Pretty much spot on...
...but if you don't have a thrift shop near you, here are some affordable recommendations from
Dingosean's Den of Dirt-cheapness
1. The Minolta SRT series
Minolta made a bazillion of these, and they are made like tanks. Old, manual focus SLRs. Came in black and chrome. I have one in both colours because they're so bloody cheap. (I picked up the two of them for probably 30 or 40 bucks in an Ebay purchase spree) The lenses are very high quality, and can be had for very affordable prices via ebay/craigslist/whatever. It's extremely easy and affordable enough to build a whole Minolta system for well under 100$ (If you go with a 28, a 50, and a 135mm, especially) Minolta manual focus systems are affordable as hell - in general - so you might as well just pick one up anyways and stop being lame.
2. Pentax Spotmatic
These are the direct predecessors to the K1000 (which many people consider the 'ultimate' camera for learning on), but are far less expensive with virtually the same functionality and availability. The body of the camera is usually a lot cheaper (K1000's can run you up to 100 bucks! screw that!) - even though it's almost entirely the same thing, and because it uses the M42 screwmount (which is easily, and cheaply adapted to both Canon and Panasonic/Olympus etc) you can build a massive vintage glass collection that can be used across different platforms. (The M42 mount was even more widely used than the Pentax K-mount, so dozens upon dozens of Soviet and Japanese lens designs came out using this system) Slightly more expensive than Minolta, but pretty excellent in the long-run. I recommend the Spotmatic F model, since it's basically the K1000, but you can also branch out here, and find other M42 system bodies made by the likes of Zenit, Praktica and Chinon for very cheap.
3. Canon AE-1
This is the camera that put Canon on the map, and chances are pretty high your dad had one back when he dressed like a Scooby Doo character. They sold a zillion of these, and for the most part, they still work flawlessly today. They take one, very long lasting, and relatively easy to find 6V battery, and offer shutter-priority auto exposure, as well as full-time manual mode. The viewfinder is big, the body is smaller and lighter, and has all the things you need. They use the Canon FD - mount, so you can't use your new lenses, there's no backwards compatibility there - however, because of that, FD glass is, like Minolta, incredibly affordable. You can pick up a used AE-1 with a 50mm f1.8 for around 30 bucks on Ebay, or thrift stores. A 28 and a 100 or 135 will run you another 50-70 or so. (if you want to get crazy, a 55 f1.2 can be had for under 200 bucks!)
4. Canon EOS Elan 7/Nikon F80(N80)
Already have a slew of AF lenses for Canon or Nikon? Don't really want to go and build a whole new system just for the sake of it? Want to be able to shoot film alongside your digital rig, and not bring around a whole bunch more? Well here's a hint, your lenses were originally made for film cameras.
If you have even one or two EF (not EF-S) mount lenses for your Canon, you are in luck, because they'll work on any Canon dating back to 1987 when they went full-autofocus. Slap a 50mm f1.8 on a very excellent 40$ Elan 7, and you might as well be shooting a 5Dmk3.
Same goes for Nikon, if you pick up something like a 40$ F80/N80, which came out in 2000 and is compatible with all Nikon's autofocus lenses from 1986-now, you won't have any problems shooting the lenses you've splurged on. (note - most DX lenses will vignette heavily on the 'full frame' 35mm film plane (you can basically get away with the 35 f1.8 DX at higher apertures). pick up an insanely affordable 50 f1.8D, and have at it!)
5. Minolta Hi-Matic E
Looking for a high-quality compact travel camera that won't break the bank? Not really interested in paying a ton for a whole lens system, and content with just one good one? Want a Leica, or other rangefinder, but not passionate enough about film to drop a grand or more? this could be perfect for you. They can be picked up for 30-40 bucks, are made of solid wrought iron steel (so, kinda heavy for their size, but also not plastic) have an awesome, and very versatile 40mm f1.7 lens on them, give all-time programed autoexposure - or 'P' mode (so no worries about manual settings, just go out there, shoot, and focus on composition!) and best yet, they ARE a rangefinder! you can at least get into the comfort zone of shooting with a rangefinder, and focusing with one - so when you bump up to a Leica or a Canon 7 or whatever, you're going to feel right at home. Throw one of these in any bag you've got, and forget about it until you have a shot in mind.
