Camera Labs

Help I really am in dire straits. I'm moving up from a point & shoot & have been looking at all the reviews for a good dslr but the more reviews I read the more confused I get so much so that I can't even decide on a brand now. My requirements I think are straight forward, I want to take all types of shots from portrait to sports shots to landscape. Preferably an all in one that can also provide good video & something that is quite important value for money, I don't want a camera that will cost me a fortune if I want to buy a new lens. If anybody has any good suggestions I would be very grateful.

I can think of worse dire straits for a person to be in other than being confused over which DSLR to buy...

ALL contemporary DSLRs will suit your basic general needs.

1. Go to a shop and try the Nikon D3100, Canon 550D, Pentax kr, and whatever Sony has in their recent entry range.
2. Choose the one you enjoy using the most

If you're upgrading from P&S cameras, then no need to worry about lenses for now. Besides, no manufacturer has an ideal range/cost of lenses.

This may initially seem like an oversimplification. But once you finally get your camera and start shooting after spending months agonizing over what to buy, it will all make sense.

If you have the money ready, then don't waste too much time with swings and roundabouts.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/53061745@N02/

Panasonic G3: 9-18mm, 14mm, 20mm, 45mm

Look at the Buyers Guide that Gordon made.

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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 didn't mean to make is so dramatic by saying dire straits, but what I do mean is the more choice out there the more difficult it is to make my mind up. The camera I am giving serious consideration to is the Nikon D5000, does anybody have any experience with this camera or have an opinion on the Nikon in general. I have read Gordan's review on this camera & that is swaying me twards getting it.

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Special moments may only happen once....So never miss an opportunity!!!!

Get into a camera shop and handle the camera personally. That will seal the deal for you. The D5000 is as good an entry camera as any these days -- although arguably it really isn't the Nikon entry DSLR -- the D3100 is. Nevertheless, it's got some good things going for it. Any reason you aren't considering a Canon T2i? Pretty much par with the Nikon -- but what the Canon has in its corner is a fuller set of features over the Nikon. The Nikon brings a more solid feeling build, imo.

Or -- you may want to look at what Sony offers -- or Pentax -- all entry DSLRs are pretty much equally good nowadays.

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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

Hi there, I just sold my Canon gear and purchased a Pentax Kx twin lens kit of a web site. In a very short word.....WOW !!!!!

Admittedly I liked the Canon operating system, but the jpeg results straight out of the Pentax are just outstanding. I too have done a lot of research and looked at a lot of sites.

Here's a good one to look at: Snapsort. They rate camera's against each other. The Pentax products regularly show very well against everyone in image quality, colour depth and dynamic range. The ones who come close generally in those areas are Nikon. Even the latest Canon 550d with very good video, does not quite compete with the Kx on what I stated above.

The Pentax also have a few little nifty tricks like built in HDR, a few filters, which my old 450d did not have. I also think the 18-55 kit lens on the Canon is the biggest piece of @#%! around. The images were so soft.

Canon are a company that produces good cameras, but def no better than anyone else now and in the entry level area, there are better products sorry. So recommend people to look past the 'big name' thing and have a look at others.

Having not used pentax before, I bonded with this camera straight away. One big issue with them as a brand is they are hard to find in shops, to have a play with.....but be patient, it was well worth the wait.

I have to agree that the Pentax offerings of late are very, very good. Nice to see someone moving away from Canikon to one of the more niche players.

I cut my teeth on a pentax film SLR when I first started into photography. It was the only 35mm which my high school's camera club had access to. It was a real trooper.

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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

Kimchi,
The 550D is not really an entry level model. The price tag gives it away.

1000D > 450D > 500D > 550D

There are 3 cameras underneath, and I would consider the 500D to be a mid range product.

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Canon EOS 500D
Lenses: EFS 18-55mm IS, EF 50mm F/1.8 II

Canon500D, I think you'll find most people define an entry level DSLR by the way it handles, for example direct button placement, build quality, top screen etc. So I think most people would consider all 4 of those cameras to be entry level as they are all pretty much the same on that front.

They are also all just as easy to use. A true midrange product like a 60D or 7D is a bit harder to use if you have no photographic knowledge.

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Nikon D5000 and D300 with 12-24mm, 35mm f1.8, 50mm f1.4, 60mm f2.8 Macro, 18-200mm, 17-55mm f2.8 (all Nikon)

The market for the "entry-level DSLR" has skewed significantly since the implementation of HD video into the many new cameras coming out lately. What I see has happened is that the entry-level market slot has been widened by manufacturers with the various implementations of video and the attempts to get some more advanced features packed into their lowest priced DSLRs.

To me the big difference between entry-level and mid range come down to a few distinct factors/features such as higher fps shooting, better arranged direct-access buttons, dual control wheels, top-mounted LCD, more solid build, etc.

So -- from that point of view the 550D still is entry-level to me -- although it's at the higher end of the entry-level, it still shoots well below 4fps, - which makes it more difficult to use for high motion shooting like sporting events, etc. What I would not use to define entry-vs-mid level cameras is mp count. Some people would, but not everyone.

Hope this helps breach the divide.

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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

Hello padraigr,

The D5000 is a very good camera as are most of today's cameras.
I have got one not too far back. For me prime points of consideration were-
1. out of camera JPEG picture quality as am just zero in post processing.
D5000 has the same processing as the higher placed D90 and as per all reviews does a great job, well to me it sure does.
2. price of accessories for the brand: from where I come - India- Nikon lenses and accessories cost less than those of Canon (Other brands are not easily available).
3. a continuous shooting rate of 4fps which this has
4. not to cost me the sky - last week Jessops in Manchester had D5000 with twin kit lenses for approx 500 GBP which should give an idea.

For me the weight, size and egronomics turned positive and made life easy. As for the lack of direct access & controls, I can find time to change going into menus and short listed the mostly used ones in "My Menu" for quick access.

But you really need to hold your short listed camera(s) to see if you are ok with the comfort, feel , etc. If you have big hands then D5000 may not be great with gloves on.I personally feel you should give D3100 a try too.

Frankly, if Gordon had not found good words for the D5000, I would not have gone that way.

All the best.
Cheers.

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Jagadish_C
http://s1229.photobucket.com/albums/ee472/Jagadish_c/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46710427@N07/

I think the 500D is an upper-entry level model while the 550D is a mid-range DSLR. I agree the D5000 is a great camera, it offers the same IQ as the more expensive D90 and Canon 500D.

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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 thought that I would touch upon the point about direct access buttons.

The 500D does it.

The cursor up would be, for example the white balance
The cursor down would be, for example the timer
Direct ISO button on top

Although the cursors are not dedicated, you could argue that they were direct access buttons, as they perform in that way, in the shooting modes.

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Canon EOS 500D
Lenses: EFS 18-55mm IS, EF 50mm F/1.8 II

Many cameras have those fast-edit buttons, even the 1000D has. But, the 1000D isnt a mid-range model;)

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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

Out of the consumer range of cropped frames, the 500D was the mid range model. Now the 550D and 7D are out, that may have changed.

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Canon EOS 500D
Lenses: EFS 18-55mm IS, EF 50mm F/1.8 II