Camera Labs

Hi

I am new to photography and I would be interested in buying a dslr. In order to choose which equipment to get, I have red a lot of different reviews but for some reasons I can t really make my mind.

I would use this camera for action/extrene sports (fast fps would be a plus), landscapes and portaits.

I have a budget of 800$(US) and I have narrowed my choices to:

Pentax K20d (which versatile lens should i add to it?). Would Built in stabilization be one of the main reason to lean into the pentax direction? I have red that fps is not the best on this dslr.
Nikon D5000 kit (I don t really mind about the Video capabilities)
Any other suggestion would be apreciated.

Thanks in advace for all your advices

Get the K20D if you're into outdoors photographing, since it has some great weather sealing. The D5000 has better noise performance, a bit better image quality, and a tiltable screen.

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

I am assuming that video isn't a deal-breaker for you -- so, I'd also consider the Canon xsi, and Olympus e-620. Both are very good cameras and will give you lots of room to grow.

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Olympus e-620 / 14-42mm / 40-150mm
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ISO performance yes, but the K20D's detail is unbeatable in its class

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Samsung GX-10, , SA 18-55mm
Canon 5D Mark II, 40D, EF 17-40mm f/4 L, EF 24-105mm L IS, EF 50mm f/1.4

www.flickr.com/glxlr

D5000 is more suitable for sports because of the 4fps vs 2.5fps. AF might be faster depends on what lens you use. AF-S lens generally faster than Pentax SDM.

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RadiantLite - Cameras and Lenses Comparison Reviews, buying guide, photo taking techniques and other tips
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That's because they apply more sharpening by default, you can easily set the D5000 (or any other camera) to the same sharpening settings

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

Detail is not the same as sharpening. You can't sharpen detail that isn't captured, although to be fair, the D5000 is no slouch either.
Considering the K20D came out a year ago at $1200 and now is $700, I'd say that is one heck of a value. Sadly, I learned that the 3-year warranty expired just a few days ago.

Sigh*, if only I had a couple more $$$ on me, I woulda picked up one...

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Samsung GX-10, , SA 18-55mm
Canon 5D Mark II, 40D, EF 17-40mm f/4 L, EF 24-105mm L IS, EF 50mm f/1.4

www.flickr.com/glxlr

I know the difference between detail and sharpening, but I found that the D5000 is atleast as good in capturing detail.

But that relies heavily on the lens used, and less on the sensor itself.

And even then, this is serious pixel peeping. Nobody cares in real life situations.

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

As a camera, the K20d is an a different league. It's aimed at a more advanced user than the D5000 but it may not necessarily be the better camera for a new user. I suggest you try them both out in person if that's possible.

Pentax's sensor-based IS is more convenient than Nikon's but I'm pretty sure it's the poorest performing of all the manufacturers. If your budget allows, you will probably get better performance from Nikon's lenses as far as IS is concerned. However, for those Nikkor lenses that don't have IS, you're stuck.

Pentax can't be beat for value though.

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Graham
Flickr

So people opted for the 1Ds mark 2 rather than the 50D? I mean only 1MP difference right? and the ISO performance is similar? -_-

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Samsung GX-10, , SA 18-55mm
Canon 5D Mark II, 40D, EF 17-40mm f/4 L, EF 24-105mm L IS, EF 50mm f/1.4

www.flickr.com/glxlr

That's just trolling, we both know the 1Ds' sensor is much larger for starters. All i'm saying is that imagequality is pretty much identical for semi-pro bodies, and practically indestinguishable in real life from one or the other.

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

The reason why people buy FF so for better ISO performance and extra MP, but the 50D actually performs almost the same as the 1DS mark 2

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Samsung GX-10, , SA 18-55mm
Canon 5D Mark II, 40D, EF 17-40mm f/4 L, EF 24-105mm L IS, EF 50mm f/1.4

www.flickr.com/glxlr

I wouldn't know, really, but I know the D90 has about the same noise performance as the 50D, and the D5000 has the same sensor as the D90.

I think we're getting way offtopic.

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

Thanks for all the helpful advices.
Unfortunately I am not able go to a store and try them as i couldn t find them in a store.
I am kind of leaning towards the Nikon as it seems to be more user friendly for a beginner. The fact that lenses are less expensive on Nikon is also a plus.
Is there a real difference between image quality on those two cameras?
(I wish a could stretch to the D90☺)

Nikon lenses are more expensive actually....

In terms of bang for buck in lenses, it doesn't get much better than Pentax.

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Graham
Flickr