Thinking of a new Camera
- Thread starter cj10jeeper
- Start date
I have just bought the Pentax K-m, my reasoning was I had an old Pentax film SLR so the lenses where interchangable. I got some good write ups for picture quality. Argos was the cheapest place to get it, on offer with a bag and SD card for £359.99p
If you have an old SLR its worth exploring this avenue as lenses are very expensive.
Happy hunting
If you have an old SLR its worth exploring this avenue as lenses are very expensive.
Happy hunting
lacroupade
Lifer
One important point to watch out for CJ, given your interests; a lot of digital cameras are crap at tracking and keeping in focus, i.e. they are useless when you want to try and photograph motorsport at speed side-on for example.....so check the reviews carefully in this respect. Another variant on this is that some cameras will track focus all the time, irrespective of whether you are taking pics (can be a battery drain), others need the shutter button partially depressed, while some can do both.
So look for a fast focussing speed if you can. I have to say my Nikon D70S is great in that respect, not to mention battery life which is MONUMENTALLY long - I take a LOT of pics and sometimes don't need to charge the thing for weeks at a time.
So look for a fast focussing speed if you can. I have to say my Nikon D70S is great in that respect, not to mention battery life which is MONUMENTALLY long - I take a LOT of pics and sometimes don't need to charge the thing for weeks at a time.
lacroupade said:
I have found that a lot of the ability to take fast moving objects can be more to do with the lens your using! Kit lenses sold with cameras are rarely up to the job there!
As far as Nikon lenses go, this 70-200 lens is one that many photographers use, but as you can see, you get what you pay for!
http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/Nikon/AF-S%2070-200mm%20f2.8%20ED%20VR%20II%20Lens-76457/Show.html
lacroupade
Lifer
pvr said:
I'm glad you provided that clarification as I was momentarily worried.....
:rofl:Get a 2nd hand 30d and the 1.8 50mm portrait lens and go from there 
I run a D70s... all said and done the D40 etc work, but as soon as you learn the SLR benefits you will want access to more and more of those benefits, and the D40 will stop providing them quickly.
Get a mid-range SLR imho... even 2nd hand. My sister in law has bought all her stuff 2nd hand off e-bay and all has been good!
Dave
I run a D70s... all said and done the D40 etc work, but as soon as you learn the SLR benefits you will want access to more and more of those benefits, and the D40 will stop providing them quickly.
Get a mid-range SLR imho... even 2nd hand. My sister in law has bought all her stuff 2nd hand off e-bay and all has been good!
Dave
Thanks guys - some fabulous information in here to digest.
Had a looksie in Jessops simply as convenient and all on dsiplay. No way will I buy from them as I reckon I can do better and of course by the time I add in all the extras the price rockets.
Next step is to consider a used example to see what's around. (I also compete off road, so this is not going to remain a pristine hobby camera......)
Had a looksie in Jessops simply as convenient and all on dsiplay. No way will I buy from them as I reckon I can do better and of course by the time I add in all the extras the price rockets.
Next step is to consider a used example to see what's around. (I also compete off road, so this is not going to remain a pristine hobby camera......)
Same setup that I use for work (industrial). It makes me (an all thumbs photographer) look good. Lens is a little pricey but it's truely a do it all lens.WLH said:
cj10jeeper said:
One reason you might want to consider a newer model - some of the DSLRs now support video (some HD) - something I would have liked on mine on one or two occasions.
That reminds me of the average video clips I manage to take :roll: Incredible stuff.
lacroupade
Lifer
pvr said:
WOW that is stunning! I was about to say "who needs video?" but I think I just choked on my words!
The decent new Canon cameras that do video are quite expensive though. We have a 5D and hopefully not so far away, another 5D or 7D, and they are mainly used just for video right now, such is their flexibility and quality for certain video jobs
That said, they are not cheap! Maybe wait a few more generations
Imho, a 30D is a fantastic learner/basic camera, that can also produce stunning results when you delve deeper, and they are pretty damn cheap now for for what they are capable of.
I'd not bother with any Nikon stuff really unless you get the higher end stuff, or KNOW for a fact you will only ever tinker with the lower end stuff, because the middle-ground is just so much better covered by Canon.
I got a Nikon D70S and it's great as an all-rounder (maybe a D80 would be a good buy for you), but already I kinda have met it's limits in some areas and the only real upgrade is to a Canon 20/30/40/50D kinda thing (next Nikon 'up' a level is to the D200/300 which are tons more money and too big etc)
All imho anyway
Dave
That said, they are not cheap! Maybe wait a few more generations
Imho, a 30D is a fantastic learner/basic camera, that can also produce stunning results when you delve deeper, and they are pretty damn cheap now for for what they are capable of.
I'd not bother with any Nikon stuff really unless you get the higher end stuff, or KNOW for a fact you will only ever tinker with the lower end stuff, because the middle-ground is just so much better covered by Canon.
I got a Nikon D70S and it's great as an all-rounder (maybe a D80 would be a good buy for you), but already I kinda have met it's limits in some areas and the only real upgrade is to a Canon 20/30/40/50D kinda thing (next Nikon 'up' a level is to the D200/300 which are tons more money and too big etc)
All imho anyway
Dave
