Help on choosing a used dslr camera?

[johnspack]

I've been neglecting this itch for years to take up photography. Just upgraded my 2mp camera to a 12.1mp one, and realized I would love to have a real camera! Have the basics down now... iso, f-stop, light levels, ev shift, white balance.. as far as this little camera will let me. I really want a dslr camera, but new is way too much for me, so looking at used. And I'm a newb, so just want fairly easy to handle. Any advice?

 

[Bo$$]

Depends how much you want to spend

 

[AsRock]

If i was going have a new one it be a Nikon or Cannon, more for the Nikon.

Check out www.DPReview.com

 

[Iceni]

if you new to dslr's then lenses and the cost of them is probably more important than the body.

Nikon and cannon both use on lens anti shake mechanism's meaning second hand lenses can still be very expensive.

Sony on the other hand use the same mount as minolta, konica-minolta. This means most lenses from about 1981 upwards are available. Sony also use on camera anti shake. This is with the sony "A mount" system.

Ebay has lenses that work on sonys and are decent from about £10. You can get good lenses for under £100. I do wedding photography, and I've used minolta sony for this reason for about 5 years. To get the same quality as the second hand £100 minolta primes, your going to be spending at least double, probably tripple for the same lens in a nikon or cannon fitting.

 

[repman244]

A used Nikon D90 perhaps?

 

[AnomalouS]

I have a Canon 20d and Canon 40d. Love them.
I am partial to Canon just because we have about 12 Canon SLR's in our immediate family.

 

[johnspack]

Well, Im pretty much blown away by the prices of these things. They seem to stay in the 700-1000 dollar range, and for years.... I guess the most I could hope for is a digital camera with a real optical lens, and that takes pics in raw format. Don't know if such a thing exists though.

 

[Fourstaff]

Well, Im pretty much blown away by the prices of these things. They seem to stay in the 700-1000 dollar range, and for years.... I guess the most I could hope for is a digital camera with a real optical lens, and that takes pics in raw format. Don't know if such a thing exists though.

Laptops stay in those price range for years too, but they improve the innards a lot. A DSLR which is well looked after will last you years, the lens will last more or less forever. Get a used one, they should go for about $300 for a decent body like Canon EOS 500D or Nikon D3000. Keep in mind that you will need to regularly spend some money to get a better lens, better flash gun(most important for "usual usage" imo), tripod etc. I worked out that if you get all the basic equipment new you will easily spend more than $2k, $1k will be just about the minimum for a "full set".

 

[W1zzard]

Well, Im pretty much blown away by the prices of these things. They seem to stay in the 700-1000 dollar range, and for years.... I guess the most I could hope for is a digital camera with a real optical lens, and that takes pics in raw format. Don't know if such a thing exists though.

RAW isn't that important.

SLR is, especially for learning how to work with a real camera.

Canon user here. Got a 5D Mark II - best camera I ever owned, but heavy.

Lots of smaller EOS cameras in the sub-1k range, used too. Buy what you can afford, don't forget to include a not crap lens.

+1 for dpreview.com

 

[Fourstaff]

Lots of smaller EOS cameras in the sub-1k range, used too. Buy what you can afford, don't forget to include a not crap lens.

I would use a stock (crap) lens with a decent flashgun because of the type of photography I usually do (indoors, poorly lit), but the choice of "which equipment do I need first" is largely personal.

 

[W1zzard]

stock lens isnt that bad. i've seen dslrs sold: body + really really bad 3rd party lens .. just to get the price of the "kit" down

poorly lit => gogo full frame sensor. eiffel tower paris at night. eos 5d mark ii hand held

 

[Fourstaff]

stock lens isnt that bad. i've seen dslrs sold: body + really really bad 3rd party lens .. just to get the price of the "kit" down

poorly lit => gogo full frame sensor. eiffel tower paris at night. eos 5d mark ii hand held

I have never used 3rd party lens, so I don't know how bad those are.

Full frame sensor costs money >.>

 

[Bo$$]

i personally have a 1000d, i would recommend a 500d or better, the extra mpix and the settings make it a MUCH better camera, this is No slouch either, put a semi decent lense and it takes wonderous portraits. lenses are VERY important

 

[johnspack]

Ug, so I really do need to find a used dslr to start... well if that's 300 for something cheap used, maybe I'll try....

 

[garyinhere]

Ug, so I really do need to find a used dslr to start... well if that's 300 for something cheap used, maybe I'll try....

Lens selection is important that's why I shoot with sony alpha mount. It was Minolta until sony bought them out. The alpha's have image stabilization inside the camera which lowers the cost of the lens. All of the lens' that I use I bought on ebay and none of them are newer than 10yrs old. They are all autofocus so that's not a problem, you can find several used sony's at decent prices too. Here's a pic from an A100 with a 15yr old lens. Total cost was 300 usd for camera with kit lens and 160 usd for the lens I took this picture with You want a camera with options and the A mount has been used since the mid 80's so there are PLENTY of options there. Most people are cannon or Nikon fanboy's so just research and find what suites you and mostly your budget!

RAW isn't that important.

+1 for dpreview.com

The abilty to shoot RAW is important... unless you enjoy taking them to a 1 hour photo and have them butcher your shots... jpeg= compression and you loose a ton of data in the dump... RAW is just a data dump of ALL the data that the sensor took in so = no loss and more options if you eff up a photo.... +2 on dpreview.com

 

[Batou1986]

Bump for the 5d mkII best camera I've ever personally used, but don't own because there so damn expensive.
Apples to apples Canon seems to edge out Nikon in all fields in the same price range the specs would beg to differ but the Canon's seem to have better IQ.
Just my 2 cents from hanging out with my camera nut friend who lets me play with his expensive toys.

Seriously tho just stick with whatever you have been using till you can afford a nice DSLR all the point and shoot's out there look nice till you find out about all the things you cant do with them.

And what the heck was that duck doing to get a dirt wake on its bow?

 

[garyinhere]

what the heck was that duck doing to get a dirt wake on its bow

a Mustache ride

 

[johnspack]

beautiful pics garyinhere, that's what I'm aiming for. if I have to buy a 10 year old camera to do pics like that, it's worth it. guess I need to look at value/quality over newest/gadget...

 

[Rhyseh]

If you are on a budget go for the Sony's for the reasons already mentioned. My Ex was an avid photographer and used a 7D with an EF 70-200mmf/2.8L IS II USM, took magical photo's at outstanding speeds, however the price tag was enough to make me cringe.

 

[Asylum]

stock lens isnt that bad. i've seen dslrs sold: body + really really bad 3rd party lens .. just to get the price of the "kit" down

poorly lit => gogo full frame sensor. eiffel tower paris at night. eos 5d mark ii hand held

Nice shots there W1zz.

Heres a good one for the price.

Canon EOS REBEL T3 Black 12.2 MP 2.7" 230k LCD Dig...

 

[johnspack]

Nice camera, and best price I've seen yet. Something to dream about......

 

[Iceni]

If it's specific bodies your after i suggest you do a ebay search for these tags.

I'll start with the older models.

konika minolta 5D. (it's a few years old 6 Mega pixel, it is however very capable, and the image quality is good).

Sony A100. (the first model with the minolta a mount on a sony camera. There often the same price as a KM5d).

Sony A200. (Better than the A100 by a significant margin.)

Sony A500. (better than the A200 by a significant margin)

Sony A450 A550. ( this is the model i currently use for weddings cheap enough to be dropped. Very good IQ for the price tag Newer than the A500).

Sony A700 (this is older than the A450, But it has a lot more features and is regarded as one of the best amateur cameras by sony users).


Used sony/minolta bodies can have a few issues, The main one been the shutter anti shake mechanism. It can be replaced but it is pretty expensive. I had my minolta done at an independent service centre and it cost about £130. This Risk price has to be factored if you buy second hand.

If you have never had a DSLR then any of the above models would suit you. Your learning how to use one and take decent pictures. The body is secondary to lenses, and after spending a year playing with settings and going off to take pictures you will know exactly what you want your camera to do an be able to shell out for a more expensive one.

this is the sort of auction you should be looking at.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sony-alph...Cameras_DigitalCameras_JN&hash=item4601ac4924

 

[SaiZo]

A friend of mine who takes photos for me (don't own or know how to use one), has a Canon 60D which she said is a very good camera.

The first one she had, digital, was the 550D, got it bundled with a 18-135mm lens.
Maybe that is a good start? I have heard that they are not so expensive and rather good.