Which dslr for a £1k budget

philstanbridge

philstanbridge

philstanbridge

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For those of you in the know, what would you go for given the budget? I have used both Canon and Nikon before, and don't really have a preference. But I'm not so sure which way to turn. I've read good things about the Nikon 7000 but then I've read equally good things about some of the Canons too.

I would like a decent kit lens (if such a thing exists) and I would mainly use it for portraits, but occasional landscapes would be good too.

Any suggestions?
 
D7000 second hand would probably be the way to go, if you know where to look they can be picked up for around the 5-600 quid mark now, so 400 left over for some nice glass, I'd say a nice 35mm 1.8 or the 50mm 1.4 if you want and with the change get a sigma/tamron 17-55m 2.8 for the landscapes :p
 
I hadn't considered a second-hand body. I've always been put off before. What about the 18-105 kit lens that the pack comes with? Would that be a reasonable purchase for £800 brand spanking?
 
The kit lens is pretty good but the lenses i specced are a fair bit better for not a lot more money. Buying a 2nd hand body imo is much better for your money than buying a brand new one, the body is the cost, the lenses the investment, so obviously you'll get more for your money and if you know where to look (Talk Photography) You will usually get a very good camera for a very good price.
 
D7000 or a 7d although 7d might put you over budget, A second hand d300 would be worth a look also.
 
For that budget I agree D7000 is probably the best camera, the 18-105mm kit lens is probably the best crop sensor kit lens of any brand and Nikon also have an excellent set of affordable primes 35 1.8G, 50mm 1.8G and 85mm 1.8G that would cover most of your needs.
 
Thanks guys. I'm thinking the D7000 is the way to go then. It's just do I get a brand new one with warranty, and get that 18-105 which would be very handy for general purpose stuff. Cheapest new one is just over £800 at the mo. Or do I go second hand from somewhere, (I've no idea where!) and invest separately in lenses. Hmmm.
 
2nd hand!
Lenses last a lifetime and you will easily make your money back on them if you ever come to sell (providing you buy the right ones) ;)
 
Consider brand spanking new from *******, probably cheaper than 2nd hand, and at least you will have a years warranty. Lenses don't last a lifetime, they can fail just like anything else.
 
******* are selling the D7000 body only for £587 brand new which seems to totally negate the need to buy 2nd hand to me.
 
Oh right I haven't looked into that. I'm also looking at lenses from that place. Seems like a good place to buy?

The 35 or the 50 to begin with what do you reckon?
 
philstanbridge said:
Cheers again. I think I'm going to order the 7000 and the 35 then..
Click to expand...

I would still get the 18-105mm kit lens with the D7000, if you can't afford he 35mm f/1.8 on top then just wait out and buy the 35mm later/xmas time etc. The 35mm is nice but the flexibility of the kit lens is far more important. And who knows, when you are used to how the camera works, the relationship between focal lengths, perspective and compositions etc. you may feel that the 35mm is too narrow or too wide and you might hanker after a wide angle 10-20mm type lens or a telephoto zoom 70-300mm type lens for wildlife.
 
I wouldn't consider the 18-105 first personally as F5.6 is slooow, even my 24-70 F2.8 feels slow. However if you like more depth of field then the 18-105 makes sense.
Also Op is more likely to learn about composition and perspective with a couple of primes rather than zooms. Firstly primes FORCE you to move forward or backwards, as your moving forward or backwards your looking at angles. With a zoom there is a tendency to stay planted and just twist the lens. Zooming in and out doesn't teach you perspective as your not physically moving closer or further away. However when using primes, is easier to see a clear distinction.
 
I ordered the 35 and the D7000 body ;) I can always get a zoom lens in due course. I just want the best quality within my budget.

I have a compact for general purpose snaps which will suffice, although I quite fancy that RX100 but they're still very expensive.

I will have to learn how to use the 7000. I had a 3100 for a while and thoroughly enjoyed using it but I found the limits of the camera quite quickly hence the upgrade.
 
Did you order it normally through their website or did you get them to send you the invoice so you can pay with bank transfer? That extra 5% off is nice :)
 
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