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Need a new camera, Advice please.

Discussion in 'Photography, Art & Design' started by Daza, 29 Sep 2007.

  1. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Right Ive asked this question on a few different forums and got a luke warm response to say the least.

    Basically my art+design class includes photography as one of the techniques to pursue, and I quite like it tbh but my current camera is I think holding me back a tad as its a pretty basic model as you can see.

    What I'm after is an entry level~intermediate DSLR, and yes I have no experience of DSLR's neither does anyone in my family so I'm aware theres going to be a bit of learning involved.

    Ive set my budget at around the £450 mark although I will be flexible if needed, so far I'm quite taken by the Nikon D50 and D40x and I'm also looking at the cannon EOS 350D, and the EOS 400D which looks to be a little on the pricey side.

    So does anyone have any recommendations or other on-line shops to look around apart from jessops, (I will be going to jessops in town on Monday after college to get a feel for some of the mentioned cameras to see if they fit.)

    Thanks in advance for your help.
     
    Last edited: 29 Sep 2007
  2. alastor

    alastor Minimodder

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    Read the reviews of the D40x, D50 and the Canons over at www.dpreview.com and then get down to a shop and get a feel for them and the menu systems; have a look at this thread, especially Brett's post (Da Dego).
     
  3. atanum141

    atanum141 I fapped to your post!

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    Fuji F30 or F31 for the cheesecake. or Canon D400.
     
  4. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Right, Ive had a look thought the reviews for the camera's and a few more, and I think my no.1 choice is the canon 400D as it seems to have the most feature's and I can get it for £425 with a 2gb card and bag.

    And one else think this is an OK camera or should I be looking else where.
     
  5. Nath

    Nath Your appeal has already been filed.

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    It's fine, probably more than enough camera for most people, and you definitely won't hold you back. Any Canon or Nikon has plenty of scope as far as lenses and other accessories go, if you decide you need anything else in future too. Go for it. :thumb:
     
  6. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Thats good to hear as I'm hoping this will last me a couple of years or more with the occasional lens upgrade, just got to wait two weeks till I get payed to purchase it.
     
  7. Agamer

    Agamer Minimodder

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    Where abouts have you found it at that price could you please share a link.
     
  8. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Right Camera body and lens at Jessops for £446.00, then CF card for £29.99, plus a bag for £29.99.

    Grand total of £495.98.

    Now use sale20 , to get £20 off so were on £475.98.

    Then theres the £50 cash-back from canon ,valid from 01.10.2007 to 31.12.2007.

    Which comes in at £425.98. :D
     
  9. Firehed

    Firehed Why not? I own a domain to match.

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    Sounds like a very solid choice. I've got a 400D myself and it's a fantastic camera for the money. There are a couple of advanced features it's missing that would be nice, but that's to be expected when it's a fifth the price of the high-end models. And if you've got a good idea of what you're doing, those features aren't too critical anyways. IMO, they're only useful for the intermediate step between just getting started and really knowing how to handle the equipment (or, alternatively, knowing the rules and how to break them)

    Just be warned that if you really get into it, you'll end up spending a lot more on it in the future. But that's true of any dSLR, and pretty much anything else where you start off at the entry-level. At least lenses hold their value much better than motherboards :D
     
  10. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Thanks for the support firehead.

    Ill be learning the rules first then breaking them, as my experience with DSLR cameras is none, but my tutor says I have a good eye for photography so it cant be all bad.

    I see what you mean about price the other camera I wanted was £12,500 but I thought that was a tad too much.:thumb:
     
  11. Firehed

    Firehed Why not? I own a domain to match.

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    I just meant lenses, lighting stuff, etc, not bodies. Unless you're doing really large-format printing where you need as much res as absolutely possible, you can do pretty much identical work with any body. Some of course are suited to some things better than other (1D Mk III at 10FPS shooting for sports, for example), but that's not really the big thing. When I first got my 400D I thought that even $200 was a lot to spend on a lens, and now I'm considering one that costs about $1200 (and several others, totaling around $4000) - after spending $400 on a flash and plenty of cash on other stuff.

    Anyways, that sounds like a quite good price for a body, bag, and CF card. Actually, less than I paid to start off, and it tends to be cheaper state-side (though the body price has dropped a bit since I bought mine). You can't really go wrong there.

    Just realize that whatever body you get is really an investment. You can go either Canon or Nikon, but expect to own the same brand ten or fifteen years out until there's a universal lens mount. You can't really go wrong with either of the two right now, though I think Canon has better lenses available. That kind of argument can bring out the zealotry you find in religious discussions though, so I won't head down that path.
     
  12. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Yeh Ive had a read of the discussions and people do get rather heated over it, the reason I'm choosing the D400 is it ticks all my boxes and its 10mp which will help when I do prints in A3 for coursework, and theres also the lenses as the D40x I was looking at was limited to lenses that had on-board AF.

    I see what you mean about the equipment but hopefully the included 18-55mm Lens should do me a couple of months before I look for something a tad better.
     
  13. BUFF

    BUFF What's a Dremel?

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    The EOS400D geta £50 Canon cashback as of the 1st of October.
    Another worth looking at is the Sony A100 although stock levels in the UK are very low atm so it may be hard to find one to handle.
     
  14. Jumeira_Johnny

    Jumeira_Johnny 16032 - High plains drifter

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    The 400D is as limited for lens choice as the D40x. Don't get fooled by the marketing.

    Edit: thats to say, not at all. Why would you think you were "limited" by only using USM or AF-S lenses is beyond me. Since you have never owned an SLR, it's not like you have a closet full of lenses from your film days.

    I know my opinions are generally not the same as everyone else's, but hear me out. Why is the camera you have now limiting you? What specifically is it that the camera won't do? What is there that you, as a photographer, could do get what you are after without buying a new camera? Are you shooting with lights? do you need a PC sync terminal? A hot shoe?

    I know the craze is to run out and get a dSLR. But there are many other options out there that might fit you better. 10MP is easy to find and so are manual controls. Have you considered something like a Canon G9? My point is, for an art class, it might be worth thinking about what you are doing rather then relying on a new camera. The camera plays only a small part in art photography, unlike sports where I think we tend to rely on the technology a bit more.
     
    Last edited: 30 Sep 2007
  15. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Sorry but you've lost me with the lens stuff, yes I don't have a huge pile in the wardrobe although I wish I did.

    Ive just looked at the canon G9, and for the same price I can get the 400D, which imo will last me longer. What you have to remember here is at the moment I know nothing about DSLR's although I'm learning at the moment by reading and asking questions, and hopefully if I get the 400D I will learn and my skills will progress more than they are at the moment.

    My current camera aperture control and Ev balance and thats it, which is where I get a tad frustrated as I know the shots I have could be better.
     
  16. Jumeira_Johnny

    Jumeira_Johnny 16032 - High plains drifter

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    My point. The D40x is not anymore limited in lens choice then the 400D. Your comment seemed to be based on marketing and 3rd parties, rather then rational research.

    Most of Nikon's and Canon's lenses use a motor in the lens to control focusing. There are some legacy lenses, yes, but they are in the process of updating the lens line up-on both sides-so it's a moot point.
    Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to talk you out of buying a dSLR. I'm just making the point that if you are frustrated now, and think it's just the camera, your dead wrong. Getting a 400D or a Hasselblad isn't going to make that frustration disappear. In fact, it may make it worse, since now you have increased the number of variables you have control over. All the shots I have, I know could have been better. But I doubt that a different camera would have/will change that.

    I still think that you should go back and read that thread someone pointed out to you, and follow the advice given. Go shoot the cameras. Then make a decision.
     
    Last edited: 30 Sep 2007
  17. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Well I welcome your point of view I do its more of an eye opener than someone recommenced X camera.

    I don't think its just the camera I think its both of us I know I'm reaching the camera limit of what it can take and I know my skills can/will improve as everything else, but I really would like a little more control over the variables, and I m aware there'll be a steep learning curve involved.

    But I will be taking a stroll to the camera shop after college tomorrow to test out the various cameras as suggested by you and many others.
     
  18. RTT

    RTT #parp

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  19. fatty

    fatty Minimodder

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    The thing that swayed me towards the canon when I bought my Eos 400D was the fact it had a self cleaning sensor the nikon did not and as a total novice this feature seemed handy
     
  20. Daza

    Daza MR D to you.

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    Right just got back from a touchy feely session at jessops, I basically got the bloke to take out every DSLR they had in the cabinet.

    But out of all of the ones I tried the canon 400D felt more at home in my hands compared to all the rest.

    He also said if I wanted to go back again and have a tryout taking photos for a half an hour that would be fine so I might go back in a couple of weeks to see how it shoots.
     

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