Looking to change my camera

DanTan

DanTan

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Name
Danny
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Hi folks

Ive had my camera for about 9 months now and I dont think Im happy with it.

Maybe Im trying to run before I can walk but Ive seen some photos on here that are way better than the ones Ive taken so far.

5984422168_96c3b69609_b.jpg


I have a Nikkon d3000 with 55mm kit lens and a Tamron 300mm lens.

I this a good enough camera to do what I need it to do ie mainly Forestry Rally photography?

Also are there any cameras I should be looking at buying to better my photography. I have a budget of about £400 so I know I will be looking at a second hand camera of some kind.

Many Thanks

Danny
 
You would be better served upgrading lenses before the camera as, generally speaking, the camera will only be as good as the glass bolted on to the front of it will allow.

That's not to say you need to upgrade at all, as there may be better settings and techniques you could employ to see an improvement (I'm afraid motorsport is not in 'my arc' as it were to be able to tell you what exactly).
 
Simmotino is right, try and invest in lens's first. If you feel that you want something that can keep up with the speed of cars etc... a 2nd hand D200 maybe worth looking at the Autofocus sysmtem in that camera will be slightly more supiror to what you have now.
 
Rebel t3i said:
lens and technique
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:plusone:

If you have only been at photography for 9 months I would say ......good effort with this shot.

Not into it but I would have thought viewpoints would be pretty close in Forest Rallying - thereby meaning closing speeds can be harder to react to. Technique has to be spot on IMO.

Higher quality/faster glass definitely the way to go.
 
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DanTan said:
...I this a good enough camera to do what I need it to do ie mainly Forestry Rally photography?..
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Well you could argue that FPS could be higher, ISO range greater and AF better but there's no escaping the fact that your lenses aren't really up to it.
For forestry rallying you need constant f2.8. f5.6 at the long end quickly runs out of options when there's a lot of cloud around.
A 70-200 f2.8 is perfect for the task. With your budget probably Sigma territory.

Technique and PP should also not be ignored for making the most of shots. I'd sort all of those before you buy another body but I know most people cannot resist a change of body:D
 
cyclamens said:
:plusone:

If you have only been at photography for 9 months I would say ......good effort with this shot.

Not into it but I would have thought viewpoints would be pretty close in Forest Rallying - thereby meaning closing speeds can be harder to react to. Technique has to be spot on IMO.

Higher quality/faster glass definitely the way to go.
Click to expand...

Hmmmm......What lenses would you suggest?
 
Dr_O said:
Well you could argue that FPS could be higher, ISO range greater and AF better but there's no escaping the fact that your lenses aren't really up to it.
For forestry rallying you need constant f2.8. f5.6 at the long end quickly runs out of options when there's a lot of cloud around.
A 70-200 f2.8 is perfect for the task. With your budget probably Sigma territory.

Technique and PP should also not be ignored for making the most of shots. I'd sort all of those before you buy another body but I know most people cannot resist a change of body:D
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Thanks Dr_O

I am goin to look into it this minute, do you think I would have any need for the Tamron 300mm lens i have then?
 
You might miss the extra reach that the 300mm gives you at the long end. I found my tamron to be very soft at 300mm though, which is why i sold it.

The best thing to do is to look through your photos and see what focal length you use most. If it's less than or close to 200mm then you should be fine with the 70-200mm. You'll find that the f/2.8 gives a much more suitable shutter speed and also better dof.
 
DanTan said:
Hmmmm......What lenses would you suggest?
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In reply Dan, you have already been given a couple of good pointers with 70 - 200 f2.8 - Sigma is cheaper then Nikon I would think - sorry Canon here:lol:

The suggestion of looking at the exif data to see which focal length you use most is really good advice and the starting point.

Quality zooms ain't cheap but will give you plenty of options.

The beauty of digital is that once you have the gear it dosen't cost too much - so a large capacity memory card is also worth considering - it costs nowt to keep shooting and practising:thumbs:
 
cyclamens said:
In reply Dan, you have already been given a couple of good pointers with 70 - 200 f2.8 - Sigma is cheaper then Nikon I would think - sorry Canon here:lol:

The suggestion of looking at the exif data to see which focal length you use most is really good advice and the starting point.

Quality zooms ain't cheap but will give you plenty of options.

The beauty of digital is that once you have the gear it dosen't cost too much - so a large capacity memory card is also worth considering - it costs nowt to keep shooting and practising:thumbs:
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Thanks for the advice, going look through my photos to determine most used focal length!
Thanks again :thumbs:
 
Hi guys back again,

anyone got any advice on possible exchanging my 2 lenses for Sigma 18-200mm f3.5-6.3 DC Lens?

I'm undecided and may need convincing.
 
DanTan said:
Hi guys back again,

anyone got any advice on possible exchanging my 2 lenses for Sigma 18-200mm f3.5-6.3 DC Lens?

I'm undecided and may need convincing.
Click to expand...

As already noted above, your problem with "consumer" lenses is that they don't let you get fast enough shutter speeds at the long end so you'll still struggle to get sharp (i.e. without motion blur) pictures. A zoom with a constant f/2.8 really is the answer.

Although I'm not really much of a rally fan (except to acknowledge that the crews are complete head cases) but you are a Nikon user so I'm happy to meet up with you at an event and let you use my 70-200/2.8 if you'd like. Hell, you can even try the D90 too :)
 
Bristolian said:
As already noted above, your problem with "consumer" lenses is that they don't let you get fast enough shutter speeds at the long end so you'll still struggle to get sharp (i.e. without motion blur) pictures. A zoom with a constant f/2.8 really is the answer.

Although I'm not really much of a rally fan (except to acknowledge that the crews are complete head cases) but you are a Nikon user so I'm happy to meet up with you at an event and let you use my 70-200/2.8 if you'd like. Hell, you can even try the D90 too :)
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Wow thanks for the amazing offer :) but all the rallies I tend to attend are in mid-to-north Wales.

"zoom with f2.8 constant" what price would I be looking at? and what particular make?

would this also improve me without the need for me to change my d3000?
 
You could consider renting a lens. Just another option. Try before you buy.

And as said before by others, great image. Very dramatic.
 
madmonty said:
You could consider renting a lens. Just another option. Try before you buy.

And as said before by others, great image. Very dramatic.
Click to expand...

Thanks Monty and yeah I forgot about the possibility of renting a lens.

Any websites/companies I should be looking at?
 
Just google borrow lens uk.

Try calumet as well
 
DanTan said:
Wow thanks for the amazing offer :) but all the rallies I tend to attend are in mid-to-north Wales.

"zoom with f2.8 constant" what price would I be looking at? and what particular make?

would this also improve me without the need for me to change my d3000?
Click to expand...

Danny,

I only live just over the bridge in Bristol. I travel into mid and north Wales regularly for other recreational activity (all perfectly legal and above board :D) so a trip to take pictures and (maybe) help a fellow TPer isn't that big a deal for me.

The obvious lens that comes to mind is the 70-200/2.8 but the Nikon one is way outside your budget even used. Sigma and Tamron make good alternatives which you should be able to find at a price to suit your pocket. It would also be worth the effort to hire one, as has already been suggested.

My offer still stands, BTW :)
 
Nice shot especially for only being at photography for 9mths. Like already said invest in glass you won't regret it. We had a talk at the camera club a few weeks back on sports photography and the lenses recomended depending on the type of sport , distance from subject etc were either a 200mm or 300mm f2.8.

John.
 
DanTan said:
"zoom with f2.8 constant" what price would I be looking at? and what particular make?
Click to expand...
The Sigma one is more reasonably priced than the Nikon but there have been a number of reviews drawing attention to quality control issues. Have a look at some of the remarks on the different lenses here.

The lens I always looked out for was the older Nikon AF-S 80-200mm f2.8, though they are as common as rocking horse poo and can still cost a fair bit even on ebay.
 
Strappy said:
The Sigma one is more reasonably priced than the Nikon but there have been a number of reviews drawing attention to quality control issues. Have a look at some of the remarks on the different lenses here.

The lens I always looked out for was the older Nikon AF-S 80-200mm f2.8, though they are as common as rocking horse poo and can still cost a fair bit even on ebay.
Click to expand...

I have the Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 HSM II canon fit and it's one if the nest bang for buck lenses you can buy, it's an absolute bargain for what it does! Very fast and sharp.

And built like a tank.
 
Yeah, I wish I'd bitten the bullet at the time instead of plumping for the 70-300mm VR. I bought the 10-20mm Sigma some time later and it was every bit as good as you're saying.
 
Strappy said:
The Sigma one is more reasonably priced than the Nikon but there have been a number of reviews drawing attention to quality control issues. Have a look at some of the remarks on the different lenses here.

The lens I always looked out for was the older Nikon AF-S 80-200mm f2.8, though they are as common as rocking horse poo and can still cost a fair bit even on ebay.
Click to expand...

I will keep an eye out for the future :thumbs:
 
Well, Ive bought a replacement lens. After trying to arrange some pennies (to no avail) I've bought a superzoom lens

a Tamron 18-200mm f3.5 lens. I've been assured that it is a step forward from where I was with my f4 Tamron 300mm lens.

Let me know your thoughts (be gentle with me lol
 
DanTan said:
Well, Ive bought a replacement lens. After trying to arrange some pennies (to no avail) I've bought a superzoom lens

a Tamron 18-200mm f3.5 lens. I've been assured that it is a step forward from where I was with my f4 Tamron 300mm lens.

Let me know your thoughts (be gentle with me lol
Click to expand...

You've bought a superzoom so everything will be compromised. this particular one suffers from corner softness and very bad barrel distortion at 18mm

IQ and AF speed and accuracy will suffer, you'd have been better off living with the 300mm Tamron (as you seemed to get some good shots with it) and saving for a better lens.

It's also a very slow lens, both in AF and aperture speed. At f/6.3 at 200mm it'll be near on useless for the darker rally stages.

Its not a bad travel lens but sorry, I think you wasted your money... :(
 
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DanTan said:
Well, Ive bought a replacement lens. After trying to arrange some pennies (to no avail) I've bought a superzoom lens

a Tamron 18-200mm f3.5 lens. I've been assured that it is a step forward from where I was with my f4 Tamron 300mm lens.

Let me know your thoughts (be gentle with me lol
Click to expand...

What can I say?

You asked for fairly general advice and were given the same story by many. So you ignored it all.
Your choice is to either take the superzoom back. Or to use it, get used to the crap results and choose not to ask for further advice.

Seriously keep saving until you can afford a lens that's better than your current one. Meanwhile keep practicing, because you have some talent judging from that one shot.
 
DanTan said:
Well, Ive bought a replacement lens. After trying to arrange some pennies (to no avail) I've bought a superzoom lens

a Tamron 18-200mm f3.5 lens. I've been assured that it is a step forward from where I was with my f4 Tamron 300mm lens.

Let me know your thoughts (be gentle with me lol
Click to expand...

Gotta say I think you've been sold a pup, mate. At the long end of the focal length this lens is slower than your 70-300mm (which is f/5.6 from about 200mm onwards vs f/6.3 from just after 100mm with the 18-200) so not only have you lost 1/3 of your reach but you've also lost some of that vital shutter speed you need to get a sharp image.

If you can return the 18-200 I would.
 
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