A new camera...some advice?

rachp

rachp

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Rachael
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Hello all,
As you can see << I'm a newbie but have dived straight in to the forum.

Right, I own an Olympus E410 camera, I'm not professional (at the moment) but looking to go that way.

I really want a new camera, I don't need one it's purely a want and I'd like to invest in my future. So I'm looking for buy something that I really can keep for a long time.

Now, I don't have a real budget at the moment, I'll find the camera I want and then work towards buying it but I just don't know where to start.

I know I want either a Nikon or Canon mainly because of the equipt. on offer afterwards.

What would you recommend?

Thanks
Rachael x
 
First question - what do you want to do with the camera?
 
It's important to know exactly what you want to be photographing because both Canon and Nikon have their own particular strengths and weaknesses.

You will also find that questions like this flush out that peculiar creature known as "The Fanboy" Those (of either sex) who will hear nothing against the brand that they have chosen. Take their advice with a huge pinch of salt and make your own mind up. :)
 
mastertrinity said:
second question - whats your budget?
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As stated in the first post, I don't really have one at the moment. I'll work towards what ever camera is the best for me.

Right what do I want to photograph. Well, I'm aiming to go into to fashion and editorial, I'm SO far away from that at the moment, but like I said I want a camera that I can grow with - does that make sense? At the moment I take a lot of portraits, nature and travel shots. :)

Thanks for the tip AliB ;)
 
Fashion and editorial. Ouch! :)

The reason for the ouch is that it's generally the preserve of the Hasselblad. The digital medium format cameras can easily set you back £10K plus and £25K would get you something good.

But back to the real world. Two routes you could try. One is to get a Medium format film camera. Advantage? readily available and a budget of £500 will buy you something really good. Disadvantage? Film costs/dev costs and as you are learning the inability to see your results immediately.

The other route is to try to aim for a digital Full Frame camera. Advantages? It's digital! so you can see your results immediately. Disadvantages? It's not medium format and it costs more to buy initially.

I'm no expert on Nikon but the Canon FF cameras are quite tasty themselves. Range is 5D classic (just discontinued, cracking portrait camera) can be bought for £700. the 5D MKII, more pixels and better high ISO. The 1 series. Outstanding performance. Bulletproof build quality The MkIII had some problems on some of the earlier releases but should be sorted now. 1DsII or 1DsIII would be more than enough.

The 5D classic would be my budget buy and the 1Ds or D3 my pro spec choice.

I know the Nikon D3 is a corker too but I have not used one so can't tell you much about it! In fact you'd have to get this lot translated to Nikon because I really don't understand it.
 
Thanks, it's got to be digital, I really don't want film.

I don't mean I want a camera that I'm going to have forever, when I say I want one to grow with I mean it as I'm learning. I'm not going to be a pro for many years I'm realistic about that but those are just the areas that interest me (Thought I'd get that in before I had the usual 'oooh you'll never do that, that's a hard area to get into etc etc) I work in PR (run an agency) and do a lot of photography for that so I really want a camera that I'm in love with (something which I'm not with the olympus)
 
Thanks, it's got to be digital, I really don't want film.

I don't mean I want a camera that I'm going to have forever, when I say I want one to grow with I mean it as I'm learning. I'm not going to be a pro for many years I'm realistic about that but those are just the areas that interest me (Thought I'd get that in before I had the usual 'oooh you'll never do that, that's a hard area to get into etc etc) I work in PR (run an agency) and do a lot of photography for that so I really want a camera that I'm in love with and can develop with (something which I'm not with the olympus)

I'm going to have a poke around the shops tomorrow and have a hold and feel of a few, I am after any tips on 'must haves'
 
As you already have an Olympus, have you considered moving up the line of Oly kit...?

Also, as has already been asked, what's your budget...?

I know you mention you are not in love with Olympus, but what specific features or functions are you after - the E-410 lacks many of the features found on the more recent Oly kit. It's also horrid re ISO noise whereas the E620, E30 and especially the E3 are leagues in front of the E-410.

Having said that, if I had the money, and hadn't already invested in so much Oly glass and kit, I'd go for a Nikon D700 :)
 
theMusicMan said:
As you already have an Olympus, have you considered moving up the line of Oly kit...?

Also, as has already been asked, what's your budget...?
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As already answered, I don't have one. I would rather find something I loved then work towards being able to buy it.

I don't really want another Olympus to be honest. I'd rather go along the Nikon or Cannon route. I'm tempted by the Nikon D5000 (and the cannon equiv which escapes me at the moment)
 
Errrm....

rachp said:
Right, I own an Olympus E410 camera, I'm not professional (at the moment) but looking to go that way.
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... I thought that meant you have an E-410?? :shrug:

I'm not sure about the lower end Canon or Nikon kit, but it's all good (except the D40). I'd still say if there's any way you can, stretch to the D700 - it's an awesome piece of kit.
 
theMusicMan said:
Errrm....



... I thought that meant you have an E-410?? :shrug:

I'm not sure about the lower end Canon or Nikon kit, but it's all good (except the D40). I'd still say if there's any way you can, stretch to the D700 - it's an awesome piece of kit.
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:lol::lol: I do, When I said that as already answered I meant it in relation to my budget x
 
For the field you want to shoot in, try to go for a full frame camera of either brand. :)
 
AliB said:
For the field you want to shoot in, try to go for a full frame camera of either brand. :)
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Yes, of course, Ali is right. I am not the type of fanboy she alludes to in her earlier post :)

Honestly...

Well, not a Nikon one anyway :) tehee.
 
Canon - 1000D, 450D
Nikon - D60 - D90

I would suggest the Canon 1000D which is £350 from argos or the Nikon D60 again from argos for around £360.
 
There are 2 things to consider:
1) cameras don't hold their value, lenses do
2) you might change your mind very quickly and may want more, so maybe buy just above your average choice.

I went for 30D over a year ago after considering 400D. If you have reasonably sized hands and prefer to tweak settings then forget rebels, or other entry level cameras. They are primarily for people going on holidays, etc. 30D, 40D or 50D depending on budget are very capable cameras and will help you to learn. *** Make sure you get some good glass (forget kit lenses) and flashes ***. If you can't handle Hasselblad or D700 at its full potential then there is no reason to get one.
 
daugirdas said:
***. If you can't handle Hasselblad or D700 at its full potential then there is no reason to get one.
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I agree. ATEOD I'm still learning and it's going to be YEARS before I get anywhere near good enough to go into my chosen field so I need a camera that I can learn with, and enjoy.

I think the main reason for upgrading is that I find there isn't a huge amound of choice for olympus in the 2nd hand market where as Nikon and Canon seem to be saturated with 2nd hand goods, I can't afford to buy new all the time so it makes sense to get a canon or Nikon.

I don't really want to downgrade from what I've got now
 
What do we all think of the Canon EOS 500D? Or do you think I could get away with a lesser camera than that? Maybe a 450?
 
You already have a camera you can learn with, it's not the camera that makes a photographer.
 
Rachael, Soem really good advice here :) Have you been out and about and handled any of the kit mentioned? Doing this really helped me decide the brand I preferred - if the logic of a device doesn't work for me then its a no-no (same reason I've never had a Samsung mobile phone!)
My second purchasing factor was price but this isn't quite the same for you I don't think. You need to be considering features and performance which has been well covered above plus I'm not well versed enough to suggest, but do get out and handle a few models and see if you start to develop your own fanboy inclinations (which is a very true statement BTW :))
Right, I'm off to polish my Nikons - the best cameras in the world ever - fact :lol:
 
mr bizzare said:
You already have a camera you can learn with, it's not the camera that makes a photographer.
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Yes but the choice of Oly 2nd hand lens etc aren't as good or as cheap as what I've seen for canon or nikon as I've already said, I'm not saying a better camera will make me a better photographer, I'm simply wanting something I can grow with and afford to expand.
 
I don't want knock you with my comment, I am a slave to mags and ebay, every time I buy a new piece of equipment I think my shots will get better but I think it only gets easer to end up with the same result.
 
Rachel... Get the 450D (about £480), or if you can afford it, get the 50D (£750-£850). I wouldn't bother with the 500D. Spend the extra on another lens or something.
 
I agree with above, a 450D will start you and you can pour money into (EF) lens for a while, then swap to a 5D Mk2.

The thing with nikon imo, is there is a smaller range of lens, and unless you get a D90 you have to buy AF-S lens, cutting the range further (or give up auto-focus)
 
Blue Eagle said:
I agree with above, a 450D will start you and you can pour money into (EF) lens for a while, then swap to a 5D Mk2.
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That's quite a jump, and in all honesty, pretty bad advice! The 450D will do fine for 99.99% of people in this world, it may well be way more than she'll ever need.
 
I certainly agree with the 450D comments... don't rule out these "Entry level" cameras, as they are not as Entry Level as you would think and have most of the settings you would need... Alot of people shoot some outstanding shots with these camera's so don't be pressured into buying the next level up as you might not need it...

Glass, Glass, Glass... it's all about the lens you use... this is FAR more important than the camera (once you have one that feel right of course). stick a cheap lens on a £2000 camera and an excellent lens on my Camera (probably worth about £200 max now) and I can guarantee that the results from mine would be better...
 
Trying to decipher this thread. Fashion/editorial. Nikon/Canon. Open budget :thinking:

Clearly there is a budget, which sits between £500 and maybe £1k.

So, 450D is good, 40D better (maybe used). And two or three lenses. Decent flash too. Something like 450D, 18-55 IS kit lens, Sigma 10-20, Canon 55-250 IS, 50 1.8, 430EX flash. That's the budget gone, but there's enough quality kit in there to do just about anything, and hard to do it cheaper.

Looking at the timescale, pretty much anything bought now will be history when the time comes to turn professional. And a few hundred quid will be a drop in the ocean of a serious pro budget.

Meanwhile, it's a useful step up from the Olympus, massively versatile, and it gets you into Canon.
 
HoppyUK said:
Trying to decipher this thread. Fashion/editorial. Nikon/Canon. Open budget :thinking:
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I didn't say I had an open budget, I said that I can work towards getting a camera that's worth it :shrug:Don't see the problem with that. If I said oh I have £500 but something is £600 I don't want to rule that out. RE fashion and editorial I just said that was my interest, again, don't see the problem.
Meanwhile, it's a useful step up from the Olympus, massively versatile, and it gets you into Canon.
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The only reason I'm not getting on with my Oly as I've said a million times is because the 2nd hand lens choice is so limited.
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^^^ Rach, it's not a problem. But when you say you don't have a budget, which you did in the OP, people start suggesting top end stuff like Nikon D700. Everyone always has a budget, which I've had to guess at to recommend anything.

Do you mean editorial fashion or fashion and editorial? The clearer you can be, the better the advice ;)
 
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