another newbie thread

Baneblade

Hi, thinking of jumping into the world of dslr's and as a small change to the usual what camera thread i just wondering what you guys think of sonys cameras they seem to be a good budget choice and have good reviews on the net. i might wait to see the cost of the a230.

still not up to speed on the focal lenghts but i take it that a 200mm or 300mm lens is a high zoom factor, im mostly intrested in wildlife shots

all comments welcome and appreciated

cheers

AnCatDubh

As put in an earlier thread tonight, the sticky on this specific subject is a great place to start.

Lots of Sony fans around these parts. Great gear - no particular problems that have been reported here. But to be honest at that level that you are coming in at you could probably buy any of the notable brands - Sony, Nikon, Canon, Pentax, or Olympus. And they will all do a really fine job. In this case don't think of the camera but think of the system and where you ultimately would like to end up with your photographic journey. Nikon and Canon will probably technically take you to a place beyond what my beloved Pentax will take me at the moment (but I hear Samsung/Pentax are in the midst of full frame development - woo hooo, credit union here i come)

The other thing to consider is that gear wars are coming to an end. The photographic community seems to be coming to a long sought conclusion that it aint all about the gear. It's about you - your skill - your vision - your knowledge - your understanding - your location, etc...

200 - 300mm zooms are fairly common place. It wouldn't be unusual to go for 400, 500 or even 1000mm for wildlife photography which is where you can't get near the subject - depends on the type of wildlife I be guessing but it's not something that I shoot ( photograph that is ). To get decent lens will be where the vast amount of you expenditure will be. Don't underestimate what may be required. Again, it depends on where you want to go with your photographic journey.

Mycroft H

Hello baneblade.

The usa price for the a230 is 549 dollars. I'm not sure what it will be here but check sonystyle uk.

Whats your budget for a lens? 300mm (which equates to about 12-13x on a fuji bridge compact) is the absolute minimum. 200 is just too short for wildlife (what are you interested in shooting?). A 400 or a 500mm lens would be ideal but to the price, you could pay up to €5000 for a pro spec wildlife lens.

Wile E. Coyote

I have an A200 and I love it although I have nothing to compare it to. The only thing I do find is that when your on a budget for what you can spend, (bloody wedding!!!), second hand equipment is not as common as you will find for canon or nikon.