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slr digital camera
jackoturbo
20-08-2009
i currently have a nikon coolpix 7600 7.1mps and although it is ok it is not the best. me and my other half are planning to start a family in the near future so we are wanting a better quality camera to catch those priceless moments and thought a slr camera would fit the bill.
it would be mostly for taking pics of people, animals, sport and landscapes so with that in mind what are my best options? budget would have to be no more than £500 but i dont mind if it is an old model i just want a decent camera.
thanks alot for all help
matt
welwynrose
20-08-2009
Jessops do the Canon 450D with an 18-55mm lens for £499.00 you'll probably be able to get it cheaper elsewhere - it's a good camera
Refusion
20-08-2009
I second welwynrose's suggestion of the Canon 450D. I use the previous model, the 400D, and they're a very good DSLR for someone who has no prior experience with using one. They're very easy, in my experience, for a beginner to get their head round.

If you wanted to stick with Nikon, I think the D40 and the D60 are relatively cheap, under £500 anyway, to buy these days. Though how easy these are to use for a beginner I do not know, but I can't imagine they'd be too difficult.
emmarr-x
20-08-2009
I got my first DSLR last year and went with the Nikon D40. Very good DSLR camera for a beginner like myself and it was under £300 on Dixon's website and in Jessops. Really easy to use as well.
TV King
20-08-2009
It's not an SLR but has some really good features that are normaly founfd on SLRs so I would recommened the Canon Ixus 990IS.

I orderd one on the internet last Sunady to replace my old Pentax Optio S5i which brought back in January 2005.

The Canon Ixus 990IS has not turned up yet so I have not been able to try the camera out yet.

Some web sites have the Canon Ixus 990 IS up for over £300 but If like me you have a good search around the internet you can get that price down to around £250.

Here is are some links to some web sites that will give you more information about the Canon Ixus 990 IS.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en...meta=&aq=f&oq=

http://www.canon.co.uk/For_Home/Prod...0_IS/index.asp

Also the Canon Ixus 990 IS is compatible with the following memory cards SD, HDSC, MMC, MMCplus and HC MMCplus.

I have found some good prices on memory card at the following web site http://www.play.com/Electronics/Elec...archtype=genre.

Also I bought a zip case for the Canon Ixus 990 IS brand new from ebay so here is the link.

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/i.html?_nkw=C...case&_osacat=0

Hope all this helps from TV King.
clonmult
21-08-2009
Originally Posted by emmarr-x:
“I got my first DSLR last year and went with the Nikon D40. Very good DSLR camera for a beginner like myself and it was under £300 on Dixon's website and in Jessops. Really easy to use as well.”

Unfortunately they're darned near impossible to find, as they've been totally dropped.

Whilst the Canon is good, an 18-55 lens would be a bit underwhelming in day to day use, and you'd find yourself wanting/needing to get a longer range lens.

It could be worth looking for the last few Sony A200s - Argos have been doing the base camera with 18-70 lens for £270, and a twin lens kit (with a 70-200 I think) for around £400.

The choice between Canon/Nikon/Sony/etc is totally down to personal preference, there is generally little to choose between the various models at any given price point.
jackoturbo
22-08-2009
thanks for the replys
TV King
23-08-2009
Please what ever you do not buy the Canon Ixus 990 IS and defiantly do not buy a digital camera from CB Camera Box.

On the CBM Camera Box web site it stated that x amount of Canon Ix us 990 IS cameras were in stock so I went a head and ordered one this was last Sunday.

Then I waited for it to turn up but by last Friday 21st August the Camera had still not turned up so My dad checked there web site and found out that infarct that CBM Camera Box were out of stock and that was why the camera had not turned up. But it was the fact that they said they had them in stock in the first place that his why I went ahead and ordered one. So we managed to cancel the order.

I was actual glad that the I had canalled the order because after finding out some more info on the Internet and reading a review in Digital Camera Essentials about the Canon Ixus 990 IS I fond out that it was not quite as good as I first thought.

The main thing that I found wrong about the camera was that the lens was not that wide the lens length (mm) is 37-185mm so there for lacks the 28mm or less wide angle lens that I have read you need.

So last Friday afternoon I ordered the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX550 which has the following features:

12.1 Mega Pixels Effective Resolution
5x Optical Zoom
Ultra Wide 25mm Leica lens
High Definition movies at a resolution of 1280x720

One think that you should never you is Digital zoom as it will just zoom in on the pixels and make the photo or movie look crap and all pixilated.

Near enough every digital camera has a digital zoom and some digital cameras and camcorders only have digital zoom so try and avoid using the digital zoom or from buying a digital camera that only has a digital zoom and buy one like the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX550 which has a 5x optical zoom which is a true zoom and if zooming in is what you want to be using.


I ordered the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX550 from Amazon from £241.43 in black. The camera will turn up on Tuesday which is my day off so I will spending the day trying out the camera.

Here is the Internet link for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX550.

http://www.panasonic.co.uk/html/en_G...357/index.html

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss?...umix+DMC-FX550

http://photography.shop.ebay.co.uk/?...ase&_sacat=625

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en...meta=&aq=f&oq=
cymrugirl
24-08-2009
Originally Posted by clonmult:
“It could be worth looking for the last few Sony A200s - Argos have been doing the base camera with 18-70 lens for £270, and a twin lens kit (with a 70-200 I think) for around £400.”

I just got the a200 and it's pretty good for a beginner like myself(cost £340 with twin lens at argos). Depends on how far you want to go with your photography. I didn't want to buy into a system - just wanted an easy to use camera and I went with the sony because:
1. The price is pretty darn good for an entry level slr
2. You can use minolta lenses with the sony alphas
3. Image stabilization is built into the body rather than the lenses
4. Easy to use interface and a good size

If you manage to get hold of one - I don't think you'd be disappointed.
feelsolucky
24-08-2009
I was lucky to get a Sony A200 a couple of months ago from Amazon for only £234!

It takes great point and click pictures so allows you to tweak and practice at your own pace.

Takes compact flash memory, which I picked up at comet for less than a tenner and Amazon also had half price soft bags for storing.

The only niggle is that there is no live viewer via the screen but you soon get used to that. Battery life is good, you can easily take several hundred pics on one charge.

I've seen them recently in Comet and Asda. Shop around and use quidco for extra cashback.
buenoshermanos
26-08-2009
Originally Posted by Refusion:
“I second welwynrose's suggestion of the Canon 450D.”

My wife recently got one of those : I'm glad it's recommended. It does seem pretty good.
stevieboy378
27-08-2009
The Canon 450D is a great DSLR, but be prepared to fork out once you've discovered the limitations of the cheapo kit lens, and want to upgrade to "L" glass . . . . .
cordunkni
27-08-2009
Originally Posted by stevieboy378:
“The Canon 450D is a great DSLR, but be prepared to fork out once you've discovered the limitations of the cheapo kit lens, and want to upgrade to "L" glass . . . . .”

This, whilst true, applies to any SLR of any make. A large part of the point of SLRs is to have interchangeable lenses, and once you've started you do tend to get the bug...
stevieboy378
27-08-2009
Originally Posted by cordunkni:
“This, whilst true, applies to any SLR of any make. A large part of the point of SLRs is to have interchangeable lenses, and once you've started you do tend to get the bug...”

I know only too well - I have a full camera bag, and an empty bank account . . . .

The kit lens that comes with the 450D is notoriously poor, more so than the equivalent Nikon lens. The one supplied with my 350D was awful - very soft below f8, and with awful chromatic aberration at anything above f11. I eventually replaced it with a 17-40L, and was amazed at the improvement . . .
muffin789
30-08-2009
I'm currently being tempted by the EOS 500d. I've already got an EOS 300V so have a few lenses that I understand are interchangeable. Just need my corporate bonus to come through!
buenoshermanos
30-08-2009
Originally Posted by stevieboy378:
“The Canon 450D is a great DSLR, but be prepared to fork out once you've discovered the limitations of the cheapo kit lens, and want to upgrade to "L" glass . . . . .”

She has old lenses which are pretty good - good point though about overall cost of 'kit'.
Darthchaffinch
01-09-2009
Go for the 450D, but if money's tight (which it may well be if you're looking to pro-create!) then the D60 is a great camera. I got one for the same reason as you, it's been brilliant in low light/moving baby situations.
stevieboy378
01-09-2009
Originally Posted by Darthchaffinch:
“Go for the 450D, but if money's tight (which it may well be if you're looking to pro-create!) then the D60 is a great camera. I got one for the same reason as you, it's been brilliant in low light/moving baby situations.”

For low light / moving baby situations on a budget with a 450D the 50mm 1.8 lens is hard to beat - as a prime lens it means the user has to zoom with his/her feet, but for the price ( around £75 new, and considerably less on eBay, where they pop up constantly due to people upgrading the the more expensive 1.4 version ) its hard to beat - try to keep it @f4 and its razor sharp . . . .
Martin Blank
01-09-2009
Pick one, either a Nikon or a Canon, just see how it feels in your hands. When buying an SLR, it's the lenses that make all the difference.

Either brand, as stated already, has a wonderful 50mm f1.8 for around £80, which will show you the clear difference between a point and shoot and an DSLR.

Bodies come and go, lenses are for life. Get the 50mm, and for example, the Sigma 10-20mm for wide angle madness, and that will cover your baby / people / landscape shots easily. Then if you need a longer reach you can invest in a zoom. A 70-200 f2.8 if you're flushed for cash, or just a simple 55-200 / 18-200VR etc etc.

I would vote Nikon, as 70% of the worlds optics are made by them, but really there's not alot in it at amateur level.

Just dont buy an IXUS! (or a Sony)
cymrugirl
01-09-2009
There's nothing wrong with a sony...at an amateur level there's very little difference between all the brands
I noticed this old article at the times that might be useful to the OP:
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/...cle3861192.ece
Martin Blank
01-09-2009
Originally Posted by cymrugirl:
“There's nothing wrong with a sony...at an amateur level there's very little difference between all the brands
I noticed this old article at the times that might be useful to the OP:
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/...cle3861192.ece”

I appreciate you own a Sony. That's no reason to recommend one. Lets face it, once you get into the world of SLR's, you will inevitably appreciate photography more. Why not buy into a brand who's main focus is photography and optics (Canon, Nikon), rather than a company who if tomorrow decided to close their photography arm, it wouldnt be a splash in the pan - and they could go back to making tv's!

Buy nice, dont buy twice!
cymrugirl
01-09-2009
lol - I love my little sony. I wish I had this guy's problem when he was using the kit lens
http://kinoz4eyes.blogspot.com/2009/...-its-lens.html

Somehow I don't see sony giving up on the cameras any time soon but yes, if I were to get serious about photography and looking towards the future, then maybe I would opt for canon/nikon. But just as a hobby, there's nothing wrong with the sony. You've got plenty of minolta lenses to use with it as well as the sony, tamron, sigma and carl zeiss lenses.

OP - found this article from the times as well which might be useful
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/...ffset=0&page=1
UltraViolet
02-09-2009
I've had my Nikon D70 for six years now and it's wonderful, I recommend looking into Nikon cameras. Perfect. Also, If I can work my way around a Nikon camera, anyone can...
clonmult
03-09-2009
Originally Posted by Martin Blank:
“I appreciate you own a Sony. That's no reason to recommend one. Lets face it, once you get into the world of SLR's, you will inevitably appreciate photography more. Why not buy into a brand who's main focus is photography and optics (Canon, Nikon), rather than a company who if tomorrow decided to close their photography arm, it wouldnt be a splash in the pan - and they could go back to making tv's!

Buy nice, dont buy twice!”

Canons main business is imaging, but they've branched out into other areas - audio (speakers), printers, scanning.

Nikon (and possibly Canon?) use Sony sensors - the CCD/CMOS sensors are sourced from a variety of companies, and Sony are one of the bigger manufacturers. I think the Nikon D60 uses the same sensors as the the Sony A200.

There is nothing wrong with the Sony range of cameras at all, and at the lower end especially there is little to choose between Sony, Canon and Nikon. Its all down to personal preference.

Sony are unlikely to shut down their camera/imaging sections though - their compacts are generally well regarded, video cameras are up with the best.

Best thing to do at the end of the day is to call into your local photographic shop and get a feel for the cameras on offer - I personally like the Sony, and having played with a D60 I didn't feel it justified the extra expense - to me at least. For others they'll have different feelings on the ranges.
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