Camera Labs

My point and click is on its last legs so I’ve decided to take the plunge and upgrade to a DSLR. I don’t know what I’m doing with cameras so I want to spend as little as possible as I don’t want to waste money on features I don’t need or spend loads on something that doesn’t do what I want. I am considering seeing what I can pick up 2nd hand as I figured I should get better value for money.

My main interest is wildlife photography. When I was in Africa a couple of months ago the 15X zoom on my point and click didn’t cut it in a few situations. If the reading I’ve done in is correct 15X zoom is roughly equivalent to a 300mm lens? I don’t think that I’m going to need a particularly powerful zoom for the remainder of this trip and longer-range lenses are out of my price range. As such I was considering getting a DSLR with a relatively short-range lens for general use then buying a superzoom the next time I go back to Africa.

Currently I am in Thailand. I will be flying to Auckland via Singapore airport in 10 days so I’m planning to have a good look around duty free to see what is on offer.

I know the standard answer to the which camera should I get question is to try a few out to see which one you like. I’ve been doing my best to do this whilst travelling. I had a shot of another backpackers 450D a couple of weeks ago and found it easy to use. The fact that it is relatively lightweight is also appealing as I’ll be lugging it around for another 8 months (assuming the money doesn’t run out ). I’ve found a website back home (Scotland) selling 2nd hand 450D bodies for around £250. This fits in with my price range. However, I have been unable to find any similar deals on New Zealand websites. Can anyone recommend any sites or Auckland based stores to check out?

Also, can anyone recommend any other cameras to try out? As things stand Canon are my preferred brand solely because there seems to be far more of them on the used market.

Thanks in advance for any responses.

If the shortest focal length is 20mm then yes, 300mm would be the focal length at 15x zoom BUT on a P&S that may not necessarily be the 300mm equivalent on a 35mm format i.e. full-frame DSLR - with a smaller sensor the crop factor can make the apparent focal length much longer.

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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

I've just checked the company's website and its equivalent to a 360mm lens. Don't know why I didn't think of that before

One thing I forgot to mention is that I'm looking for something that performs well in low light without using a flash. I've been looking through the reviews on the site but I've been unable to find out if one of the entry level models outperforms the others in that area...

With DSLRs the lens you use makes a far more greater difference in terms of low-light performance than the body. Granted, full-frame is generally better but it's most unlikely that it's within your budget.

Nikon's contemporaries against Canon are arguably better but the difference is marginal. Perhaps what you should be looking for is either an f/1.8 prime or a constant f/2.8 zoom. However the latter doesn't come cheap (starting at around £300-350 brand new) but you can get a 50mm f/1.8 for less than £100 easily though you should work out if 50mm (80mm equivalent on 35mm/full-frame with Canon or 75mm with Nikon/Sony) is wide enough or too tight a focal length first.

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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

Two quick notes:

1) Don't confuse crop factor and magnification.

2) Any 300+mm lens that's also good in low light is going to be very expensive and very heavy.

Mark

I forgot to point out that in my previous comment, I was referring to the Canon, Nikon and Sony contemporary bodies, not the lenses.

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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

Thanks for the advice guys. When it comes to low light performance I think my standards are probably a fair bit lower than yours. I was quite impressed with some of the photos that I got with my point and click once it had been set up by someone that knew what she was doing. I thought that the photos she took with her 1000D were excellant.

One last question. Is there anything I should be aware of with regards to the warranty if I do buy something at Singapore airport? I've tried googling it but have struggled to find any definate answers.

With the "beginner" or "enthusiast" bodies in Canon's DSLR lineup i.e. the ****D and ***D also known as the Rebel or Kiss series, the manufacturer warranty is only valid in the channel region where the body was sold in to e.g. If I bought the 550D/Rebel T2i/Kiss X4 in Singapore, the warranty would not be valid in the UK. A lot of eBay sellers sell imported DSLR bodies to pass the savings on to customers but the potentially invalid warranty could prove to be a false economy.

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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

I bought a 2nd hand 450D this morning. Warranty only last 3 months but I'll be out of the country in 4-5 months so no biggy.

When you include the free stuff the shop gave me (2nd battery, bag and memory card) it worked out cheaper than back home which was a pleasant surprise.

Thanks for the advice.