DSLR discussion

[chris3boro]

Thought it might be a good idea to make a general discussion thread about DSLRs seen as more and more people are using them.

First point of discussion, for a 1st DSLR, is it worth going for the Canon 450d over the Nikon D60?

 

[expatscot]

Would have thought either of them would be okay - but I am far from an expert.... very very very far

My first foray into the DSLR world - about a 18 months ago - I picked up a Pentax dont think it is as user friendly as either of those 2, and the lens/accessories are harder to find (I believe)... but it works for me. {For the little I have made use of it}.

 

[Dal]

I think I'm right in saying the D60 has the AF in the body, so in theory, any lens you put on it can be driven to AF rather than having to buy a more expensive AF lens.

I know my D50 does that

have a read here:

http://www.dpreview.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

as they are an excellent resourse of info and unbiased opinion.

 

[chris3boro]

As with the D40 and D40X, the new D60 doesn't have an built-in focus drive motor which means it can auto focus only with lenses which have their own drive motor

 

[Dal]

Ignore what I said then! D'oh! Must be the D70 that does, not the D60. The D40 / D60 is the top end of the "base" range of Nikon, where as my D50 is the bottom of the "mid" range if you get what I mean.

Look at the chart here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikon_D50" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If I don't get a job soon, my D50 might be up for sale....

 

[chris3boro]

Ignore what I said then! D'oh! Must be the D70 that does, not the D60. The D40 / D60 is the top end of the "base" range of Nikon, where as my D50 is the bottom of the "expert" range if you get what I mean.

If I don't get a job soon, my D50 might be up for sale....

Yeh, thought the 450d doesn't have it built in either i don't think. Both come with image stabilisation kits though.

450d has these benefits:

3.5 fps continous shooting rather than 3.0 on D60
3'' screen not 2.5''
Live view (though not really important as you use viewfinder 99% of time)
Higher MP count (again not important unless printing at A3+)


So in terms of what it has over the D60 that is important, I guess its just the faster shutter speed and larger screen. I may have missed one or two things though. Will that diff in shutter speed make a big difference if I was, for example, taking pictures of people playing football or running about etc?

 

[Dal]

Personally, I would go into Jessops or somewhere and see which one "feels" better to you. The differences in the technical specs are negligable really. Although the live view might be handy if you're holding the camera up high at arms length for instance.

Go to Jessops, say you want to buy one, get the salesman (not a Saturday though) to go through things and make a decision. Then go online and get it cheaper.

 

[chris3boro]

Personally, I would go into Jessops or somewhere and see which one "feels" better to you. The differences in the technical specs are negligable really. Although the live view might be handy if you're holding the camera up high at arms length for instance.

Go to Jessops, say you want to buy one, get the salesman (not a Saturday though) to go through things and make a decision. Then go online and get it cheaper.

k:

 

[mort666]

Just one thing to be careful of when looking at the figures on continuous shooting speeds. Those quotes fps values may well be in ideal conditions. If you go to low light or fast moving objects the camera may slow down while it tries to re-focus (if you have it set to continuous auto-focus that is).

Also, depending on how much you have to spend, don't neessarily discount the Sony range. I'm pretty chuffed with my A200, although the autofocus could be faster ideally for fast action stuff.
One Sony advantage is that they have the image stabilisation built into the body so it often means equivalent lenses are cheaper compared to say canon ones with IS in the lens

Have a look at some shots I've been getting recently with my Sony kit:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mort666/sets/72157617007912131/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mort666/sets/72157619452640602/

to be honest I don't think you would be particularly disappointed with anything from the big names in DSLRs these days. You will be able to get good shots with all of them. As Dal said, try some out in your local Jessops (then buy it online cheaper ) lol

 

[chris3boro]

Jessops are as cheap as anywhere I can find as it happens! Probs going D60 with the VR lens.

 

[Pumadaddy]

Well we were so happy with our Sony Alpha A100, that we bought a Sony Alpha A200.

Check out Argos Clearance bargains on ebay, we saved quite a bit.

 

[chris3boro]

Quick q....anyone know how you get a logo or business name on your pictures. Like you often see pictures with the person's/companies name printed at the bottom of the pic, is there a quick way to do this or is it just a case of adding it afterwards via editing?

 

[Cherie]

There are applications that will perform a bulk watermarking function. A quick google search brings up a few to start with. I've never used it myself, so can't really comment on what's good and what's not.

Otherwise, the thing to do would be create a template and copy & paste it on each image. Not so bad if you're doing just a handful, but could be a pain if you've got hundreds.

 

[chris3boro]

Thanks Cherie