Upgrading to a DSLR... advice please.

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mole

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Hello all,

I know this is probably something that has been asked many times before - "What SLR?" but I am after some advice....

I am currently using a Fujifilm S8100fd which I've had for a year. I've managed to get some pretty decent photos from it (http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsandlan/sets/72157622676845840/) but feel I've reached the limitations of the camera having recently used a friends Canon 400D and natural progression is leading me towards a DSLR.

Now I after some advice on what DSLR I should aim for with my budget of around £500 and more importantly what lens/lenses I should be looking at.

My Fuji has 18x zoom which is very nice... I'm assuming to get this range from a DSLR I'd have to spend an awful lot of money on a lens? What would the equivalent "zoom" be for the standard 18-55mm lens that comes with a 450D? What lens would give me the equivalent of the 18x zoom I currently have?

Hope these questions don't sound too silly but I am still learning!

Many thanks

Richard
 
Your Fujipix is the 35mm equivalent to 27-486mm, which is about 1.5x less on a cropped sensor, which you would probably be after.

Best thing to do is go to a shop and have a feel for what is in your budget that feels nice in your hands - Sony, Nikon and Canon do lovely beginner DSLRs, it just depends what is right for you.

You mgiht want to save on the body and buy an extra lens - the lens will last when you upgrade the camera.

Your camera will probably come with a kit lens which will be a mid-length zoom - roughly 18-55. If you want to bring things closer you want a longer focal length (higher number) and if you want wider, you want a smaller focal length (lower number).
 
Hi Richard. Lens advice is difficult as you haven't really saif the kind of photography you are aiming to do. Is your £500 budget for the camera AND lens? Might be looking at a second hand 400D and second hand 17-85 IS USM for starters as a general purpose lens and then spending a bit more on a zoom when you have the cash?

I'm sure there are every bit as good cameras from the other manufacturers and i'm only advising the Canon based on owning it myself (a 400D which i've recently upgraded to a 50D).
 
You could go second hand all the way.
I got my 400D with a few extras spare abtteires grip etc etc, for £250, off ebay, it had the kit 18-55 lens with it so I then bought a canon 75=300 lens second hand for £90.
So for £500 budget you should be able to get everything you need, oh and I also bought a second hand flash.

Alot of people donot like buying second hand but ask loads of questions and you should be ok.
 
Theres plenty in the for sale sections here, for 500 you could prob get one of the mid range ones (for nikon d80 or maybe a d200) and grab a cheap lens or two without a problem
 
Thanks for the advice guys (and girls :lol:) - certainly made a few things clearer to me.

SIB. My budget was really £500 all in, and was hoping for enough lenses to give me what I have got at the moment. Looking at Slimbert's link it looks as though I will need multiple lenses and not an "all-in-one". I am primarily looking at photographing landscapes, especially at night, and some motorsport stuff amongst general purpose stuff like car shows etc..

I've got nothing against second hand as you can generally tell when things have been treated right, I will have a look in the for sale section here and ebay and see what I can pick up.

I am leaning towards Canon just because it's what my friend has (400D) and I was very impressed with it.

Thanks again,

Richard
 
mole said:
Thanks for the advice guys (and girls :lol:) - certainly made a few things clearer to me.

SIB. My budget was really £500 all in, and was hoping for enough lenses to give me what I have got at the moment. Looking at Slimbert's link it looks as though I will need multiple lenses and not an "all-in-one". I am primarily looking at photographing landscapes, especially at night, and some motorsport stuff amongst general purpose stuff like car shows etc..

I've got nothing against second hand as you can generally tell when things have been treated right, I will have a look in the for sale section here and ebay and see what I can pick up.

I am leaning towards Canon just because it's what my friend has (400D) and I was very impressed with it.

Thanks again,

Richard
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Best advice is too try out as many camera bodies as you possible can, the 400D might not suit you as its quite a small camera body. Don't dismiss the other brands, like sony, pentax olympus, the main 2 are nikon and canon as you are probably aware.

As for a setup similar to you current P&S, a budget of £500 is nowhere near the mark.

Budget zoom for motorsport £600 sigma 120-400mm, I prefer the sigma 100-300mm f4, much better lens, but you're talking £1000. An alternative is a 70-300mm f4.5-5.6, but that's £300-400.

A landscape lens, well probably the tamron 17-50mm f2.8, will double as a walkaround lens as well as wide angle for landscapes, but £300.

A tripod, £50 upwards for landscapes, then you have to factor in the camera body, what ever you choose £300 upwards. So minimum of £900, but a more sensible starting budget is around £1500. This is not a cheap hobby.

My advice is start with the basic, camera and 17-50mm, then build from there.

All in one lenses are easy on the budget, but rubbish.

Don't dismiss the 2nd hand market, you could pick up for example a canon 20D for £250, might even get a kit lens thrown in, miles better camera than most of the beginner camera, and the 17-50 for £250, spot on budget
 
pete.rush said:
Best advice is too try out as many camera bodies as you possible can, the 400D might not suit you as its quite a small camera body. Don't dismiss the other brands, like sony, pentax olympus, the main 2 are nikon and canon as you are probably aware.
Click to expand...

While I agree with this (as it is good advice) I'm going to play devils advocate and say - by all means consider the other brands but don't get so caught up in all the technicalities that your brain is fried and you literally can't decide.

Liking your friends Canon is a good enough reason to make Canon your starting point for a bit of research - decide which one you like, try to handle the equivilent from a few of the other brands and just go with what feels right. If you think about it too much you just end up sat in a room with no camera and a MASSIVE pile of "which camera" magazines for months on end. Trust me... I was that person. It was painful.

You can always add to your kit as you go along - and realistically, unless you've got pots of cash that is what you will have to do. Good luck - I'm sure you will have great fun whatever you decide on :thumbs:
 
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