Beginner Not an absolute beginner!

Pixbarmy

Pixbarmy

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Mike
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I used to shoot 35mm with a variety of lenses up to 300mm. I have also had a Fuji Finepix 5500 (mainly sat in a cupboard) but the battery flap clips are broken (strong rubber band wrapped around at present) so am looking at DSLR or mirrorless. I don't want to spend a fortune as SWMBO says it may just be "another retirement fad"! All advice gratefully received. I am almost 70 but have some techy knowledge. Mike.
 
Living in rural Norfolk, it will mostly be used for landscapes and occasionally wildlife. I intend to do more walking as an aid to fitness and my photography used to get me out more!
 
It's unfortunate but asking enthusiasts for advice on choosing a camera is fraught. Normally, I'd suggest going to a real shop and spending plenty of time looking at and handling the cameras which spark your interest.

In the current situation I'd suggest buying second hand from a reliable dealer who will let you return the camera if it turns out not to be quite what you want. London Camera Exchange and MBP are 2 companies I've dealt with several times and they have always been reliable in my experience.

As to what to consider: perhaps look at Micro Four Thirds from Panasonic or Olympus. The quality is more than adequate for anyone used to 35mm film, they're light and compact and it would be possible to get a basic outfit for under £200 second hand.
 
Pixbarmy said:
Living in rural Norfolk, it will mostly be used for landscapes and occasionally wildlife. I intend to do more walking as an aid to fitness and my photography used to get me out more!
Click to expand...

If wildlife on a budget then a crop sensor will be helpful, aps-c, micro 4/3rds or even as I have done, Nikon 1 mirrorless with its 2.7 crop ... much smaller and significantly lighter for this 70+ gent :)
You will get as many suggestions as members on the forum as to what to get and for every suggestion there will be another that rubbishes it :LOL: but at my age size and weight became an issue and my Nikon 1 V3 with a 70-300 gives me 800mm for wildlife and lens options down to 6.7mm. Mirrorless or micro 4/3rds will generally be smaller and lighter if that mattters to you. :)
 
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Thanks for the suggestions. Weight is not a problem for me, as I have been used to physical work in my jobs. I had 35mm film cameras when I was younger with through the lens (split) focus and metering. I tended to use different speed films for my black and white shots and a fixed one for my landscapes and "touristy" holiday work. About 16 years ago I bought a Fuji Finepix and was a bit befuddled at first, due to lack of lens clarity. I even used "auto" for quite a while! (Hangs head in shame!)
 
I'm also in Norfolk and would second a trip to WEX. Well worth it as they have a big range of stuff to actually pick up and test.
The size in your hand and how it handles, not to mention how good the viewfinder is will matter a great deal.

If you have previously used manual film cameras, you might like to try the Fuji X series of cameras, because they rely less on buttons and menus and have nice tactile controls.
My 70yr old Dad just got an Olympus OM-D E-M10 mirrorless which he finds really good as someone who used to shoot on Olympus OM2 and OM4 film SLRs.

The thing with shooting wildlife is that you need a decent telephoto lens, which at the lower end of the budget usually means only an aperture of f5.6 or 6.3, which means you need to get your ISO up to get a decent shutter speed.
But unlike in the film days, you can shoot at ISO 1600 and beyond without worrying.

Also, if you're in Norfolk, you could consider joining the Norwich and District Photographic Society, which is full of like-minded people with lots of experience. Usually it meets on Tuesday evenings in Norwich, but in the current climate, they are meeting via Skype with a full programme of talks and things.
https://www.ndps.info/
 
Well, I've bought a Nikon D5000 12.3 MP DX Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR Lens, so onward and upwards. I'm probably going to be looking for more lenses soon (once that I have come to terms with the camera)! Updates to follow. Thanks again folks.
 
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