what is a good DSLR ?

[seventhexile]

Hi all...

I've been looking at getting either the Canon 20D or XSI
honestly $550 is as high as I can go at this point..

so no 40D or high end Nikon


Just wanted to know if anyone can shed any light on what a good Dslr is, oh and where to buy a good cam as well..

internet ... local shop .. ??

 

[golem]

DSLR

I know it can be hard to do, but I suggest that you stretch a bit and go for the Canon Rebel T1i... full HD video, and outstanding image quality. I got mine NIB on Ebay for $725.00 pp and shipped....

/golem

Hi all...

I've been looking at getting either the Canon 20D or XSI
honestly $550 is as high as I can go at this point..

so no 40D or high end Nikon


Just wanted to know if anyone can shed any light on what a good Dslr is, oh and where to buy a good cam as well..

internet ... local shop .. ??

 

[mw1015]

i have a Canon 450D and its great!

don't forget, about a good quality lens too!

 

[tetzumaru]

you can get an d40 for 399$ specially now that cam expo is about to begin end of the month.check out B and H its my 1st choice when it comes to cameras. also dell and adorama, amazon sells gray market.

nikon are great, if your on a budget olympus is good as well and full of feats but kinda weak on low light af. for 550 your choices would be a d40 with kit, d60 refurb with kit, olympus e520 2 lens kit those are the best on that range.

you have to get the feeling of the camera first before buying it, as handling ang weight is a factor.

check out this site they list online sales:

http://cameradeals.1001noisycameras.com/olympus/

for HD video its just bs. its a camera not a video cam whats the video for?

no experience with canon as i find them too bulky.

 

[jmb]

I have a Pentax K2000 and absolutely love it. It was a bit under $500 for a "package" that included 18-55 mm lens and flash. It was highly rated by cnet when I researched numerous cameras in this price range.

 

[seventhexile]

@golem:

I've read a lot of reviews that say the T1i has 12800 ISO compared to 1600 on the xsi. - but, if your really just going to use the kit lens or lens's on the same lvl.
EF-S 18-55mm IS type lens's .. then the Xsi would be enough for an amateur like me.

that being said - now I'll keep my eye out for good T1i prices.

 

[tetzumaru]

is pentax k2000 powered by 4 triple A?

 

[seventhexile]

i have a Canon 450D and its great!

don't forget, about a good quality lens too!

I've heard a large amount of ppl dont like the rebel's instead favoring the 20,30,40,50D series...

Because the rebel is smaller and lighter and lacks some things..

which confuses the hell out of me because the 450/xsi is from 2008
and the 20d is from 2003 or such..

and a lot of ppl say the 20d is better then the xsi

...


but I do like the size of the xsi.


@jmb: I've heard good things about the Pentax dslr's , buuuut
I want to be able to use some of the lenses from my school - and they have mainly Nikon and Canon .. very very few Pentax lenses

 

[mw1015]

to be honest i haven't been keeping up with the specs of the newer models.

the 450D is pretty much an entry level SLR.

i like it because its fairly small and compact. light to carry. the main difference i suppose is the crop factor of 1.6x and it uses EF-S lens.

EF-S lens can't be used on higher end Canon cameras like the 1D etc but the 450D can still use standard EF lens too

crop factor basically means that it is 1.6x the length stated on the lens. Eg. 70-200mm lens is more like 1.6 x 70mm / 200mm

i wouldn't use a 20D over a 450D. in fact i have a 40D that i'd rate on par with the 450D. it depends on what you want to use the camera for as well.

a lot has to do with the lens you have mounted as well.

 

[tflgee]

There's not much difference between the Rebels and the Ds (40D etc). You get a better body (metal vs plastic) and you get a few more options that most people will never ever use. Plus there are hacks that will unlock those (and void your warranty). Personally I beat the crap out of my equipment so plastic bodies and lenses are not for me. I also like the bigger bodies on the Ds and then I strap a battery grip on for an even more substantial feel. I would not look at a 20D or 30D. Get a 40D if you can or get a Rebel Xti. The body is not half as important as the lens anyway. It really does not matter what body you have if you have a low end lens on it. I've had a Rebel and I have a 40D. With the stock lenses there was no difference in image quality. Once I switched to L-series lenses the quality was noticeably better especially with the longer zooms.

 

[mw1015]

i agree. go for a sharp L lens.

if you do a lot of photography in low light areas, high apeture is a must as well

 

[takashi]

I am using an entry level Olympus E420 and I am satisfied with it. Paid about 200Eur with the lens 14-42mm kit.

That was more than a year ago... Nowadays, I think this camera is very cheap. It's compact, well enough to be carried around as point and shoot. It is using four third lenses, so it's compatible with Panasonic, Leica and some others.

 

[tetzumaru]

e420 is great but lacks one thing I really need ImageStabilization for olympus VibrationReduction for nikon users. the size of e420 is like p n s camera e450 came out as an update for this model goes for 500$

 

[danyboy]

hi, i have a xsi/450d and let me tell you you can do amazing things with it.I can compare my shots with my friends who have higher end models like..d300 / d80 nikons. I don't know what others have said, but since it's a canon, it has a wide range of lenses for whatever purpose that camera is for. after market stuff for canon is just awesome

20d IS on a higher level than a 450d, but the fact that its pretty old, the processor (DIGIC II) and megapixel (8.2 i think..) is...well outdated imo. you won't be dissapointed with a 450d trust me (DIGIC III and 12.2 MP)

take a look at the 500d? wait a couple months the price should drop...

and as in WHERE to buy, i would always compare prices on the net first, find the cheapest one. THEN go to a store, ask if they can price match...stores like..best buy usually does that i think.

Personally i like buying at a store because the guy knows what he's selling and can tell you what the best buy is, but if you KNOW what you want, take a look at the net first. Internet usually has the best price...

and 'rebel' is just a cool tag to have on your dslr

good luck

 

[watchman888]

Check out dpreview.com - the best source I've found for detailed info and ratings on digital cameras, including some pretty strong technical analysis, sample photos, etc. Sometimes they have group tests - like you'd want a group test on 'entry-level dslr's'. Cnet is good too, but doesn't go into such depth of detail.

 

[watchman888]

I have bought cameras from the local store here in CA, bkz I like to have a human back-up and bkz I wanted to support the locals. In my opinion, it's not much different from the web if you're going to 'big-box' stores like Best Buy or Fry's. No human touch there - well, there is for the sale, but don't expect them to remember you next week. Not that they don't have decent cust. satisfaction systems, and all, but really.

I bought a Nikon and a Canon point & shoot from the smaller local store here in CA. I'd say the store's help is more important on a dslr than a point & shoot bkz the dslr is an entry point into a system of lenses and accessories as well, and some experience can help you navigate your starting set-up.

When it came time to buy another camera they didn't stock - Leica DLux 4 (a point & shoot w/great low light capabilities (I hate flash)), I looked around on the web and found some good suppliers. You eventually get a feel for the best ones. Some pros who post their photos talk about their sources, etc (I looked for photos posted that were shot by 'my' camera.

In most big cities there'd be a store used by a lot of pros - in S.F., it's Adolph Gasser & Co. And there are comparables on the web. I believe the folks I ended up using are patronized by a lot of pro shooters, though it was mainly a question of availability - just like an RWI watch junky, I'll spend forever researching, but once I'm ready to pull the trigger, I want it NOW!! (And I was going on a trip, of course). Anyway, the folks I used were B&H Photo in NYC. They did good. Good prices, too. BHPhotoVideo.com
Cheers

 

[seventhexile]

Thank you all for the help !

I've been really leaning more to the xsi .. as its something I can realistically afford
(I know people say reach for one step up, but sadly the xsi IS my reach up model haha)

I've found brand new ones on the bay w/ lens kit for about $600

I was wondering what people thought of factory refurbished ones from a well known site like Adorama ?

They go for about $560 w/ the lens kit, where as new they start at $640 with the lens kit.


I've never really bought refurbished stuff before, but I was wondering if since canon fixed it up and sent it out - it would still be good quality.

(every penny counts to a starving college kid who decided he must have a expensive camera haha)

 

[golem]

Thank you all for the help !

I've never really bought refurbished stuff before, but I was wondering if since canon fixed it up and sent it out - it would still be good quality.

(every penny counts to a starving college kid who decided he must have a expensive camera haha)

In my experience, most often a "refurb" is an item that was an "open box" or buyer's remorse purchase, returned for credit, but unable to be resold as new. As long as it has the full warranty I've never had any reason not to buy refurb when available.

/golem

 

[russtang]

(every penny counts to a starving college kid who decided he must have a expensive camera haha)

I heard that your girlfriend decided that you needed a DSLR. And you needed to sell all your watches to fund it. And because you're whipped, you listened! :wideeyed:
Hehe, just yanking your chain buddy...

But seriously, I prefer refurb. You know the product has gone back to the factory, been repaired, and finally put through much more rigorous testing than it originally went through in the first place. And it's cheaper to boot.

 

[seventhexile]

I heard that your girlfriend decided that you needed a DSLR. And you needed to sell all your watches to fund it. And because you're whipped, you listened! :wideeyed:
Hehe, just yanking your chain buddy...

But seriously, I prefer refurb. You know the product has gone back to the factory, been repaired, and finally put through much more rigorous testing than it originally went through in the first place. And it's cheaper to boot.

haha you know .. sadly that is how it happened haha.

I went on a big trip through 6 countries over my summer break - and I posted some pics and such on the other forum (not sure if it transferred over) ..

anyways a week or so ago I finally got around to printing the pics via a well known online printer... and lets just say - they look much better on my laptop screen.

I even went to a diff printer to have them printed and still they came out spotty and blurry / pixely.

Needless to say I was pretty pissed.. but my gf.. woooo haha
we had been talking about getting one for a while, but the money is a little tight. . .
until she happen to figure out I could sell the last of my watch stuff and we could get one.

not the most idea trade but eh there are other perks of listening to the gf

(that being said that sub I just sold... worth a good deal more then $420 - I'm having a little bit of sellers remorse now haha)

........................

I found refurbished XSI's on adorama
heres the link

a http://www.adorama.com/ICADRXSIBKR.html?searchinfo=xsi


For $550 w/ free shipping - they have a 90 day canon warranty ... not the 1 year warranty the new ones have.

The new ones are $630 .

so for $80 more I can get a new one + 1 year warranty....

you guys however make a good point that if their refurbished - their quality checked

Just like my watches (I like the buy from members rather then dealers)
same would go for a camera I guess.