Entry-level DSL, which camera to kick start with?


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VKMobile

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My very first digital camera was Sony D707, still working fine after almost 7 years of service! But the memory stick contact sometimes a bit siao siao one.....anyway, my sister grabbed it and it's now her toy :( She bought a Nikon Coolpix S4/S10 and regretted coz it's just too sensitive to capture anything, always kena blurred image (maybe due to hand shaking).

anyway, butt very itchy now and decided to give myself another chance to "cultivate" this photography hobby again :D

so.....Seems like Sony has much better offering now for the A300 & A350. I browsed through some review and seems like the difference is just the numbers of pixels right? What other brands is comparable or much better with the same entry level range? Besides the body itself, what other equipments shall I also take into consideration as I never really got a chance to play around with SLR b4.

May wish to try out events shootings, capturing people's expression in the most natural way. Not into shooting chioboo with artificial poses hehe.....

I always have this funny question in mind, is the body more important or the lens? Or other accessories/equipments? Oh yah, how long do you think a new camera can last b4 it's considered an "antique" to the technologies? Long long time ago......non Digital SLRs can really last for decades right? hehe....

So what say you?! ;p
 

Good choice on the Sony bro. Many commented and doubt the ability of the Sony, but their users are more than happy with their equipment. Many have commented that lenses are expensive and difficult to find but Sony users have their ways to get the lenses that they want and the best thing is that since they took over Konica Minolta, all previous Konica Minolta and Minolta (A-Mount) lenses which dates back to 2 decades ago can be used too. Moreover these lenses are not as expensive as people made them up to be.

Others you can consider are the Nikon D60, Pentax K200, Olympus E420 & Canon 450D. However, do note that Nikon & Canon do not have Image Stabiliser (IS) in their camera bodies, so you have to get lenses with (IS) which will cost alot more.

I would recommend that you shortlist a few models and have a feel of the cameras in a shopping centre to see which is more comfortable to you. Do note the camera settings and interface when comparing too. Do not be influenced by the sales person there as they are more focused on commission.

Have these help. :)
 

I always have this funny question in mind, is the body more important or the lens?

good question new ppl usually ask:thumbsup:

let me give you an example:
supposing you're keen on bird photography, you could have either:

A nikon D300 with kit lens: $2700+

or

A Nikon D40 with a decent telephoto lens like a VR 70-300mm,total price: $1700

honestly, the D300 will be pretty darn useless with sth like a kit lens for bird photog :bsmilie:


So unless your a richbitch (which i hope you aren't)plan on the fields of photography you wanna focus on (perhaps the D300 with kit lens is good enough?:think:) and buy the respective body, lenses, flash and other accessories to suit ya.


As for when camera bodies become 'antique', i think that depends on you xD, whether you think your current body is crap and you MUST get the latest DLR body asap! lol

Hope this helps ya :)
 

The major brands of dSLRs are good. Example, sony, canon, nikon, olympus, etc. I chose to use canon and nikon because their items are usually more readily available and is easier to re-sell if i wanna get rid of them. Also, they have more affordable lenses available.

To me, lenses are more impt than body. Flashes are also impt. But diff ppl will tell u diff things. No model answer. Just a matter of opinion.

Most impt question b4 getting a dSLR is how much $ u have to spend on this hobby. Having a dSLR is not just the body and lens. U also will get tripod, flashes, other lenses, filters, drybox or drycabi, etc. If u nv handle ur equipment properly, maintenance comes also. Endless hole to fill in. Of coz, this also depends on individual and might not be applicable to u.

A bit OT here. If u do not have much to spend and want to keep things simple, i always advice my friends to get a prosumer. Fujifilm S100fs looks not bad.

I hope u think carefully b4 committing to any system. Making the wrong decision can be costly. Don't get me wrong, Sony is gd too. :)
 

Heyas!

haha fellow newbie here... well... gotta say i may be alittle bias as most of what i read and hear about limits my choices to either a canon or nikon DSLR.. so havent really been reading up on the rest... being a 'new-thing' freak myself, i got the canon 450D recently as it is a relatively new model... was drawn by all the nice number upgrades (Logic II -> Logic III) etc from the 400D... cant really complain with how the pictures been turning out.. its also not hard to use given its basic zone controls similar to normal compact cameras! =]

I cant really say whether the body or the lens if more important.. its like part and parcel.. but i'm under the impression that what you invest in is the lens.. as even if your body wears out and such.. you can upgrade your body and still retain the lenses for use on the new camera too! but after trying out different types of photography from nature, events, landscape and portraits, you will quickly realize the many shortcomings your camera body and your kit lenses have... Then comes the poison of luxury lenses, super nice filters etc etc... i found the tripod (night photography) and external flash (for events, indoor photography) little but important accessories to capture the right kind of moment on camera

like what fotophilic said, do think carefully on what you want out of photography and measure how much you are able to afford and what best systems (photography magazines!) you can afford and start to go shutter happy!! Don't let money woes limit your passion in photography! or at least i sincerely believe so! Just my 5 cents worth~~

cheerios!
 

wow, thanks for all the feedback! Will try to play around with those recommended models :D But my heart is going towards the Sony coz I used to be a Konica Minolta staff hehe....ok, i'm getting more and more emotional lol!

A bit OT here. If u do not have much to spend and want to keep things simple, i always advice my friends to get a prosumer. Fujifilm S100fs looks not bad.

The S100fs looks very similar to the Sony A350, got liveview too?
 

wow, thanks for all the feedback! Will try to play around with those recommended models :D But my heart is going towards the Sony coz I used to be a Konica Minolta staff hehe....ok, i'm getting more and more emotional lol!



The S100fs looks very similar to the Sony A350, got liveview too?

The S100FS is a prosumer, sure got live view.
 

prosumer is the grade of dslrs between consumer(entry-lvl) and semi pro
examples are the nikon d80,canon 40d
 

It's not really a fair comparison between the Fujifilm S100FS and Sony Alpha A350. It's a dSLR-like camera but image quality won't be as good as a dSLR especially at higher ISOs.
 

prosumer is the grade of dslrs between consumer(entry-lvl) and semi pro
examples are the nikon d80,canon 40d

A Prosumer cam is a bridge cam that looks like and behaves like a DSLR. It is not a DSLR but feels and works like one.

Fuji S100FS
Fuji S9600
Fuji S6500FD

Sony H2/3/5/9

Canon S1/2/3/5 IS

Panasonic Z10/20/30/50/3/5/7/8

Olympus SP 550/560/570

are some examples of a prosumer cam.
 

prosumer is the grade of dslrs between consumer(entry-lvl) and semi pro
examples are the nikon d80,canon 40d

Eh, you're wrong. In this case, prosumer refers to a bridge camera, like the Panasonic FX18, Sony H50, Canon S5IS. Basically a PnS with a stronger zoom and DSRL-like manual controls.
 

IMHO, if you want to go for DSLR, then forget abt those SLR-like camera, otherwise you may end up like me, brought a Canon S5is, after 1 month then realise what I want is DSLR, so i sold away my S5 at a loss and go for my E510.
 

Concerning the question whether the body or the lens is more important, this used to be a no-brainer when you're shooting film. However, in the digital realm the camera body has more or less become the "film". For me, this has become the over-riding criterion when choosing a system. There are many aspect of the image quality to be considered in any particular camera. For me, however, the way that the colours are rendered is most obvious and noticeable. This has become my "go / no go" when deciding on a camera or system.

Just my humble opinions.
 

prosumer is the grade of dslrs between consumer(entry-lvl) and semi pro
examples are the nikon d80,canon 40d

ur standard of prosumer is higher than most of the ppl. we are refering to proconsumer (aka short prosumer) here.

ok, then i own a prosumer with vertical grip, a few direct mount lenses and an external flash.

To TS, think of it as a SYSTEM. Not just the lens alone, body alone, flash alone. WHOLE SYSTEM. Good luck in ur research!
 

er....sorry to ask this question, what's "Prosumer"? Pro-consumer?!

Prosumer is also known as a bridging cam. Since you were a KM staff once, perhaps this illustration would be familiar to you.

PnS = KM Dimage X1, X50, X60
Prosumer = KM Dimage A1/A2/A200
DSLR = KM5D (entry level)
DSLR = KM7D (semi-pro or serious amateur level)

Hope this helps.
 

Yeah lor... dunno what -ReignOfComputer- is talking about....
D80... 40D... PROSUMER???
Maybe to him, only D3 or 1DmkIII is considered pro, and everything else below that is prosumer.


Eh, you're wrong. In this case, prosumer refers to a bridge camera, like the Panasonic FX18, Sony H50, Canon S5IS. Basically a PnS with a stronger zoom and DSRL-like manual controls.
 

Yeah lor... dunno what -ReignOfComputer- is talking about....
D80... 40D... PROSUMER???
Maybe to him, only D3 or 1DmkIII is considered pro, and everything else below that is prosumer.

actually i think this is due to the labelling done in some photography magazines, to be fair.

prosumer cameras usually are used to refer to bridge cameras, that much is accurate. however, there are magazines that refer to d40, d40x, pentax k100d, 400d, 450d as entry level dslrs.. or hobbyist dslrs.. there are also magazines which refer to d80, d200 slash d300, 40d, etc as prosumer dslrs.. that's just the way it is.
 

prosumer is the grade of dslrs between consumer(entry-lvl) and semi pro
examples are the nikon d80,canon 40d

Ok, i know many ppl have already pointed it out, but seriously a D80 a prosumer!? :bigeyes::bigeyes::bigeyes:

My D50 must be a PnS then :bsmilie:


P.S- you have a point thou, night86mare.
 

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