What's a good Digital SLR camera? Can anyone recommend one?

Question

I'm looking to invest in a Digital SLR camera. I've been looking at the Fuji Finepix series, particularly the S5600 and S7000 models. Also the Canon 300D.

Is there anything good/bad about these cameras?
What features should I look for?
What accessories are a must have?

Answer 1

Well for starters the 300D has been dis-continued, if you mean the 30D then thats an excellent camera and will serve you well as you become more proficient with your photography.

If your new to D SLR's then lets start off by busting a big myth, resolution - yes generally the more pixels an image has the better it will be - but and like J-Lo its a rather big but its not the be all and end all of image quality, a 6.3MP camera with an L series lens (assuming you go canon) will produce a better picture than a 10MP camera with a cheapo lens (Sigma etc - ugh).

If you go into a store and ask about resolution they will simply tell you to go for the highest available/ waht you want to spend - which as far as i know (and believe me anyone that tells you they know everything about photography is full of it) is the Mamiya ZD at 22MP but comes with an £8000 price tag.

Like a lot of things D SLR photography is one of those things where you can do it at reasonable cost but to do it really well requires very deep pockets and its possible to waste an awful lot of money on the wrong items. Speaking personally im deeply into wildlife photography and when i first bought the 300D (3 years ago) i bought a 90-300mm canon lens to go with it for £240, this wasnt giving me enough reach so i bought a Sigma F8 600mm mirror lens at £349 which i thought was a bargain because it was cheap but turned out to be a big pile of crap, eventually i did some research and bought a Canon EF 100-400 L IS USM lens which is fabulous quality but cost £1089 so i ended up wasting £589 on 2 lenses that werent really what i needed. Now dont get me wrong £1089 is a shedload of money to spend on a lens - but if i had bought it originally i wouldn't have wasted the other £589.

Be very carefull before you take the plunge and buy anything, the wrong decisions can cost you a lot.

You ask about accessories, thats a toughie because you dont really say what your going to be shooting, but a flashgun is always handy, most DSLRs have a built in one but they can be limiting so a separate one is usefull. A decent quality tripod can help if you are using larger lenses, but again dont skimp and buy a cheap one it'll be thin and not that supportive, quick rule of thumb for tripods, if you bend the legs easily when they are fully extended then its not strong enough, try a better one. One bit of good news (ie not something that costs a fortune) is look for a rocket air, which looks like a rocket (funnily enough) they are cheap and are brilliant at quickly removing dust from a lens without having to use those wipes which always seem to leave a smear unless of course you buy eclipse fluid and pec pads - say goodbye to £20 for those!

One other thing to consider is storage, always buy the biggest memory card you can afford, and unless you are using a camera with a huge pixel count dont waste money on the latest ultra 133x cards, yes they are faster but unless you have a camera that fires like a machine gun or has a gazillion pixels you just dont need them, 7dayshop.com sell a 2Gb compact flash card for £18.99, they will work fine in everything but the highest end cameras - again dont let some fool in a store thats trying to extract money from you tell you any different.

Best advice really would be to find a camera club near you and go and talk to the people there, you will get a wide range of opinions and its always fun listening to a Canon head (like me) or a Nikon head (like my wife) go head to head and argue which is best. Truth is there is really very little in it, the Nikons 'feel' better and are excellent but Canon heads will argue that their lenses are better - but going back to money again yes they are if you buy L series lenses, but boy do you pay for it.

Answer 2

OK the first answer to this is that there isn't any 'one size fits all' answer. The second answer is that it isn't all to do with techincal features!

Are you sure that you need a digital 'SLR' as opposed to a more compact camera, or a 'bridge' camera like the Fuji S9500/9000? If you are choosing an SLR so it is an entry ticket to buying into a range of lenses, then the Canon range is unsurpassed, although Nikon offer a lot too!

Then think about pixels, because pixels equal 'resolution' in the sense that each pixel is an item of detail. The more pixels the better? Well, only if you need some really big images printed. Most people get by with 5 or 6 megapixels, and print up to around 10" x 8". Personally, I need the 9 I'm working with right now, and would love more!

If you aim on working in low light conditions without flash, then 'anti-shake' features to help ensure your images are sharp are a great boon. This is simply an example: you need to work out what sort of photography you aim to do, and then to focus on who offers the features that will do most for you.

BUT it is worth stressing that features are not everything. Pentax used to have an ad campaign that said "just HOLD a Pentax". It was a good camapaign embodying a major truth: your camera is an instrument to work in your hands, with your eyes, in the conditions that are specific to you. There is no substitute for holding the camera in your hands and seeing how it feels. If it is not comfortable to hold and to operate then forget it. It doesnt matter if it has had wonderful reviews, if it doesnt fit your hands then it is not the one for you!

I wish you good luck with your search! At present I have plenty of good film equipment, and would love to have a specific digital camera. As that will cost well into four figures I've got myself a Fuji S9500 for the time being!

All the best

Answer 3

Before deciding which is the best DSLR it's important to understand that however good a camera is in terms of megapixels, lenses and features, a camera is only as good as the person taking the photos. People often fall into the trap of buying a recommended camera only to be disappointed with the results due to lack of experience.

If you a new to photography or at least to DSLRs, to get full advantage of what they can do it might be a better option to get started with a low cost but good quality second hand model, making sure it is one of the well known brands i.e. Nikon, Canon etc. and invest in some training in order to get the best out of your camera before investing in something more expensive.

As an example my first DSLR camera is an old Nikon D50 with the standard lens. Yes it's old but it has all the DSLR functions you need to get started. Learn, experiment and develop your photography skills, and once you feel ready to upgrade, you will have plenty of knowledge to really take advantage of all the features your up-to-date camera has to offer.

Regarding accessories a flash add on is always better than the standard pop-up unit that comes with the camera. Additional lenses such as a zoom and wide angle are also useful together with filters, but again, only get these accessories once you have some understanding on the various types and their uses.

If training is something you are interested in pursuing then take a look at the link below.

Answer 4

Don't know a lot about the Fuji cameras, but if I had to recommend a digital SLR, I'd go with one of the Nikon D series or the Canon EOS series. Which one you get really depends on your budget.

Again, accessories will depend entirely on what you want to do, but a tripod, external flash, shutter release cable and additional lenses are all useful. You may want to get a couple of filters too.

Unless you're intending on printing your photos at greater than A3 size, then 6MP is totally adequate. I have a Nikon Coolpix series camera at 4MP and I can print A3 quite happily and it looks excellent, nice and sharp, not fuzzy.

Any further advice would just be stuff copied from this website: http://www.dpreview.com/ - it's what I used to choose my camera and it gives a very detailed rundown of all the features of a camera, as well as an overall review of it, very useful.

Answer 5

If you just want to try your hands with DSLR, I'd suggest a low price - yet with all those features - dslr like Olympus EVOLT 500. The 2 lens kit would let you play and learn all those nuances. Or if you are already a pro, Nikon would be the best one. For an amateur, Olympus, Fuji etc would do good and later you can graduate to Nikon.

Answer 6

I think if you get yourself a Sony/Canon/Nikon Digital SLR camera would be great. Check how much megapixel you require. Are you going to use the camera for personal use or for professional use. Check how much optical and digital zoom would satisfy your need. You need to buy the camera as per your use, and not from others comment.

Answer 7

I like some of the prevoius choices. but you can also look at the Pentax K100D for same price as Nikon D50 and its a beter camera.

1. In camera stabilization
2. metal mount kit lens
3. Compatible with older k-mount manual lenses (with metering, D50 will not meter)
4. Compatible with M42/screw mount lenses (all in all 24million lenses will fit this camera.
5.Superior coatings on Pentax SMC lenses.
6. Some of the best Primes on the market (comparible to some leica lenses)

Answer 8

I've just upgraded and went for a Sony Cybershot W70. Sony are the only manufacturer to use a Carl Zeiss lens and that ensures you get amazing clarity. Only downside to Sony is that you can only use a Sony memory stick and not any old bog standard memory card. I researched what to buy until I was soooo confused that I ended up going to John Lewis who actually employ staff who know what they're talking about The W70 is 7.2 mega pixels (which is all anyone ever needs - don't bother going for a higher spec) and sells for around £199. They do a 6 mega pexel for around £150. Have fun though!

Answer 9

Buy a couple of photographic magazines, Amatuer Photographer have reviews every week on new digital cameras, they thought highley of the Cannon 350D and 400D. There are loads of magazines out there, just pick up a couple and read loads, look at the adverts to compare prices of models/lenses/accessories and avaliability.

Answer 10

All the major players have capable cameras and lenses. Try to go to a brick and mortar store and hold them in your hands. You may find one just feels better than another.
You will need a good flash and more memory cards. A tripod.
And a good photo imaging program. (Photoshop, Elements, etc)
Have fun!