Camera advice please

[ellie123]

I currently have a canon 40d, which I use for everyday photography and did use for a bit of equestrian event photography but I'm not doing that any more. It was recommended to me by the tog I was working for as i could use the manual settings better than a lower level camera, and I really like having the flexibility with the settings but the camera is just so bulky! And Im not doing much photography any more, it would also be a huge bonus to have filming as I'd like to play around with that a bit too. So I was thinking of swapping for a smaller one as I don't really need such an advanced camera, anyone who has done this, did you find it annoying not having the same manual settings? And can anyone recommend me a good compact dslr with full video, either canon or nikon is fine as I only have two lenses anyway, and am thinking more along the lines of getting one good lens with a decent focal range instead of two.
Sorry for the essay! Thanks

 

[modchild]

Hi ellie, welcome to the forum first of all. I've not used Nikon, so I'll stay away from recommending one as I've not a clue. As for Canon though, there's quite a range of fully featured 'smaller' dslr's such as the 550D, 600D and the new 650D which are all excellent for video work giving full HD.
They are all 18Mp sensor cameras, although the 650D lets you have silent (with the right lens) full time auto focus which none of the others do. I bought my wife the 650D from www.panamoz.com for a very good price and they have kits available with the STM lenses too.

 

[Spy]

Have you thought about the new Canon EOS M

It is a small compact mirrorless camera with the same sensor as the 650D. It takes smaller Canon lenses (so easier to carry around) but can also take your existing EOS DSLR lenses with an adapter.

More info here: http://www.canonrumors.com/