Camera Labs

Im after a new DSLR mainly for use at mountain biking races/ dirt jumps/ MX.

Im undecided on Canon/Nikon, new/used, lenses etc...

Budget is £800

Im not bothered about super high megapixel camera's or movie mode.

It needs to be fast and good in darker conditions e.g forest's.


Any help on this subject would be greatly appreciated! Cheers

Decide on the best LENS, then camera.

You can easily spend double your £800 on a good lens if you need some zoom capability.

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Nikon D700 & D7100 bodies + Nikkor 300mm F2.8 VR11, 1.7TC, 50mm F1.4G, 16-35mm f/4G VR, 105 F2.8 VR macro, 70-300mm lenses. A couple of filters, Giotto tripod & ballhead. Lowepro Slingshot 302 AW

http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldcarlos/

The £800 budget is for lens and body, any recommendations? I was looking at bundles/packages with the lens and body to get me started.

Check Sony Alpha dSLRs, the A550 is great for example.

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Ruben

Panasonic DMC-FZ18, Panasonic DMC-FZ28, Canon G5, Canon 350D, Canon 50D + BG-E2N
Tamron 17-50 2.8, Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM,
Canon 18-55 II plus lots of Minolta MD/M42 lenses and bodies

I'd also say the A550 (and its successor, the A580) are worth looking at . The latter costs about (in the UK, at Warehouse Express last time I checked) the same as Canon's 550D/Rebel T2i .

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Sony α77V/VG-C77AM/α350/18-70/70-400 G SSM/NEX-5/18-55 OSS/Lowepro Pro Trekker 600 AW/CompuTrekker AW/Nova 140 AW/Street & Field gear/Toploader Pro 75 AW. And a huge wishlist...

My photos on Flickr...

I'd third the A550/580 recommendations - they're definitely solid performers for the money - A500s and A550s can be found in the vicinity of $500 US still new, as they've only just been replaced by the A580...so well within budget. 5fps burst for both cameras, the A550 with a larger buffer and the extra 7fps fixed focus burst mode. Both have very good high ISO performance when needed. Tilt screen and fast live view for getting into strange angles and places that the viewfinder couldn't go. And lens-wise, you could probably get some half-decent starter lenses within your budget, like the used Minolta 80-210 F4 beercan, 100-300, or 70-300 big beercan. Once you have the budget for it, you can pick up some faster newer lenses. Any lens you put on, new or old, are stabilized.

The pentax KX is also a solid choice with body going typically around $500 US, and good high ISO performance, stabilization in body, and 4.7fps.

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Justin Miller
Sony DSLR-A580 / Sony 18-250mm / Minolta 50mm F1.7 / Sigma 30mm F1.4 / Tamron 10-24mm / Tamron 200-500mm / Tamron 90mm F2.8 macro / Minolta 300mm F4 APO
Sony NEX5N / 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 / 55-210mm F4-6.3 / Pentax K adapter / Konica K/AR adapter / bunches o' Konica & Pentax lenses!

Galleries:
http://www.pbase.com/zackiedawg

Perhaps something used might fit the bill?

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Olympus e-620 / 14-42mm / 40-150mm
Metz 48 AF-1
Kata 3-N-1 20, LowePro Orion Mini, LowePro Nova 2
My Flickr

sigma 70-200mm F/2.8 + a body. the only option for a decent price

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Gear: Nikon D80, 18-105mm, 35mm F/1.8, 85mm F/1.8, SB-600
Visit my work here

I'd go for a second hand D200. Wonderful pics outdoors (Although don't try indoor sports, high ISOs are a joke!), superb build, fast FPS shooting, large top LCD and much more. I'd certainly consider it.

-Evan

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-Evan

Gear: 7 Nikon Nikkor AI-S and AF-S lenses, SB-700 flash, Nikon D7000, Nikon FM, variety of accessories

"There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs."
- Ansel Adams

Well every option will be a compromise. Sports photography is very expensive if you want good results. Especially with low light.

You need a camera with fast autofocus, many fps and high ISO capabilities and a telelens that can catch a lot of light (F2.. Both are expensive. The Sigma 70-200 F2.8 would fit, but you also need a camera.

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| Pentax K5 | Pentax K10D | DA* 300 F4 | M 50mm F1.7 | Sigma AF 17-70mm F2.8-4.5 DC MACRO | AF 360 FGZ |

For sports, you want a more pro body, and new ones don't come cheap. If you consider a secondhand body to be an option, I would look for a used D2H or D200 (both great cameras). Beware that those pro bodies are not as user friendly as the cheaper models, so be prepared to invest a lot of time in your camera!

If you will only shoot outside, a 70-300 would be a great companion. You wouldn't even need stabilisation (even though it can be useful for panning shots) because of the high shutter speeds. However, if your budget allows it, get a Sigma 70-200 F/2.8. It's just a more flexible lens for sports/action, and will also perform better in lower light situations.

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I take pictures so quickly, my highschool was "Continuous High".

Agreed, the best sports photographers all have a body that's at least worth a couple thousand dollars, plus an expensive and fast telephoto lens to top it off. 70-300 is a very good range for sports, and the faster the better (Especially for indoors). I think that Marijn uses a D2H, which would be a fine choice. Although, I think that I'd rather go for the D200, it's newer and higher ISOs are better.

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-Evan

Gear: 7 Nikon Nikkor AI-S and AF-S lenses, SB-700 flash, Nikon D7000, Nikon FM, variety of accessories

"There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs."
- Ansel Adams

There are two options for you in my mind. You either spend the majority of your money on a body or on your lens. I personally chose the good body and cheap lens as I am more likely to buy a new lens than camera. However if you are not looking to upgrade spend most your money on a lens. The sigma 70-200 f2.8 is a very good lens and is very reasonably price (around £550). However this would only give you £200 for a camera which is piratically impossible. If you could budget more I would get this lens and a decent body like the 550d.

If £800 is your absolute maximum you may want to consider a slightly cheaper lens like the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM. It is quite a lot cheaper at £350. This would leave you £450 for a camera. With the £450 I would get the Canon 500d (£480).

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Camera: Canon 550D with battery grip
Lenses: Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300mm,
Accessories: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 808RC4 head, Canon 430ex II speedlite, Lowepro Nova 180AW and Lowepro Pro Runner 450AW

Oh that is so lame, every hot girl who can aim a camera thinks she’s a photographer -Stewie Griffin

I prefer a good lens as you can keep using it on newer and better bodies for much longer then you can a cheapo lens. A good body means jack all if the lens isn't up to snuff.

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Check out: http://www.eagle1337.deviantart.com/
Camera: Canon Rebel T1i
Lens: Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8, Sigma 17-70mm OS DC HSM f/2.8-4, ef-s 18-55mm IS, ef-s 55-250mm IS. EF 50mm F/1.8
Tripod: Giottos MTL9351B with a MH 5001 head.
Bag: lowepro Slingshot 202 AW. Cards: Sandisk Ultra 2, Lexar MicroSDHC.

From what your requirements are taking photos of dirt biking, MX etc maybe just a Sony A55 with the twin kit lens could do the job go start with.

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Aidan Hill. com
Nikon D7000 | Nikon 70-200MM f/2.8G VR II | Sigma 17-50mm F2.8 EX DC OS HSM | Tokina 11-16mm F2.8| iMac 27" | MacBook Pro 13" | Crumpler 6 Million Dollar Bag |