I currently have a cannon Powershot 400. It's ok, then I read the manual front to back and learned a lot about what this camera can actually do. I have taken a big interest in Macro. My question is what's a good beginner DSLR? The guys I work with talk a lot about the Cannon Rebel XTi and the Nikon D80. I can get a pretty decent accomodation on either camera. Just curious on some of your preferences and thoughts. Here's some of the pics with the Powershot400.

 

CLICK ME

 

^ Come on man...that's just too rediculously big to post up in here . If it's going to be that big, at least use a link instead.

 

a scale pic of the Z

I have the same question. Right now I am using a sony point and shoot. Looking for a good, but not, wallet buster.

thanks

 

Just picked up the D50, great starter camera!

https://my350z.com/forum/photography/220304-camera-buying.html

 

The Nikon D50 and D70 are both great start up cameras.

 

I got the XTi a few weeks ago. Seems like a great camera so far, but I really haven't gotten a chance to do much shooting with it yet.

 

I am an Canon fan, so I would prob suggest the XTi. I have no direct experience with it, though.

The XTi and a nice macro lense like the 100mm f2.8 is a nice combo for macro (though you will still need a lense for general use).

Here's a shot from my 20D with the above lense:

 

Been looking to get into the DSLR world for a few months now, and being the **** shmuck I am, I like to take advantage of the internet and do research on what I'm buying. Here's the low down coming from a newb to the photography world wanting to get into SLR/DSLR. Seems to me, we are again in the same boat, not wanting the big price tag Professional stuff as it's overkill, and wanting something a bit better than the standard point and shooter. We fall into the "prosumer" market.

- Canon and Nikon are the biggest names in SLR/DSLR.
- DSLRs that are under $999 are Canon Rebel XT ($799), Canon Rebel XTi ($899, upgraded version of the XT), Nikon D50 ($699), Samsung Pro815 ($699), and Olympus E-500 ($799).
- Some are available as "body only," letting you chosse your lens.
- Advantage of DSLRs are low noise in low light conditions and higher ISOs.

I'm buying mine on the 6th. Right now, the reviews point to the Canon Rebel XTi, which was just released recently. Been waiting for Nikon to upgrade their D50 though, and see what the reviewers say.

DPR Canon Rebel XTi Preview
DCRP Canon Rebel XTi Review

You can browse DPR or DCRP and do some reading. It'll help you pick out the right DSLR for you.

 

www.dpreview.com

Megapixels aren't important - anything above 4 Mp is fine for web use and printing 4x6 and 5x7 pictures from a nice $500 color printer.

Camera bodies aren't important - you'll likely upgrade them every few years as the technology in digital cameras is still evolving. Contrast that to 35mm film cameras I have that are 30 to 40 years old that still pictures technically as perfect as a brand new camera.

Lenses matter - it's all about the glass. First off if you buy quality glass it's likely to last a life time or longer. You may change camera bodies every three years but you'll likely keep your collection of glass for decades. With the best camera on the planet, the highest skilled photographer, and the best lighting system ever made you'll not end up with good pictures without good glass. Spend most of your money on the lenses and choose very carefully each and every addition. I haunt professional boards/blogs to get their opinions as amateur photographers are an easy bunch to please.

Lighting - photography is the capture of light. Often artificial lighting is what makes the difference between a good picture and a great one. Flash units, external stobes, remotes, screens and reflectors all make good light into great light.

Skills - take that camera out of the darn automatic or program mode and push the limits of your skills outwards! I've been shooting pictures as a pretty profecient amateur for more than 30 years and learning new techniques is what keeps the hobby exciting.

For 30 years I was an Olympus system owner based on the above recommendations. I have the OM-10, OM-1, OM-2, and OM-4T bodies and about ten lenses for those four bodies. The Olympus cameras were the first with TTL flash abilities and were fast from the finger to the shutter release. Olympus had the best flash system available with that TTL ability so I went with them and captured some great pictures in my world travels. When digital came about I got into the digital world and have owned six or eight digital cameras. My most recent being a beautiful Olympus E-10. That poor thing had +20,000 pictures run though it and is worse for wear so I started shopping for a new DSLR with a clean slate as Olympus changed lens formats when they went to the DSLR format.

I looked at the Canon D20/D30/Rebel 350, and the Nikon D50/D70s/D200 after looking over the Olympus line and coming to the conclusion (right or wrong) that they were lacking in their lens depth. I ended up on the Nikon line due to their built-in wireless flash controller in the D70s and the D200. I picked the D70s rather than the D200 due to paranoia. I shoot hundreds of pictures during afternoon functions at my temple and will often set my camera down and go about social business. Setting down a lens and camera worth $2400 is harder than one worth $1700 for some reason.

Later I will probably buy another Nikon body when they come out with the replacement for the beautiful D200 in a couple of more years.

 

Look at the new D80 body. I have Nikon lens so I'm committed. Once you have chosen, you will most likely be committed as well. I don't think you can go wrong with either Cannon or Nikon.

 

Thanks for the input.

 

high res shot just shows a washed out sky, lens flare, and excessive sensor noise from your R1

 

Canon entry level bodies have poor ergonomics compared to Nikon. The 400D isn't comfortable to hold and the user interface isn't as good.

When it comes to image quality at iso 800 and higher, the edge goes to Canon (when using decent glass).

I'm a Canon user due to the superior autofocus system, high iso image quality, and good selection of quality telephoto lenses. I like the ergonomics and wide angle lens selection of Nikon but the Canon attributes fit what I photograph.

I'd suggest a used 20D over a new 400D. The 20D has better ergonomics than the 400D, larger viewfinder, better high iso image quality, larger buffer and more fps; the second dial for adjustments is a huge benefit when shooting manual.

 

i could almost feel that watch

 

I have small hands so the 400D fits me well. Tried it at Best Buy, and I have no qualms about the ergonomics. Besides, the 20D is about $300 more. I can use the money to buy better lenses and filters. I guess I'll have to get the feet wet before I can truly say, "I shoulda...."

 

I have small hands, too, but it's not comfortable to hold when you start using good glass. Put on a telephoto lens and it'll start feeling uncomfortable. Hold a Nikon or a prosumer or pro Canon body and you'll want to drop kick the 400D.

 

https://my350z.com/forum/media-share/221054-first-dslr-shots.html

that was my first time using the canon XTi... it gives you an idea of what an amateur like myself can do. in most of the pictures, the TV was set at 0"4 and the AV was left in "auto". ISO was set at 400.

 

it took me a while to accept the price on those cams, then I bought mine, and hey, it's quite worth it.

 

Determining where to start? Not so easy. Do you like to get into manual settings or would you always shoot in auto mode? Would you like to set the aperture to get more stuff in focus (depth of field) and would you ever use a slow shutter speed to get some blur in the image to portray a feeling of motion? If not, and if you would always shoot in auto, I think the Nikon D50/D70/D80 are all good choices.

I started with the D50 with the kit 18-55 3.5-5.6 lens. It did not me take long to realize that manual settings can yield better looking pics than auto settings. Having said that, I have now outgrown the auto settings and, unfortunately, all the manual settings are buried in the menus instead of having switches on the camera body for instant access to frequently used manual settings. I have not had my camera a year yet and am ready for a D200. I'll be selling the D50 pretty soon.

So if you think you'll get into manual settings, go for a Nikon D200 or whatever the canon quivalent is.

In the end, for macro pics, the glass is more important than the body. You need to get acustomed to the prices of good DSLR cameras. It's a shock. Also, if you are only using the pics for web, you don't need the most expensive Nikon/Canon glass. Go with a decent third party glass. If you are going to make prints of your macro pics (larger than 8x10), then it's prolly worth it to get the good glass. Just be prepared to pay at least as much for a good lens as you did for the body.

I chose the Nikon because it just fit my hands better I had no colletion of SLR lenses at all so it was a simple choice.

I would stay with Nikon or Canon because there are lots of lenses out there and you can get some good deals on used lenses...

good luck...