DSLR Recommendations?

I'm looking for a DLSR that will work with the multitude of lenses my girlfriend has for her EOS Elan II e (bayonet mount). If I can get good bang-for-the-buck by going with a body only, I'm game.

I'm also not opposed to something a generation or two behind, unless there's a compelling reason to get bleeding edge tech. I'm coming from a mediocre point-and-shoot that I want to stomp to bits anytime I use it.

I've been away from photo gear for a while - another expensive hobby I have to try to ignore - but I was taught on film and 'learned' digital on my own after college.

Ideally, this would be around $300.

(Oh, and I'm in St. Louis, if you want to pull CL ads for me )

Can this be for real?

http://soniccameras.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=5654&gclid=CIL4mpbDgpoCFQHyDAodlCslGg

This is like a $1000 camera.

If it's anything like the place in brooklyn a co-worker tried to buy a camera from last year, you place the order and they will give you a call telling you that you have to pay a bunch of seperate charges if you want to receive the battery, the charger, the lens, the manual, the box it came in, basically anything they can physically remove from the camera body. And once you find out the total of all those charges you realize that it's more than you'd pay at amazon for the kit, you try to cancel your order but you notice that they've already charged your card and don't respond to your emails anymore.

So...recommended, then?

http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Sonic_Cameras

No not reccomended. Those guys at sonic camera get a 0.5 out of 10.

Am I the only one who came here looking for info on D Sports Racers?

Heh. Didn't think about the potential confusion. Sorry, Woody.

ignorant wrote: http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Sonic_Cameras No not reccomended. Those guys at sonic camera get a 0.5 out of 10.

I wasn't aware you could score a half star. Good work there, guys.

http://www.keh.com <--- They sell used gear and are good. A good used SLR from them may be a great idea. Take a look at the Pentax, Sony, and olympus DSLR's, I've heard they offer an amazing bag for the buck.

This isn't targeted at the OP, but more for others shopping for SLRs. After about 50k snaps on my SLR (Canon 20D), I've reached a few realizations about what is most important to me in a camera.

1) its all about the lenses. I use the 18-55 kit lens for 90% of the shots. It may as well be only 18 and 55, cause I use those two extremes of the zoom most. Mostly 18 for close range stuff like car shows or people posing for a photo. I have the cheapo $100 70-300mm zoomie for sports/car action. It has plenty of reach, but I wish it had larger aperture.

Mini tangent with my tips on lenses:

a) get a $50 50mm F1.8 lens. They're stupid cheap and the super tight DOF is really fun. You have to set up the shots more than with a zoom lens, but the huge aperture is worth the hassle.

b) if the kit you're looking at has two bundled lens options, go for the one with the extra zoom. IE 18-200 vs. 18-55. An 18-200 effectively serves as both a "walk around" lens and a long zoom lens which is really handy. I have to swap between my 18-55 and 70-300, its annoying and a potential for dirt/damage.

c) I haven't bought one yet, but ultra wide angle lenses are sweet! <18mm gives shots a really neat perspective. These lenses are great for taking pictures of the rooms your house, or close up to buildings or cars. Much more interesting than the standard wide shots from kit lenses or a point and shoot.

2) canon vs. nikon vs. sony vs. whoever is all BS. They're all capable of taking excellent shots. They all have intuitive and totally confusing buttons and controls. None of it matters after you've started used it enough and you're familiar. At that point the only real bonus is the canon or nikon will have more lens options and used gear available. Same with how old or new the model is. Basically anything <5 years old is going to be capable of great shots unless its been rubbed with sand the whole time. If you're making a living taking pictures, sure get the newest uber cam. But other than that just buy what you can afford and you should be happy.

3) Go cheap and upgrade later. You probably won't be totally satisfied with whatever you buy first, so you may as well save your money and buy a few year old model at half the original price or less while you're learning and getting into it. Whether you get hooked and want to upgrade or realize SLRs are just too complicated and you want to go back to a point and shoot, you can just sell the camera after you've used it for almost what you paid.

And that's just about all I have to say about that!

Good advice, Dan, thanks.

Iggy, my pro photog buddy recommended that same site about 5 minutes before you did, so props. They do indeed have great prices, and his word is that they're very reputable with their refurb stuff. I've got my eye on a 10D body for under $300.

The only reason I'm going Canon is that my girlfriend has lots of lenses for her film camera (and I think the familiarity might finally drag her into digital, even if it is kicking and screaming).

Put your hands on a Canon product and a Nikon product. My wife and I were shopping recently (she's on the cusp of going pro, I shoot when she doesn't have the camera welded to her hand) and couldn't stand the feel of the Canon products we tried. Nikon worked better for us.

That said, if you're used to Canon, rock on. All the new DSLRs are so great that it's pretty much 100% good if you get one from the last 2-3 years.

Loads of great advice already given. I'm one of the resident Nikon guys so if you have any questions about those feel free to shoot me a line. Since this seems to be more focused on Canon I'll let others handle those questions.

Best three online shops I have dealt with are KEH for used gear, Adorama and BH Photo video for new and some used stuff. There is also Pro Photo in Portland (they do mail order) that is AWESOME, though they do focus more on Nikon but do get Canon stuff,

On a side note here in a couple days I should hopefully have some high res scans of a photo I took the other morning of an old Dodge race car sitting in the middle of this field. It was taken on 35mm film using a Nikon F3HP and a 35mm 2.8 lens (manual focus manual exposure). I must say that even the crap prints from the lab (used for reference when helping narrow down choices) looked damn good. It is going to be printed up at 24 inches on the small side and hung in the art hall at school.

I'm so glad I read through this thread. I was about to order from Sonic Camera's and then my buddy mentioned it is probably a scam like so many other sites. I got so excited seeing the prices on that site and assumed it was legit.

Now I just can't decide on what digital body to go with on KEH!!

ChesterRumble wrote: Now I just can't decide on what digital body to go with on KEH!!

Well are you looking at Nikon, Canon or another brand? What are you wanting to use it for? Are you looking for something easier to carry around or something more robust?

rebelgtp wrote:

ChesterRumble wrote: Now I just can't decide on what digital body to go with on KEH!!

Well are you looking at Nikon, Canon or another brand? What are you wanting to use it for? Are you looking for something easier to carry around or something more robust?

I'm looking for a Canon body. I'm planning to sell my 35mm Canon EOS K2 with the kit lens to KEH and put my Canon 50mm lens on the new digital body.

I don't plan to use it shoot professionally, but I'm also not new to photography. I'd say the most use would be automotive related like track days, car shows, and whatnot.

As somone mentioned above, I'll probably go with something from the Rebel line of bodies.

Yeah the Rebel line is good, I have a friend with an XT I believe it is and she loves it. Very capable little camera. Just make sure you hold one before you buy, I found them to be very uncomfortable in my hand.

The battery grips make a huuuuuge difference. My wife has an XTi and really likes it.

So, between a refurb 10D for about $275 or an XT(i) for $350, what's the general consensus? What does the XT line get me aside from 2mp?

check out these reviews here.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos10d/

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/CanonEOS350D/

Basically the 10D is older tech, go over the reviews and see which meets your needs best. All things being equal go for the XT and have a bit more MP to play with in cropping. However the 10D I think was their more "prosumer" body and was more robust, alloy body and the like.

rebelgtp wrote: Loads of great advice already given. I'm one of the resident Nikon guys so if you have any questions about those feel free to shoot me a line. Since this seems to be more focused on Canon I'll let others handle those questions. Best three online shops I have dealt with are KEH for used gear, Adorama and BH Photo video for new and some used stuff. There is also Pro Photo in Portland (they do mail order) that is AWESOME, though they do focus more on Nikon but do get Canon stuff, On a side note here in a couple days I should hopefully have some high res scans of a photo I took the other morning of an old Dodge race car sitting in the middle of this field. It was taken on 35mm film using a Nikon F3HP and a 35mm 2.8 lens (manual focus manual exposure). I must say that even the crap prints from the lab (used for reference when helping narrow down choices) looked damn good. It is going to be printed up at 24 inches on the small side and hung in the art hall at school.

Thanks for the recommendation for Adorama Camera, which is very much appreciated. However, if you ever have a query or concern regarding an order from Adorama Camera - or AdoramaPix - please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

BTW, to the OP - you might want to look a refurbished / recertified gear, as well. They may be ex-store demos, possibly used in field tests or sales displays, or are items that have been ordered in error and returned to the retailer (who can't then sell them as 'new' so they have to be sent back to the manufacturer for refurbishment / recertification.)

Refurbished / recertified cameras, and lenses, can have simply been pulled from the production line if something appears faulty, or which haven't passed the final inspection. Most of the time it is a very minor issue that needs correcting, nevertheless, once they are pulled from the normal flow of production, they get flagged as a refurbished model. So you may actually get a model straight from the factory that really has never been used!

They will always have been checked over by the manufacturer by hand, inspected very thoroughly, diagnosed, and calibrated by experienced technicians. So, could turn out to be more dependable than a new item - which will only have been checked by a process of systematic quality control protocol (ie by random sampling as they come off the conveyor belt).

Just for information for the future, I'm often sent details of companies that Adorama customers have experienced problems with in the past. I have no experience of them myself, but you may want to hold on to this as a guide for the future.

1StopCamera.com 42nd St. Photo All Star Camera Best Price Cameras CCI Camera City Century21Electronics.com CircuitDigital.com Express Cameras Fotoconnection.com Genius Cameras getyourdigitalhere.com Ibuydig.com Infiniti Photo Infinity Cameras Inoax.com J and K Cameras Mr. Accessory Preferred Camera Radio Active Deals RiteBuys.com Royal Camera Stargate Photo Starlightcameras.com Stop4Camera.com The Camera Pro's Thedigitalexpo.com Thenewconnection.com turbobuys.com Wisetronics.com OneClickDigital.com USA Photonation Wawa Digital YellowBeePhoto.com

BROADWAY PHOTO - also known as: Additional Business Names: A&M Photo World Best Camera Camera Addict Cameratopia Digital Liquidators LLC Ghu, LLC Millenium Camera Preferred Photo Prestige Camera Quest4Cameras Regal Camera TheDigitalExpo Tronicity Wild Digital LLC

These are pictures of what have been reported a 'dubious' shop fronts.

http://donwiss.com/pictures/BrooklynStores/ http://donwiss.com/pictures/ManhattanStores/

Sincerely

Helen Oster Adorama Camera Customer Service Ambassador

helen.oster@adoramacamera.com www.adorama.com

OMG.. these canoe artists are getting good.

Josh wrote: If it's anything like the place in brooklyn a co-worker tried to buy a camera from last year, you place the order and they will give you a call telling you that you have to pay a bunch of seperate charges if you want to receive the battery, the charger, the lens, the manual, the box it came in, basically anything they can physically remove from the camera body. And once you find out the total of all those charges you realize that it's more than you'd pay at amazon for the kit, you try to cancel your order but you notice that they've already charged your card and don't respond to your emails anymore.

They also aren't US approved, so no warranty.