New to DSLRs

[itsonlybarney]

Hi All,

First post here on this amazing forum. I'm somewhat of a train enthusiast (model and real life) and looking to upgrade my current Samsung S860 point-and-shoot to a Digital SLR.

I've uploaded a few of my photographs to my Flickr account, and my personal blog, and I'm happy with them, however I would like to be able to do more while out in the field.

So I've been thinking about purchasing a Canon 1000D for myself, and seeing how I go from there. And I'm wondering what sort of advice/recommendations people from the forum can give me.

My budget could probably extend to about AUS$1500 however I would rather keep it below that.

[meganea84]

We are a family of Sony/Canon. I would recommend Canon 100% I would really look at the Canon 550d awesome bang for your buck the only down side is it isn't full frame.

I shoot with a sony a350 currently and when budget allows I will be upgrading to either a 5dmrkii or the 7d. The Sony is also an awesome deal the only thing that is hard about the Sony is finding lens adapters so you can use different lenses on the Sony body which we are able to do on the Canon body.

[RichardTaylor]

The Canon EOS 1000 is a good choice.
The only thing I would add to the basic camera & kit lens would be a spare battery.

For $AU1500 you will have enough money to add an external flash or an additional lens if need be.
(Just looking at Ted's prices - I don't work for them.

[itsonlybarney]

Originally Posted by meganea84

The Sony is also an awesome deal the only thing that is hard about the Sony is finding lens adapters so you can use different lenses on the Sony body which we are able to do on the Canon body.

I didn't realise that, so thanks for the information.

Originally Posted by RichardTaylor

The Canon EOS 1000 is a good choice.
The only thing I would add to the basic camera & kit lens would be a spare battery.

For $AU1500 you will have enough money to add an external flash or an additional lens if need be.
(Just looking at Ted's prices - I don't work for them.

Thanks for the recommendation of an additional battery. I didn't really think about that, but being the novice I am, I would probably just stick with the one battery and maybe purchase a second one later. I'll have to track down my closest Ted's store and have a wander next week.

[NgaiHill]

I have had my Canon 1000D for a little over a year now and just love it. Would highly recommend it. Spare battery is a good idea although I have never managed to flatten a battery yet and it often goes away with me for days at a time. Spare SD cards probably a good idea too. The twin lens kit is a good idea, thats what I have with mine - shop around, I got mine from Harvey Norman and even now they are still offering the best deal - you may be able to talk them into a camera bag to go with it!

[Aggie]

Hello,

I am new to the group. I want to switch to a DSLR camera. A few of my friends have the Canon Rebel but there are so many versions of Canon that I'm not sure which one to get.

Preferably, I would like one that is not over $500. I heard the Canon 400D EOS is good for an amaeteur photography like me who is starting out. I have been taking pictures for a very long time with an regular point and shoot camera but I want to switch to DSLR.

Also, how is the Canon Rebel XSI?

Any tips/suggestions would be great.

Thanks.

[RichardTaylor]

@ Aggie

IMHO you can't go wrong with Canon.
They are good cameras as a re Nikon. It just depends what feels better in your hands..

I havn't shot with the two cameras you mentioned but my first DSLR was Rebel XT (350D) and ocasionially I still use it.

[itsonlybarney]

Originally Posted by NgaiHill

I have had my Canon 1000D for a little over a year now and just love it. Would highly recommend it. Spare battery is a good idea although I have never managed to flatten a battery yet and it often goes away with me for days at a time. Spare SD cards probably a good idea too. The twin lens kit is a good idea, thats what I have with mine - shop around, I got mine from Harvey Norman and even now they are still offering the best deal - you may be able to talk them into a camera bag to go with it!

From the shopping around I have done, I think I can get the 1000D cheaper at JB HIFI. But I'll keep my eyes open anyway.

Originally Posted by RichardTaylor

IMHO you can't go wrong with Canon.
They are good cameras as a re Nikon. It just depends what feels better in your hands..

The entry level Canon I found doesn't have IS, however the entry level Nikon (can't remember the model) had IS built in to the body. And the prices were similar, so I'm not really sure whether to lean to the Nikon with IS or the Canon without.

[inkista]

Originally Posted by Aggie

Preferably, I would like one that is not over $500. I heard the Canon 400D EOS is good for an amaeteur photography like me who is starting out. I have been taking pictures for a very long time with an regular point and shoot camera but I want to switch to DSLR.

Also, how is the Canon Rebel XSI?

Ok, the first thing to know is that every brand of camera has a number of different tiers of models, basically covering everything from entry level (xxxxD, xxxD) up through enthusiast (xxD), prosumer (5D, 7D), and professional cameras (1D, 1Ds). The higher the tier, the more features and the more expensive something is going to be.

Within each tier, models succeed each other as newer features are introduced, at roughly two year intervals (sometimes it's 12 months, sometimes it's three to four years). The newer the model, the more expensive it's going to be. And (this is the key thing most folks don't realize) the price starts dropping from the moment the camera's introduced through into used prices. If a camera was introduced yesterday it starts out at its MSRP and then once the initial demand is met (say, six months later), the street price will start to fall, and continue to go lower and lower as the camera get older. When I purchased my Canon XT (350D) brand new, it cost me $800 for the body with kit lens. I purchased it about 9 months after it had been introduced (it started out at $900 for the kit). By the time it was finally replaced by the XTi (400D), it was going for about $650. Today, you can get one in the $250-$350 range, used.

If you ever get confused as to where any Canon model sits in a tier or generation, I'd recommend looking at this Wikipedia table, which is updated everytime a new model is announced.

The 1000D is great, but it is an entry-level camera, and it's one of the oldest current models in the lineup. Depending on how serious you are about pursuing photography, you might actually be better off going back a few generations on a higher tier, such as the XXDs. A used 40D body can probably be found in the $500 range.

However. Getting the camera body is only half your camera. You all need to budget for lenses, and other "accessories". When you "upgrade" from a P&S camera to a dSLR, you're switching from an all-in-one-camera to a camera system. It's like moving from a swiss army knife to a big red toolbox. You also gotta buy the tools to make the big red toolbox useful. Most folks spend two to three times what they did on the camera body on the other gear in the system over time. Some of us spend a whole lot more.

Originally Posted by itsonlybarney

The entry level Canon I found doesn't have IS, however the entry level Nikon (can't remember the model) had IS built in to the body. And the prices were similar, so I'm not really sure whether to lean to the Nikon with IS or the Canon without.

Neither Canon nor Nikon put stabilization into their bodies--they put it in their lenses. Canon calls it IS (Image Stabilization), NIkon calls it VR (Vibration Reduction). The camera bodies that do stabilization are from Olympus, Pentax, and Sony/Minolta.

[itsonlybarney]

Originally Posted by inkista

Neither Canon nor Nikon put stabilization into their bodies--they put it in their lenses. Canon calls it IS (Image Stabilization), NIkon calls it VR (Vibration Reduction). The camera bodies that do stabilization are from Olympus, Pentax, and Sony/Minolta.

That was the impressions I got from the sales man. So I'm open to all views.