i have a sony digital camera 7.2 mega pixels etc etc. and i am wanting to buy a DSLR , so any recomendations? i dont have buckets of money, but on the other hand i would quite like a good one. second question is, where does the inspiration come from? do you just take a picture when you think it will look good etc. just wanting to get some advice in the right direction thanks guys and keep up the good work
Basics dSLRs are the Nikon D50, Canon 300D, Canon 350D, Olympus E-500 and Canon 400D. Essentially, they start at around £320 body-only (so you'd need to buy a suitable lens as well), but Canon 300Ds can be found on ebay with the kit lens (18-55mm) for around £300. As far as recognising a good photo, either you can wander round for ages and see if anything catches your eye (that was my technique for the last two POTM competitions) or you can brainstorm an idea and implement it yourself. I found that I became much better at composing and recognising shots which would look good after practicing lots and reading up on various techniques, rules etc. such as one of the most common ones, the rule of thirds. If you're really set on buying a dSLR then go for it, but I'd really recommend playing around with your current camera to see if you enjoy it and have a need to spend quite a significant amount of money on a new camera which is nowhere near as portable or convenient, but offers that extra level of creativity. Finally, a few links that might interest you. D50 versus 350D discussion Do I need a dSLR?
The Canon 400D seems to be the favorite around here at the moment, even though it's not out quite yet. Personally I use a Minolta, but that's only because I had Minolta lenses before so i was kind of trapped into buying another minolta body. As for inspiration, where it comes from is the ability to see the beauty in the world around you. I think most people have the ability to do this, but never use it. The best recommendation I have is go walk around with your camera and take pictures of what catches your eye. In order to capture the expierience of a place, you have to expierience it for yourself first. I think that's the first step is being someplace rather than just passing through it.
The threads Nath pointed to are great to go by. Also try checking google for other indipendant reviews of hardware as im sure we are all pretty biased by what we own Canon or Nikon you can't really go wrong. However as it says in one of those threads nothing beats going to a shop and holding it and see which you prefer best then buy the one you like the most. Nath. Do you have any of those links to good tequniques that you read up on? Perhaps it would be a good idea, if we can, to get a list of "reccomended reading materials" and have it stickied to help minimise thread repetition
Unfortunately I reinstalled Windows yesterday and all of my bookmarks went with it. Will ask a few MSN contacts later if they have the link saved in their message history and get back to you.
Yeah, a few of those technique-links would be great! I'd appreciate that aswell. On the dSLR-subject, I still haven't decided what to do. I'm pretty confident about the 400D as body. But I still have no idea what kind of lens to get. The 17-55 F2.8 IS, seems fantastic. But it is just too expensive, not L-built quality and it is EF-S. So I was thinking about 17 -40 F4 L + 50 F1.8. But since I'm leaving the IS, I might aswell look at Sigma 18-50 F2.8 EX HSM ... such a difficult choices. There are plenty of reviews, but they are all written by pro's so not that much help to me personally. It's really difficult choosing a lens that you will love for a long time. Especially if you don't have thousands to spend. Oh PIE_UK : What is your budget?
For inspiration i regularly browse online photographic libraries and check out the interesting section on Flickr on a daily basis. Its a great way of seeing new techniques and how a good photographer can turn a mundane subject into something different. After a while you start looking at the world differently and see everything as a photo opportunity.
wow, thank you everyone who replied, just read through it all !! i have had a little play with my sony digital cam and took a few shots >> i will have to check out flicker and get some inspiration. i know what you mean when you say eveything becomes a photo optiunity heres my water block shot and a zalman heat sink then i also have some from a holiday >> so yer lots of food for thought as the saying goes, i shall read into each one of your posts very carefully and absorb the info you have given me cheers guys
Damn, Boy! Those first two are awesome! Fifth one is nice too (Where is that, btw?). You have the raw ability, you just need practice and some techincal pointers.
I don't see why you have to go and spend £500+ on a dSLR when you already have (but the looks of things) a pretty stonking 7.2MP camera, by comparison my 350D is only 8MP. Unless you know what you want to use dSLR for and are willing to invest in the optics for it, i'd stick with your Sony 7.2MP for a while and be creative as you are already doing now. And when you get to the point where your Sony isn't doing it for you anymore and you'll probably know the specific limitations by that point and know what to look for when you do upgrade.
excellent cheers j pepper , yer my sony has a carls zeiss lens which rocks apprently i'll take some more and when i do i'll share them around
