Newbie needing advice...

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Boberto

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Hi all,

I'm new here and am looking for some advice. I have 3 children who are little darlings (most of the time lol) and are aged 1, 4 and 5(nearly 6). Since they were all born my wife and I have taken loads of pictures of them with small pocket size digital cameras or even relied on the camera on out mobile phones to capture family moments.
As times gone on I have often felt that I would love to capture their moments as children with a decent camera to have something a bit more proffesional to look back on with regards the quality of the photos. I have looked at SLR cameras in the past but due to financial situations over recent years (recession, starting a new business) ive not been able to invest... until now.

I would like advice on what camera people recommend for my situation. Family/children portrait stuff mainly but suitable to take other stuff is a bonus. I appreciate there are other lenses to look at and would appreciate compatible ones to the camera you suggest. Also I may like to "blow up" or "enlarge" a photo to frame for wall mounting etc if its good so would the cameras resolution play a part here?

Sorry if im sounding a bit amatuerish with my terminology lol but hope im making myself clear. Budget is about £500 - £700 at a push. If there are better options above £700 id like to hear them. Like I said want something to take some truely memorable shots of my family while the kids are still young. Dont wanna be sat there in 20 years time wishing I had bought that better camera. Hope this makes sense. :)

Please help :)
 
I'm a canon fanboi (a bit) so I would suggest a Canon entry level camera and a nifty fifty lens 50mm f1.8. You could grab a used 350d or 400d for very little cash, and the lens would only set you back around £70-£80. This would get you some fantastic results compared to a cheapo point and shoot. Theres a LOT of options out there though, so it depends on budget and what else you might get up to with the camera, but you really can't go wrong with the combo I posted. Have a look here for some prices.
http://www.mpbphotographic.co.uk/
 
Thanks for the quick reply Chris. I will take a look at that link, thanks.

Anyone else got any suggestions?
 
Hi and welcome.
Don't spend all of your budget on a body and kit lens. get something a bit cheaper and use the rest to get yourself a nicer lens.
Speaking from the Nikon camp, The Nikon D3100 or D5100 are great cameras to get you started with. they both come with an 18-55mm lens (or a body only option) and will set you back between £400 to £600 brand new (knock off about 50-70 quid for used and about £100 off for the older D3000 and D5000 models).
Forget the old 50mm 1.8 with these cameras though because they will be manual focus only. not so great when taking pictures of hyper children. Instead get the AF-S 35mm 1.8 as this will auto focus on these cameras. plus its a cracking little lens to boot.
Good luck!
 
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May i suggest the 550d with kit lens? Well within your budget and a brilliant entry level dslr, also with video recording function, im also new to photography and a canon fan myself, like most will suggest go to your local jessops or similiar and hold/get a feel for the camera before buying.

Regards
Shaun
 
My advice would be to learn about what all the features on DSLR's do, and get the best camera you can afford, based on the features you think you need. DSLR's have a more consistent 'look' to them than film camera's so its not so much a creative choice, its purely getting the best you can for the money.

You're gonna be looking at a crop sensor, image quality will be similar over most of the crop sensors, the biggy i feel is ISO performance. If you can get a body with good ISO performance, everything else will pretty much come from your choice of lenses.

Its difficult though, high ISO bodies are more expensive which leaves less money for good glass.

Personally i think any body made since 2006 and a kit lens would be fine for what you want to do. If you are more serious about photography you could tip the balance of your budget to either getting a better body or better lens. That way when upgrade day comes, you only have to replace one of them, not both. If this is the case then i say go for better glass, buts its a hard one because ISO performance is such a useful thing to have too.

But be rest assured, going from a P&S, you wont be disappointed what ever camera and lens you get. I have a £99 tamron 55-200, under 135mm it is razor sharp, beautiful colour/contrast, very little chromatic aberration, it just ridiculous what you can get nowadays. I paid £250 for a used 400d, 18-55 IS and the Tamron + Memory card + 3batteries. With your budget, you could have a very nice little set-up. :thumbs:
 
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A flashgun for shots around the house, flash bounced up or to the side. There might be some colour cast back from the decor so keep that in mind.
 
Hi and Welcome :wave:

Firstly I would have a trip to a decent Camera shop and have a look at the different makes and models they have and see which manufactorer feels the most intuative to hand, with the controls / menu / feel etc. You can then decide on a model which you would like to got for - either a new one or a 2nd hand one.

As you will see over this forum (and many more) there is a healthy rivalry / banter between the Canon and Nikon group. Don't forget the likes of Sony and Pentax in your search.

Not sure if you are aware of this site

http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/cat5.html

But it gives a good idea of prices. Hope this is of some help ...
 
I'd suggest going second hand to get better value for money.

Something alonng the line of

Canon 500d approx £300
Tamron 17-50 non vc approx £210
Canon 50mm 1.8 approx £60
Yongnuo yn468 flash approx £60 ( new price, others arebsecond hand prices)

Leaves you up to £70 for accessories (bag, memory cards etc)
 
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I'd echo the advice above about getting to a decent camera shop where you can get any of the prospective cameras in your hand to have a play about with them. All my friends have Canons and I considered getting one when I got my first dslr (Would be good to share lenses etc.!) But when I tried them in the shop the Nikon felt better in my hand so I've ended up with a D3100.
 
Id recommend going to a camera shop and trying a few out, I went to get a Canon 450D but came home with a Nikon D5000 for my first DSLR. The Nikon felt better in my hands. I also tried Pentax & Sony but the Nikon felt right.

Then have a look for a second hand one if you want to go down that road.
Happy shopping :)
 
Even a relatively simple DSLR will give you great shots of children especially coupled with a reasonable lens like the Canon "Nifty Fifty" (available S/H for about £60.00)

The secret to getting great shots of kids is simple - take HUNDREDS of shots and dump the ones whch are blurred, OOF etc.

But don't try and pose them - all you end up with are those horrible fixed grin pics.

Take them indoors, outdoors, when they're playing, resting - in fact EVERYWHERE - and be ready for those expressions which come and go in an instant.


1
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2
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3
1374.jpg

​

#1 was taken on a 350D and the "Nifty Fifty" at 1600 ISO.

The 2 girls were playing about on the sofa and I was just snapping them as they played when this pic popped up - 2 secs later they were rolling around on the floor and laughing their heads off.

#2 was taken with a 70-300mm lens - I was up the other side of the room watching the girl playing with her dad when she made that simple gesture of brushing her hair back and I snapped it.

#3 was a simple shot of one of the girls when she was a bit upset.

All of these pics have lots of faults but I don't care because they are all a moment taken from their lives which will never be again and so I treasure them.

All of these were all taken at different times when I was taking a lot of pics - whenever I visited them I usually ended up with between 100-200 pics.

But if you don't take a lot of pics you'll never get those ones you'll always treasure.

.
 
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Leokull said:
Hi and welcome.
Don't spend all of your budget on a body and kit lens. get something a bit cheaper and use the rest to get yourself a nicer lens.
Speaking from the Nikon camp, The Nikon D3100 or D5100 are great cameras to get you started with.Good luck!
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I have Canon, my son Nikon, and I have been into photography since I bought my Nikon F new................

In the "amcam" market I have to say that Nikon are (in my opinion) better cameras.

The D3100 stated above, my sixteen year old son has (though he has the Nikkor 28-300 lens £700).

Thew camera is superb, and the lens that it comes with will see you into a lot of photography.

Remember, in most cases the glass on the front and the human behind are more important than the body in between.
 
My D3100 takes great photo's of my little girl. I think for starters, look at the basic lens kit (body and 18-55), but think about getting the SB-400 flash unit (around £100) to help when shooting indoors with some bounce flash.

Later, you could add the wonderful little 35mm 1.8 lens, but the 18-55 will be a good starting point to learn your trade. The quality of the pictures will blow away any point and shoot snaps.

Other option is to pick up a 2nd hand body/lens kit.... but that is daunting when you don't know what you're looking for. I was in the same boat as you, so bought new after trawling camera shops trying them out. I ended up with Nikon as I liked how the D3100 felt. I could have easily ended up with Canon, its all about how you feel with the camera/menu etc .
 
All good suggestions above. As suggested get into a shop and have a fell of the different camera's and see what feels comfortable Nikon or Cannon....

Also worth getting a brand that someone you know has, so that you can borrow the lens. I bought a second had D80 and a friend has a D90. If you decide to go the Nikon route have a look at the D90 with either the 18-105 lens and you can then add the 50mm f1.8.
 
Nikon....:D

I would buy used from MPB [with warranty] but get to know the body range first

broadly speaking
some Nikons have the AF Auto Focusing motor 'in' the body - so any lens designated AF will work
other bodies do not have an internal motor - so you need lenses with built-in focus motor ...these lenses are designated AF-S [or HSM if Sigma]

DON'T let the difference sway you
the D5000 kit lens is the 18-55 AF-S and has excellent quality [for its price]
then add a 35mm f1.8 AF-S only £170 new and you have a great lens for low light indoors

ps someone suggested a Nikon SB400 flash - once again ok for its price but it only tilts UP for bounce flash off the ceiling
a bummer if you want a portrait shot...:D
however an Off-camera- flash cord will solve that problem
get one with TTL metering function though
 
Boberto said:
Family/children portrait stuff mainly but suitable to take other stuff is a bonus.
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What other stuff are you thinking of taking?

You can get brilliant results from a top-end compact or bridge camera, such as the Fujifilm range, Canon G10 (G11, G12 or wherever the range is now), Nikon Coolpix, etc. I have an Olympus XZ-1 as a walkabout camera and it's perfect for putting in my pocket and has the flexibility to play with aperture, shutter speeds, etc. as well.

Then there are cameras like the Olympus PEN or Panasonic Lumix ranges, which have interchangeable lenses but are closer to a compact body.

Boberto said:
Also I may like to "blow up" or "enlarge" a photo to frame for wall mounting etc if its good so would the cameras resolution play a part here?
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Yes, to a degree. The quality of the lens and the sensor have much more to do with it than the number of pixels captured.

The big thing to remember is that any camera is going to be subjective. If you're not comfortable holding it, you're not going to take it with you and you'll miss those shots you want to capture. For example, lots of people on here will tell you that the Nikon D7000 is a brilliant camera capable of professional-level results but I won't use one because I've tried and it's simply too small for me to hold comfortably. :)

Go to your local big camera shop and try a few models out for size. Leave your wallet at home or take Enjoyment Control with you to ensure you don't buy anything on the day. Once you've got an idea of what's in your price range and what you're comfortable with, have a look at sites like dpreview and here to get an idea of what's good and what's not so good about each model.
 
Some really good advice here.
I went to the shop to have a play with them to see what suited me. I ended up with a Nikon D5000, and not too long after the 35mm lens. For me the D5000 was a great starting point, I have learnt lots and it's built in help mode was very useful. I'm ready to upgrade my camera now, but will be very sad when I sell my D5000 as it's a lovely camera!
 
Thanks everyone, your advice is appreciated. I am still coming to terms with alot of the terminology you are referring to so think it would be wise to do alot of reading up on the different models, lenses etc.

Is there a link to explain the lens differences???

Many thanks.
 
Another vote for the Nikon D3100 here. Bought mine to get started with photography about 4 months ago and haven't looked back. Cracking piece of kit and I believe the camera and kit lens is now down to £399 new in most places. It has sufficient manual settings for you to dabble in the more advanced parts of photography, while the auto mode is there for ease. I'm finding myself fiddling about more with the advanced settings now, but my wife can still easily use it on auto.

It really is a cracking camera - and the 1080p video recording is a nice bonus!
 
Not used one personally but have a look at the Nikon D80. It sells for about £280 S/H and has a lot going for it. As others have said a 50mm would be a good choice but may be a bit limited for kids as they rarely stay still. A zoom lens will give you more options to chase them without moving when they make off and to go wide when space is limited an you find yourself backing up till you wind up against the wall. The longer end is also useful for the more sneak stuff like candids.
If you want a smaller package the don't give up on compacts altogether. I have a fair amount of Nikon DSLR gear but I also have a Canon S95 compact, (£400.00 App) which gets great shots without being weighed done with a big DSLG and a bunch of lenses. If you want more than point and shot this one will do that too.
 
I agree with the above, my son had a D70 before it was stolen and replaced with a D3100, it was a VERY good camera, better than the Canon 10D I had at the time.

D80 nice camera.
 
like many have said go 2nd hand and get a decent body then spend the rest on the lens. for your budget you will easily pick up a canon 30 or 40D or equvilent and still have some left to spend on the lens. Check the classifieds here thats where I got my 24-105.
 
Have a look at the pentax range of dslr ,I have the kx body and kit lens 18-55 have just bought the Da 35 f2.4 AL best lens to date
 
Boberto said:
What about a lens for outdoor nature photographing? Thanks.
Click to expand...

Let me give you an idea of how hard THAT question is to answer...

"What car should I buy?"

Without knowing what you want to do it can not be answered.
 
lol fair enough mate. General scenery and maybe close ups of nature (macro?).

To conclude what we've gone through so far a Nikon D5100 would be a very good investment. Correct?

I notice the AF-S 35mm 1.8 lens mentioned a few times in the above posts. What does this lens offer in comparison to the lens that comes with the D5100?

Apologies for the newbie type questions and appreciate your patience. :)
 
If you want close up don't throw money away until you try Coking P series close up filters, don't be put off by the purists who say get a £300 close up lens, believe me they are good.

Before even thinking of spending more on other lenses have you truly "used/tried" what you have ?

Have you joined a local camera club.

I do not believe that anyone newish to photography can really know what they "need" until they have spent at least a little time using what they have.
 
Wise words Jser. I will take that on board. I guess I need to just practise with the new camera when I get it now. :) Thanks.
 
Boberto said:
To conclude what we've gone through so far a Nikon D5100 would be a very good investment. Correct?


Apologies for the newbie type questions and appreciate your patience. :)
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Don't appologise for asking questions - you don't ask, you don't know !!

As has been said, get yourself set up and then see the areas you are liking to explore further and what limitations does your kit then give you.

The Nikon D5100 is a great camera from what I've read, can't help you directly with the Nikon range of lenses, but I would recommend the body and kit lens and on the Canon range, the 55-250IS (I'm sure Nikon do a similar lens) - this fits very nicely with the kit lens focal range and gives you a very usable range for the majority of subjects to start off with.

As you progress, you can then look at upgrades / additional lenses / equipment for what you need.

Good luck :thumbs:
 
Well one year on and other commitments to spend my money on (house, family, etc) and I am planning on getting my dslr before christmas. Still like what i'm hearing about the Nikon D5100 but I hear now there is a new model out. Has much changed in the world of dslr's over the last 12 months or would a D5100 be a worthy investment? I see Amazon selling them new with 18-55mm lens for £404.00 now!
 
Would I be correct in assuming that if I can get the 18-105mm lens OR even the 18-200mm lens with my D5100 body then that would be the way to go for more options when taking photos as opposed to the 18-55mm typical kit lens?

I see some companies like Amazon, Jessops do these other lens instead for a bit more cost. Would that be a better option long term? Thanks.
 
Also. Final question LOL! I read on another thread on this forum that the D5100 body doesnt auto focus so you have to buy lens' with this function (AF-S ??). Is this correct? Will this info be under the spec of a lens when buying?

Thanks again all!
 
Any of the camera mentioned are capable of producing excellent photos.

I don't think you need to spend anywhere near near the top end of your budget and you could easily get new kit for well under £500.

In addition to the cameras already recommended, have a look at the Pentax K30. Its still a relatively new camera, has good reviews, and goes for about £420 with the £50 cashback.

However, as said, it is really down to how a camera feels to you, but after having tried a few, a shop tells you need spend upper hundreds of £s to do what you want, walk away.

Dave
 
Thanks for that Tringa. With regard the lens option with the D5100 what would be the best option available? thanks all !
 
Not sure if you're aware but the d5100 has a cash back offer from Nikon at the moment making it even better value when you get from a UK supplier? Including I believe Amazon (though not some of the marketplace sellers)
 
Zarch said:
My D3100 takes great photo's of my little girl. I think for starters, look at the basic lens kit (body and 18-55), but think about getting the SB-400 flash unit (around £100) to help when shooting indoors with some bounce flash.

Later, you could add the wonderful little 35mm 1.8 lens, but the 18-55 will be a good starting point to learn your trade. The quality of the pictures will blow away any point and shoot snaps.
.
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I'd second that! Sounds a bit like my set up although I have a 50mm 1.8. Great for pics of kids, dogs, holidays, low light anything you can throw at it really!!!!

D3200 is out now too, but I have no experience of that.
 
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