Advice, Camera between £200 and £300?

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Confused101

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Hello,

It is my girlfriends birthday next month and I am looking for a decent camera to get her started in photography. She is very interested in photography but has never had a good camera. So, my price range is £200 to £300 but i would prefer to stick to the lower end if possible. She wants something with a good zoom, i think I would prefer if the quality of the camera is good though so am not really interested in a million times zoom if the overall quality is ****.

I have read alot of reviews and have been reading up on what makes a good camera etc but i want peoples opinions so that I can find the perfect one. If you have any adbice or suggestions I would really appreciate it.

Thanks, Rob
 
I promise that this is not said with self-interest, however seriously consider going second hand - the classifieds here are a superb place to start. You will get a LOT more for your money, and will be buying from someone that has a keen interest in the field - often good for a bit of free advice ;)

Thanks!
James
 
Thanks thats a great idea.

I was looking on ebay but didn't realise this place had a classified section.. only just stumbled across it.

I will look there now... any idea what kind of camera to look for though? What makes/models are good for this price?
 
check the fuji referb site you can get some cracking deals here for nicely reduced prices
 
Does she want to get into "proper" photography, and learn how the thing works, in which case you'll want to consider a digital SLR? Or does she want something more in the vein of point-and-shoot, in which case a higher-end compact (also known as bridge compacts) may suit better?

Downside to a DSLR is that you need to budget separately for lenses and they're probably not so accessible to someone who doesn't know what they're doing. But they'll be more fulfilling if you learn how to use it properly.

FWIW, I posted a bridge compact -v- DSLR thread here recently and was persuaded that the better route (at least for me) was to try a used DSLR and learn a bit about how to get the best out of it. I bought a second hand (but pretty much as-new condition) Canon 400D SLR from the classifieds here, with kit lens and a few odds and sods, for £270 recently. A budget of £300 should cover a decent second-hand body and a second-hand general purpose lens with decent zoom.
 
I think she would like to learn properly with DSLR. At least that way its more of an investment as if she takes to it then she can upgrade. I want the best quality I can afford basically. So second hand seems like a good option. What i don't understand though is how something costing £300 second hand... ie the Nikon D70 camera Moos3h has on offer... could be just 6.something megapixels. The camera on my phone is 3 megapixels... I know this is just me being stupid and know there is a reason, could someone explain please?
 
A D40 or D40x will fit the bill nicely or a bridge camera like the fuji s100fs for around £250-£280 would be a good compromise:)
 
The short answer that image quality is determined by an awful lot more than just the number of mega-pixels.

I'll leave someone who knows rather more about it than me to explain why!
 
Confused101 said:
I think she would like to learn properly with DSLR. At least that way its more of an investment as if she takes to it then she can upgrade. I want the best quality I can afford basically. So second hand seems like a good option. What i don't understand though is how something costing £300 second hand... ie the Nikon D70 camera Moos3h has on offer... could be just 6.something megapixels. The camera on my phone is 3 megapixels... I know this is just me being stupid and know there is a reason, could someone explain please?
Click to expand...

Forget your phone camera having 3mp as the sensor on phones is miniscule compared to slr type sensors .A D70 even at 6mp is a great slr to learn all there is to know about photography and you will be impressed with what you can get out of it compared to the small "point and click" type cameras and ANY camera phone :)
 
If your girlfriend knows this is something she is going to get, best advice is to go to a decent shop and let her try the different models available to see which feels nicest to her and which controls feel the most natural. This will then give you an idea of make / model range etc to be looking at.

The Canon 1000d, 400d / 450d / 500d are the smaller bodied cameras in the Canon range - sorry, unsure re the Nikon and Sony range, but they will do similar.

Good luck with the search :clap:
 
To a large degree the "vibe" on megapixels is that you need loads, clever marketing from the makers of the cameras to make you buy them, after all they need to stay in business.

Unless you are printing huge prints, I mean bigger than A4, or even A3, then you will find that 6 megapixels will be more than enough.

Just my opinion, but if she is just starting out, she will not need anymore.

A second hand camera is a great place to learn how use use an slr, see if you get into the photography game, and then if you do you can upgrade to something better. At least if you decide not to go any further you have not lost much, plus second hand gear you can always sell for a good return as the biggest hit will already have been taken on the price.
 
Will work with anything with a card reader... I find this a bit handier than cables everywhere

edit: Also starting with a similar budget, 400D seemed a good option to me
 
The d40 is a newer camera so does have better/newer technology. The d70 will have more functions but she may well never use these, you have to make that call. The d40 will only auto focus with lenses with a motor built into the lens. I had a d40 and was a great camera and got me into photography, I sold it recently as I moved onto something more advanced but would very much recommend it to a beginner.
 
Thanks for the advice and from this topic I think I will go with the D40 as I would rather take advice from people who know than get the wrong thing. She has never used a DSLR so a beginner camera sounds good.

So, I will check ebay but what price do you think I should expect to pay second hand for one of these?
 
You should be able to pick up a mint one with kit lens for about 250 to 260 from what I have seen recently although prices vary a lot, a lot depends on when in the day an auction ends. Some I saw go for 200.
 
Even D40 prices are going through the roof at the moment.

Essentially camera prices went through the roof at the start of the year, consequently used prices have gone up too. This means that the majority of ebay buys are based on current pricing and are expensive but occasionally you get a bargain when someone thinks "I paid this when I got it and am happy to only get 2nd hand price based on that back", it does generally take some constant looking on ebay though as the bargains usually go in 10 minutes :LOL:

Anyway, another camera to add to your list would be a Sony A200, I've got one and I quite like it plus there's the bonus of all the old Minolta lenses to pick up cheap and play with, I've also got a D60 too (i.e. a 10mp D40) and they are both good but the A200's can still be found at good prices :)
 
Thank you... I have been searching for weeks and am now set on the D40... I am watching around 20 on ebay so will try and get a bargain from there.

Ideally I will be looking at between £200 and £250... hopefully anyway.
 
my girlfriend upgraded to a d300 today so we have a spare d40x but you still need a lens for it and although i have the perfect combo it start to go into realms above the budget you mentioned.
here's one she took earlier!
2701745931_da5f1b8085.jpg

the body of this slr is much smaller than the d70 too making it better for those possessing nimble phalanges;)
 
I am clueless when to comes to photography, that picture does look good though. Looking on ebay I am sure I will be able to get one in the lower £200's

There are quite a few at £235 buy it now with the lens so I am hopeful.

What is the combo you speak of? Remember, i know nothing.
 
Confused101 said:
Thank you, the help is really appreciated.

I now know what to look for.

Thanks
Click to expand...

No problem, the D40 also has a much better and larger screen than the D70 and is a lot lighter.

As said above the prices do seem to have gone up recently, especially since they stopped making the D40.

You can get a view here about the D40, but obviously this is only one persons view.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d40.htm
 
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