first slr, advice/opinions welcomed!

rafikiwilliams

rafikiwilliams

Well-known member
hey everyone im looking to buy an slr. and I dont really know where to start. I've used p&s cameras for forever, and I kinda want to get more in photography so im looking for a nice little slr. for budget im probably looking for about $1500 total.

any opions as to what to get, seems like the canon rebel and nikon 40 are the typical bases, but would anyone reccomend something a bit more... solid?

i dont want a plastic feeling camera and ive noticed the canon feels plasticy..

well yea please help me out, just lookin for a camera, lenses, ect. I would like to use the camera on outdoor things mostly like hiking/camping/climbing so it would be good if I had a durable one.

ill stop rambling now and wait for someone to try and help me! thanks all!
 
Sounds like you have already kind of written off Canon. That said, I would still advise that you go to the store and try out as many cameras as possible.

I'm really only very knowledgeable about Nikon....so I'll start there. If this is your first DSLR ever, then I would suggest the D40. It is super cheap and very powerful. And regardless of brand, I don't know anyone who wouldn't tell you to sink all your $$$ into your lenses and not the body. So I would suggest you find Nikon's 17-55 f/2.8 AF-S. That lens with a D40 is a powerful combo and will work well inside with no flash.

Also, I would suggest you buy everything used. Lots of people go through this equipment with "upgradeitis", so you can usually get a great deal on this stuff when it's been hardly used at all. So here would be my suggestion for a sucessful DSLR kit.

- Nikon D40 body (If you can get the body by itself, then don't worry about the 18-55 kit lens. I've seen just the body sell used for like $300-350. I had one and it was awesome. Wish I still had it when my D200 is just too much.)
- Nikon 17-55mm f/2.8 AF-S lens (Great for wide angle and inside stuff. It can be found used for about $900ish)
- Nikon 55-200 f/3.5-5.6 AF-S VR (It's slow for some stuff, but with the Vibration reduction for the long shots and the reach is great for outdoor stuff. Too slow for inside stuff, but it will cost you another $1300 to get a fast Nikon lens in that range....so this one is a good value around $150-175 used.)
- Nikon SB-600 Speedlight (I'd just get this one new b/c it's hard to find used. On amazon for $190 w/ free shipping.)

Note: This was all written trying to keep your price range in mind. If what you really want to shoot is landscape, and you want to do it digitally, then I would point you in a whole different direction. The Canon 5D is a full frame sensor and with a wide lens you can make some awesome stuff. It will also put you well over your budget. And of course once you get really good at landscape with digital then I would say turn to film. You could get you a 220 backed medium format film camera, or even a 4x5, but you are going to need a meter and a good understanding for how filters and film speed effect your exposure. I'm just kind of rambling now, but figured I would give you something to google.
 
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Might look at a used one to get your feet wet with. Save your money for when you know what you want. I picked up a d70 for about 450 a year ago. Probably could get one even cheaper now. Buy a couple of lenses and a speedlight. Then go play and learn. And as much as I like the sb600 that Dan reccomended if you really want to learn photography and know exactly what you are doing and how it all works get a cheaper manual flash like the sunpak 383 or vivitar 285. If you want to expand get an umbrella and stand and maybe another speedlight. And go read strobist. Lots to learn there and he'll show you how to do it on a budget.
 
They just stopped selling the Viv's as the company/production stock was sold, so I fear they will be going up in price on ebay until a replacement is made. I just figured that given the amount of $$$ he is spending overall that I would rather spend the extra $100 to have all of the Auto settings of the Sb600 when he is using it on camera. And maybe eventually he could us CLS if he upgrades his camera or buys an SB800 or something. Plus with mentioning the landscape stuff I figured he would be using it on camera more often anyway.

I do second the recommendation to check out strobist. Lots of good info. Might be a little overwhelming for a true beginner, esp if you don't even have the camera yet.....but still very informative.
 
i believe that the pentax mentioned earlier has a real pentaprism viewfinder, which is good for manual focusing, and weather sealing on the body, which is handy for the type of outdoor use you are talking about... i think that some of the canon/nikon models also have weather sealing, but it might cost more to get a comparable model with that feature.
 
Don't look at it like "what camera should I buy", look at it like "what lens system do I want to invest it." In other words, whatever camera you go for, make sure it takes Nikon or canon lenses. A camera body can always be changed but you will be stuck with the lens mount that all the lenses you accumulate over the years are. (Nikon and Canon are not bad lenses to be stuck with, especially because in general Nikon and Canon sensors are the cleanest)

Manufacturers don't market or advertise their lenses to the general public because that's just one lens. If they push their camera bodies then they are really getting you to invest in their lenses by default.
 
I haven't done price comparing but factory refurbished is the way to go with Digital SLRs since the only moving part is the shutter. I wouldn't do refurbished for a video camera because of the tape heads.
 
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