Cameras - advice, questions, opinions

Re: digital SLR purchase question

raptrlvr — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 23:16:29 GMT

Lets just say that I have had my Nikon D200 for over 2 years, shot about 25,000 pic's with it and it still far outreaches my capabilities. I have never been one for computers or electronic gadgets and that is what these Digital SLRs are. The good thing is you can put it on auto and get some good shots. You will enjoy the Nikon and should be able to get way out there with your Sigma 150-500mm lens.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

T_L_Bryant — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 15:12:00 GMT

Thanks for that info. I decided that to reach out there I would try the new Sigma 150-500 zoom. I also ordered the Kenko 1.4X teleconverter (due to arrive today). I've got 30 days to put them thru their paces, so we'll see. Meantime, I'm climbing the fairly steep learning curve on the D300. Let's just say for now that the camera's capabilities far outpace my own. So, if this stuff all works out, I still have $1500 of my original $5000 budget for other goodies. My wife did remind me that I don't HAVE to spend it all!

Re: digital SLR purchase question

raptrlvr — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 20:13:32 GMT

Nikon makes and sells teleconverters, but, they are super expensive. I have the Nikon D200 and I bought a Kenko 1.4 Teleplus Pro 300 teleconverter for about $150. Teleconverters are designed to be used with lenses that are F4 or faster. That said, I use my teleconverter with my 70-300mm F4.5- 5.6 VR lens as long as I have bright sunlight. If there is not enough light, the autofocus will not work correctly and will keep searching. I just make sure to use the teleconverter in bright sunlight and have no problem with it. I have a friend who has a D300 and he really likes it. If you get a Nikon teleconverter make sure you get the one that works with autofocus and get ready to pay about $400 for it.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

T_L_Bryant — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 18:32:35 GMT

Thanks to all who responded. I carefully considered everything and ordered the Nikon D300 w/ 18-200 VR lens to get things started. Is there a suitable teleconverter that works well with this lens? thanks again

Re: digital SLR purchase question

cirrus — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 02:06:37 GMT

I have a Canon 40D and a Canon 100-400mm lens with no teleconverter. It works great for general bird photography.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

Norman_24 — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 16:54:14 GMT

rdatkins:

That's an easy question for me. I would buy the Canon 40D or 5D (if you want a full frame sensor) with the Canon 100-400mm F4-5.6 IS Lens, a Canon 1.4X teleconverter, a canon 580EXII Flash with a Better Beamer Fresnel Flash Lens. I use an old Bogens Tripod because it is really heavy and stable but the Giottos Carbon Fiber tripods may be easier to lug around. I almost never see photographers with the setup I suggested with a tripod. The IS Lens stops camera shake up to three stops.

The setup I would really love to have if I had and extra 7K to spend would include the Canon 500mm F4 IS. The sharpness is unbelievable for long distance bird shots.

Go to www.photosig.com and take a look at the shots taken with the 500mm lens. I can tell just by the clarity and depth of field in most photos if it has been taken with the 500mm. Photosig also has reviews on almost every camera and lens available.

I can't argue with this statement above... BUT, you have your work cut out for you, as I was there a few months ago... It all comes down to what you want to shoot... Wildlife, Portraits, Sports as these three will define pretty much what you'll need... Fast aperture and high ISO's, ie:3200 and which will handle noise better, particularly if your going to print photo's...

Good luck...

Re: digital SLR purchase question

lap.texas — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 15:46:25 GMT

A Canon XTi or 40D with the best Canon low light lens (at least 600mm) you can purchase with the rest of the $5000. See www.dcresource.com for low light comparisons in their reviews.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

Chris Bourg — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 05:35:12 GMT

IMPORTANT: If you buy your camera on the net, be very careful to use a reputable source. I've had good luck with both B&H and Ritz, and there are many other good ones. But there are a few very dishonest sellers on the net advertising too-good-to-be-true prices. They bait and switch, deliver lower quality merchandise without warranties or manuals. I was almost ready to purchase from one before I did some checking and discovered they were total crooks who had cheated hundreds of customers. Be careful!

Also

If you decide to go with Nikon, the d80 for about 700 less might be a better buy. The D200 is sturdier, but I've used both and the picture quality is equal. For me, the d80 is easier to use. See comparison: http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d80/vs-d200.htm

Re: digital SLR purchase question

rdatkins — Fri, 23 May 2008 03:14:04 GMT

The 5D is actually below 2K now and you have to admit the Canon white lenses are really great looking. I had to chose between the D200 and the Canon 20D. Both camera's are really great so it really didn't matter either way to me. My decision was became very easy when I got the 20D for free :-) Right now the D300 and the 40D are close competitors in crop frame sensors. The 5D has a full frame sensor so none of you picture information is cropped out. the crop factor is explained here:

http://digital-photography-school.com/blog/crop-factor-explained/

Re: digital SLR purchase question

raptrlvr — Wed, 21 May 2008 13:53:06 GMT

You have your work cut out for you. I really struggled between Canon and Nikon and trying to stay within the budget I set for the purchase. I am on a fixed income {retired}, so, the budget had to be met in my opinion. Once you get out there and see all the stuff that is available, its like a kid in a candy store. Some of my friends have the top of the line cameras and I can only envy them. But, whatever you purchase, I am sure you will be happy. I have taken my Nikon D200 out to the dusty field almost every day and beat the heck out of it and it still performs perfect. Could really use a cleaning, but, that means I would be without a camera for a few days and I can't have that.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

T_L_Bryant — Wed, 21 May 2008 02:49:23 GMT

Thanks for your thoughts. I have much to research now.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

rdatkins — Tue, 20 May 2008 00:31:37 GMT

That's an easy question for me. I would buy the Canon 40D or 5D (if you want a full frame sensor) with the Canon 100-400mm F4-5.6 IS Lens, a Canon 1.4X teleconverter, a canon 580EXII Flash with a Better Beamer Fresnel Flash Lens. I use an old Bogens Tripod because it is really heavy and stable but the Giottos Carbon Fiber tripods may be easier to lug around. I almost never see photographers with the setup I suggested with a tripod. The IS Lens stops camera shake up to three stops.

The setup I would really love to have if I had and extra 7K to spend would include the Canon 500mm F4 IS. The sharpness is unbelievable for long distance bird shots.

Go to www.photosig.com and take a look at the shots taken with the 500mm lens. I can tell just by the clarity and depth of field in most photos if it has been taken with the 500mm. Photosig also has reviews on almost every camera and lens available.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

lap.texas — Tue, 20 May 2008 00:07:30 GMT

Also look at www.dcresource.com. They have test shots at each ISO so one can compare the noise at different camera sensitivities. The shot across San Francisco Bay for each camera displays the noise and resolution very well. This was important for me because I also had a noisy nonSLR camera before purchasing a Canon XTi and 100-400mm L IS lens. This combination gave me the most for the money with the least amount of noise in early 2008 and has worked very well for me.

Also for your information www.dpreview.com is now owned by amazon.com.

amazon.com usually has the best price of any reputable web vendor.

You should come up with a very good system for $5000.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

raptrlvr — Sat, 17 May 2008 00:32:18 GMT

As I said, there are other brands out there that are very good. I can't comment on them because I have no knowledge of them. I shoot with a 70-300mm VR {vibration reduction} lens most of the time and I never use a tripod with it. I also have a Tokina 400mm f5.6 lens that does not have the vibration reduction and I have no problem with the picture being blurry even without a tri pod. The picture of the flycatcher I posted today was shot with the 400mm handheld and the bird was across the street from me. Now if I was shooting with the 300mm 2.8 lens which weighs a whole lot more then I would need a tripod. The good thing about digital is that if the picture is blurry for whatever reason, just hit the delete button and shoot again. But to each their own and this is just my opinion.

Re: digital SLR purchase question

stitch58 — Fri, 16 May 2008 23:55:32 GMT

Personally I have both Sony & Olympus D-SLR's. I prefer the Sony but I purchased both cameras because they have shake reduction built into the camera itself rather then having to buy individual (and more expensive) shake reduction lenses . If you are not familiar with this feature, basically it compensates for our shaky hands enabling you to get sharp pictures at slower shutter speeds then you normally would be able to. I believe Pentax cameras also have this feature. Don't get me wrong, Canon & Nikon both make fantastic cameras & I would love to have one but with them you do have to buy the individual lenses to get the shake reduction. If you have naturally shaky hands like myself it's something you may wish to consider. Also, as far as lenses go there are very good lenses made by companies like Sigma & Tamron that can generally be purchased for quite a bit less money then lenses made by the camera manufacturers. If birding is what you are going to be mainly using it for I'd suggest getting as long a lens as possible. I always find myself wishing I had a longer lens to get close up views from a distance. For $5,000 you should be able to get a very good outfit though. Hope that helps.

Greg