Advice on dslr equipment

[Bigjoe]

Consulting the overflowing font of knowledge!

My better is really getting into photography but so far only been using a very basic camera or her phone,with very good results, but I would like to get her good first digital slr camera etc for her birthday in November, any recommendations for a good starting point, I don't have a massive budget but a reasonable amount to spend.

Any advice would be most welcome.

 

[winchman]

I did exactly the same.
The 350d is a bargain its a very high spec for the price.
Both my daughter and I used them until recently when she broke hers and up graded to a 1300D and to be honest she doesn't notice much difference in quality apart from the bigger screen.
I would buy a used 350 about £100 with two lenses.
Good used tripod £20-£100 depending on what she wants to take
Send her on a couple of training days, I did my City and Guilds at night school, more recently I did a night time course around Liverpool which was excellent
One thing that taught me a lot was to photograph lots of different things, landscape, portrait patterns, texture, close up if you can as all they will teach her so much about lighting and photography

 

[fixerupper]

Get hooked up with a photography forum, pick up tips , buy used kit ,get discounts on sd cards ... I'm a pentax user I have learned loads from this forum www.pentaxuser.com

 

[kcchan]

Lenses are where a lot of the cost goes too.

I too have a Canon 350D to get into photography and it is extremely versatile for not a huge amount of money. I bought it second hand about 4 years ago and it's still going strong.

 

[I'm getting on a bit]

Check out this site https://www.mpb.com/en-uk/

 

[fixerupper]

Yeah I've got a K100 D... built like a brick it's had a few knocks but still works fine .. well made basic bit of kit and all my old analog pentax lenses fit it ....

 

[GW8IZR]

These days the difference between the DSLR and cameras with built-in lenses is much less, a lot of pro photographers are moving away from the DSLR and going to mirrorless cameras and there is some merit in that.

You can buy secondhand and get one or two generation old cameras that cost thousands for low hundreds and that may be a very sensible option. I know my nikon gear is worth a fraction of what I paid for it but of course no one has told it that and it still turns out good results :-)

A huge disadvantage of DSLR is dust and if you value not having to de spot images in photo shop a must have accessory is a cleaning kit if you have more than one lense (Or even remove the lense) this is not similar to a film SLR camera where the dust is not a big problem.

I reach for my Canon compact ( which was far from cheap) far more often than my DSLR kit these days

HTH

 

[toddy]

I have a Samsung nx300 I picked up at a good price.
It is a very good camera for what I payed (£150) but I have been looking at another lense for it.. they go for about 200+

 

[GW8IZR]

I should have guessed you would differ ;-)

 

[Wozzaaah]

Another Canon fan here, I like the fact I can buy ANY canon EF or EF-S fit lens and it will work on my crop body.
I too started out with a 350D, then upgraded to a 40D, then 50D (though tbh, I wish I'd kept the 40D), then onto a 7D which was my supposed "keeper" but they then released the 7D mk2 so I just had to have one.
I think I'd be looking at a used 40D myself rather than a 350D.
The 350D is still very capable but very old now, the 40D is a huge step up in every respect.
A used low shutter count 40D, an 18-55 IS and a 55-250 IS would set her back somewhere around £200-£225 and would be the perfect setup to last her for many years.
Forget the Canon 75-300 non IS, you'll often see those for sale cheaply but they're truly awful.
I bought one for £40, did a shot-by-shot comparison with my 55-250 then immediately put it back up for sale.

 

[pcwizme]

Canon for me too, I had a 350D, till some scrote nicked it and a pile of other stuff out my house.... so insurance bought me a nice 650D, its a step up (SD rather than CF for one and video) but I loved the 350D and would say for learning its a good starting point

 

[Wozzaaah]

A 40d now wouldn't cost much more than a 350d anyway - maybe an extra 50 quid?

Yes, about that, I've seen them for between £100 and £125.
Proper semi-pro quality and a lovely big screen too, if I ever wanted a cheap 2nd body that's what I'd choose.
I blimmin' love my 7Dii though, it's a beast!

 

[Kayos]

I have a 550d that was brand new and is now battered and abused
A 5d mk3 I shouldn't have bought that is on long term loan to a friend
Eleventy million film cameras
A Canon EOS m I take everywhere and use my stupid expensive glass on

Don't get hung up on numbers, buy second hand lenses very carefully and make sure she takes it out of auto mode, P is fine if wandering around but learning how to make a shot rather than get lucky makes it much more enjoyable.

I don't rate the newer EF lenses, plasticky, terrible bokeh and no manual focus option

One advantage of Canon is you can easily adapt older lenses to fit, I have split screens in both my DSLR's

 

[GW8IZR]

I use my stuff differently - nothing but a DSLR (or a dedicated astrocam) works with a telescope strapped to it.

You can't stick macro rings on a compact or a bridge either (but you can get a filter ring fitting macro adaptor).

And my compact - it's very good for what it is but my phone is in my pocket anyway so for snappy snaps why carry yet another 'thing'?

It's all options - if everyone wanted the same thing there'd only be one camera/car/house/coffee

I fully understand, you have a specific requirement that suits a DSLR or development of it, I'm not sure I agree that a DSLR is the best for someone starting out anew. I reckon learning about composition and framing is a lot more important than the technical aspects of using a DSLR even on auto - if they progress and specialise then picking something based on their preference is something further down the line.

My compact is rather better than any phone camera I've seen yet. Also because its small and light its almost always with or near me, the heavy lump of a DSLR never goes up the mountains, despite there being two and a half thousand quids worth of glass on it its in my safe at home.. as you say different tasks.

But for someone new to the hobby I would say don't get sucked into thinking a DSLR is just better 'cos for a lot of jobs it just aint and IMHO general photography is more in the eye and imagination of the person behind the camera than the specification of the camera.

:-)

 

[fixerupper]

Yes , I have a load of lenses and a old but good quality body ...but these days I hardly use it unless I'm going out to get a special shot .... whereas the mirrorless compact Pentax MX1 is with me every day in the glove box of the truck or in my day bag if I'm on foot ...." The best camera is the one you have with you "..

 

[slim_boy_fat]

company in the UK on ebay did it

I used to use Cameratiks in Edinburgh for service and repairs, excellent crowd - not the cheapest but you get what you pay for.
http://www.cameratiks.co.uk/
Usual disclaimers.
I got a Nikon outfit when I traded in my medium format [Bronica SQa-M] outfit with these people http://www.ffordes.com/ Again, excellent and fair - usual disclaimers.

Be aware that zoom lenses, although handy, seldom offer the results of a prime lens unless you're prepared to either go 2nd user or spend mega-bucks.

@Kayos is probably your man for this stuff, more recent than my experience I suspect.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

@Kayos is probably your man for this stuff, more recent than my experience I suspect.

My apologies,I missed your post.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

My compact is rather better than any phone camera I've seen yet.

Aye, probably more fully functioned, but my phone has a 13MP camera...allegedly. Ok, MP figurs aren't the 'be-all and end-alls', but I have to admit the results can be impressive, esp as it weighs next to nothing.

 

[GW8IZR]

Aye, probably more fully functioned, but my phone has a 13MP camera...allegedly. Ok, MP figurs aren't the 'be-all and end-alls', but I have to admit the results can be impressive, esp as it weighs next to nothing.

Has your phone got an optical viewfinder? I would find it pretty hard to manage with just an LCD in bright sunlight.

Often people read compact and think its a toy but far from it.

 

[Parm]

My first DSLR was a 40D with the battery grip. It's my go to camera even though ive got the 5D