Canon DSLR

Microcosm

Microcosm

Active member
I posted this in the photography cult but I'm not sure how many people actually visit it so I'm posting it here too.

I've always been into photo and for a few years now I've had an olympus stylus camera that I've taken literally thousands of pictures on. I want to upgrade to a dslr for better photos and for more control over what I want the camera to do in terms of lighting, focusing and other such things. I also took a photo class last year using film cameras so I'm somewhat familiar with the way the focus and f stop work on cameras that are more than just turn on/ click button.

I would use it for skiing(sequences, landscapes, action), hopefully If I get a dslr I'll bring it out more because I usually don't feel like bringing out the camera while skiing. For surfing shots too (waves/ the ocean, not necessarily close ups w/ a telephoto lens type shots.) I also like to shoot landscapes and scenery and nature a lot. Even with all those things I still want to be able to have a versatile camera for whatever I happen to want a shot of.

I've been researching quite a lot for this and I've been liking the Canon systems. the digital rebel xti looks intriguing to me, or maybe the 30D. at this point I'm leaning towards the rebel because it's smaller, has a bigger screen, and it's more megapixels among other things. (although most would argue the megapixels aren't the biggest thing so it doesn't matter much between 8 and 10) I hear the 30D's quality is very similar to the rebel.

I want to spend sub 1000 on the camera and lense, at least for now. I need to put a lot more research into lenses, I'm still unsure if it would be wise to invest in IT lenses or not. I do know I want zoom. I also know most slrs don't have live view which is what I'm used to on my point and shoot with no viewfinder. I also would like autfocus and manual focus, if possible on the same lenses. I like the idea of being able to move the lense manually to focus and allowing it to do it for me the rest of the time.

Sorry for the long post, I tried to divide it up into sections for easier reading and I also didn't want to come in here only saying I want a dslr because it's such a broad question and from researching around threads (on ns and tgr) most of the time those threads just end up with post more info on what you want. That being said I'll post more info on what I want if need be. Thanks for reading/helping.
 
Wellll, your budget being sub 1000. your gunna hafta go with the XTi over the 30d. the 30d body is around 1000 by itself. i dont have much more to stay, besieds that the 30d is alot faster (meaning more, faster , better sequences)
 
I'd be willing to go over if it's truly worth it. I do have the money to go over because I save up all my money I get from gifts and that I earn but I don't really know if it's worth it to spend so much. plus I'm a little worried about theft and damage to it.
 
almost anyone will tell you to get a 30d over the xti, its just that much better. theres a new 40d coming out soon. i think you said you posted in the photo cult, good choice. they now a ton more then me
 
I guess it's all coming down to do I want to spend the extra $$ but I'd still like to hear more opinions on it. The 40d is out but the body is over $1000, not what I need right now unless it drops a LOT! I posted it in the photo cult but so far no response in there, it's pretty empty most of the time. thanks for the insight.
 
seriously the rebel is going to take very sharp photos, i mean if you don't mind not being able to shoot as fast for sequences it don't really matter.

having said that. check dpreview.com

I would say go with the rebel and use the extra money to get better glass, cause the kit lenses aren't that awesome but i really depends on how much you would like to spend.

If you need help hit me up i will try to help.

 
I'm still unsure but now I am leaning more towards the rebel, but then again that could sway the other way. I think it makes sense because anything will be better than my current point and shoot plus I can learn on this then eventually buy a new one when they've come out with all sorts of crazy things. I'm in high school now and I don't really want to spend a whole lot of money, or more than I have to. I agree I should buy better lenses, I've heard a lot of people say it's all about the lenses. and if I upgrade later on the lenses will still be quality. thanks for the site, I hadn't seen that one and I've been browsing through it now. thanks for helpin.
 
don't get the 30D when the 40D just came out and blows it out of the water.. 3 inch lcd.. 6.5fps.. digic III processor.. auto cleaning sensor.. the list goes on..

i'm about to get one this week i'll let you know what i think
 
Ive used them all alot and I say go for either 30d or 40d. remember, dont use to much on the house and spend more on lenses.
 
i have a 30d and a rebel, both sick, 30d way much more.

also consider that while the 40d has a bigger screen, the resolution is unchanged.. also you can get real good prices on 30d's now that the 40 has come out. on the other hand the 40 is faster...

also, make sure you get a good fast lens, not a piece of ass kit deal lens, cause although they are super cheap, they blow soo much more.

as far as size goes, i found the rebel abit small in my hand, the 30d fits much moe nicely, and i am still going to purchase a battery grip for it.
 
get a rebel with some sweet glass over a 30D with a kit. like my rebel will take almost as nice a picture as my 30D when i put the same lens on it
 
thanks for all the info. it's nice to hear some good things about the xti too, only thing is the frames per second is slower than the 30d. hopefully I can find one for a bit cheaper than retail, especially because of the 40d's release. I'll look into a good lens because it seems worthless to spend so much without one. any good recommendations on a basic all around one with zoom? actually, this might be a stupid question but does the camera zoom with any lens or only with zoom lens?
 
aha camera will not zoom wihout a zoom lens.

i currently have a Sigma DC EX f 2.8 18- 50 mm lens

that cost me 579.99 cad and i got roughly 100 off on it.

i belive anything below 18 or 19 is considered wide angle, and this is a fairly common focal length for lens to have.

the more zoom you have the moe expensive the lens. im currently saving up for a sigma dc ex 2.8 70 - 200, and thats something like 1200 cad. a good lens wont be cheap, but maybe you should save money in the body and get a nicer lens ( specially if you are new to slr's).

also consider the xt, that was my first slr, not much difference betweent he xt and the xti, and the xti is probly 200+ more.
 
I'm still thinking about a 30d, I really don't want to lost the 4 fps. I'll probably also be dropping a lot of money on a zoom lens, but I don't need too much zoom, just a bit.
 
The 40D is 10.1MP and bit depth has been increased to 14.

If you can afford to spend a little more on a good lens go for it, but you can get along with the basic 18-55 for a while. If your not making prints bigger than 8x10 the difference will be negligible. The aperture range will affect only the lowest light levels and at 18mm it's only 2/3 of a stop slower than 2.8. Try to stick with Canon lenses. The off-brand are very enticing, but you'll sacrifice in some area because of the savings. If you do have to go off-brand Tokina have the best construction and AF speed.
 
thanks, I heard the kit lens might actually work out for me at the store today too. I heard the off brands are in some cases aren't as good with quality, but the prices are a lot less and they're usually not too bad in the reviews I've seen. I went to staples today and I was expecting someone who had no idea what they were talking about (like the guy at best buy trying to sell me a 30d for $1500--they had the 40d for $1500 too! wtf?) but instead there was an older man who has been into photo for 30+ years. he gave me a ton of tips and pointers on where to shoot in my area and where to get good deals. it was a great experience, luck of the draw really and I thank him very much for helping me.
 
50mm is normal under is considered wide so 49-

and 51+ is telefoto

i would say shooting skiing i use a 70-200mm a lot more than my 18-40mm, but it depends what your shooting rails vs Jumps
 
50mm is normal in 35mm terms, the digital sensor crop makes a 50mm perform like a 80mm, 28-35mm would be normal, 18mm is wide, and 10mm is ultra-wide.
 
It's not splitting hairs it's an mathematical equation. Multiply the focal length by 1.6(Canon) to get the equivalent focal length.
 
i meant the screen resolution is unchanged. the screen is an inch wider i blieve, i thinkits 3.5 now, but it has the same resolution.

 
since, bodies drop price a hell of a lot faster, then lenses, i would go with a cheaper body for now, spend somethingon on a lens. so i say you should go with the xti, and a better lense. and eh, maybe by the time you want to change your body, the 50d will be out, and way better then the 40...
 
I might go this route now. as much as I want the 30d I don't think I truly need it. it's over 1000 for body and when I told my mom she gave me one of those looks. The rebel was around $600 to $700 with a lens of b&h photo, the 30d is a few hundred more.
 
Get good glass first.

Canon 50mm 1.8

Canon 28-105 3.5-4.5 II USM (MAKE SURE IT'S THE "II" version!! The other versions are built like shit)

And basically any of the other canon primes. Canon also makes a super old 100-300 L zoom lens, which is awkward to use cause it's a pump zoom but it's tack sharp.

http://keh.com is a great site for used gear; I've bought multiple things from them. Even their "bargain" rated stuff is totally useable.
 
hey Microcosm i know you said you didn't think you'd need the 30D but to anyone else looking for mid-range dslr, i just got the new 40D with the 28-135mm lens and im loving it so far. ive barely had time to play with it as ive been sick this whole week, but im going out tonight to shoot red rocks with it as well as other spots around denver. maybe ill post some pics if im feeling confident enough ha.
 
I'm really not sure why someone looking for a versatile, first DSLR would get a recommendation for a 28-1??mm lens. Versatility is a wide-tele zoom, not a normal-tele. When someone says they want to be able to shoot pretty much everything including landscapes and sequences, you can rule out pushing a 28-105. While its a sharp, wide-tele lens for film, its just a sharp, normal-tele lens on any other DSLR than the 1Ds or 5D.
 
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