Need advice on choice of bodies.


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wongzn

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Sep 8, 2009
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Hi all, i'm very keen on getting a relatively good body (in general sense) and i'm in a dilemma now and can't seem to be able to decide on which camera body.

I am looking for a camera for 1. Event photography (eg parties) , 2. Street and travel Photography and 3. Portraits ( Human, Animal and Objects). The lenses i am interested in, for now, are 17-55 f2.8 and Sigma 50 f1.4 (i'm a sucker for bokeh). Budget wise i am willing to do 2k max for body. I do not need video functions. I'm leaning towards canon but still open to suggestions for other brands, esp Nikon.

I've been into photography for a few months and i'm very keen on venturing more. I hope you experienced big brothers can advice me on what body is suitable for my style and budget. I know i'm new but i rather pay more now on a more expensive body rather than to upgrade again in the near future. Save the money and hassel ;). Thanks in advance and sorry for my long-winded story.
 

depends how much you want to spend.

if Nikon, grab a second hand D200/D300 + SB800 + 18-200 VR and you are set. If you dont like it, can sell away with minimal loss.
 

err...
what r u using now?
if u r with canon now, jus stick with canon.if nikon, stick with nikon.
my assumption is that u might already have some gears since u hv been into photography for a few mths, so y waste them.

2K, i believe canon 7D n nikon D300s are above ur budget.

i'm not into canon, so i won't comment much on canon or other brands as i do not hv the updated info.

but for nikon, for brand new, u r lookin at the d90 which will go ard sgd1300++ for body only.
for nikon, my fave general len is the 16-85VR.
Oops, dun forget the flash. either sb600 or the newer n more juice sb900.

alternately, if u dun mind the hassle, u can source for a d300s from JB.
price should be within sgd2200.but note warranty is from Nikon Malaysia, no international warranty for cam body.
 

You should probably look into the Pentax K-7 (~$1338 special offer until CNY). It is comparable to the Canon 7D and the Nikon D300s (both ~$2400), but is well within your budget of $2k instead of being way above your budget. For lenses you can get the Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 or the Sigma 50mm f/1.4, and choose between the Pentax DA* 16-50mm f/2.8, Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 or Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8. There's a special offer of ~$430 for the WR (weather resistant) dual kit lens 18-55mm + 50-200mm that you might want to look at also.
 

save up your money and try renting your bodies. don't ever invest in bodies, digital rot, instead invest in quality lenses.dslr bodies go obsolete in a couple of months and don't fall for gimmicks, lenses you can still use them for 20 or more years down the road. trust me, i still use my Canon EF lenses from 1991 with my cheap canon 1000d and guess what, people ask me what CAMERA i use, camera does not matter, it's you head that matters! camera does not make the photo, the person behind the lens does.

my suggestion is just to get a cheap body like the 450d or nikon d40x. if you need better bodies just rent them.

stick with canon and nikons, coz you can bring your nikon and canon body and rent your lenses in other countries, try renting pentax and olympus lenses and see what i mean.

stick with Canon and Nikon.

once again, buy quality lenses and not BODIES!

rent the bodies for a week at a time, and see how you like it. check out camera rental companies.
 

err...
what r u using now?
if u r with canon now, jus stick with canon.if nikon, stick with nikon.
my assumption is that u might already have some gears since u hv been into photography for a few mths, so y waste them.

2K, i believe canon 7D n nikon D300s are above ur budget.

i'm not into canon, so i won't comment much on canon or other brands as i do not hv the updated info.

but for nikon, for brand new, u r lookin at the d90 which will go ard sgd1300++ for body only.
for nikon, my fave general len is the 16-85VR.
Oops, dun forget the flash. either sb600 or the newer n more juice sb900.

alternately, if u dun mind the hassle, u can source for a d300s from JB.
price should be within sgd2200.but note warranty is from Nikon Malaysia, no international warranty for cam body.

Hey! Thank all for your contribution and help. As for my equipment, i have no dslr/lenses yet. I only own a Lumix LX3, a prosumer.

As for pentax, the price really seems very appealing. Any comments about pentax from other users? Is it hard to find lenses and accessories for pentax? They do not seem as available.
 

For Event and Travel photography, it's hard to beat the Fast AF liveview and tilting LCD of the sony A550 (there is a Sigma 50mm for that too). It becomes very easy to hold your camera above the heads of the crowds and get accurate shots.
 

As for pentax, the price really seems very appealing. Any comments about pentax from other users? Is it hard to find lenses and accessories for pentax? They do not seem as available.

There are more than enough lenses for Pentax to cover your needs, you just won't find them in general electronics stores like BD or HN, but they are available from most camera shops. If you need more information about the Pentax system and this special CNY offer, feel free to join in this thread here: http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=632076
 

Start with a 2nd hand body. No need to get the latest one. Grab the 5D if you can afford it.
 

At S$2,000 or less for a body, I'll think the competition amongst the various camera manufacturers is very intense. I'll think it's more of a matter of (in order of sequence)

1. Your own preference/choice (You may prefer a particular brand's "colors", build quality, specific features etc)
2. Your budget (You mentioned that you are attracted by the value presented by Pentax)
3. Your expansion needs

I'm currently a Nikon user, but if I were to start over, I'll say I can easily select any brand without any significant detriment to my capabilities.
 

I don't have any problems on getting lenses of my choice as most (not all) lenses released by Pentax is a keeper (that includes the kit lens). The only problem is how many I could own with my very shallow pocket. :cry:
 

hi all. thanks again for the insights and contributions. but i need to ask, where are camera rentals available and usually how much do they charge and how do they charge? Lens included?
 

hi all. thanks again for the insights and contributions. but i need to ask, where are camera rentals available and usually how much do they charge and how do they charge? Lens included?

We have a "commercial services offered" section here in CS. If you did a search for "camera rental" you'd have found lots and lots of threads.
 

hi all. thanks again for the insights and contributions. but i need to ask, where are camera rentals available and usually how much do they charge and how do they charge? Lens included?

Don't be taken in too much by abimanyuboentaran's opinions... there's a reason why he got banned.
 

Think long term as a system.. but for now u need to know u into full frame or DX before others can advise u better..
 

Think long term as a system.. but for now u need to know u into full frame or DX before others can advise u better..

I would definitely want a full frame but money is a huge factor, esp for the lens. From my observations, most EF lenese for canon costs much more than EF-S. And the L series is way too ex for a student like me. So as of now i belief i'll invest into cropped and upgrade when i start having a stable income. Please Advice.
 

Personally, I dont see FF as an upgrade, although its high ISO performance is superior to cropped sensors. And for me high ISO performance on a cropped sensor aint that lame either with current technology. The only reason that I would use an FF body is because of how the OOF (or bokeh to many) would be rendered. But that's just me, YMMV :)

You may also want to take note that it's probably cheaper to go wide on a cropped sensor than to go tele on an FF. And if you're into the long end of things, this will be a huge consideration :)
 

I would definitely want a full frame but money is a huge factor, esp for the lens. From my observations, most EF lenese for canon costs much more than EF-S. And the L series is way too ex for a student like me. So as of now i belief i'll invest into cropped and upgrade when i start having a stable income. Please Advice.
Since u wanted a full frame then, Canon 5D 2nd hand will be a good choice for ur budget of 2k.

Especially full frame helps in the few area of ur photography interest like
(1) low light event photography (eg parties) -> better noise control w/ high iso
(2) Street and travel Photography (if dim lit environment) -> better noise control w/ high iso
(3) Portraits ( Human, Animal and Objects) -> better bokeh rendered
 

Any place you guys advice i should go to try out the bodies? Friendly staff with a wide range of canon and nikon bodies, including the classic 5D. Sorry i ask so much. Abit shy :embrass: haha. Also, any clue whether 5d stocks even exist still?
 

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