Help recommend a DSLR


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peppercrab1

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Aug 14, 2005
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I'm new here and was advised by my friends to solicit advice from the CSers here on what I have shortlisted.
My preference is on the colors with minimal PSing as I'm also new to it and I really want to avoid spending hours on post-processing ie PS due to time constraints.

As such, these are what I have shortlisted:
1. Nikon D70s (some PSing req)
2. Canon 350D (as above)
3. Fuji S2Pro (2nd hand) - my 1st preference actually due to rich vibrant colours out-of-box, good color dynamics (heard from my friend) ; little or no PSing. Cons: slow playback...(yes, I nearly fell asleep)
4. Minolta D5D - Dunno much about Minolta. relatively new. No reviews to date. If colour reproduction is similar or close to the Fuji, then I might go for it. Cheapest DSLR so far.
Is the D5D in the same league as the Nikon D50?
5. Olympus E300 - Agsin, dunno much abt it. Heard that colors on par with the Fuji though..

Ok, guys, gurus.....I need yr help. Yes, ultimately, it's my decision. Anyway, my post may seem kinda 'naive' & silly.....please bear with me. I need lots of guidance from you folks here...
 

This kind of questions have been discussed tons and tons of times.

1) Have a budget in mind
2) Go down to reputable shops and test out the cameras yourself.
3) Decide which is more suited to you. (ie more comfortable, ease of use, etc)
4) Buy that and start shooting.

Don't let others influence your choice. There is no way you can avoid PS for DSLRs. All DSLRs will require PS-ing, only to different extents.
 

There are a few D5D reviews on the websites. U can go google and search for them. As for D5D the specs is almost 90% of D7D specs and yet the cheapest among the budget entry dslr. ;)

edit: The thing I like about my D7D is vivid colors and Anti shake.
 

Hi, thanks for the reply.
My budget is bet S$1400-$2000 as you can already tell form the shortlisted models.
Yep, I guess you are right...It's the level of PSing that I need to know to further eliminate the shortlisted models.
 

peppercrab1 said:
Hi, thanks for the reply.
My budget is bet S$1400-$2000 as you can already tell form the shortlisted models.
Yep, I guess you are right...It's the level of PSing that I need to know to further eliminate the shortlisted models.
You use different levels of PS to achieve different effects. That's the power of digital photography. If you're just shooting for fun/snapshots, basics like USM and colour manipulation will be enough. All these you'll have to do irregardless of the DSLR you're using.

The $2k you have in mind may not be enough for accessories such as batteries, CF cards, chargers, camera bag, flash, etcetc. (you can forget the filters if you take care of your equipment)
 

majere2sg said:
Don't forget to include in ur budget for the lenses and other accessories (like flash, memory card etc) that you need for your DSLR system.

Understood. My budget is for bodies only. If it comes with kit lens then better still...;p
 

Actually I am in the same shoes as you... have you looked at Nikon D50? From the reviews, it shows that it is able to produce photos that needs to PSing.
 

How much PSing is required depends a lot on the photographer's skill in understanding the camera and it's features to reduce PS effort necessary.

Also, comparing a DSLR isn't enough, because it's also the lenses & flash system that gives you total control and usability.

Look beyond just the body, look at the entire system.
 

I saw the D70 pix from my friend and sad to say, I was not wow by the saturation and colors.
Most of them had to do simple PSing. He spends a lot of them on that. anyway, it could be his skill and standard and not the cam.
As a newbie, I cannot judge. Just that 1st impression of pix out-of-box is not that impressive. As for Canon, the pics are ok but a little 'soft'. Again, I do not wish to start a flame war here between each camp.
These are my personal & humble observations.
 

espn said:
Look beyond just the body, look at the entire system.

Ahhhhh, the guru has spoken.....What do you mean by "entire system". Sorry, a real noob.
 

peppercrab1 said:
I saw the D70 pix from my friend and sad to say, I was not wow by the saturation and colors.
Most of them had to do simple PSing. He spends a lot of them on that. anyway, it could be his skill and standard and not the cam.
As a newbie, I cannot judge. Just that 1st impression of pix out-of-box is not that impressive. As for Canon, the pics are ok but a little 'soft'. Again, I do not wish to start a flame war here between each camp.
These are my personal & humble observations.

1) NO digital camera can reproduce the exact colours your eyes sees. Close to perhaps, but never exact, if you're a perfectionist and/or want the best in your image, you cannot avoid PSing.

2) Images from DSLRs are generally soft, a well known issue, you can overcome this with sharpening option tuned in the camera.

3) Unless you're printing very BIG prints, else any DSLRs when printing to 4R would be very good out of the box. If you intend to go bigger, it would always require some effort in getting the image right.

4) To view online, you definitely need to PS, else it would look ugly as colours are very precise, you miss it, you don't get your "Wow" effect.

All in all, you don't need to PS a lot neither is it necessary, I know of people who use D70 and NEVER pses at all. Their images still come out as wow. PS only serves to make it look better on screen and when doing larger prints. Else out of the camera, any DSLR is still more than sufficient.
 

espn, spoken like a true pro....but why am I so pro-S2pro? The colors seems to stand out from the rest...
 

how much is a D70s btw, espn?
 

espn said:
1) Apple polishing + being sacarstic doesn't work with me. Esp for one that register just today.

2) Since you are so pro-S2Pro then why still ask which DSLR to choose?


oops, sorry for item 1. didnt mean that way. that was never ever my intent. peace.
I wld go for the s2pro if not for the slow playback....as per my 1st post.
That's why I'm looking for something close to it......
 

peppercrab1 said:
I saw the D70 pix from my friend and sad to say, I was not wow by the saturation and colors.
Most of them had to do simple PSing. He spends a lot of them on that. anyway, it could be his skill and standard and not the cam.
As a newbie, I cannot judge. Just that 1st impression of pix out-of-box is not that impressive. As for Canon, the pics are ok but a little 'soft'. Again, I do not wish to start a flame war here between each camp.
These are my personal & humble observations.

hi if you are looking for Out of box vivid colors, Fuji and Konica Minolta DSLR are for you. I have done extensive research and found out these two cameras gave the best vivid colors. You can check my zoo photos and birdpark photos and all of them are taken by a $300 Sigma APO II lens with 7D. Very mininal colors correction are used. Most pics are done with tweaking on USM only. :) ... If you are looking for a budget camera, a D5D may be for you but I am not sure for the whether colors is as vivid as 7D. Maybe you should wait for more samples. Good luck with your research too.. :thumbsup:
 

I beg to differ. The photographer is key, in terms of colour reproduction, if you are talking about the few cameras you listed of course. I have seen most vivid colors from D70 (and 350D) through manipulation of the various camera functions, compared to a S2Pro user's pics because he was basically treating the cam as a point and shoot.

peppercrab1 said:
I saw the D70 pix from my friend and sad to say, I was not wow by the saturation and colors.
Most of them had to do simple PSing. He spends a lot of them on that. anyway, it could be his skill and standard and not the cam.
As a newbie, I cannot judge. Just that 1st impression of pix out-of-box is not that impressive. As for Canon, the pics are ok but a little 'soft'. Again, I do not wish to start a flame war here between each camp.
These are my personal & humble observations.
 

peppercrab1 said:
I'm new here and was advised by my friends to solicit advice from the CSers here on what I have shortlisted.
My preference is on the colors with minimal PSing as I'm also new to it and I really want to avoid spending hours on post-processing ie PS due to time constraints.

As such, these are what I have shortlisted:
1. Nikon D70s (some PSing req)
2. Canon 350D (as above)
3. Fuji S2Pro (2nd hand) - my 1st preference actually due to rich vibrant colours out-of-box, good color dynamics (heard from my friend) ; little or no PSing. Cons: slow playback...(yes, I nearly fell asleep)


Ok, guys, gurus.....I need yr help. Yes, ultimately, it's my decision. Anyway, my post may seem kinda 'naive' & silly.....please bear with me. I need lots of guidance from you folks here...
not a guru here but let me share my humble experience with u , my first day with a D70s , colour = NO GOOD . 3 weeks later getting used to the system and put in abit more effort to do some readup on the net . Colour / contrast = Good . More or less is with yr knowledge with the camera and lens used , with the price u are going to pay + the option to fully custormise yr machine like custom curve , i would say the D70/D70s beat other competitors hand down and the fact is that since the day i am using my D70s i have done lesser post processing with my photos and i am very happy with my personalise custom curve and camera processing setting . Dont bother if you are serious and want solid colour from 350D ( no pun intended this is my own point of view ) if u are looking at a canon system go for a 20D which i also owned 1 before combine it with the in build colour filter put u in control of the colours u want to bring out provided u must have a strong fundamental in colour combination knowledge or else u might just screw up the colours .

S2pro and S3pro good :thumbsup: but slow in processing .

Hope you found the right machine to get yr work done cheers .
 

What custom curve are you using for your D70s?
Care to share your camera processing settings......I really dun mind a D70s actually.

In fact, I have updated my list:
1. Minolta 7D (2nd hand) or a 5D (gotta wait for more feedback)
2. D70s

I will be getting stuff like & these will be outside my $1400-$2000 budget meant for DSLR bodies:

1. 28-75mm 2.8 lens (Minolta or Nikon mount)
- Tamron/Tokina/Minolta
2. 70-300mm (M or N mount)
- Sigma
3. 12-24 or equivalent ( M or N mount)
- Minolta or Tokina
4. SB800 or a HS5600

Am just a casual snapper getting my hands wet in DSLR......

Thanks to everyone for their feedback.
 

peppercrab1 said:
What custom curve are you using for your D70s?
Care to share your camera processing settings......I really dun mind a D70s actually.

In fact, I have updated my list:
1. Minolta 7D (2nd hand) or a 5D (gotta wait for more feedback)
2. D70s

I will be getting stuff like & these will be outside my $1400-$2000 budget meant for DSLR bodies:

1. 28-75mm 2.8 lens (Minolta or Nikon mount)
- Tamron/Tokina/Minolta
2. 70-300mm (M or N mount)
- Sigma
3. 12-24 or equivalent ( M or N mount)
- Minolta or Tokina
4. SB800 or a HS5600

Am just a casual snapper getting my hands wet in DSLR......

Thanks to everyone for their feedback.
Do you really need a DSLR?
 

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