DSLR - which price bracket?

papoosue

I've been wanting a digital SLR for a while now and I finally have the cash to get one. But, do I really need to go for the £500+ ones, or would I get much the same in the £300/£400 range?

I used to be really into photography, but not for ages now and so I will need to start at the beginning again. So, what I want is a camera I can obviously use now but that will also do for when I'm reasonably experienced iykwim. It seems to me that they bring out a new dslr every week almost and I just don't want to waste money that I could spend on an extra lens or something...

Any advice would be much appreciated.

jackieblack

I was in the same boat as you a few months ago, after researching and having a 'play' with various models in the shops just before christmas I took the plunge and decided on the Sony A330 (Jessops http://www.jessops.com/online.store/products/76249/show.html) which was, at the time, £399 - £60 sony cashback, it came with a 18-55mm lens and I bought the SAL73300 75-300 zoom (£175 - £50 Sony cashback) to go with it.
It's early days, but I love the camera.

Happy hunting!

Eric_Pisch

depends how serious you are

SLR wise i would always go for a canon or nikon for the lenses

but then i have 5 or 6 canon L lenses

papoosue

Thanks Jackieblack, I will have a look at the Sony

Eric, thanks for your recommendation too. I used to have a Canon digital (not DSLR) and it was so absolutely awful it has made me a bit wary of buying another Canon although I understand that it is a really popular brand and a lot of places recommend it above all others. I'm assuming from what you say that Canon have one of the wider ranges of lenses?

mrs_baggins

Personally I have an entry level sony A200 (now superceded) and its got everything I need apart from maybe live view. I suppose it depends on if you have current lenses you need to support or not

HalfPint

Have a look at olympus...they have some very good entry level dslr's...it's what I started with and still use...Whilst Cannon and Nikon are better for noise, I found them too heavy and bulky for my little hands

HP x

Eric_Pisch

papoosue wrote: »

Thanks Jackieblack, I will have a look at the Sony

Eric, thanks for your recommendation too. I used to have a Canon digital (not DSLR) and it was so absolutely awful it has made me a bit wary of buying another Canon although I understand that it is a really popular brand and a lot of places recommend it above all others. I'm assuming from what you say that Canon have one of the wider ranges of lenses?

In terms of pro use SLRs canon are pretty much the top, they have been leading the way technologically with Nikon fairly close behind, every time you see a pap or someone at a sports event with a white lens its a canon.

For most photographers the biggest expense is the lenses and a good lens should last you a life time and therefore have several different camera body's fitted to it. (an L can cost you £5,000 or even more)

So you tend to find the Nikon people went Nikon and Canon people went Canon as they already had a stock of lenses from there film cameras which they can use on there digi SLRs.

I have 8 or 9 lenses, some are 10 years old, I am hopping to get a canon 4th gen when they come out. Its nice to know that what ever comes in the future my lenses will still work.

Canon and Nikon both make prosumer bodys which take there full range of lenses so there's a body and lens's for most people.

[Deleted User]

Don't forget lenses! Some of my favorite photos are taken with my 50mm f1.8 manual focus lens (28 quid from a second hand camera shop).

You won't 'unleash' the benefits of an SLR until you buy better lenses than the kit lens. You aren't just buying a camera, you're buying a 'system'. I've headed down the Panasonic/Olympus 4/3rds route. Any lenses/accessories I buy will work with other Olympus or Panny camera, but not others. When I come to replace my camera I will need to consider if i am going to jump to a different system and leave all my old lenses (5 of them) behind and start again.

Here is a good site for camera price comparisons: http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/

If you were never planning on buying any more lenses, you would probably do alright with this - http://www.wilkinson.co.uk/store/product.php?productid=18569

Eric_Pisch

ringo_24601 wrote: »

Don't forget lenses! Some of my favorite photos are taken with my 50mm f1.8 manual focus lens (28 quid from a second hand camera shop).

You won't 'unleash' the benefits of an SLR until you buy better lenses than the kit lens. You aren't just buying a camera, you're buying a 'system'. I've headed down the Panasonic/Olympus 4/3rds route. Any lenses/accessories I buy will work with other Olympus or Panny camera, but not others. When I come to replace my camera I will need to consider if i am going to jump to a different system and leave all my old lenses (5 of them) behind and start again.

Here is a good site for camera price comparisons: http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/

If you were never planning on buying any more lenses, you would probably do alright with this - http://www.wilkinson.co.uk/store/product.php?productid=18569

totally

find a system you like, that has a wide range of glass that will fit your needs and a long term commitment to the format.

i got a month old fish eye lens for half price on ebay and its probably my most used lens

http://www.canon.co.uk/for_home/product_finder/cameras/ef_lenses/fixed_focal_length/EF_15mm_f28_Fisheye/

althas

What you have to decide, is are you going to get "serious" about the photography. When you are buying a DSLR, you are not buying a camera, you are buying into a whole system. If you think you will never get past a mild hobby, then any of the manufacturers will be good. However, if you think you will get serious then you really need to go with Canon or Nikon

This is always a "my dad is bigger than your dad" argument between Canon in the red corner and Nikon in the blue corner............LLllllllLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEETSSSSSS get ready to RUMBLE, with both sides saything they are better

When I bought mine a couple years ago, I went into Jessops and had a play with a couple and a talk with the guy, and in the end I went for a Canon, because of the kind of pictures I wanted to take. What the guy said the difference between Canon and Nikon was down to basically 1 thing. Nikon has the edge on actual picture quality over Canon, but Canon has the edge on the speed of getting the picture. So whilst a Nikon was counting the feathers on a bird, it flys away, whilst the Canon takes the shot. As I want to do wildlife photography, this was the basis for my decision, and I have have no complaints about what I got (was an EOS 400d)

So if you are doing landscape, people etc I would say go for Nikon, more action etc shots, then Canon. But go and talk to someone in a shop like Jessops and have a go and a feel of the camera bodies, see what you are comfortable with

Now to your original question. It is like most things, the more you pay, the better it will be. More mp's, faster processors, full sensors and such. But for starting, a £300-£400 body will be more than adequate for a good number of years. The £500+ bodies start getting into the serious amature catagories, then the beginner pro to the full pro. But (and this is where my earlier point comes into play), if you (for example) buy a Canon Eos 1000d, and additional lenses, you can always upgrade the body to, say, a EOS5d in 10 years time, but you will still be able to use all your lenses with the new body, as the body is only part of the overall system you have

So have a talk and a play then decide what to get, but most importantly, ENJOY

knightstyle

Have a look at these reviews http://www.t3.com/feature/top-10-d-slrs