep' system.
For review conclusions try here.
www.steves-digicams.com/2005_reviews/maxxum5d_pg7.html
You should find the competetitive system(s) reviewed on the site as well though the Minolt review only mentions the Canon Rebel XT (350D) since the Nikon D50 was launched slightly later in the year.
Safety Engineer said:
Thank you all vey much for that info, I'm not really interested in photography, more getting nice pictures (if that makes any sense).
Yes it makes sense, but almost any small pocket digicam can do that these days. To get the best out of going the SLR route (and the budget that doing so demands compared with pocket digicams) does point to the need to get at least a little involved in the 'mechanics' of photography in order to make a difference to the images shot when compared to the lower cost options.
I guess it all depends what you include under the heading of 'nice' that you don't see as possible with pocket size kit. My guess is that the key differences would be for serious portrait photography, fine-art quality landscapes and sports action, though towman posted some stunning F1 action shots a few months ago all taken with a non-SLR digicam, so even that may not be so much of a limitation.
For pretty much everything else, absent some complex flash shot requirements, the current crop of convenient pocket size cameras can do an excellent job. Most importantly they allow the option of having a camera with you at all times - as you know from the Casio.
I have never felt like carrying an SLR at all times.
What is your budget?
Do you want to haul around a camera and one or two lenses (probably reasonable large and heavy)? If the answer is "No!" then forget DSLRs. I am a photographer and I hate lugging around all this kit when I am not working.
There are some fantastic compacts around these days offering 7 or more mega pixels and that is far more than you will ever need for a 6x4 or 7x5 inch enlargment. Even some mobile phones do a pretty good job of capturing the moment.
Your choice of lens or lenses will be largely determined by the type of photography that interests you. Wides are great for landscape, car and social photography; long focal lengths are a must for portraits, natural history and sport; macro for natural history; and a standard lens is pretty flexible at covering most subjects. You may opt for one or two zoom lenses over a host of prime ones.
Once you have decided on DSLR vs compact, you can start to do some serious research. I did all mine on www.dpreview.com
>> Edited by EmmaP on Thursday 30th March 13:19
Do you want to haul around a camera and one or two lenses (probably reasonable large and heavy)? If the answer is "No!" then forget DSLRs. I am a photographer and I hate lugging around all this kit when I am not working.
There are some fantastic compacts around these days offering 7 or more mega pixels and that is far more than you will ever need for a 6x4 or 7x5 inch enlargment. Even some mobile phones do a pretty good job of capturing the moment.
Your choice of lens or lenses will be largely determined by the type of photography that interests you. Wides are great for landscape, car and social photography; long focal lengths are a must for portraits, natural history and sport; macro for natural history; and a standard lens is pretty flexible at covering most subjects. You may opt for one or two zoom lenses over a host of prime ones.
Once you have decided on DSLR vs compact, you can start to do some serious research. I did all mine on www.dpreview.com
>> Edited by EmmaP on Thursday 30th March 13:19
I think perhaps I should have expanded, I'm not interested in photography as a hobby but with the compcts, when I go to airshows I get little dots instead of aircraft on the flypasts, what I'm looking for is the basic knowledge combined with the right camera/lens combination to get some nice shoots at airshows. I've about £700 to play with but can stretch to a bit more if worthwhile doing. I don't mind carrying the gear as I carry a small daysack when I go to airshows anyway so would assume it can live in that whilst walking around.
Plan H could include looking at some of the top end of the Pro-sumer cameras.
Canon S2 IS for example (S3 IS will be released soon) should be good value with a 5Mpix sensor and a 12x zoom that goes over 400mm. The IS feature is potentially worth having in camera as well. Cost around half your budget. SONY H1 is a similar spec and, for some, may just have the edge over the Canon in some areas. There are a number of others in that sector of market and nearly all the reports I have read suggest that they offer a lot of potential for not too much money.
I would guess that a 400mm ish capable lens would be handy for air shows. There were some posts a few months ago with excellent airshow shots. But you may need to spend around £1000 on a quality zoom (400mm fixed would be a bit limiting) to get the sort of optical performance that delivers great shots in SLR land. Which would blow the budget.
Panasonic Lumix FZ systems might fit the bill as well. New model (and the others mentioned) tested here. Selling at $400 in the States it looks like a lot of camera for the dollars. Might be looking at them myself!
www.steves-digicams.com/
Canon S2 IS for example (S3 IS will be released soon) should be good value with a 5Mpix sensor and a 12x zoom that goes over 400mm. The IS feature is potentially worth having in camera as well. Cost around half your budget. SONY H1 is a similar spec and, for some, may just have the edge over the Canon in some areas. There are a number of others in that sector of market and nearly all the reports I have read suggest that they offer a lot of potential for not too much money.
I would guess that a 400mm ish capable lens would be handy for air shows. There were some posts a few months ago with excellent airshow shots. But you may need to spend around £1000 on a quality zoom (400mm fixed would be a bit limiting) to get the sort of optical performance that delivers great shots in SLR land. Which would blow the budget.
Panasonic Lumix FZ systems might fit the bill as well. New model (and the others mentioned) tested here. Selling at $400 in the States it looks like a lot of camera for the dollars. Might be looking at them myself!
www.steves-digicams.com/
KB_S1 said:
If your budget is around £700 you could go for a new D50 with the kit lens and add something like the Tamron 50-200 lens or buy the D50 body only and get Nikon's own 70-300. I am sure the Canon option would allow a similar route but I don't know it.
What he said.
D50 with the Nikkor 70-300 ED
We are also looking for a Digi SLR around that price
Went to Jessups today- theres two of them in Northampton
The first shop, I was asking about the D50 as we heard a rumour there was no B&W function,
the girl said 'yes, generally they have a B&W function'
I also asked if my old lenses would fit on the KM5D, answer 'yes generally they do work, but I'm not sure'
So we went to the other store, they guy in there was fantastic, so now we know there is no B&W on the D50
Also looked at the KM5D and the Canon 350D
However, the D50 felt better, looked better, priced better.... and I want it!
Went to Jessups today- theres two of them in Northampton
The first shop, I was asking about the D50 as we heard a rumour there was no B&W function,
the girl said 'yes, generally they have a B&W function'
I also asked if my old lenses would fit on the KM5D, answer 'yes generally they do work, but I'm not sure'
So we went to the other store, they guy in there was fantastic, so now we know there is no B&W on the D50
Also looked at the KM5D and the Canon 350D However, the D50 felt better, looked better, priced better.... and I want it!
I bought a Canon S1-IS, and it was useless for moving shots. The shutter lag was horrendous.
Also you have the problem of trying to zoom and push the shutter at the same time with your right index finger
I got lots of pictures of blue sky.
I now have a 300D, which is a good camera, but stuck a 100-400L IS lens on it(£1000).
You can get the basic Canon 75-300mm len, which is a couple of hundred. Stick that on a 350D, which are currently just over £500 at PC World and you will have a fairly decent set up for airshows/motorsport etc
you can always upgrade lenses as & when you want then.
I'm just keeping an eye on the 20D prices now
Also you have the problem of trying to zoom and push the shutter at the same time with your right index finger
I got lots of pictures of blue sky.
I now have a 300D, which is a good camera, but stuck a 100-400L IS lens on it(£1000).
You can get the basic Canon 75-300mm len, which is a couple of hundred. Stick that on a 350D, which are currently just over £500 at PC World and you will have a fairly decent set up for airshows/motorsport etc
you can always upgrade lenses as & when you want then.
I'm just keeping an eye on the 20D prices now
How about this.
www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/product/seo/605693
£491.00 if you buy on line. Gives you £200 or so to spend on lenses
www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/product/seo/605693
£491.00 if you buy on line. Gives you £200 or so to spend on lenses
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