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Best Reasonably Priced Professional Camera Out There...

  • 04-06-2010 11:43am
    #1
    Undertow
    Registered Users Posts: 316 ✭✭


    I'm getting into photography quite a bit lately, and have kind of surprised myself with the photos I'm producing with a basic 10.2 megapixel digital camera and kind of want to invest in a proper professional camera! What would you people recommend? I'm looking for the best deal possible, something under 500e but to be honest I dont really know much about the best makes of cameras or what to be watching out for so I can do with all the help I can get! :o


Comments

  • #2
    Borderfox
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,263 ✭✭✭✭Borderfox


    For under €500 not a lot brand new, stretch up a bit and you could buy an entry level Nikon/Canon/Olympus/Sony digital slr.

    Good bit of choice in second hand, check out adverts.ie


  • #3
    DaireQuinlan
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,703 ✭✭✭DaireQuinlan


    Undertow wrote: »
    I'm getting into photography quite a bit lately, and have kind of surprised myself with the photos I'm producing with a basic 10.2 megapixel digital camera and kind of want to invest in a proper professional camera! What would you people recommend? I'm looking for the best deal possible, something under 500e but to be honest I dont really know much about the best makes of cameras or what to be watching out for so I can do with all the help I can get! :o

    I'm assuming here by 'professional' you mean an SLR of some description. Have a read through this first:
    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=55212558&postcount=27

    And then fire away with any specific questions you might have :)


  • #4
    hbr
    Closed Accounts Posts: 760 ✭✭✭hbr


    Undertow wrote: »
    ....and kind of want to invest in a proper professional camera!

    Buying a professional grade camera is not something you "kind of want". Pro
    gear is expensive, so you will want to know exactly what you want before you
    buy.
    What would you people recommend? I'm looking for the best deal possible, something under 500e but to be honest I dont really know much about the best makes of cameras or what to be watching out for so I can do with all the help I can get! :o

    €500 gets you a good entry level DSLR or a second hand mid range DSLR.
    Like most of us, you will have to work through the agony of deciding on
    which brand to buy. Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax, Olympus...
    Buying a DSLR is a bit different to buying a point-&-shoot or bridge camera
    because you are buying into a system. Consider the cost and availability
    of any extra lenses you might need. Also budget for memory cards,
    tripod, bag, spare battery, flash if required......

    Read a few reviews:
    http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/
    http://www.steves-digicams.com/camera-reviews/

    Ask yourself what kind of photography you are interested in?
    Landscape, portrait, sport/action, macro etc, and then come
    back here and start the usual Canon vs Nikon flame war :)


  • #5
    PCPhoto
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,584 ✭✭✭PCPhoto


    theres plenty to choose from - but you will always want to buy more once you get started.

    do you understand photography ? (ie. aperture, shutter speeds, ISO etc)

    do you know what kind of photography you plan on getting into .... landscapes, portraits, sports .... lots to figure out in terms of accessories/lenses.

    with a budget of €500ish .... I would suggest a secondhand DSLR camera....or a bridge camera, (Canon G10, G11 or similar).... all the controls of a DSLR but in a compact, this will allow you to slowly make the move up to a DSLR while learning about photography.

    (I only suggest Canon - cos thats what I use and I dont know too much about the other cameras, Fuji, Nikon, Fujifilm, Kodak, Minolta, Pentax etc etc ...theres loads to choose from)


  • #6
    Undertow
    Registered Users Posts: 316 ✭✭Undertow


    PCPhoto wrote: »
    theres plenty to choose from - but you will always want to buy more once you get started.

    do you understand photography ? (ie. aperture, shutter speeds, ISO etc)

    do you know what kind of photography you plan on getting into .... landscapes, portraits, sports .... lots to figure out in terms of accessories/lenses.

    with a budget of €500ish .... I would suggest a secondhand DSLR camera....or a bridge camera, (Canon G10, G11 or similar).... all the controls of a DSLR but in a compact, this will allow you to slowly make the move up to a DSLR while learning about photography.

    To be honest man I dont really understand photography as such, but I'm willing to learn!! If you know of any handy sites, do share! :)

    Well the kind of photography I'd be mainly interested in would be landscapes, some sport perhaps too.

    Thanks for those links posted above, I will check them out and have a look at them. Apologies if I sound vague in what I'm looking for (this is all relatively new to me) but its something that I'm really enjoying at the moment using basic equipment. No harm in trying to better yourself! ;)


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  • #7
    enda1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,166 ✭✭✭enda1


    Undertow wrote: »
    To be honest man I dont really understand photography as such, but I'm willing to learn!! If you know of any handy sites, do share! :)

    Well the kind of photography I'd be mainly interested in would be landscapes, some sport perhaps too.

    Thanks for those links posted above, I will check them out and have a look at them. Apologies if I sound vague in what I'm looking for (this is all relatively new to me) but its something that I'm really enjoying at the moment using basic equipment. No harm in trying to better yourself! ;)

    Well you've specified two very different disciplines which generally call for very different type lenses.

    I'd recommend a second hand Nikon D40 with kit lens which will do for landscape. But for sport price starts shooting up!

    Invest in a descent tripod (maybe around €150) which will mean you can skimp a bit on lenses cause you wont need the high aperture to avoid motion blur of static objects.

    For fast sport, you need a solid base, high aperture and long lens. Though I think a wide aperture short lens like a 50mm 1.4 will be better than a zoom lens which may be like 5.6 at 200mm or something. You can always crop the image to achieve the "zoom" but at expense of resolution.

    Also tricks like increasing ISO, shooting in Raw at fast speed (though underexposed) and photoshopping to achieve correct contrast and colour balance.

    So camera with kit lens D40, 18-55 = € 200?
    50mm 1.4 AF-S = 300
    Tripod = 150

    These are guesses in price really, but something like this should be good.

    Basic advice is get the best glassware and tripod you can, and skimp on the camera (as long as it has full manual controls).


  • #8
    hbr
    Closed Accounts Posts: 760 ✭✭✭hbr


    Undertow wrote: »
    To be honest man I dont really understand photography as such, but I'm willing to learn!! If you know of any handy sites, do share! :)

    You can learn a lot from lurking in forums like this one.
    There are a few good photography tutorial sites on the web. Some
    of them are written by enthusiasts, others are mostly 'infomercials'.

    http://www.geofflawrence.com/index.htm
    http://www.dslrtips.com/

    There are a few good books available. Many of the forum members recommend
    Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. A lot of the stuff in the book is
    also covered on his Youtube thingy:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8NEa-ghHbo&feature=related
    Well the kind of photography I'd be mainly interested in would be landscapes, some sport perhaps too.

    It is not too difficult to get started on landscapes. Sport can be very tricky
    if you want to capture fast action in low light.
    but its something that I'm really enjoying at the moment using basic equipment.

    That is probably the most important thing. If you are interested and
    enthusiastic, you are sure to learn a lot.


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