Need A New Camera! SUGGESTIONS PLEASE!

Hey everyone, so I'm a graphic design student and I need a really good camera. I know I want a Canon or a Nikon. I found one I really like, and its a Canon. I have played with it a bit and really like it. It's for me and my mom both, so it needs to be fairly simple (a good beginners camera). The budget is around $500. Here's a link to the one I like. Any suggestions would be great! Thanks everyone!

http://www.target.com/Canon-10-1MP-Digital-Camera-18-55IS/dp/B001CBKJGG/ref=sc_qi_detaillink

 

I have a Canon Rebel Xti and love it, want to get into a more serious model now but the Rebels are great for starting out.

 

Thanks, I really like the look and features of the Rebel. Thanks for the input!

 

I have a Canon G11, but my next camera will be a 5D Mark III (pending availability).

The G11 is portable with many nice features, but just doesn't have the power of a D-SLR. Then again, I have never considered a D-SLR in your budget range.

Are you able to use full manual controls effectively? The G11 has higher ISO capability than the Rebel you linked, however, you will probably not need to use ISO3200 often, unless you are going for a certainly look, or doing super long exposures with no ambient light.

Canon will be releasing a G12 soon, which is very similar to the G11, but with 720p video capture.

I'm waiting for the 5D Mark III with baited breath.. but that's a different level of camera altogether.

 

The rebels are a great entry level camera and are very capable in the hands of someone with knowledge.

I say get the rebel and start saving for some good glass, you are going to want it and once you get it you will forget about wanting a better camera

 

I started with Canons but shoot with Nikon now. Both are great brands that have equal quality. For me, manipulating a Nikon was easier than the canon. Get an entry level Canon/Nikon and immediately get a 50mm/1.8 lens. You will not be disappointed with such a cheap lens.

 

Thanks guys! I really like the Canon Rebel, Im going to check them out tomorrow. The lens your talking about the 50mm/1.8, explain what they offers? I don't really know what the numbers mean? Like the 18-55IS lens, can you explain what it exactly does? And explain the differences I would see between the two lenses?

 

I will provide you with some links. The lens is cheap and provide a good large aperture of 1.8. I have the 50mm/1.4G Nikon lens and the pictures are amazing but the price difference between a 50mm/1.8 ($100) and a 50mm 1.4G ($500) are a huge. I would go with the 50mm/1.8 as my first lens if I were just starting out.

Link 1

Where I get some of my camera equipment

Another review

My 50mm/1.4 is my portrait lens but my 18-200/3.5-5.6 is my everyday lens. Eventually I will go up to full-frame but for my current skill level and needs, my Nikon D300 works very well.

You really cant go wrong between a Canon or Nikon but I would recommend a Nikon D90 for people just getting into the hobby.

 

Thanks for the info! Is the lens your talking about, the 50mm/1.8 is it a better lens than the one that comes with the camera in my link above?

 

The 50mm is your focal length and the f/1.8 is the maximum aperture size. The larger the aperture the shallow your depth of field you will have this means a smaller distance in front of and behind the subject will be in focus. A larger aperture also means that the lens lets in more light and will be better suited for use in low light conditions. This is good because this will allow you to use a faster shutter speed when needed and a lower ISO when in low light.

A prime lens (a lens with only one focal length i.e. 50mm) will also generally give you better quality images than a zoom lens (i.e. 18-55) but obviously you wont have the versatility of a zoom.

Also remember that the rebel bodies have a 1.6 crop sensor this means that the actual focal length of your lens will be 1.6x that of a full frame camera.
If you were to take a full frame camera and a crop sensor camera and set them up at the same distance with the same lens the photo from the full frame will show 1.6x more of the scene that you are shooting.

Before you go buy the camera I suggest you do some research on lenses and think about your current budget. Are you going to want to get deep into photography (Im guessing you do since you want a DSLR.) Would you be willing to up your budget a little bit to get a better quality lens, or can you live with the kit lens till you save up some more money?

When I bought my 50D I figured I would get the kit lens because I would be fine with it for a while. Well looking I wish I had only bought the body and gotten a better quality lens and this is the 28-125 that I am talking about which is a little better than the 18-55 in terms of IQ.

I now have 4 lenses and I am trying to sell the 28-135 to get something better but its hard to sell it for a good amount of money.

Last, research these three terms, and how they effect your photos in depth before you buy the camera and you will start off much better:

Shutter (shutter speed in particular)
Aperture
ISO

 

whats awesome about DSLR's is you can get an "entry level" camera and never have to upgrade.

Canon is not better than Nikon and Nikon is not better than Canon. If one was truly better than the other then the other brand would be faaarrrrr out of business..

both the canon XSi and nikon d3000 are solid cameras. the nikon is one newer by a year. idk if that means anything to you, but. either way you go you will be happy

 

It will probably have better IQ, you will be able to get more artistic with a small DoF and you will be better off in low light but you wont have the wider field of view that the kit lens is capable of meaning in order to get more in the photo you must stand further away.

I suggest you ket the camera with the kit lens and if you can afford it get the nifty fifty (the Canon 50mm f/1.8 that we are talking about) it can be had for $100 or you can find them used on the forums all the time for $75-85. Eventually I would add to that a canon 55-250 and you would have a killer beginners kit.

Like the nifty fifty the 55-250 (or nifty 250) is a fairly inexpensive lens that yields pretty good results.

The 18-55, 50, 55-250 probably has the best bang:buck ratio

 

Go here to see sample images from various lenses:

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=107

I suggest you look at images from both the 50mm 1.8 and the 55-250

 

Lots of great info thanks. I think I would be fine with the kit lens for now, all I'll really be doing is taking pictures of nature, my truck etc. Eventually I would like to get some new lenses for it. But I think the kit lens will do fine for now. Next summer I will have a photography class and learn more about lenses and such. Ill do some research like you say. I don't want to throw a whole lot of money into it yet since I don't know if photography is going to be a career choice, it might be but we'll see when the class rolls around.

 

Yeah, looks like a decent camera. My recommendation is to buy one without the lens. The kit lenses are really cheap (crap). Get a good lens for it, probably plan on saving about $100 on the camera body only, then $250-$300 on a decent lens. For all around use a macro-zoom combo lens is a good bet. You will not be sorry, because over the years as you upgrade to newer and better cameras your old lenses will keep working for you and save you tons of money long term. For a photographer it's all about the right lens.

Cheers!

 

Like I said, get it with the kit lens and look into getting the 50 and the 55-250 and you will have a a great three lens kit with great flexibility for under $300 more if you find them used.

I also warn you to be careful because you will get hooked and career choice or not you will be wanting to spend money.

I started off a while back with a Rebel XSi and sold it. Recently after missing the DSLR I bought my 50D thinking I would be fine with just the kit lens since I wont be making money at it. Well soon after I bought the nifty fifty for $90 new, then it turned into wanting a ultra wide angle so I bought the sigma 10-20mm that was about $420, then I needed a telephoto so I bought a used sigma 70-200 f/2.8 and that was $500 then of course I needed a flash so I bought a used 430exII for $180 and to top it off you need a good tripod so I bought a slik 500DX and a good ball head and that was another $150

 

The higher the number(let's say 200mm) the more zoom, the less(18mm) wider the image.

Choose which ever you like.

 

My brother has his like new D80 and 18-135 MM lense for sale.

 

Decide on a brand (Canon or Nikon), spend a shitload on lenses, little on the camera body, and upgrade later.

 

Hey man if you can post up some picture of his camera, I googled and it looks pretty good. Post up some pictures if you can. Or PM me with some and a price.