Buying DSLR - limited budget

[wooohooo]

Originally Posted by Regulator75

My photo buddy has that exact kit and is very happy with it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevincappis/show/

It's his first DSLR after using a higher end point and shoot. He wished he made the DSLR jump sooner.

I'm really new to this photography thing. What kind of lens did he use to capture the panoramic view of the city? Is there a certain setting you do? Those photos are awesome. I love looking at architecture pictures

[Titan]

Originally Posted by Jayems

Titan,

What are you wanting to shoot? Are you looking for a versatile camera and lens kit that will get you through most scenarios or are you looking for something more specific?

IE: Will you need to shoot indoors at high shutter speeds? (hockey, lacrosse, etc)?

Kids, holidays, flowers, landscapes, mountains.

I mainly want to get good quality shots of the kids and vacations but want to be able to also start taking photos as a hobby.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Regulator75

The 50mm is a great lens, it's a tad too long for indoor use. As the DX 1.5 magnification makes it a 75mm. I also own the 35mm f/1.8 and it's more natural for indoor use. They are both sharp as a tack.

Yeah 75 mm is a perfect portrait focal length, but not as useful in general. For weddings, indoor events etc. though even 50 mm is little long though unless you're the official photographer... people with 28-35mm point and shoots will be standing in front of you for group shots and whatnot.

Originally Posted by wooohooo

I hear VR is better for picture quality. Is it worth the extra $60 bucks or so to get a VR lens over a non VR lens for an 18-55 mm?

Depends on what you're shooting. For well lit stuff when you'll be fine without it, as VR is mostly for camera shake, which is mostly a problem with you're using a long lens handheld. Rule of thumb is shutter speed needs to be 1/f to avoid camera shake, and 1/80th (assuming 1.5x crop factor) of a second is plenty of light in daylight (anything moving, you'll need to go faster anyways unless you want motion blur). With VR you can go faster by a factor of 8-16, so 1/5th of a second if you've got a steady grip. If you're ever going to shoot handheld at dusk, get VR. Unless you really need that $60 for something else, there's no way you'll regret it.

Originally Posted by Titan

Kids, holidays, flowers, landscapes, mountains.

I mainly want to get good quality shots of the kids and vacations but want to be able to also start taking photos as a hobby.

Jackpot!

(Short version: If you want to take pictures of your kids doing indoor sports, you'll want a fast zoom lens. They're expensive, but there's really no other good way to get those shots. Luckily, you can use that to justify your purchase to your wife.)

For the other shots, you'll be mostly outdoors/well lit or you'll need a tripod anyways... no major need for a fast lens and you've got a great range covered. (FWIW, I have only the Nikon 18-200.)

[Titan]

So I am down to the D5000 and am trying to decide between these two kits:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...0-300mm-vr-kit

or this one:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...5-200mm-vr-kit

As far as I can tell the only difference is the first jumps to 300mm for an extra $130 bucks. Is that extra zoom worth the extra money or would it be better spent on the bag, memory card etc.?

Also, would I miss the gap between 50mm and 70mm that the first kit would have? I doubt it but am not sure.

Thanks.

[Titan]

Also, unless I am missing something the price in Calgary is cheaper that B&H in the states:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...LR_Camera.html

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Titan

So I am down to the D5000 and am trying to decide between these two kits:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...0-300mm-vr-kit

or this one:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...5-200mm-vr-kit

As far as I can tell the only difference is the first jumps to 300mm for an extra $130 bucks. Is that extra zoom worth the extra money or would it be better spent on the bag, memory card etc.?

Also, would I miss the gap between 50mm and 70mm that the first kit would have? I doubt it but am not sure.

Thanks.

IMO, you can always have more zoom. Depending on what you're coming from you may not realise how much you'll use it. With some point and shoots, if you zoom in too far you lose a lot of light and the camera often picks a shutter speed to slow for it too keep steady, or the ISO goes up too high, or your flash isn't powerful enough. With a DSLR you can pick higher ISOs without creating as much noise, your flash is more powerful and probably also zooms, and the VR is good enough to handle slower shutter speeds. That means in outdoor daylight you can pretty much use the full range of your zoom thinking only about composition and isolation/integration effects.

But you'll need a camera bag, card etc. anyways so it's more a question of whether you want to expand your budget or not. You probably won't miss the 55mm to 70mm hole... it is a sizeable gap, but you can always shoot at 55 then crop, and unless you're making a large print, you won't miss the resolution you lose with this method.

Something to consider is that the 70-300 is a full frame lens, the 55-200 is DX format (meaning it's designed for a smaller sensor, like your camera). You camera will only be using the middle of the lens, i.e. the lens is wider than it needs to be for your camera. In practical terms, this means two things. First, if you ever decide to buy a full frame body, you can still use the 70-300. This isn't really that important, as lenses hold their value fairly well so you can always buy/sell lenses to fit your needs. Second, and this may be important depending on how, where, how long and how often you plan on carrying your gear, the 70-300 is a lot bigger and heavier. It's only 1.5x as long, but it's 3x as heavy (750g vs 250g). If you don't want to carry an extra lb with you, go for the 55-200 and upgrade only if you find yourself wishing you had more reach. There are certainly situations where that could be the case, but other times you can crop from 200 or simply get closer to your subject.

[Regulator75]

Originally Posted by Titan

So I am down to the D5000 and am trying to decide between these two kits:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...0-300mm-vr-kit

or this one:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...5-200mm-vr-kit

As far as I can tell the only difference is the first jumps to 300mm for an extra $130 bucks. Is that extra zoom worth the extra money or would it be better spent on the bag, memory card etc.?

Also, would I miss the gap between 50mm and 70mm that the first kit would have? I doubt it but am not sure.

Thanks.

I'd avoid the 70-300. After 200mm it's performance really falls off. http://www.bythom.com/70300vrlens.htm

[ma-skis.com]

Originally Posted by Titan

So I am down to the D5000 and am trying to decide between these two kits:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...0-300mm-vr-kit

or this one:

http://www.thecamerastore.com/produc...5-200mm-vr-kit

As far as I can tell the only difference is the first jumps to 300mm for an extra $130 bucks. Is that extra zoom worth the extra money or would it be better spent on the bag, memory card etc.?

Also, would I miss the gap between 50mm and 70mm that the first kit would have? I doubt it but am not sure.

Thanks.

I was going through your same decision, ended up going with the canon t1i mostly because most of the people i know use canon (so i can borrow lenses before i commit to buying them). Anyways, as I was scrounging the internet for deals, i came across best buy with a price matching deal as well as 50 dollars off any purchase over 300 if you sign up for their card when you make that purchase.

I got mine through dells days of deals, but hopefully you can take advantage of that PM / $50 off, i think it's only over the next couple days too.

[Titan]

Originally Posted by Regulator75

I'd avoid the 70-300. After 200mm it's performance really falls off. http://www.bythom.com/70300vrlens.htm

Is that guy reputable? He seems a little bitchy or is a Canon user.

Thanks for the link though.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Titan

Is that guy reputable? He seems a little bitchy or is a Canon user.

Yes... thing is, you can read a million reviews that find the same things but come to different conclusions.

When I was choosing between the Nikkor 18-200, Sigma 18-250 and Tamron 18-270 I eventually gave up reading reviews, went to the store, and bought the one the guy said was best.

[Titan]

Which raises the question do I trust the guy at the Camera Store. They seem okay but I am always a bit leery. When I was in he did recommend not buying the kit lens but a step up 200 mm. Was an upsell but seems consistent with what I have read about kit lenses.

[DrJ]

Originally Posted by SebC

Yes... thing is, you can read a million reviews that find the same things but come to different conclusions.

When I was choosing between the Nikkor 18-200, Sigma 18-250 and Tamron 18-270 I eventually gave up reading reviews, went to the store, and bought the one the guy said was best.

Did you go for the Nikkor?

[Titan]

Originally Posted by SebC

Yes... thing is, you can read a million reviews that find the same things but come to different conclusions.

When I was choosing between the Nikkor 18-200, Sigma 18-250 and Tamron 18-270 I eventually gave up reading reviews, went to the store, and bought the one the guy said was best.

So which did you get and where?

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Titan

Which raises the question do I trust the guy at the Camera Store. They seem okay but I am always a bit leery. When I was in he did recommend not buying the kit lens but a step up 200 mm. Was an upsell but seems consistent with what I have read about kit lenses.

Definitely an option. A lot of people like the 18-200 (myself included - although the only references I have are point-and-shoots) but it won't make much of a difference except that you won't be changing lenses. If it's out of your budget, don't worry about it. Kit lenses are compromise lenses, but so are superzooms.

Originally Posted by DrJ

Did you go for the Nikkor?

Yeah. Not the easiest choice to not regret as its advantages are more subtle (on paper) than extra zoom, but it helps that the other ones have come down in price a lot in the past year, and my Nikkor which was the cheapest is now the most expensive!

Oh, and I got it at Vistek... wish I had gone to The Camera Store instead. Have tried to support them ever since I went to the Digital Photo Expo, which was excellent and which they put on.

[Diemenz]

Originally Posted by Titan

Which raises the question do I trust the guy at the Camera Store. They seem okay but I am always a bit leery. When I was in he did recommend not buying the kit lens but a step up 200 mm. Was an upsell but seems consistent with what I have read about kit lenses.

He is right.

Lenses IMO are 50% of the photo and the other 50% is eye. I have seen amazing pictures (clarity and balance) come from a Canon Xs or Nikon D40 with a good lens.

However don't sell the kit lenses short they have come a long way in the past 10 years, your not going to get Andrew Hobbs quality pictures but for an amateur they are more then enough to get you started. IMO it's a no brainer to get the 300mm kit as when you do move up the 300mm Lens will fetch a higher premium and be easier to move.

I do think the best investment aside from the camera itself is to grab a 35mm lens right off the bat. Its a fantastic portrait lens, also great for indoor shooting and very affordable for the quality and clarity they are capable of.

(And yes i get up way to early)

[ah123]

Originally Posted by Titan

Is that guy reputable? He seems a little bitchy or is a Canon user.

Thanks for the link though.

Thom Hogan is defintely reputable, even though he has a long lists of complaints about Nikon, he's even been invited to meet with the head-honchos at Nikon to give them his view as Nikon-using professional photographer.

One thing to remember when reading his reviews (and views) is that he requires his lenses to be "the best", as he needs that level of quality.

Regarding the lens - I have that lens and have gotten some absolutely gorgeous pics (when I am shooting outdoors). If you consider "bang-for-buck", this lens is a very good lens, as long as you know it's downfalls and can work with them.

[Titan]

So I went to the Camera Store today, got myself all worked up, was ready to buy...no stock!! What a bummer.

Anyways, a question about memory cards. Does it matter what class I buy? he said it should be class 6 but that seems like overkill to me. Any thoughts?

Thanks as always.

[Titan]

And sorry to woohoo for hijacking his thread. Hope the info helps you too!

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Titan

So I went to the Camera Store today, got myself all worked up, was ready to buy...no stock!! What a bummer.

Anyways, a question about memory cards. Does it matter what class I buy? he said it should be class 6 but that seems like overkill to me. Any thoughts?

Thanks as always.

Yes it does. Faster cards have faster writes, which is important for high speed bursts (especially if you're shooting RAW). If you're shooting JPEG burst at max resolution and quality you'll get about 10 frames before your buffer fills, and which point your frames per second drop dramatically to whatever speed the card writes at. You may also need a minimum speed for video, although I'm not sure what it is. The way my D90 works too is that after you finish your burst it clears the buffer, and while its doing that it will not take any more photos. That downtime is also dependant on the card write speed. Single shots may work this way too, I'm not sure.

Unlike lenses though, flash cards get cheaper all the time. If you don't need the biggest or fastest card right away, if you hold off until you need it it'll probably come down in price. I won't buy a card if it's past the sweet spot of price per GB... usually better to have lots of smaller cards than one big one anyways. Especially when you can't record video longer than 5 minutes anyways. Usually worth shopping around for cards too.

PS What did you decide on?

[ma-skis.com]

Originally Posted by SebC

I won't buy a card if it's past the sweet spot of price per GB...

What is this sweet spot for what type of card?