[ADVICE] DSLR for the quintessential n00b

[Beautiful Disaster]

Oh no.

I found a red one.

I want the red one.

I don't even know what all the jargon means, all I know is that it's red, and I want it.

Must. Not. Buy. Red. Camera.


HELP!!

my Nikon is red lol I get comments everytime I get it out

[peanutter]

Ok I'm looking into this again ...

What is a good, useable DSLR around the $500 mark?

Is there one?

How tricky are the lens things?

[Mumma T]

Hi pn I ended up getting the Nikon d3100 and I love love love it. It's easy to use and I get great photos.
Well worth the money

[Country_Mum]

Ok I'm looking into this again ...

What is a good, useable DSLR around the $500 mark?

Is there one?

How tricky are the lens things?

Check places like Gumtree, Quokka, Ebay.. Also it's overseas but Digital Rev are brilliant! Also check specials in stores, price match and if you can pay cash, doesn't hurt to try and bargain down the price either as they often will if you commit to buying with them..

My first camera was a Nikon D3000 no joke, 1 day before Nikon D3100 was released.. Wasn't happy with myself.. D3100, D3200 are good little camera's perfect for first time buyer, and often you can get a lens kit that usually includes a 18-55mm lens along with a 55-200 or sometimes 70-300mm lens..

There's plenty of websites and forums that can help you with all the jargon Best of luck!



Oh! And Nikon are great little camera's, but when I first started out I really wished I had gotten a Canon, mainly because the D3000 ended up being far too basic for my needs (I do ALOT of Photography) and I love filming things, and back then Nikon didn't offer entry level camera's with filming. Best tip I can give is write down EVERYTHING you want in a camera, then stick to your budget and work out what camera fits both criteria Feel free to throw me a PM if you're stuck

[peanutter]

How long does it take to learn how to take a good pic with them?

Something good enough (in normal outdoor lighting) to get enlarged and framed for the wall?

[Miss.September]

How long does it take to learn how to take a good pic with them?

Something good enough (in normal outdoor lighting) to get enlarged and framed for the wall?

If you can already take a good photo, even with a phone camera, you will instantly take good shots with the DSLR.

We bought a Nikon 5100 and just practised. Used it on auto and took photos of everything. Within a month, we were comfortable enough with our pics to want to canvas them. We have a 900mm x 700mm canvas on the wall of DD2 that DH took a month after we got the camera. We have two lenses, one zooms much further than the other (sorry, I'm bad with specs and DH is asleep so can't ask!).

As far as price goes, look for sales. We got ours with the shorter lens on sale at Teds, picked it up for around the $600 mark. But then you need to get the bag and the filter which protects the lens, plus the clear screen guard so it can quickly add up. We haven't regretted ours for a second, the quality of the photo poops all over everything else.

Mum got the red one. Because it was red. And she has no idea about cameras. But it didn't need anything additional, has a great zoom on it and is really user friendly.

[peanutter]

I'm getting very tempted ... !

[Miss.September]

Things you need to ask yourself

Do you take a lot of photos?

Do you have a lot of photos around your house on display?

Are you prepared to take the time to set the camera up? (It's quick, but not as quick as whipping the phone out of your pocket for a quick snap shot)

We seriously ummed and ahhed for a couple of years. My dad has had one for a long time and we've always been impressed by the quality. Then another BB member showed us hers and it was fantastic, as were the photos she was taking of DD1 (and her beautiful kids of course!). But we still ummed and ahhed. When we sold our house, we just went and bought it and the only regret I have is that we didn't do it sooner. I so wish we had bought it prior to DD1 being born as most of the photos of her were with an iPhone camera.

I tried to PM you with a couple of shots to show what we could do after only a month, but couldn't work out the linking.

[peanutter]

I take hundreds of photos a month.

We have a number of photos up, but part of what I want is the next two 8x11 inch ones of DS2 (18 and 24 months - the ones we'd get for free from Pixi Photos if they hadn't gone under).

And then we try to get updated ones of the extended family once a year - and at the moment none of us have a "proper" camera, as Dad's Phillips one from circa caveman days has given up the ghost ...

I've been umming and ahing for about a year now, and I think I need to make a decision!

[peanutter]

We got the Nikon 3100 DSLR

Loving it so far, but haven't figured out how do anything even remotely tricky

[Arcadia]

How is the camera going peanutter?

I'm looking into nikon 3200 or 7000 versus canon 550 or 650. I'm just not sure how entry level I need it to be. I also want a bigger lense than most kits offer, namely a 18-135mm, because I think changing lenses would be a pain, but then I don't want it to be too heavy for everyday use.

Any advice would be appreciated!

I take loads of photos, but rarely print since they're all on an iphone. We have another point and shoot camera we rarely use because I don't think the image quality is THAT much better than the iphone, and as they say, the best camera is the one you have on you.

So, let's say I had 1000 to spend, would I get camera, lense, bag, spare battery etc? Obviously I need to start trying some in store

[Beach Mama]

We got the 550D - great entry level camera, we bought a 50mm macro lens as well for taking photos of the kids etc. The Canon website is awesome and I learnt heaps watching their tutorials on different functions. Best way to learn is play! Dh has since upgraded to a 6D as he's started a landscape business but we still use the 550D as it's way lighter and one of the lenses doesn't fit the 6D.

[peanutter]

We got the camera with the extra lens (55-200 or something) for around $400. And I bought a bag which fits both for$20 online.

It's super easy to use. It doesn't zoom as much as I thought it would, so I can't take really close close-ups, but it takes incredibly clear shots.

If I was happy to spend more, I'd get a macro lens.