non photographer

alan kelly

Hi guys more into music production myself but the good lady is into the photography,, Thinking of getting her a nice camera for christmas. She currently has a basic sony cybershot but i know she would love a pro camera with different lenses ect.. Basically she loves taking photos at gigs and days out/nights out but the current camera is letting her down.. Was looking at a sony alpha 300, nicon d 3000, canon eos 1000d, sony a 2000. Was wondering does anyone have any experience of these cameras.. My budget is between 500\600 euro.. Also is there any good websites to buy photography gear. I buy a good lot of my music stuff online because of better value although would prefer to buy from a high street shop keeping business in ireland.. Any info would be great..

stabo

Well if you looking to buy in Ireland Gunns on Wicklow st is good value and you will get good advice aswell.Wont be as good as buying online though. No website for Gunns just drop in.

PCPhoto

do you have a budget ? .... DSLRs can be expensive especially for taking pics in dimly lit gigs (assuming you can bring it into the gig).

you could consider a better compact...maybe a bridge DSLR (mixture of compact and SLR) or a photography course.

maddogcollins

Any of the 3 cameras you listed are equally good. http://www.pixmania.ie wuld be a good reliable online website (personal opinion). Iv never had any issue with anything ordered off them.

http://www.pixmania.ie/ie/uk/3381534/art/nikon/d3000-af-s-dx-vr-nikkor-1.html

http://www.pixmania.ie/ie/uk/2506254/art/canon/eos-1000d-ef-s-18-55-f-3.html

Just so you know Gig photography can be expensive as low lighting means expensive(ish) lens..Possibly consider a Bridge camera (Fuji do some very good ones)..Some research and advice from the more experienced lads here will help your decission.

Edit: Beaten to it by above!sorry for repetition!

pixbyjohn

Have you looked at www.adverts.ie in the photography for sale section.

alan kelly

Cheers for the responses.. Buy and sell a lot of gear on adverts.. This might sound a bit snobby in times of recession but think i will go brand new for her christmas pressie.. What is the difference between the bridge cameras and the ones i had mentioned(apologies if thats a stupid question)

PCPhoto

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridge_camera

sorry for being lazy

wiki is your friend (so is google)

Mr. Grieves

If you're interested in gig shots, a bridge camera won't give any great increase in quality over the cybershot she already has (due to sensor size and lens speed)

What you should do is get whatever DSLR you can afford (any of the ones you mentioned are good) and a 50mm f/1.8 lens. The last bit is the important bit, though it mightn't mean anything to you now.

I'd go for a Canon because, afaik, they have the cheapest 50mm lens.

Messed Up Mind

There's a good camera in sony at the mo, a bridge one. http://www.sony.ie/product/dsc-h-series/dsc-hx1 It's about €550 ish. it's great for low light conditions! There's also a few new alpha series cameras coming out in the next few months. I think they're going to be fairly reasonably priced.

As far as canon are concerned, a canon dslr would be great, but you'd need to spend extra money getting low light lenses and things so it could be a pain in the butt (or maybe not having to think about birthday presents for a while)!

I've never really used a Nikon camera myself. as far as i can tell, they seem to be easy enough to use.

Hope this helps!

Misa-san

I have a Nikon D60 myself. It's got a good range, lightweight, interchangable lenses available - and it's been out for a while so the price of a new one should be coming down in price.

I won't bore you with a tonne of details if you aren't interested; but if you look into it and have any questions drop me a line (PM)

Thirdfox

Personally I'd skip the 50mm f1.8 and get the 35mm f1.8 instead (I'm assuming she'll be close up to the stand during the gig shots?)

I'm not sure if Canon have an equivalent (there's always the Sigma 30mm f1.4 but that's rather expensive). Nikon introduced a highly rated 35mm f1.8 recently. Starting out I'd recommend a camera like the Nikon D3000/5000 or an equivalent camera from the other brands. DPreview.com has a handy camera comparison page that shows you the relative strengths and weaknesses of the cameras (though to be honest they're all pretty good). They also do 25 page in-depth reviews of each camera too.

Mycroft H

Any of the ones mentioned will do. Get a 50mm f1.4/f1.8 and your sorted for gigs.

I have the sony a200 and the 50 f1.4 and its pretty decent in low light imo. The a200 is very cheap nowadays as its a going out of production model....

thebiglad

Check out the Canon G10 - all features of SLR etc but compact - good intro to the features of SLR.

Also worth investing a course to learn how to operate the camera other than in Auto.

DSLR's no problem at all but, doubt you will get away with them at concerts - there is this idea amongst security that compacts are ok but SLR's must be stopped!!

dudara

thebiglad wrote: »

DSLR's no problem at all but, doubt you will get away with them at concerts - there is this idea amongst security that compacts are ok but SLR's must be stopped!!

it seems to be hit and miss. I never bring my DSLR as I don't want it taken off me, yet sometimes I see people with theirs and am annoyed. I just wish that security was consistent about this.

derokid

I have the canon 1000d never used a dslr before I got it, Had it stuck on auto for months till I started course on photography... best money I ever spent on course and camera. I got mine in Dixons Tax Free in gatwick.

Only thing is Ive gone mental buying extras but the girlfriend has my birthday and xmas pressies sorted for next 20 years...

mehfesto2

Yeah, gotta agree with almost everything thats been said here.

I'd look at the adverts.ie pages. You can get some great deals there - dont be afraid to ask here if you think you might be overcharged! You should save a few bob if you're worried.

And definately get a prime lens. the 50mm is very cheap and it's the only one I use for gig shots. It's a stunner. The 35 mm would be okay, but it's a tad dearer, and personally I don't think it's a great focal distance for gigs.

Camera wise (and in the Nikon brand), if you can stretch for a D80 go for it. If not the D3000 would be fine. I'm not sure about Canons, so I cant advise anything there.