Which DSLR?

T

teatime0315

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
Messages
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So I'm really confused... I don't know which DSLR to pick. I've narrowed it down to three.
Nikon D80
Canon Digital Rebel XTi
Sony A-100
all of them have 10 megapixel sensors...
I was wondering if you guys could steer me the right way...
So far it seems like the Sony is the cheapest, the Canon is in the middle, and the Nikon the most expensive.
 
Would you guys think it's wise to buy one of these cams for a beginner in the DSLR field?
 
D50 or Rebel XT is probably more suitable for you if you consider yourself a beginner, and in photo / video
Lens > Camera
 
Flawles said:
D50 or Rebel XT is probably more suitable for you if you consider yourself a beginner, and in photo / video
Lens > Camera
Click to expand...

That makes sense. How does the Nikon D40 fare against these DSLRs?
Thanks for your help Flawles :) you've been very helpful.
 
Get the D50.
The D40 is just a little bit cheaper, and is only compatible with AF-S lenses.
 
Here is the best suggestion I have ever heard and will pass it along;

The different types of brand really in the days end don't make a difference.
Find the camera that fits your hand well and is in your budget range.

Also make sure you can find good lenses for what type of photography you are going to be shooting before you commit to a brand. IE; 18-200VR Nikon lens = great all around lens while the canon white lenses are just great in general.

Finally if you have already a good assortment of memory cards, make sure you can find one that fits.

I loved the way the D50 fit, and I already had Sd cards so it was a no brainer for me.
 
I just recently went through this decision, I must say that how the camera feels in your hand is the biggest factor, second is what kind of lenses are available in your price range for the particular body and third is price. Don't worry about the the megapixels, this will only be a factor if you plan on printing large prints (6 megapixels should be fine up to around 8x9, most people won't print any larger)

I chose the D50 because it fit my fiance and my hands the best (the Canon Rebel XT felt like crap to me) I found a slightly used body for $399 (bhphotovideo.com) and a slightly used 18-135mm lens for $279 (from the same site) the 18-200 w/ VR would have been great but it would have been another $400 and they are hard to find at the moment. I was close to buying the D40 but at the moment you can only find them with a 18-55mm kit lens (it is a good lens but I wanted more reach while keeping a one lens kit) Also I tried the D40 w/ the 18-135mm lens at a photo store and the lens really overpowered the body. (the D50 is slightly larger and I actually prefer the bigger style, especially when you have a bigger lens)
I really just wish the D50 had the 2.5" LCD like the D40 and the D80.

I highly suggest checking out bestbuy, walmart, and your local photo shop to play around a little bit.

Lastly do your homework this is a big investment that you don't want to feel bad about.

If money wasn't an issue I would have gone for the D80 (larger LCD and more future proof w/ the 18-200mm VR lens) this setup would be great but it will run you about $1500, twice as much as I wanted to spend.
 
I would say the Rebel, but I am a Canon guy :) I have the original Rebel 300D and love it.

Canon makes great cameras, and so does Nikon. Both will keep you happy and both have a lot of choices for lenses (although for pros canon has the L series (white) which is really the best there is).
 
Thanks for the advice everyone... First thing I'll do is visit a Best Buy or something.
I have another question, one about lenses. How would I know what lense to buy?
SpeedSlayer recommended the 18-200VR Nikon lens ... Do the numbers represent a focal range or do they represent something entirely different.
 
yes the numbers represent a focal range the link below will give you a good example of different ranges. (I found the link on Nikonians.com)

http://images.blw.net/blw/focal_lengths/

Really the range you want depends on what you like to take pictures of, if you like to photograph wildlife you will want a long reach (200mm at least) If you like to take panoramic shots or architectural shots then a wide lens is best (12-24mm) If you just like to take candids of family at Christmas and birthdays then the 18-55 kit lens that comes with a lot of Nikons would probably be great. I chose the 18-135 b/c it was in my price range and gave me a give range. (I'm not sure what I or my fiance will like to photograph so I played it safe and covered the widest range I could under my price point.

In general zoom lenses that cover a smaller range are better, but for a newbie like myself I wouldn't be able to tell the subtle differences in say the 18-70 and 18-135mm lenses. (Even though most pro reveiws say the 18-70 is a better lenses, I just the the extra reach)
 
Also anything over about 200mm starts to need a tripod to get good clear pictures. Handheld it is too shakey and you will get blur.
 
That is a good point, this is what the VR in the 18-200mm Nikon lens does. I forgot what is stands for but is supposed to help compensate for blurring at the longer end of the lens. From what I have read it does help.
 
Hence why I dont have one :p
You can get many lenses that are decent for much less.

I have the 18-55 that came with my camera and a 75-300 that I purchased brand new for around $200.

Its not the best thing out there, but it is very good and gets good results. The only thing I do not like is that I have to switch back and forth quite a bit for the type of shooting I do.


Also you can look into Tamron and Sigma where you will save some money as they are 3rd party lenses.
 
teatime0315 said:
Would you guys think it's wise to buy one of these cams for a beginner in the DSLR field?
Click to expand...
D50 hands down for the beginner Dslr. The D80 is a camera you have to have a fair amount of knowledge to get great results. The D50 shoots great pics out of the box. Also I believe Circut City has them with the kit lense for just under $500. I would look at http://www.bhphotovideo.com and see what deals they are running as well. The beauty of it is it leaves you more money for more glass sooner. I have both the D80 and, the D50 myself.
 
Joves said:
D50 hands down for the beginner Dslr. The D80 is a camera you have to have a fair amount of knowledge to get great results. The D50 shoots great pics out of the box. Also I believe Circut City has them with the kit lense for just under $500. I would look at http://www.bhphotovideo.com and see what deals they are running as well. The beauty of it is it leaves you more money for more glass sooner. I have both the D80 and, the D50 myself.
Click to expand...

Is it true that the maximum it can hold is a 2gb SD card?
EDIT: the D50 that is...
 
teatime0315 said:
Is it true that the maximum it can hold is a 2gb SD card?
EDIT: the D50 that is...
Click to expand...

Yes it's true the D50 dose not support SDHC so you limited to 2GB until or if Nikon releases a firmware update.

But at only 6MP even shooting RAW 2GB isn't really a problem.

Myself I would rather have a few smaller cards and risk losing less data if a card was to corrupt.

Just my 2 cents
 
i love my canon 350d (aka rebel XT here in the US). there is a wide variety of lenses available and for reasonable prices (75-300 f/4-5.6 for less than $200, the 50mm f/1.8 for about $70 etc)

plus compact flash cards are really cheap and you could pick up a few 1-2gb cards and never worry about running out of space when shooting.

good luck making your decision
-zac
 
Thanks guys... Turns out Nikon just released the D40x .. supposedly the same camera but with a 10 megapixel ccd sensor. This sounds awesome... for 700 dollars... but i just read that it doesn't have auto focus much like its predecessor. How important is AF in DSLR's?
 
It just depends on what type of lenses you plan to use. All new lenses are AF-S which have an auto focus motor in them so they will work properly with the D40. Older lenses don't have an auto focus motor so they need to be driven by the motor on the camera body. These lenses will work with the D40 but they will not auto focus (this could be important to you and it may not). If you don't already have access to the older lenses then this probably isn't a deal breaker for you. AF-S lenses also tend to be more expensive though the trend is going toward this style so in the future you should have a larger selection of AF-S lenses and hopefully at a decent price. (this could be 1 yr or may be 5)
 
One of the nice things about the Sony A100 is it has built in image stabilization, so any lens you use on it will be stabilized. The Pentax K100D and K10D also have it built in...I'm a big fan of this approach.
 
thanks for your recommendations guys, turns out I can stretch my wallet a little more.
I went to ritz and costco, I tried out the D80. It fits perfectly in my hand and its stock lense isn't that bad either. I could get the D80 for 1200 shipped and no tax. Is this a good deal?
Question about lenses.. are Tamron and Sigma good brands for lenses or should i just stick with nikon ones? :confused: Thanks :)
 
Glacian22 said:
One of the nice things about the Sony A100 is it has built in image stabilization, so any lens you use on it will be stabilized. The Pentax K100D and K10D also have it built in...I'm a big fan of this approach.
Click to expand...

I hear the Sony A100 has a lot of noise problems when the ISO is past 800 or something :(
Correct me if I am wrong.
 
$1200 US or Canadian? And is that body only, or does it come with a lens? You can get the body + an 18-135 for around $1200 US at B&H.
 
generally Nikon lenses will be better but that doesn't mean Tamron and Sigma don't make usable lenses the price difference between Nikon and the 3rd party lens manufacturers makes it almost worth it in my mind, though I stuck w/ Nikon.
 
mitcity22 said:
generally Nikon lenses will be better but that doesn't mean Tamron and Sigma don't make usable lenses the price difference between Nikon and the 3rd party lens manufacturers makes it almost worth it in my mind, though I stuck w/ Nikon.
Click to expand...

K thanks :) ... Another question, I'm wondering do any other manufacturers have VR in their lenses?
 
TechHead said:
B&H - www.bhphotovideo.com , a good retailer based out of NYC. Good prices, great service. Aunt bought my S2IS from them last year.

They have a brick-and-mortar store in NYC as well.
Click to expand...


They are awesome. They have just about everything you can imagine and at decent prices. Also, they are not like many of the NYC fly by night stores, they are totally legit :)
 
Yeah Beards&Hats are one of the most reputable dealers I know of.
D80 is a nice choice just remeber there is a large learning curve with the camera.
 
Well, I just bought myself a K10D and a Sigma 17-70 F2.8-4.5, along with a tripod with a quick-release and some other stuff. It's great. :)

But I feel broke now. :(
 
Nikon or Canon
I wouldn't touch any other brand out there, even Sony

After that it really comes down to how they feel in your hand, as thats one of the major differences between the two. Canon for the "most" part has better high end cameras, so if you plan on getting pro thats the way to go. Otherwise both cameras are great, they both have great lenses, although Nikon tends to have cheaper ones that are better quality in the Canon price range.

I've personally owned a Nikon D70s a Nikon D200 and have recently switched to Canon when I bought my Canon EOS 1D Mark IIN for sports/journalism work.

Check out fredmiranda.com and visit their forums, they have a plethora of info on Canon/Nikon, reviews, opinions etc. As well check out the usual review sites, dpreview.com, kenrockwell.com, etc. And last but not least, go check out the cameras in a store and try changing settings, taking pics, how they feel in your hand, etc.


teatime0315 said:
thanks for your recommendations guys, turns out I can stretch my wallet a little more.
I went to ritz and costco, I tried out the D80. It fits perfectly in my hand and its stock lense isn't that bad either. I could get the D80 for 1200 shipped and no tax. Is this a good deal?
Question about lenses.. are Tamron and Sigma good brands for lenses or should i just stick with nikon ones? :confused: Thanks :)
Click to expand...

Is that for just the camera? Because that seems steep for the D80, you can get a D200 for almost that price. Check out BHphotovideo, as they are THE premier camera sales company in the US and most of the world.
I would stray away from the D40 line of cameras, as they are for the most part complete shit. You will want AF down the line and eventually you will just toss that camera.
Once you start looking at lenses:
I recommend the Nikon kit lens: 18-55mm I think it was
also get a nice 50mm prime lens, like a 1.8; I use those for most of my day-to-day work/fun shots. Great for low light and they make great pics when you get up close.
the 18-200mm is a great lens, but its pricey. If you need a zoom check that one out or the 70-300mm, as you have your base rand covered pretty much by the kit/prime lens.
Also you may want to check out a wide-angle lens, depending on what kinds of photos you like. So all in all, look at spending at least $300 on a lens or two off the bat, and in the long run you will end up spending more on lenses than on the camera. Its best to get nice lenses before you get a nice camera, then you can just switch them over.

I currently have $2800 invested in my camera and over $4000 in lenses... :(
Have fun man
 
emp7re said:
Nikon or Canon
I wouldn't touch any other brand out there, even Sony
Click to expand...

I agree, especially in the Dslr end of the business. Right now all the other companies are playing catch up with the big two. That is because they seemed to be under the delusion that film would remain king in SLR formats. Eventually all formats will be digital. Film is still ruling in large format cameras. Face it digital is much easier to process and, printing has come a long way for the amature user. No more messy chemicals or, expensive equipment needed. I love it.
 
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