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New Camera Suggestions Please........

bigskyrider

New member
I've been shooting pix with the mini Sony Cybershot with 7 megs and I was thinking of "moving on up" any suggestions to a bigger better Digital?

I was considering the Nikon D-40 or D-60.

Thanks for the help!

Mike:dance
 
do your research with online stores -- the U make the call

I recently did a lot of comparison shopping online comparing various features of digital SLRs. When done, I felt confident that the Canon Rebel XSi with 12.2 mega-pixels was the camera for us. It had all of the features we wanted and seemed to deliver the most bang for the buck. Found a great deal on the body and two lenses at B&H Photo online.

There once was a day when there was no doubt that Nikon was the best that money could buy, in this day and age, there are a lot of very good choices and they are all very high quality. Our Rebel has the 12.2mp, image stabilization in the lenses, live view, manual choices, auto focus, well you get the idea. And what's more most other brands offer all of those things too. It all boils down to personal choice based on your research and don't forget to include in that research, talking to some actual owners of various brands. It's one thing to get Internet advice but face to face communication with a trusted source can't be beat.
 
Have you considered the D90? This gives similar features as the others, and also lets you take video (like on the point-and-shoot cameras).

Here is a great "kit" from B&H Photo:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/595841-REG/Nikon__D90_DIGITAL_SLR_CAMERA.html

I have the 18-200 VR lens on my D300 and really like it. I would say it is one of the most versatile and best quality Nikkor lenses for the price. VR is very nice for low light stills.

Happy hunting...
 
Glass and Placement of controls; they should seem as intuativeas possible, and overall ease of use. buying from a camera store is best if you can, they let you play with it, get a feel for it and the layout of the controls, two cameras may have the same features yet one may simply seem more logically laid out to a certain individual over another. That's the one to buy. Remember, if its hard to use, or remember what does what, it will wind up sitting in the closet after a while.

RM
 
I've been shooting pix with the mini Sony Cybershot with 7 megs and I was thinking of "moving on up" any suggestions to a bigger better Digital?

I was considering the Nikon D-40 or D-60.

Thanks for the help!

Mike:dance

There are a lot of good under $1,000 Digital SLR's on the market. In the film days the advise was to buy the glass and then get whatever body the lens required. Glass is still important, but I think the technology of the body is almost - if not as important - in the digital world. With film cameras, all the body did was time the amount of light hitting the film. The image capture technology was in the film. Since all cameras could use the same films, when something new/better came out you got an upgrade with your next roll. It was common to keep a good body 20 years - not any more. In the digital world, the image capture technology is locked inside the body, and upgrading means a new body.

I just purchased my second dSLR (generational upgrade for the reasons above) and after a lot of research went with an Olympus E-520. Since you can't turn around without seeing a Canon or Nikon commercial, and because Olympus doesn't spend those kind of add dollars, I'll give my reasons for choosing this camera. I hope this doesn't end up sounding a like a commercial itself, but I do think Olympus is the most innovative dSLR maker today, and offers very compact cameras with very useful technology and excellent lenses. Some of the things that are important to me:


Glass:
Lots of people will tell you cameras are all about glass. What they often don't tell you is that the "kit" lenses that come with (or are priced/designed to go with) cameras in this class do not perform to the levels of the high-end/priced lenses which gave the camera maker it's reputation. The kit lenses from Olympus are the only ones with ED glass (Enhanced Dispersion - makes for clearer pictures colors), and are regarded by many testers as the best kit lenses on the market. They are also smaller than other maker's comparable lenses.

In-body Image Stabilization vs In-lens:
Some makers put the image stabilization into the lens, but Olympus and some others put it into the body where it works with every lens, including old legacy lenses. The Olympus system works for both stationary photos, and for horizontal and vertical panning.

Digital Sensor cleaning system:

Olympus pioneered an automatic system to clean the digital sensor ("film") every time the camera is turned on. Several other makers have their own system now, but the Olympus one is considered the most effective in the tests I've read. If you don't know, dirt on the digital sensor is the bane of digital SLR's. Contamination of the sensor shows up on your photos and cleaning it is takes a very careful hand.

Live View:

Another Olympus innovation, the ability to pre-view your picture on the LCD screen is very handy in many situations. Especially where you want the camera well above our below your head.

Face Detection technology:

I don't know if this is all that cool or not, since I haven't used it yet. But, it does have the ability to set the focus and exposure on the faces in the frame. I might be a little too much Old School for this. :gerg

Physical Size:
The E-520 is the second smallest dSLR on the market. The smallest is the E-420 Olympus which doesn't have the in-body image stabilization of the E-520. The kit lenses (a 28~84mm and 80~300mm equivalent) are also very small, together it makes for a very compact package that's easier for me to carry - on the bike or otherwise.

So, some things to think about. Add to it something someone else mentioned: handling. Just like a bike, a camera needs to fit your hands and the controls need to fall where they make sense to you. Good luck shopping - there are really no bad choices.
 
cameras

...after a lot of research...GregFeeler

Thanks for all of this, Greg; that was good. I think many of us non pro's tend to stay with the same brands because we're used to them, and trust them.

I buy the photo magazines now and then, and like to read the comparo articles, but I'm not sufficiently camera savvy to understand all the minutiae.
 
Thanks for all of this, Greg. I think many of us non pro's tend to stay with the same brands because we're used to them, and trust them.

I buy the photo magazines now and then, and like to read the comparo articles, but I'm not sufficiently camera savvy to understand all the minutiae.

I was into film photography in a pretty big way years ago. Then stood by the sidelines of the digital change (just using point-and-shoots) until about two and a half years ago. Now it's a lot of fun what with the excellent cameras, powerful software, and larger computer monitors. There's no comparison with the days of loading rolls of film, the processing delay, and the manual printing and darkroom work. If you don't at least get a product like Adobe Photoshop Elements and do some entry level editing of your shots, you're missing out on a lot of the fun of making some excellent photos.
 
Just bought the Nikon D-60 set from Costco.....and I could not be happier with the results of the last weeks pictures.......both the short and the long lenses give great results.....it's far more camera than I will ever use.......

Now, I know what has been missing from my point and shoot pictures....

It makes me want to take the camera along on all of my trips,,,,
 
I've been shooting pix with the mini Sony Cybershot with 7 megs and I was thinking of "moving on up" any suggestions to a bigger better Digital?

I was considering the Nikon D-40 or D-60.

Thanks for the help!

Mike:dance

I have been using a Nikon D-80 for the past two years and consider it fine for use out in the field... it is rugged and uses cmos. I have probably taken in the neighborhood of 75000 pictures with it and it still works fine. The shutter life is quoted at 750000 That is more than most people will take in a life time. I am going to be moving up to the D-90 soon so if anyone is interested in buying a fine middle of the road camera I would be interested in talking to them. I can either sell the body only or some lenses and filters and all sorts of goodies to go with it.

Phone is 432-375-0135

best Regards

Franklin
 
Yikes.....

Thanks for all of the great suggestions.
I think I'm going to purchase the D-40 or D-60......they should work well with my G.S...
In the past I had a big camera with lots of lenses but I found that I didn't like carrying all of the equipment on my bike when I'm touring.

Best,

Mike
 
Thanks for all of the great suggestions.
I think I'm going to purchase the D-40 or D-60......they should work well with my G.S...
In the past I had a big camera with lots of lenses but I found that I didn't like carrying all of the equipment on my bike when I'm touring.

Best,

Mike

That is precisely why I have an inexpensive FinePix Z5. It takes good quality pictures - not great maybe - BUT it's small and competent and I can use most all of its features. I'm not afraid it will be damaged. It's never left at home. It's always with me.

I've learned so much about photography just by doing it. I've taken really awful pictures. And I've captured priceless memories.

It's not the camera. It's having the camera with you when the opportunity rises. And knowing HOW to use it.

I have so much to learn. But I go to school most every day!

Voni
sMiling

 
suggestions

...then stood by the sidelines of the digital change...GregFeeler

I went through the same process, staying with my Nikon film SLR's, and just using Olympus Stylus point and shoot digitals.

But there's nothing like digital now: I still use a Stylus P & S and D 40 SLR. But my wife and daughter have transitioned to the P & S's with the big lenses, one a Leica, and the other a Lumix.

For riding, I liked to keep the Stylus in the tank bag, and the D 40 in the right (road side) System Case.
 
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Just remember our motto: "If it's not really, really, expensive it can't be any good. Spend more - look better!
 
Canon 50D

My wife gave me a Canon 50D for Christmas. I'm still familiarizing myself with the camera, but so far I love it! 15+ megapixels is a lot, but even so it's so damn fast! The thing sounds like a fully automatic weapon in burst mode :)

Automatic sensor cleaning is a nice upgrade from my old Canon D60. Best thing about the upgrade from the D60 to the 50D is that they still use the same batteries and flash cards! No upgrades required! Now I need to get the external battery pack so I can take lots of pictures in cold environments.

Hopefully I'll have some shots worth sharing in the near future :)
 
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