digital SLR for newbie

[dmx005]

Hi all,
I have been thinking about getting a digital SLR recently and wondered what you think would be a good starter camera..

Ive seen a Nikon D50 for not much more than £200 which seems like a bargain to me.. (dont want to spend much more than that)

Or what would the equivalent Canon be? Any thoughts?

 

[Pirate!!]

Hi all,
I have been thinking about getting a digital SLR recently and wondered what you think would be a good starter camera..

Ive seen a Nikon D50 for not much more than £200 which seems like a bargain to me.. (dont want to spend much more than that)

Or what would the equivalent Canon be? Any thoughts?

Ahoy!

This is one 'of those' questions . . There are 'prosumer/bridge' type cameras which look and work like a dSLR, but have a fixed lens. There are a couple that fall into the price range, though are subtly different in spec.

My initial suggestions are:

Panasonic DMC-FZ8
Fuji S9600

My research suggests that the Nikon D50 is regarded as an excellent entry 'budget' dSLR, and if you can get one for under £200, it would seem like an excellent buy. The Nikon guys I'm sure will give a more qualified answer though.

I can't think what else is out there for £200.00

 

[dazza74]

I don't think for a Nikon you can get better for £200 seems a good price based on what they are selling on Ebay. Worth having a look at the link below :

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/NikonD50/page6.shtml

Canon 350 D would be the obvious alternative but I'm not sure you would get one for £200.

I'd be tempted if you can to find another £100 or so, that way you could look at this which does seem a bargain :

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/0560722/Trail/searchtext>SONY+A100.htm

 

[dmx005]

I'd be tempted if you can to find another £100 or so, that way you could look at this which does seem a bargain :

I think you might be right.. It will give me a bit more choice at any rate!

 

[dazza74]

I think you might be right.. It will give me a bit more choice at any rate!

That Sony is a bargain if you can get one, quite a few forum members own these and have been buying them up since Argos reduced the price. You'd be able to get a Nikon D40 for £300 new as well, another camera to consider.

 

[Pirate!!]

I think you might be right.. It will give me a bit more choice at any rate!

In which case the goalposts have moved . . now it's open house.

My 10 cents (in no order):

Look at the link for the A100 posted by dazza, as THAT is THE deal of the moment. Others to look at:

Pentax K100D Super
Canon 350d
Nikon D40
Olympus E510 or E410

The problem is, that at £300.00, it's still just on the very edge of the dSLR range. Only (IMHO) do the Alpha A100 and the Pentax K100D Super come close at current prices.

 

[dmx005]

thanks a lot everyone.. All I need to do now is think of a plan to convince the mrs that we need to replace the old camera!

 

[Steve N]

In dmx005's position I would prefer the D50 over the D40 jus for the D50's ability to autofocus with all Nikon lenses.