any photographers on here?

Hi all,
I used to be quite a serious photographer in my teenage years including at one point getting paid to do a wedding.
However i have not picked up a proper slr for 15 years or so.
Can anyone give me a bit of advice on a good digital slr for under £500 that i can use to get used to digital and get me back into the art.
I would want one of the good brands(nikon,olympus,canon) as i would then upgrade with an idea of going semi pro in a couple of years and that way i can get good lenses now and not need to replace these as well as the body.
Any photograpers on here who can help?
Thanks

Originally Posted by gsak

Hi all,
I used to be quite a serious photographer in my teenage years including at one point getting paid to do a wedding.
However i have not picked up a proper slr for 15 years or so.
Can anyone give me a bit of advice on a good digital slr for under £500 that i can use to get used to digital and get me back into the art.
I would want one of the good brands(nikon,olympus,canon) as i would then upgrade with an idea of going semi pro in a couple of years and that way i can get good lenses now and not need to replace these as well as the body.
Any photograpers on here who can help?
Thanks

I noticed Jessops have an offer on the Sony A330 at the moment. £299 with the kit 55mm lens and £400 with an additional Tamron 300mm lens. I've got one of the models below (the A230) and am well happy with it. Paid more than the price of the A330 above but that was a while back.

[anna]

Use the search function, the topic has been covered many times here with lots of advice given

Originally Posted by anna

Use the search function, the topic has been covered many times here with lots of advice given

Cheers,
Should have done that first
Thanks for the sony advice, i will check that out.

I'd stick with either a Canon or Nikon. Both makes are excellent, and there's nothing worse than being in a shop which stocks little that fit your camera (and their prices).

DSLRs have been hugely popular for a few years now since they hit the £500 mark. Loads of amateurs bought them and have flooded the SH market with decent models with very very little use. Ebay is full of unwanted gifts and hobbys that never started.

If you want to go new then go in to Jessops and just look at those brands in your price range. All offer similar features and similar quality. Just hold them and see which feels better

Rob (Canon 450d and very happy with it)

[Bri w]

Similar story a couple of months back, and searched the threads.

I got a Nikon D5000 with two lenses in an Jessops bundle.

Lovin' it.

[anna]

no worries gsak...


As has been said there arent many differences between the two makes (Nikon and Cannon) as you must know,... although obviously Nikon is the most superior of the two

If you know people with Cannon/Nikon that have the shiny lenses then get that make, as that is the most expensive bit.

We are a Nikon household, with D90, D60, F70, F80, F100 ... so obviously going to be biased here.

Others on here are Cannon.. Samnoska, Jambo, Rictus to name those that I know of.

Really you need to read the geek reviews for the specific differences between the two makes to decide which one tickles your fancy. Obviously most important go handle them, see which one fits you better, you hand a Cannon to me and it feels like a toy camera with menus that confuse me

Ive got a nikon d90 and its far superior to me, i wanted one that i wouldnt need to upgrade in a couple of years time and hopefully thats the case.

Thanks for all the advice
As Anna said i think i will get down to my local shop to handle as many models as i can as i think that comfort/build will be a major deciding factor.
The limiting factor will be me and not the camera at first as i am from a film age!( I will miss processing and printing my own black and white though as its not quite the same art in photoshop!)
Thanks again for the replies and feel free to keep them coming as i am new to digital and the best reviewers are the people who use the stuff.
Hopefully i have still got an eye for a shot that i had when i was younger!
Ta

[dyzio]

I'm not a photographer, but I've recently bought a second hand Canon 400d body and a new Sigma lens (18-55), about 190 each.

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