Camera Labs

Hey all,

With my birthday coming up the missus has given me permission to upgrade my little point and shoot to a DSLR. I think I've narrowed the choice down to the Pentax K-r and the Nikkon 3100, but would like some help in choosing as there are a couple of things being a complete beginner I'm unsure about. In terms of price I can get either of them for around £350 with the standard kit lens (I get some discount through work).

My main question comes down to replacement lenses and their associated costs. Am I right in saying that an 18-200mm would be a good all rounder? If so with the Image stablisation and motor being in the body of the Pentax, would such a lens be much cheaper for this camera? I've tried to price things up myself but with all the differing combinations and model numbers it has confused me somewhat.

If I'm wrong about the 18-200mm thing could someone recommend a lense which I could basically leave on for most of the time and get adequate performance from?

Thanks in advance

You need your missus' permission? You should show her who's boss!

In theory the lenses should be cheaper with the Pentax having in-body IS but the reality is that lens prices can be more or less expensive that the Nikon equivalent. IS is helpful but it's not always a must have - if you're using a tripod or shooting at a high shutter speed, you don't really need it.

The 18-200mm gives you a lot of flexibility but you have to bear in mind that the convenience comes at the cost of quality. One of my old workmates has that lens on her D5000 and she likes the convenience but seldom uses it and prefers to take an 18-70mm and 55-250mm.

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Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

Both the Pentax and Nikon are good cameras but the Nikon is I think more suited tn a DSLR beginner as it has extensive "helps" to assist in getting use to the camera. The 18-200 is a convenient lens to use but it is very expensive and the image quality leaves a lot to be desired. It is soft at all focal lengths and has quite a bit of distortion which has a strange profile and is not easy to correct in software.
Assuming you get the Nikon with a standard 18-55 kit lens then I would recommend getting the 55-200VR to go with it. It is not expensive and both these lenses together will give you all the range the 18-200 would with superior image quality. The only downside is having to change lenses sometimes but that is usually not a major inconvenience.
If you can get the camera without a lens then I recommend you look for a used 18-70 as a standard lens and get the 70-300VR to complement it. IMHO this combination is the best for a Nikon covering most situations with only 2 lenses. You can use the long end of the 18-70 for portraits and although it does not have VR the image quality is far superior to the kit lens.

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Nikon D300 D80 D40 18-55mm 18-70mm 18-135mm 55-200mm 18-200mm 28mm 2.8f 50mm 1.8f 85mm 1.8f
Panasonic DMCFZ28 Slik Pro 700DX

I know a little about a lot, a lot about little and everything about nothing.

d3100 + 18-55vr is £400. thatll prob be your best choice