any photographers on here?

Originally Posted by TC3

The original poster....seeing as you were into your photgraphy back in your teens i would advise you take a look at not the entry level but more advanced cameras....Nikon D90 as an example. I have a similar background as you in photography and when choosing a camera the things that helped me decide were as follows
1. Comfort and how well it fits in the hand
2. A preference to have less need to go through menus to change settings. D90 i use has plenty of external knobs and buttons for changing the more common things while with a camera like D3000 you need to go into menus a lot more to change many functions.
3. Lenses and accesories....make sure you think ahead ... for example i went Nikon route due to the brilliant CLS lighting system....i use 3 flashes to photo models at work and the CLS system allows all 3 flashes to talk and work together. It is the best flash sysem i have used to date.
4. In body stabilization or in lens- Pentax and Sony for example have in body while Nikon and Canon in lens. I have a Pentax K100 Dslr (same sensor as D40) too but prefer the in lens stabilization as you can see the effects right away. Very useful when using a long focal length lens. However the in body will make any lens you attach stabilzed and that would save you cash if you are on a budget.
I am sure there were other factors which i have now forgotten! Good luck with whatever you decide to go with

Thanks for the advice.
You make some very valid points and i think the purchase of something like the d90 might be a very good idea.
The fact that you can change settings without going through the menus is something i had not thought about but would be a major selling point to me!
Thanks again,
Anyone know the best place to buy from?

[Paul the 6th]

www.ebuyer.com is where I got my original camera from - usually very cheap for a wide range of tech stuff but you'll have to have a look...

www.warehouseexpress.co.uk is great for accessories/bags/lenses/filters/tripods etc...

[jambo]

Plenty of good advice in here then.
I have a Canon 400d (now superseded by the 450,500, and arguably the 550) and a selection of lenses most of which have been bought 2nd hand.

The point about menu layout is valid, I love my 400d, but like the entry level Nikons, the settings you're after are often in the menus (think ISO, shooting mode, active focus points). Some of this you learn to do very fast, some of it's much easier on newer models. When you move up to the Nikon D90 or Canon 40/50D line of "prosumer" cameras a lot more features are on external controls. Add to that, that you now usually have a "top deck" type data display on the top of the camera and things are easier to see at a glance.

When my mate Tommy finally gets another case of the gimmies and buys a 7D I will try to buy his little used, beautifully looked after 40D off him

When I hold any Canon from a 10 year old film camera I've got to a new 5D MKII I find the controls intuitive. I have to keep asking Anna & Filipe to help me with the Nikon, but a large part of that is learned behaviour, they felt the same about my Canon. Try both, one will probably feel more logical to you.

If you do know a mate with several grand's worth of Nikon/Canon lenses, by all means factor that in. People have generously lent me glass that I simply couldn't afford for the limited use I'd get from it, and it's really helped me expand what I can do with the camera.

Nikon, Canon, Sigma, Tamron etc all have their "crop sensor" lenses. These are made to suit ranges such as 18-55mm and won't fill a full 35mm frame, in many cases they won't fit to a crop-sensor body at all. So if you're planning on shooting full frame or film, consider whether the lenses you're buying will be useful on all camera bodies you might use.

Above all, enjoy the experience.

Jambo

Edit: Oh yes, and all Nikon shooters smell faintly of wee. Even People like Joe McNally and David Hobby. Fact!

Cheers Jambo
I am going to get to a shop and look/hold the camera's and go from there.
Thats if i ever get rid of the pager for work so i can go anywhere

P.S
stop smelling nikon users then!

[Bri w]

Originally Posted by jambo

Edit: Oh yes, and all Nikon shooters smell faintly of wee. Even People like Joe McNally and David Hobby. Fact!

A Nikon user must have edited your post - it makes sense

When I got my Nikon D5000 a couple of months back I found the the controls on it far easier to use than the Canon. The Sony was straightforward too but I'm not keen on the Sony body - metal frame with plastic body isn't quite so robust.

Liveview isn't all that useful, and I now find there's enough info in the view finder.

If it comes down to price I could have got a Canon, with similar functions, cheaper than the Nikon but there wasn't much in it pricewise, just the Nikon was easier to use for a thick smelly Nikon user.

Bri,

Controls and ease of use are fairly common comments for users favouring Nikon over Canon.

The new Nikon D3100, launched yesterday, looks like an amazing camera. Prices will be initially a bit high but should come down quickly. It appears to be better than both the old D3000 and D5000.

This is updated often so check out the price of what you want before you buy

http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/cat4.html

Just wanted to post this extract from a poster on DPReview. He tallks about the Nikon slr's but it is true for other makes with entry level and prosumer slr cameras i would imagine.
The D3100 is aimed mainly at people who are buying their first DSLR and want a bit of hand-holding and not too many options to deal with. It's missing quite a few features and options that a more experienced user might want that the D90 has.
Here are a few things based on what I'm seeing in the preview here that I can come up with quickly that the D90 has that the D3100 doesn't:
In-body focus motor, so significantly more auto-focus lens options
Dedicated wheel for adjusting F/stop
Assignable function button on front
Depth of Field preview button
Exposure Delay mode, mirror lock-up of sorts
More dedicated buttons in general
Top LCD
Faster continuous shooting, 4.5 fps vs. 3 fps
Pentaprism viewfinder, larger and brighter
Hi-res monitor, 920,000 pixels vs. 230,000
White Balance options include Kelvin temperature, 3 White Balance pre-set memory settings
Center-weighted metering adjustable, more options
More image quality options, can shoot NEF plus JPG Normal or Basic
Battery grip available
You can set up custom "My Menu" for often-used menu items
There are probably a few more too. I would miss most of these if I was shooting with a D3100. The D3100's higher resolution will make diffraction softening a bit worse when you use smaller F/stops, which is a big negative to me. NEF's will require more memory storage than the current 12MP bodies.
As far as I'm concerned, 12MP is about the sensible limit for an APS-C sensor. Beyond that, you're seeing diminishing returns.
John

Well i went to jessops today to look at the nikons and canons,

and



I must smell of wee! I came out with a nikon d90 18-105vr kit
Just got to learn how to use it know!
Thanks for all the advice people and hope to meet in person some day.

[keith_d]

Good choice. If I was asked to recommend a reasonably priced Nikon the D90 would be top of my list.

Keith. (OK - I'll admit it, I'm a Nikon user)