Thinking About Buying A Digital SLR

[Canon PowerShot A540]

I Would Like To Buy A Digital SLR Camera Without Breaking The Bank:eek:. Is This Even Possible To Do I'd Like To Spend Maybe $200-$500:confused: Also What Do I Need For Nature ShotsFor Shooting Nature Shots Will $300-$400 do Me Good? Unless you get lucky on eBay, $200-$300 isn't going to happen. More like $500-$600 on the low end. How Low End Are We Talking? And Do I Really Need More Than 6.0 Mega Pixels? It Also Has To Have A Lens With It So When I Get It I Can Take Some Practice Shots. Thank You Very Much:)

[Gunsotsu]

Unless you get lucky on eBay, $200-$300 isn't going to happen. More like $500-$600 on the low end.

[Canon PowerShot A540]

Canon EOS 6.3MP Digital Rebel Camera (Body Only) What Does This Mean? Will I Be Able To Take Practice Shots When I First Get It? It's $350

[nfnitloop]

It means the camera comes without a lens. You won't be able to take any pictures with it without a lens. If you buy that body only and get the Canon f/1.8 50mm for ~$70, the setup will run you $420.
I just bought the XT kit for $599 and while I'm very happy with the camera, I think I should have bought the body only + 50mm prime.

[nfnitloop]

You would be buying the older model 300D. I love my XT (350D) which is pretty much just a refresh of the 300.
Here are the differences between the two. (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/page3.asp)
Some are pretty big differences, but I guess it depends on your own preferences. And, like me, your budget!

[Canon PowerShot A540]

It means the camera comes without a lens. You won't be able to take any pictures with it without a lens. If you buy that body only and get the Canon f/1.8 50mm for ~$70, the setup will run you $420.
I just bought the XT kit for $599 and while I'm very happy with the camera, I think I should have bought the body only + 50mm prime. Thank You Very Much:D

[Canon PowerShot A540]

You would be buying the older model 300D. I love my XT (350D) which is pretty much just a refresh of the 300.
Here are the differences between the two. (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/page3.asp)
Some are pretty big differences, but I guess it depends on your own preferences. And, like me, your budget! Okay Being New To All This I Don't Understand All Those Technical Terms A Little Walk Through Please:(

[googlit]

another thing you might consider, if you're not willing to drop around $600 on a DSLR right now, is to buy a pseudo-SLR... basically a glorified point-and-shoot. They generally let you change the settings you want to change, and the quality (depending on what you get) is better than some DSLRs. Most won't let you change lenses, but they're still good cameras. I know a few people who have cameras like this, who take spectacular photos and don't miss the SLR functionality.

A couple possibilities:

- Canon Powershot S2 (http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Powershot-S2-Digital-Stabilized/dp/B0009GZSSO/sr=1-6/qid=1170795461/ref=sr_1_6/103-5612103-1537440?ie=UTF8&s=photo)
- Panasonic DMC-FZ7 (http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-DMC-FZ7-Digital-Optical-Stabilized/dp/B000EBK3FW/sr=1-19/qid=1170795612/ref=sr_1_19/103-5612103-1537440?ie=UTF8&s=photo)

What you should absolutely do is head to a photo store and play around with cameras until you find one that you like, that feels right in your hands, and that has all the functionality you're after.

[Saralonde]

If you don't mind buying used, check this out http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=UsedHomePage&A=buyUsed&Q=371188
BH is considered a trustworthy site by many people. This would give you an XT body only for $399 plus $70 for a 50mm 1.8.
This site http://www.keh.com/OnLineStore/ProductList.aspx also has used equipment. Many people sell their cameras so they can upgrade. That may give you a bargain.

[Canon PowerShot A540]

Googlit Thank You The Quality Was What I Was After Not Being Able To Say "Ha My Camera Cost More Than Yours" :p! Now To Check A Few Out And Decide Which To Buy.:D I Also Don't Usually Buy Used Because I Don't Know How Well The Last Owner Has Treated The Equipment But Thank You Any How Saralonde. I'm Really Glad I Joined This Forum You Guys Are Great And I Can Learn A Lot In A Friendly Place:D

[Canon PowerShot A540]

Hmm I Think I'll Look Into The Canon Is This Store Reputiable? http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/product.aspx?omid=103&ref=froogle&utm_source=Froogle&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=CNPSS2&sku=CNPSS2
Thank You For The Help Guys And Gals.:D

[Nicole]

Reseller Rating of Beach Camera (http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Beach_Camera_Beachtr)

[Saralonde]

I checked rsellerratings http://shop.resellerratings.com/PD-23942030/store-9190

Nicole, you just beat me!:D

[Canon PowerShot A540]

http://www.usaphotonation.com/products.asp?product_id=12043&dept_id=2572 Is Where I'm Going To Get It If I Do. Thank You Very Much Everyone For Your Advice And Input:D:D:D

[googlit]

enjoy the new cam, and post lots of pics!

[Canon PowerShot A540]

enjoy the new cam, and post lots of pics!
Thank You It'll Be Awhile Before I Buy It If I Do Which I Most Likely Will!:D

[googlit]

sorry, I misunderstood... I thought you had just bought it, and I thought that was a pretty quick decision!

well then, good luck in your search, and I hope you end up with something that works really well for you! :D

[smc1377]

First suggestion is to pass on the powershot S2. Seems like you have shown such a strong interest in photography and creativity that my suggestion would be to save the money and buy a DSLR. I'm not trying to say that a person can only get good pictures from DSLR's, but judging from all of your threads concerning all sorts of attachments, techniques, etc., you would be better served with a DSLR.

I, too, thought that I'd be happy with a fully manual prosumer style point and shoot camera (Casio EX-P600), but it only satisfied my curiosity for half a year. It eventually turned out being money "wasted" on a camera that is collecting dust.

Might I make a recommendation that I haven't seen on this board. Get the Canon 10D if you're considering getting the 300D or even the 350D. It's so often forgotten about since it was never a "popular" camera, but it is basically the prosumer model of the 300D (aka Digital Rebel which is considered a consumer model).

Sidenote: Canons have three trim lines for their DSLR's. Three numbers denote consumer model (350D, 400D), two numbers represent their midlevel prosumer line (10D, 20D, 30D) and then one number represents their PRO models (5D, 1D).

Anyhow, back to my 10D suggestion. In comparing prices between Digital Rebels (300D) and 10D's on eBay, they are both going for about the same price. However, the 10D is clearly better than the Digital Rebel. Here's a link showing the differences (scroll down a little on the page to see the comparison chart)...

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos300d/

Again, this is just me speaking. I'm not trying to say that only DSLR's can take nice pictures (in fact, I think it's harder to take nice pictures with DSLR's), but judging from your threads, you'll be much happier with a DSLR. But if you're looking at a 300D, get the 10D instead for about the same price.

[PnwGuy]

Well Dell It Is That's Where I Buy My Computers.:D I Already Bought A Desktop And Laptop From Them And The Tech Support Is Amazing. The Prices At Dell Are Reasonable Too. Thank You Very Much Everyone For Your Advice And Input:D:D:D

If you order from Dell, be sure to check the expected ship date before you place the order. I attempted to order an S3 IS from them back in Sept and the ship date was 8 weeks out. It seems whenever they offer great prices the product (other than Dell products) gets back-ordered. I have no problem with Dell in general though.

I've been very happy with Amazon.com. When I ordered my gear I did a lot of research and it seemed those sites offering the lowest prices also had a large number of complaints and their practices often bordered on outright fraud. I remember looking at Beach and after digging a little decided not to risk it. You can't go wrong with Dell or Amazon or some of the more popular online photo stores like bhphotovideo or Adorama Camera or 47th Street Photo or even Ace Digital Club.

[Canon PowerShot A540]

Well I Did Some Research And Asked Around In My Family And Decided To Wait Awhile I'm Going To Buy A Adapter For My Camera And A Tele Converter. My Grandfather Told Me Nowadays For A Goo Entry Level DSLR I'd Have To Spend At Least $600.00. WOW! Thank You Everyone For Your Help.:D

[smc1377]

Well I Did Some Research And Asked Around In My Family And Decided To Wait Awhile I'm Going To Buy A Adapter For My Camera And A Tele Converter. My Grandfather Told Me Nowadays For A Goo Entry Level DSLR I'd Have To Spend At Least $600.00. WOW! Thank You Everyone For Your Help.:D

Not too long ago you couldn't even touch any kind of DSLR for $600. You'd be lucky to get a high end prosumer type of point and shoot for that kind of money. That's what I basically paid for my Casio Exilim EX-P600 (http://www.steves-digicams.com/2004_reviews/exp600.html) (pictured below) not even three years ago.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2004_reviews/ex-p600/exp600_front.jpg