New To DPS!

[calibeachbaby79]

Hi everyone! My name is Laura and I am new to the site. I am not "new" to photography. I took some classes several years ago. I am very passionate about it and I eventually want to make this more than just a hobby. I am at a place in my life where I can make that happen so I am basically starting back up again. My question to you all is what type of DSLR would be best for me? I have never owned one. I have done so much research but there are so many options! Basically, would it be better for me to spend a little more money now and get a better camera with better features that will be flexible for many different types of photography? Or is there a basic model that is good for beginners but has that flexibility? I hope I can get some feedback. I know that asking what camera would be good for me is a bit on the broad side but please understand what I mean. It has been a bit over whelming with all the choices out there so I figured I would see what kind of advice you can give me! Thanks for your help!

[Rolling Stone]

Welcome to DPS!
Now go to a store that sells camera's and hold them. Turn them on and check the menu's. Find which one feels good to you all around. I see a lot of folks here say the Nikon D40 is a GREAT beginner DSLR. Good quality and price with great lenses. I'm not sure what the Canon equivelant would be (maybe the Rebel?), but I'm sure they will be here. So will the Oly people. So go to the store and try those 3 out.
Then come back and ask about any questions you may have of each. You'll get plenty of help. There are great people here at your disposal.

[LoveDSLR]

The best way to start is to determine your budget. The next step is to look at various brands and narrow it down to models within your budget.

You can read reviews about them and try them out at stores to see what models you like best. Based on your interests (e.g., portrait, sports, landscape), we can probably recommend one or two to you.

There are two schools of thought on how to buy your first camera. Some suggest a basic model while others recommend one with most features that you can afford.

The advantage of a basic model is lower cost of entry to photography while a better model creates fewer obstacles to shoot different situations. I think the final decision usually depends on how much you want to spend for your first DSLR.

[Jennifleur79]

Hi There,
I am a beginner and was looking at the D40, unfortunately this now seems to be out of production and the only place I could find one was on line. Also it only has 6mp, not that mps are the be all and end all but when I was spending a lot of money on this I felt that I wanted more mp than that as it would be more likelly that I would want to buy a bigger and better one sooner than if I bought a slightly larger one now iykwim?

I went for the Nikon D60 which I think is the current 'entry level' camera, it has 10.2 mp. I love it, currently learning all its tricks and functions - minefield!

Like you, I am keen to make more of photography in the future, maybe making some money out if in the future! So practice practice practice I think!

Good luck