Apologies for this thread, but 'n00b' needs help

Don
Joined
17 May 2004
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Location
Telford, Shropshire
Hey hey, first and for most apologies on this thread. I know you must get them all the time and how much of a pain they are.

I have gone through the stickies and viewed the information on them, really enjoyed some of the reads.

I'm looking at getting into some amateur photgraphy, I'd really like to learn how to take a good photograph and have been told I have a good eye for things like this (whether that's true or not we shall see). So here's where you lot comes in handy.

The camera will be used for shots on both holidays (I don't mind a bulky camera to hang around my neck for example) but also for taking out on walks, views, scenery e.t.c a compact tiny little camera isn't necessary.

I don't really know where to start looking for cameras, I've never done any thing like this before other than playing around with friends camers, ideally I'd like to be able to take pictures I can print out and hang up and display around the house but I know that would be a long long way of.

is there a well reccomended first starter camera, or a camera which comes highly reccomended a lot of the time? I hear Canon 350D's e.t.c bounded around by plenty of people, but is that a good first camera? Bare in mind I have not done this before,

hints and tips we'll get into later, I know a lot of it is messing around in different circumstances but would like to go on a course to help speed things up.

Any reccomendations would be highly appreciated.

Sorry again!
 
Budget is not overly important, dependant on the camera. I'l willing to pay decent money for a first camera (up to 300ish I guess) since it will be my first camera, I'd rather work my way up, from a good camera with good quality, and if i take to it, to work my way up the ladder to then a great camera, then professional camera.

The camera will be mainly for learning the ropes, as i know how much of a skill it is to take pictures well, which is why my feet are firmly on the ground and instead of going straight out and buying a 20d, or 40d e.t.c I'd rather work my way up. :)
 
Head down to your local college and see if you can sign yourself up for a City & Guilds course to learn the basics and see how you like it. It'll be a good grounding for the future, will teach you basic camera control and give you the chance to practice with like-minded people under the watchful eye of an experienced photographer, and should cost no more than £80.

Either of these would suit, but I'd go for the 6923 if you can.

City & Guilds 6922 - Unit 1 Basic Photography
City & Guilds 6923 - Unit 1 Principles of Photography

I really wouldn't bother spending serious cash on a camera until you know what you want and what you'll be using it for. The alternative is spend your money on what looks good, buy a few books and practice at every opportunity, but I'd recommend the academic route to anyone who is even the slightest bit serious about learning.
 
£300 is high enough to get a top of the range compact, but just not quite enough to get a beginner 2nd hand DSLR. I think you really need to decide whether you want to get into photography seriously, or just take a shot every now and then. If you bought a compact, and then really started getting into photography, you might start to regret not going for a DSLR. Yes you could sell the compact and get a dslr, but it will cost you more money in the long run.

On the other hand, if you splash out a bit more and buy a DSLR, and decide that your not looking to get into in depth photography, then you can either keep the DSLR and always have very good quality photos, or sell the DSLR as most keep there money.

A D50 could probably be picked up 2nd hand for £300-350 with kit lens, a tripod is pretty much a must for landscape photography, thats going to cost about another £50, for a half decent one. And an optional bag is going to cost £30-50.
 
I just bought a Fuji S5600 for £125, seems to offer a good level of control and image quality for the price. Perfect for someone who wants to get into photography but hasn't a clue if they will be any good at it :D

If you want to spend more the S9600 gets very good reviews at around £250-£260 however you'll probably want to keep some money spare for a case/bag, memory cards, tripod etc.

alexisonfire said:
£300 is high enough to get a top of the range compact, but just not quite enough to get a beginner 2nd hand DSLR. I think you really need to decide whether you want to get into photography seriously, or just take a shot every now and then. If you bought a compact, and then really started getting into photography, you might start to regret not going for a DSLR. Yes you could sell the compact and get a dslr, but it will cost you more money in the long run.
.

How about the Canon G7 at the top end of his price range? compact camera with very very good image quality.
 
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You can get a refurbished Nikon D50 with kit lens and warranty for £300-350, which in my opinion is the best bet. The secondhand D50 market is also healthy, so if a few months down the line you decided photography wasn't for you after all you should be able to recoup a decent amount, unlike with a compact or bridge camera which depreciate quickly.
 
King4aDay said:
You can get a refurbished Nikon D50 with kit lens and warranty for £300-350, which in my opinion is the best bet. The secondhand D50 market is also healthy, so if a few months down the line you decided photography wasn't for you after all you should be able to recoup a decent amount, unlike with a compact or bridge camera which depreciate quickly.


Hehe. I remember when I could only stretch to £400 max so I got the 350D with kit lens second hand. Then a month later bought a 20D, L lens, etc, etc and the £400 budget went out the window as I got addicted :( Photography is fun :D

At least with a compact camera you cant upgrade it so your budget is safe!!
 
number41 said:
At least with a compact camera you cant upgrade it so your budget is safe!!

I spent a fortune on conversion lenses for my Sony H1 bridge over the course of a year before realising i really should have just bought a DSLR in the first place!

Now the proud owner of a previously mentioned Nikon D50, 70-300VR and Sigma 150mm macro :D
 
alexisonfire said:
Its very easy to spend £1000 in the first couple of months in photography, and thats for very basic equipment.

Decent bag - £50
IR filter for the lens - £20
Memory card - £20
Lens cloth/Pen - £10
Tripod - £150
Flash - £200
Another lens - from £70 to $$$ depending.

I say the following week after you get the camera and kit lens you'll spent another £100 easily on the Bag, cloth/cleaning stuff and a filter.
 
What's the general opinion on the Fuji S5600?? To me it seems ideal?

What's the concencious on that camera?
 
Very good imo, not had a chance to really use it yet though.

Some random photos (they suck but that's all I have atm)

This was taken from over a mile away without a tripod





 
Same here i need some help deciding on a new camera. I can get a 400D with lens for £490 new, should i go for it? i dont wanna highjack your thread, sorry dude :p
 
Feel free to hijack mate!

Alexisonfire, what do you think of the above pictures (Thank Raikiri btw), you seem to know what you are talking about and knowledgeable, so value your opinion.

thanks
 
hilly said:
Alexisonfire, what do you think of the above pictures (Thank Raikiri btw), you seem to know what you are talking about and knowledgeable, so value your opinion.

I wouldn't do that mate! :D

I've only been doing photography for two and a bit months, so i only know what i've read up on, i have no real practical experience with most things regarding photography.

The only advice i can give is find a camera that matches your needs, not just one with decent specs. You say your looking for a camera that would be good for holidays/scenery/landscape. To get the best out of landscape photography your going to need a wide angle lens, this means DSLR territory. Also if your looking to do printouts of photos in the future, your going to need a camera that produces high quality/resolution photos, which in my opinion would be best to go for a DSLR as well. The difference between printed photos of my DSLR and a high end compact are astonishing. The main problem with DSLR's is they are so upgradeable. Upgrades are very expensive and very adictive. :p

I'm so glad i went for a dslr over a compact/hybrid. The quality, flexibility and future proofing were well worth the extra money. Go to a shop and hold some cameras, depending on hand size, some might feel odd. Taking the D40 for example, its incredibly light compared to most dslr's (mainly because of the lack of top LCD and integrated focus motor.
 
Raikiri said:
The first one! However the second is also over a mile away :p

lmao, i've only just noticed theres 3 images in the post! First photo doesn't show up!

lol.jpg
 
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