Which Camera

[Chiwalatta]

Hi Tim,

Its gotta be Canon or Nikon. You know you could borrow my lenses... Plus, the canon lens mount is bigger than nikon, so you can get lens connector convertors for nikon and other smaller lens mount lenses and use them on your canon, if needed... You should hold the camera in the shop and see which feels comfortable.. Check what accessories you can get for the camera you choose as you may not be able to get a battery grips etc for all camera models.

[Samanax]

Originally Posted by Technical Tim

thanks for all the feedback - the majority of reviews highly rate the Canon 1000D, my only concern being image stabilisation which is not built into the body but the lenses - Is this a big issue?

I wouldn't worry about it. If your camera holding technique is sound your hand held shots should be fine with shorter focal lengths. For longer focal lengths image stabilization is more important but you could always mount the camera on a tripod and not have worry about camera shake at all.

Some feel that in-camera image stabilization isn't as effective as in-lens image stabilization. And the two most popular DSLR brands put the image stabilization in the lens instead of the body...they must have had a good reason for that.

[zappo]

Originally Posted by Samanax

Some feel that in-camera image stabilization isn't as effective as in-lens image stabilization. And the two most popular DSLR brands put the image stabilization in the lens instead of the body...they must have had a good reason for that.

You know that what somebody FEELS is not the best way to decide if something is good or not. All tests I have read so far come to the conclusion that the in body stabilazation is as good as the in lens stabilazation.

Nikon and Canon use the lens stabilazation because they always did it that way. Also there is no reason for them to change this. They are making loads of money with the in lens IS, and changes are not accepted by the fans very well most of the times. (Also everybody who spent a lot of money for the IS will be quite unhappy if the IS is suddenly in the body.)

@Technical Tim
Actually a photo forum is the completly wrong place to ask such questions. A canon user will always tell you to buy canon, as well as the nikon user... you see were this is going? Try asking an Apple user which laptop you should buy, guess what he will tell you.

In my opinion there is only one thing you can do. Decide for yourself. And for this decision you better forget every technical detail you read so far. They simply don't matter (I can hear the screams now).

Best ask around what brands your friends use. Then go to a store and try some cameras. The one you like best from the look, feel and menus is the one you should buy.

After you got the camera go out, make photos and never read a discussion on "which brand to buy again".

[MSidPhoto]

I think you should drop Sony A200 230 and 330.
Its too beginner a DSLR camera.
The other 3 are nice choices

[inkista]

Originally Posted by Technical Tim

my only concern being image stabilisation which is not built into the body but the lenses - Is this a big issue?

Yes and no, depending.

Image stabilization basically does something similar to using a form of external stabilization, like a tripod or monopod. So it's good for using longer shutter speeds without introducing camera shake blur. This is good for exactly two things: shooting stuff that doesn't move in low light, and using telephoto lenses at shutter speeds below 1/focal_length.

1/focal_length is the rule of thumb shutter speed you need to eliminate camera shake blur when handholding. If you're using a 50mm lens, then 1/50s is your low-end limit without stabilization. If you're using a 300mm lens, then 1/300s is your low-end limit without stabilization. When stabilization is described by "stops" that's how many halvings of the shutter speed the stabilization will get you. So, if I had two-stop stabilization and I was shooting with a 300mm lens, I could probably handhold down to 1/75s without introducing camera shake blur.

But, like a tripod or monopod, stabilization, whether in camera or in lens, does nothing for freezing action--for that you still need a higher shutter speed. So, with that same 300mm lens, if I was shooting a bird in flight, and I needed 1/500s to freeze the action, the stabilization wouldn't be doing me any favors. OTOH, if I was shooting a statue at sunset, and I needed the slower shutter speed, it would be great.

In-body stabilization, like the Olympus, Pentax, and Sony systems have is terrific, but in-lens stabilization is said to have an edge with supertelephoto lens. Since most people never get a supertelephoto, that usually doesn't matter. And, of course, with in-camera, it works with every lens you have.

To me, stabilization is a nice-to-have, but not a need-to-have. I shoot with a Canon body. I only have IS on one of my lens, and I'm happy. That's not to say I don't envy in-body stabilization systems for having that feature. It's the main reason my G9 is so freaking useful.

The thing here, with Sony, is that there are fewer lenses overall than Nikon or Canon have. Sony's building up their lens arsenal (they finally came out with a 50/1.8 this year), but they're not yet up to the level of offerings on the Canon/Nikon side of the fence. If you love Zeiss glass, Sony's da bomb--they have the only autofocusing Zeiss lenses on the market. But if you don't care or can't afford ZA lenses, Canon and Nikon might have more to offer you.

And then there's that non-standard Minolta/Sony flash hotshoe ... If you ever go the Strobist route, prepare to purchase hotshoe adapters...

If none of this deters you, and you're after the bodies with the widest dynamic range and the lowest-cost full-frame, go for Sony. But if a Canon feels right to you, and is logically the right choice, then go for Canon. The point here is not to find the best camera. It's to find the best camera for you. What fits your style of shooting?

Oh, and liveview is incredibly useful to me. I shoot with adapted manual focus lenses, and to do precision focusing, the 10x view in liveview is great. Most folks use it on tripod for macro shooting, when precision manual focus is required.