Newbie - Getting Started!

  • Thread starter Thread starter geckogirlxx
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geckogirlxx

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Well I was given £500 today as a gift for my graduation which was this week. I've wanted a DSLR for a long time so I've decided now I have this money it's time to get it!

The thing is, I'm not sure about the lenses yet so I don't know which package is best to get.. so my questions are, would you recommend this DSLR (Nikon D40), and also I'm unsure which lenses I need - would the one that is bundled with it be all I'd need to start with, or would it be worth paying the extra £120 for the extra lens and 2GB memory card?

http://www.jessops.com/Store/s47076...D40-Black-+-AF-S-DX-18-55mm-Lens/details.aspx

Hope you can help! :)
 
Firstly, congratulations on your graduation :)

If you are looking at really getting into photography, then you would probably get better and longer service from a Nikon D60, which is the second successor to the D40 after the D40x. It also has a better kit lens as it's the VR version. You can get this from Amazaon for £330 after cashback.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nikon-D60-AF-S-18-55-DX/dp/B00131Z1GS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1216507438&sr=8-1

That leaves you £170 for an SD card and one of these if you want a longer zoom. However, you would be better to think about what you want to do with the camera before jumping straight into this decision, as there are lenses for just about anything/everything.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nikon-55-200MM-F4-5-5-6G-AF-S-Black/dp/B000O161X0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1216507657&sr=1-1

Also, I always find Jessops very expensive for lenses.
 
Thanks for replying! Well, I'd love to get into photography seriously, but at the same time I'd like to kind of ease myself into it too if you know what I mean.

I've just looked up the lens on amazon compared to jessops and there's a huge price difference so thanks for pointing that out! If I get the D40 I'll be getting it without Jessops extra lens bundle!!:thumbs:

So, the D40 vs the D60 - I'm still attracted by the price of the D40, as this gift money could also buy me extra bits and bobs - would there be noticeable problems for a DSLR beginner like me if I was to get the D40? Or would it do me well? I mean, I could always upgrade in the future once I've got my graduate job lol :)
 
I don't think there would be a problem with the D40 as beginnner.

The really important stuff are the lenses as that is where most of the picture quality is.

From my own experience, buying best is always cheapest though and with the D60 you will get a better lens, and a better camera and there's less chance of you wishing you had that little something extra without being forced into an unnecessary camera upgrade.

Also from experience, buy the camera and kit lens first plus sd card (which are also much cheaper on amazon.com or play.com) and nothing else. Go out and use the camera and work out what you are missing most, prioritise the list, and buy what you can afford out of the money that's left. It could be a lens, could be a flash, could be a filter ?
 
Hmm.... yeah I think you've swayed me now lol, it's not that much of a price difference after the cashback I guess! Especially with the better lens - yeah I'm won over :)
 
I hope you really enjoy your DSLR when you get it and please post lots of pics here too for us to enjoy :)
 
Defiance said:
I hope you really enjoy your DSLR when you get it and please post lots of pics here too for us to enjoy :)
Click to expand...

Thankyou, I definitely will - I think I'll pick up some good tips here too - I'm enjoying having a browse around already, everyone's pics are so good! :love:

davenjulie said:
noo get a canon 450 lenses are cheaper I think, just bias soz

dont join the dark side :lol:

with canon you can
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Haha! Oooo fierce rivalry!! :D
 
We should form a CBC (Canon Bias Club) :lol:

I'd say go for the higher spec camera now, and save yourself some money in the future. If you bought a D40 now, say in a year time when you've improved and you fancy upgrading, you'd probably only get £200 for it, so you've lost out.

Balls to easing into it, jump in both feet first and go for it, that's what I say :thumbs:
 
Little Man said:
Balls to easing into it, jump in both feet first and go for it, that's what I say :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Yep you're right, my first idea was that I should start out simple and easy, but I guess there won't be a whole world of difference between the D40 and D60 so I should definitely go for it!

I'm impressed with the amount of North-Westerners here too I must say, there's loads of us :lol:
 
Or you could go for a second hand/refurbished D80 for around £400, in fact thinking about it I'm sure you could probably pick up a new one with a kit lens for about £550, digital depot are selling the body only, for £500, if you do a Google search I'm sure you will find it cheaper, there was someone selling one on here recently too, good thing about the the D80 is you don't have to get the lenses with the built in motor as it's already in camera, whereas the the D40,D40x and the D60 don't have it built in, just something else to think about.
 
I got my DSLR as a graduation present too (although mine was a present to myself), my advice would be to just get the camera (D60 rather than D40 ;) ) and kit lens now and see what sort of pictures you're taking and learn the limits of what you've got, then spend the rest of the money (and get even more debt) on lenses...
 
I say go with what you can afford but one thing which i found to be useful advice was try not to think too much of the kit and concentrate on taking piccies :)

I have been using the 18-55mm(canon 350d) as training lenses which I think is a good approach because it helps you identify the type of photography you enjoy and which lenses you will need to cater for your own particular style and this is based on my own experience as a beginner.

Cheers,

Andy
 
Thanks everyone! Definitely decided on the D60 with VR lens now after posting a new thread of confusion this morning :lol:, the only thing I'm going to get extra is a UV filter as protection, so I'll experiment and work out what else I could do with... *starts writing christmas list*! :D
 
The Canon kit lens is actually a little cracker!

Buy the camera of your choice, the D40 is absolutely fine, and offers just about everything you could possibly need in a DSLR. Don't focus on pixel count - once you get above 6mp, and advantage is moot in terms of producing a picture larger than A4. There are lot's of people producing fabulous pics from early 2 - 3 meg DSLRs, which are difficult to better even now.

Don't agree?? Look here: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond1/

Pic the last page - samples, and see what a 3 meg camera can do!!

Use your new camera, experiment, and get used to it. If it doesn't offer everything you would wish for in terms of picture quality, than change it for another, but give it a chance.

It's good to have the latest kit, but absolutely, not necessary.

Good luck.
 
I found myself in a very similar situation not so long ago.

I friend of mine recommended that I go for either a pentax or a samsung. The main reason being that the lens mounts have not changed over time so you can get a number of cheap lenses if your willing to use manual focus. Ebay etc have hudereds of older lenses as well as new for pentax/samsung fit lenses.

I went for the Samsung GX-10 with two kit lenses, bought from parkcameras.co.uk.
This is the same camera as the Pentax K10D for a smaller pricetag and a Samsung badge on it. I love the kit and am very happy with it, now Iam having fun taking hundereds of pics!

whatever you get, make sure its comfy and your happy using it.

Enjoy your purchase and look forward to seeing future posts from you!

PS the K10D and GX10 have VR in the body, meaning you dont pay extra for it each time you buy a lens!! big saving there!!
 
best advice i can give is to go to jessups etc and hold the camera to feel which feels comfortable, i bought a 400d and found it too small so had to spend extra on a grip.
and good luck in the future.
 
geckogirlxx said:
Well I was given £500 today as a gift for my graduation which was this week. I've wanted a DSLR for a long time so I've decided now I have this money it's time to get it!

The thing is, I'm not sure about the lenses yet so I don't know which package is best to get.. so my questions are, would you recommend this DSLR (Nikon D40), and also I'm unsure which lenses I need - would the one that is bundled with it be all I'd need to start with, or would it be worth paying the extra £120 for the extra lens and 2GB memory card?

http://www.jessops.com/Store/s47076...D40-Black-+-AF-S-DX-18-55mm-Lens/details.aspx

Hope you can help! :)
Click to expand...


If your loking for a Nikon D40 check this out, a good price for this lot.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=791241
 
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