I want to take photography to the next level...

[jayswin]

I've been doing lots of photography with a simple point and click type digital camera (fujifilm 5.0). It's been kind of a hobby of mine, but now that I've seen some pictures taken with some digital slr's, I would like to make the jump and start taking some better photos.

I was looking at the Canon Rebel xti 10.1mp, and this looks like the one I might pick up. Is it going to be fairly user friendly for someone with limited photography knowledge/skills? How do the pictures turn out?

Also, there are different prices for this camera, depending on what accessories you get with it, can anyone recommend which package to get?


BTW I know I sound like a complete noob, but I would like to just jump right into this if possible.

Thanks.

[BlackEleven]

It's a nice camera I have the same one.

I'd say you'd be fine with limited knowledge. You can still set it on full auto, and use it very similarly to a point and shoot. As you learn more about the settings you can increase the amount of manual control that you have.

As for the picture quality, it depends mostly on the quality of the lens that you buy. You don't want to cheap out on lenses. I've read a lot that the kit lens on the XTi is of marginal quality. When I bought mine I bought only the body.

Some useful basic accessories are a UV filter, polarizer, and of course a memory card (the camera doesn't come with one).

[Fobby]

Though the XTi is an awesome camera, I have many who went from XT/XTi to 20D/30D within a month. The build of the 20D/30D is much better and depends on how big your hand is, the XT/XTi might be a little too small.

First I would do is go to vistek, and play with all the models. The 2nd thing that I would do is look at all your past pictures and see what range you shoot your pictures at. That will tell you what kind of lens you need. The EF-S 17.85 IS is an awesome walk around beginner lens imo. but that's just me..

Memory card is a must. 4GB would be ideal. A battery grip would be a nice accessory to have.

[photon]

Yeah the lens is basically the most important part. The XTi and the D40x are both good cameras, the only thing I don't like is they don't have any image stabilization without buying a lens with that feature (image stabilization compensates for camera movement during exposure, in theory reducing shake at longer zooms and/or allowing you to take a longer exposure and still have a sharp image which means you can take pictures in lower light).

Another couple to consider are the Olympus 510 and the Sony alpha 100. The Olympus apparently has some of the best kit lenses out there, and has the ability to see a live through-the-lens preview on the LCD (which not all cameras can do).

http://www.anandtech.com/guides/showdoc.aspx?i=3160

www.dpreview.com is a great camera review site as well, very detailed reviews and you can learn a bunch just by reading a review.

The things I don't like about the Olympus is it's a smaller sensor than the other
cameras, but the reviews seem to say the quality is the same (the huge sensor is one of the reasons digital SLRs are so much better).

[STeeLy]

I currently use the rebel xti and I'm pretty amateur photographer myself, but its a nice camera... pretty good one to start off on.

[jayswin]

Thanks for the info/opinions. As I suspected, there will be more to this decision than simply just picking a certain model and buying. I willl definitly spend some time on that site with the reviews, and try to learn as much as I can.

From the sounds of a couple of your responses, it seems that the type of lense is a huge factor in the quality of the pictures. However, the toughest part will be deciding what kind of lense to buy, as I take pictures from all kinds of different distances depending on what I'm shooting. Maybe I will have to buy more than one lense? Is there a certain lense that is more universal in terms of distances?

Thanks.

[photon]

Heh, problem is with people like me is it usually IS just as simple as picking a model and buying, but I tend to overanalyze everything.

Thing is until you really get into it you don't know what kind of pictures you'll really enjoy to take and that can be a big factor in what camera to get (for example, the Olympus one of its drawbacks is it's autofocus, it's not as accurate as the others for things like sports and fast movement). So sometimes it's best just to get something to start and then when you know more and are ready to move up to a better camera you'll be able to make a better decision.

In that case the Canon or Nikon are probably better choices as their compliment of lenses is huge and you could move up to a more professional body while keeping your lenses.

Anyway, for the lenses, the more zoom a lens has typically the more of a compromise it is. You can get lenses that go from very wide angle to very telephoto (28mm to 300mm or something) but most photographers would rather choose a higher quality lens that focuses on a narrower range (or even a prime lens which has no zoom, so far easier to have good quality at a decent price).

Someone more experienced (Neeper?) though would probably be better in helping you judge what would work best for what you do.

[jayswin]

Well, I think I want to start by heading up to the mountains and taking some nature photos, so maybe I'll start with that idea when I'm looking at lenses.

[STeeLy]

If you're thinking about taking long range shots with a telephoto lens (I have a 75 - 300) and if you're going to do it when its not all that bright out, u are going to need a really steady hand as pictures will blur even if u move it one bit. In the presets and automatic modes, the camera chooses the shutter speed, I found that at nights when I didn't have my Tripod, and the camera uses a 1/50 second or 1/60 second shutter speed, the image blur because my hand cannot hold steady (Image stabilization would be great for me).

But discover what kind of shots you like to take as well as how steady your hand is before buy the lenses.

[Fobby]

http://www.vistek.ca/details/details...WebCode=234531 That's a GREAT deal.. if you don't want the flash.. i will gladly take it off of your hands for a small fee. haha

As for lens... you are right, that's the whole point of SLR, is to have multiple lenses. But your first lens will depends heavily on what you shoot mostly, but that's why the 17-85 is such a good one because it has a lot of the range. If you feel that you need more, i would go for the 100-400.. if you feel that you need wide, you go 10-22.. it all depends on what you shoot most of the time. I use my 70-200 F4 IS for almost everything, I used my 50 F1.8 for shooting ppl this past weekend.. when I am in a tight space, i swap to my 17-85!

[Neeper]

I don't know too much about Canon, so I can't really chime in.

Lens is what make any photograph you take. It doesn't matter what kind of sensor you have, how many MP you have or how big your sensor is. You could use a Nikon D70 6.1MP and get amazing photos with the right lens. I wouldn't get too caught up with resolution because realistically, you won't need anything bigger than 6. Of course you want more res, then go for it. You can then make large prints if that is your goal.

But get good glass!! That's one thing I have learned over time that you can't cheap out on. For me, I don't personally use any glass unless it's at least an f2.8. Read up on lens and know what each will do for you. Every lens will do something different and give you a different look to your shots. If you want to do mostly landscape photography you should look into wide angle lens (anywhere from 10mm-24mm). But having only a wide angle lens will really limit you for most regular shots because it's so wide. A medium range lens like 28mm-120mm would be a good idea because it cover a nice wide length, although you won't find it in f2.8. But for an amateur I would recommend that. If you are going to seriously get into photography you better have or save lots of money. There's a disease called Lens Lust that will hurt your pocket book.

If you are willing to look at Nikon, they have some great entry level cameras out too. The D40 is 10.1 MP and you can get a nice 18mm-120mm VR (vibration reduction same as IS on Canon) lens. That would be a stellar starter package. You can find lots of those on eBay for a very good price.

Read as much info as you can on DP review then make your decision. If doesn't matter if you go with Nikon or Canon, but you should go with one of them and not Sigma or Sony or any other brand. You won't regret getting a DSLR.

Oh and one last thing. I am all for supporting Canadian business and all, but the prices here are ridiculous when comparing to prices in the States. I have bought 95% of my gear from B&H Photo in NY. And that was when our dollar was worth 70 cents on the US dollar. You can get MACK international warranty for your camera for peace of mind.

[jayswin]

I semi-budgeted about $1000 for this, so I'll see what I can do, and then I may have to wait a bit before I start spending money on multiple lenses. One day I'd love to be able to get an awesome shot of a Flames player, and then turn it into a high quality print that I could frame and put on my wall.

[Neeper]

I just checked the Vistek website and looks like they have adjusted prices on their stuff.

This is a nice package: http://vistek.ca/details/details.asp...21&CategoryID=

[Neeper]

Originally Posted by flameswin

I semi-budgeted about $1000 for this, so I'll see what I can do, and then I may have to wait a bit before I start spending money on multiple lenses. One day I'd love to be able to get an awesome shot of a Flames player, and then turn it into a high quality print that I could frame and put on my wall.

If your budget is $1000, then check this one out.

2 lens and one of them is VR. http://vistek.ca/details/details.asp...22&CategoryID=

Also. Keep in mind that lens hold their value very very well. I have gone through tons of lens in my time and I have been able to sell them close to 80% of what paid for it. So, don't fret if you think you will outgrow a certain lens, because it will happen.

[browna]

Ok I can wade in now.

At the risk of sounding indecisive, we're thinking of stepping up camera wise too.
Had P&S Canons Digital Elphs the last 5 years, and loved them, and will keep it. Was thinking of upgrading and getting a newer model for the IS...but no.

So now, thinking Rebel XT (Costco has XT and two lens for $579) or XTi SLR, or...Powershot G9, or S5 IS. Obviously those last two are different beasts. But, the advantage of them is decent zoom (something we want...at least 6x. S5 is 12x) and IS out of the box.

Those cameras seem to have decent reviews, fairly comprehensive manual settings if you want to take it to that level, and some limited expandability lens wise.

They also have a movie mode, which we miss since somthing screwed up on our Elph and it can't take movies or any other picture mode other then the auto setting. We have a Hard Disk Camcorder for those times we know we're going to take video, but capturing a few seconds of video with the digital camera was useful at times, and the quality was excellent. I really should just get off my butt and take it to Canon to get it fixed, or pick up a cheap S1000 to have movie capabilities that I guess if that's the only thing stopping me.

Finally price...G9 and S5 can be had for sub $450, probably less with the right holiday sale. (S5IS, for $340). Compare that to $500-$700 for a Rebel body, then a decent zoom lens with IS, and you're likely pushing the $1K mark.

Again, different beasts all 3 of them. And it will come down to what we really need/want it for in the end..all take great pictures.

Anyways, with SLR, not sure if we will get all we want out of it for what we'd be paying. I would stick with Canon..love the picture quality and color and sharpness we've enloyed with the Elphs, so not going to mess with a good thing.
That said, is the Rebel Xti worth the extra $150 or so (body only) over the Xt..I'm starting to think so, longer run? Not too concerned with the MP, its more the other features and newer tech in the Xti.

For a Canon 5x+ equivalent zoom with IS (the 17-85, for example), its about $600 for the lens? Hmm. And anything more than that zoom wise with IS, lens is likely alomst $1K on its own?

[REDVAN]

ok I have a few things to say. I started a thread about a similar topic a while back, so check it out. My Thread

Next. I bought the canon rebel xTi and have the kit lens and a 75-300 telephoto. So far I have just been taking some landscapes and am looking to get a better lens for this purpose but don't know what to go to. The camera is great. I have nothing bad to say about it, because I went from a point and shoot up to it. I like the lenses, lots of people give the kit lens a bad review but I think it does the trick, at least starting out.

[kobafett]

I bought the Rebel XTi this summer to upgrade from a p&s camera and have become totally hooked on photography. I have the 17-85mm and the 50mm f/1.8 lens. The 50mm f/1.8 is a very inexpensive lens but takes a very sharp photo and give me a much wider aperture than the 17-85. Learning a little about photography and getting off the automatic setting has made taking picture alot more enjoyable.

[Jayems]

I was dead set on the xti to begin with, then I picked it up. It felt awkward in my hands and too light. The specs are similar to the Nikon D80, but the D80 is a little more. But it felt right. Nice and heavy, good size for my hands.

But again, the xti will do pretty much the same thing.

Just start learning about aperture/f-stops, because you can't really just put these suckers on Auto. It'll generally just blow the sky out or give you a bad result.

[BlackEleven]

One thing you may want to consider when buying your lens that hasn't yet been mentioned is the crop factor. An XTi has a crop factor of 1.6x (I believe its 1.5x for the D80, but someone else can verfiy that for you).

So if you buy a, say 17-85mm lens, then the effective range is actually 27-136mm. So you end up losing a bit of range on the wide angle and gaining a bit of zoom.

Also, like Neeper said, its always nice to have a f-stop of f/2.8 or better. Remember even if the lens doesn't have IS, you can stop down to speed up the shutter, and therefore there's not a need to hold it as steady. The f-stop is also ideal for low-light situations and creating a shallow depth of field. Don't fall into the trap of just looking at the range of the lens, the f-stop is just as, if not more important.

Edit: Also, I should note that I also buy my stuff from B&H photo online. They ship to Canada and you can get it shipped with USPS (to avoid brokerage fees). In addition, cameras and lenses are duty-free items, so when you pick it up all you have you pay is the GST (and PST if you're outside AB). With the high Canadian dollar and the lower American prices, you can really get some great deals.

[Fobby]

I was going to mention the 1.6 crop after looking at neepers recommendation. The 17-85 IS falls right into the 28-120 range for a perfect walk around, beginner lens. With IS, it's more forgiven for beginners.

If you are still looking at Canon, this package will give you a range from 18 - 250 both lens with IS. http://www.vistek.ca/details/details...WebCode=233715

I know a buddy of mine is selling his 17-85. He just bought a 17-55 F2.8 IS (lucky B****)..

In regards to the G9, I also bought one until I tried one out at the store. Too many MP on too small of a CCD sensor = way too much noise. The higher ISO becomes unusable.