First DSLR

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Karl
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Hi all
Finally got some money saved for my first digital slr. About 700 ish.

Currently have a point and shoot but really getting into getting the right composition. Even took some HDR by manually changing exposure.

I'll be mainly taking landscape shots but might venture into aircraft and a few portraits too.

I'm going to go into camera shop and try a few cameras and see how they feel but just wondering on your opinions what you recommend.

Canon or Nikon?
Been looking at 500d but Nikon look good too. As long as it does bracketing.

With lenses do I need af-s? Is that for if you have a small sensor size like the 500d. I can't really afford a full sensor size. Will I notice the difference with shots I will take.

Do Nikon lenses have image stabilisation in the lens or in the camera?

Thanks for your help
 
The Nikon d90 with 18-105 lens would suit you nicely with that budget.

Or forbade little less maybe a Nikon d3100 with 18-55 and 55-200. You would also have some change left for a bag and some SD cards etc
 
Hi all
Finally got some money saved for my first digital slr. About 700 ish.

Currently have a point and shoot but really getting into getting the right composition. Even took some HDR by manually changing exposure.

I'll be mainly taking landscape shots but might venture into aircraft and a few portraits too.

I'm going to go into camera shop and try a few cameras and see how they feel but just wondering on your opinions what you recommend.

Only you can tell how well a certain camera feels in your hand

Canon or Nikon?
Been looking at 500d but Nikon look good too. As long as it does bracketing.

Not all budget models do bracketing, but its easy enough to do it manually


With lenses do I need af-s? Is that for if you have a small sensor size like the 500d. I can't really afford a full sensor size. Will I notice the difference with shots I will take.

AF-S is a Nikon designation, meaning the lens contains an autofocus motor, You will need this if you want autofocus on any Nikon body below the D90. Crop lenses for Nikon are designated DX, you can also use non DX lenses on a crop Nikon. Canon have thier own designations EF and EF-S. EF-S is for crop cameras only.

Do Nikon lenses have image stabilisation in the lens or in the camera?
Lens

Thanks for your help
 
With regards to your canon or nikon question.

You need to go and try them like you said, but its also worth considering what friends and family use, especially if you have no personal preference, so you can share lens' and accessories.
 
Jenic is spot on there.

I am a NIKON shooter and love my gear, but if you have a lot of cannon friends you can share gear and get advice specific to manufacturer from them.

If you only want to shoot landscape then the cannon might give you more bang for the buck, but if you want to shoot faster moving subjects or low light, then the nikon might be a better choice. If you want to shoot video then look at the cannon.

The reality is, both systems produce excellent results, get the one you feel comfortable with.
 
Thanks for the advice everyone.
Most of my friends have Canon, with just 1 who is a pro photographer having a Nikon.
I will very rarely use it for video so thats not a priority.
There's a nice offer in Jessops at the moment.
Nikon D5000 18-55 and 55-200mm VR Twin Lens Kit for £499.
I'm going to just go into a camera shop at have a mess with them and see which one I feel comfortable using. Don't want to buy something like the 1000d Canon that I will grow out of soon.
 
As someone that is quite new to DSLR photography, I went straight to Nikon - however I have a couple of good friends that also use Nikon so lens compatibility was a big issue. In fact, I never really considered Canon because of it.

What I have noticed is that there does seem to be a lot more Canon users out there than there are Nikon! See which brand would suit you best - and try both (Just like I didn't :nuts:).

Something to bear in mind if you like HDR and go down the Nikon route, the D3100 doesn't do auto-bracketing.
 
Just thought i would add that i bought a D90 before Christmas and I am really happy with it.
 
Not looked at the 550d but looked at the 500. A canon would make sense as my friends have them so can help me.
Is there much difference 500 and 550?
Thanks
 
Not looked at the 550d but looked at the 500. A canon would make sense as my friends have them so can help me.
Is there much difference 500 and 550?
Thanks

If you want a camera with good video feature than consider Canon 550d otherwise if video is not concerned than going with Canon 500d is ok. Also newer version is out so possibly you will see a price drop for Canon 500d.
 
canon 550d or nikon d40? d40x? d300? d5000? or just a good ol' used D80 and with preferably a 35mm f/1.8 QUALITY LENS
 
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