Canon Rebel

[St_Croix_Banks]

Wow-

I"ve been on this FM HSOforum forum for years and now just found this Photography Thread. I've been mesmerized for an hour looking through all this wonderful work. It's inspiring.

I've finally decided to purchase my 1st SLR camera. Up until now I've strictly been a point and shoot (auto) kind kind of guy. But I want to learn more and it looks like this is a good place to start.

I was considering purchasing the Canon Rebel X1i with standard lens along with zoom 55mm-250mm. Any thoughts?

Thanks, Rick

[Spearing Machine]

That is a great starter combo for you. I know I started with a very similar setup quite a few years ago and have since upgraded as I have slowly learned and a few others started with that setup (or close to it). Look forward to seeing some of your work here on the board!

[St_Croix_Banks]

Hmmmm. Talking on the phone today with Nat'l Cam Exch the guy says if I'm looking at the T1i I really need to also look at Nikon D3100 and Sony A33 which are in that same catagory. He says the Nikon/Sony are a bit easier to use but that I should come in and hold each of them to see how they feel, where the buttons are, etc.

Any thoughts comparing these 3 cameras?

[Spearing Machine]

He is exactly right on trying out each. It is a matter of which feels the best in your hands and locations of controls and buttons. All three brands have very similar photo qualities but prices do vary especially for higher end glass. It is a lot like comparing ford, dodge and chevy. Go in, try them out, check out the controls, ect.

[St_Croix_Banks]

Thanks Jeremy.

[Jim Almquist]

Hold all of them and see how they feel and then think about what you might want as far as equipment down the road. When I was in your shoes as far as what brand I found that Canon had better options for good glass that was affordable. Another route to look into is a used body and that way you can put more money into glass which will always be the biggest expense. I sold my Canon 30D for $400.00 and I think the shutter count was at 8000 shots and that camera is rated for 100,000 shot and the body is not plastic but made of magnesium.

We post shots of birds in this forum as well as the bird forum if you have not stopped there yet

[St_Croix_Banks]

If I opt for an older body camera am I not sacrificing the pixel count or is that less of an issue?

[Jim Almquist]

Don't get to hung up on pixel count. The Canon 30D is a 8.1 or something close and the 1D MarkII that I shoot is a 8. something as well and will make great photos.

Steve Foss has said at that pixel count you could make posters that would look good.

[St_Croix_Banks]

That's interesting and good to know. Sounds like its somewhat of a marketing spin to lure in an amateur like me

[Dbl]

I do on the average of a couple hundred 20x30 posters per year using a plain old technology Canon Mark IIN at a measly 8mp. I have actually made posters that size with as little of a 4mp file. Correct exposure, lower ISO and care in working with your files will give ANYONE excellent large prints.

Frankly some of the larger megapixel cameras are not producing the same quality the lower megapixel cameras are. Don't get hung up on megapixels. While it is good advice to hold a camera and see how it feels keep in mind you can learn and get comfortable with most any camera and its particular layout. I've shot many brands and didn't give it a second thought after an initial 10 minutes. I shoot sports and it requires fast changes on the fly under changing conditions, if I can figure out how to use an unfamiliar camera in a short amount of time anyone can!

Far to many folks jump into a DSLR without giving some thought as to what type of system they will be buying into. What types of lenses and their speeds (lowest aperture available on the lens) you might possibly be looking at in the future? How much do those lenses cost? What about flashes and lighting system requirements? So many questions you may at this point have not even thought of. Often you start shooting to find yourself going in a completely different direction with your photography and you find your setup lacking.

For that reason select a "system" and take the time to become familiar with its strengths and weak spots. Don't jump into buying this lens and that because it seems like a good idea. Rare is the person who has not bought a lens they later regretted because it didn't suit their purpose or was poor performing for what they wanted to use it for. If you are not sure how serious this will be a used body might be a good place to start for a lower entry price. Don't get hung up on the ability to shoot video with the newer bodies. That requires a whole other skill set along with more equipment to successfully execute.

So take your time, ask more questions and try not to let a "salesman" talk you into something you don't know about. Get information, post questions and research and you will be far happier down the road. Come back here often we have a lot of informed members who will be willing to help. Good luck!

[MARINERMAGNUM]

Quote:

I was considering purchasing the Canon Rebel X1i with standard lens along with zoom 55mm-250mm. Any thoughts?

I took this with my wife's 20D and 55-250. Good lens for the money.

[Todd Caswell]

another option with lenses is buying quality lenses "used" let someone else take the initial hit, if you don't like it you can most likely get all you money back. I don't think I'll ever buy a new lens again.

Tonight I saw 2 55-250 for under under $200, you could use this lens for a year, take care of it and sell it next year for close to the same money, they get to a certain point and stay there.

[St_Croix_Banks]

Is it better to have (IS) Image Stabilizing in the Lens or the Camera body? I was looking at Sony A33, Nikon D3100 and Canon T2i today and the sales person told me that Sony has it built into the camera and that is less desirable compared to having it in the lens. That seems counter-intuitive to me. What not have it in the camera?

Another feature she pointed out that was very important (to her) was something she called "live view". That is the ability to view your subject via 3" screen or the peep site. You can switch back and forth.

Although I use LIVE VIEW all the time with my Point n Shoot, my thinking is that to take better pictures with a better camera---I will seldom use this feature.

On a side note---it seems the Nikon D5000 is a better option compared to the D3100 unless you want HD video--which I don't care about.

[Steve Foss]

In-camera IS is most effective with shorter lenses. When you get into the approximate 200mm range or more, then in-lens IS is superior.

[St_Croix_Banks]

I was kind reconsidering things a bit and thinking rather than going all new equipment. Perhaps I should go with a higher quality (new lens) and a used body. (something less than 3 yrs old). For instance----Tamron 18-270 VC lens with a used Nikon D60, 3000, 5000, etc or Canon EOS XSi or T1i. Something to that effect.

If I do buy a used body---what kind of things to I guard against? Other than the obvious, how would I know if the camera was not operating properly? Can you take a camera to National Cam Exch and have them go through it for a fee? What are some places to buy besides Crg List?

Am I putting too much thought into this and should I just get something and start shooting until I get more experience to know what I want?

What I'm looking to do is much like you all----some deer hunting shots, pointing dog, kids waterskiing and that sort of thing.

[Jim Almquist]

You can buy used equipment from stores like B&H and Adorama but you will pay more then the private sector but will have the piece of mind that it will work OK. The other way is to buy private and check into the person selling the camera because it was bought as a backup and now they have upgraded and want to keep there old one as a backup. If you go this route you want to keep the shutter count on the low side based on what the camera is rated for. You can always ship the camera back to the Canon, Nikon and have them go through the camera for a fee.

[CFRay]

There are a few different ways to get good quality used equipment. The post ahead of mine lists a couple of good online stores, Adorama occasionally has factory refurbished cameras available. National Camera Ex. has a used equip. listing on their HSOforum. A dedicated photo HSOforum such as Photography On The Net has a buy & sell forum that is pretty safe to purchase from utilizing Paypal. You must be a registered user to view that part of the HSOforum but that is easy to do.

It has been awhile but even here on this forum fellow FM'ers will post gear they have for sale. People that get hooked on this hobby are usually looking to upgrade and selling the current gear is the first step. You could consider creating a new post, describe what you're after, and you could get an offer from the good people that look at this site.

[Steve Foss]

SCB:

I've bought and sold many thousands of dollars worth of used Canon equipment on the site CFRay mentioned, and have never had a single problem. It's a Canon-dedicated site.

And I'm just as confident buying used lenses as used camera bodies there. You can pick up a complete photo kit of used gear for way less money than new and with a lot of life left in it. In fact, nearly every one of my current kit of lenses was purchased used on POTN, as were my camera bodies.

With lenses, most sellers include the date code that Canon stamps on the lens, so prospective buyers know how old it is. Not all lenses have that date code, though. With bodies, shutter actuation count is the basic gage of wear. Canon rates various camera bodies for number of expected actuations before failure. I have not checked on the last few Canon entry level bodies, but would expect that number to be around 100,000. You'll see most used body ads in those classifieds will include an estimated actuation count, and if it's not included, people generally ask for it.

Clearly, wear and individual camera bodies vary, but the lower the actuation count, the more "life" the camera is expected to have in it. If someone is selling a body with over half the rated actuations, I'd avoid that one in general, with a few exceptions that don't apply to the entry level bodies.

While it's a great place to buy and sell, if you go on the other boards and watch for lens and camera reviews and chat about gear, you have to be very careful with what you read. There are some real pros there, but there are also a LOT of folks who give advice well beyond their experience level, and sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. Asking advice here on the HSO photo forum will get you farther ahead. Sort of along the lines of ours being a smaller photo family where each family member gets more and better attention. And we have our share of pros and very experienced amateurs here.

Good luck, and have a lot of fun with it!

[Dbl]

I would use extreme care with the "C" list because it is a haven for stolen gear especially if the price it too good to be true. Another site not mentioned that I've used often with no issues is the "other FM" Fred Miranda. They have a buy and sell section which is extremely busy, arguably the largest on the net dealing in all brands of camera though it is heavy on Canon and Nikon (makes sense since they are the big two). I've also used Nat Cam and have purchased new and used through them. I will pay a bit more at times through Nat Cam because I've developed a working relationship with them and have had great experiences on purchases and returning items. They have a very generous 30 day return policy.

If you buy locally and can get your hands on the camera there are a number of items I look for in a camera body.

1. Check for any corrosion in the battery compartment. This is a deal breaker, if there are signs of corrosion I would pass. Also a good time to check on the battery charger itself, it should function unless the seller states otherwise.

2. Check to make sure dials and switches all work.

3. LCD screen both top and bottom. Make sure no digits are burned out and for signs of scratching and abuse. An LCD actually has a plastic cover which is around $5 to $10 replace.

4.Check that the meter works by pointing the camera at different backgrounds and see that the meter follows the changes.

5. Take photos using your memory card and make sure it writes to it. You may have to format using the camera if you encounter a problem and then try again (not likely but possible).

6. Check the pop up flash and make sure it works.

7. I like to check the hot shoe with a flash but you may not have that option if you don't own an external flash.

8. Set the camera to shoot high speed continuous and make sure that you get the rated speed. You can hear if it is shooting and writing at the approximate speed of the camera.

9. Take a few shots and listen to the shutter. It should not have any odd noises and not stick.

10. Inspect the interior of the camera with the lens off and see if there are signs of damage, heavy dirt, or corrosion.

11. Check the contacts on the lens attachment for any signs of bent pins or corrosion. If you own your own lens it is a good time to take a few shots and make sure it will communicate with the lens.

There are likely a few more but these are what immediately come to mind.

[St_Croix_Banks]

Great information! Thank you to all that have chimed in. I greatly appreciate it.

[pureinsanity]

Great starter package for you! Cheap and in a year or two you can sell it off or hand it down and get a better model.

Over the years the cameras I used I still prefer canon for usability and easier to change the settings vs nikons ive used.

Basically in my opinion

Nikon = Better Glass

Canon = Better Capture

but it all depends what you like and what works best for you. I am sure someone locally might let you try out some of their cameras

[pureinsanity]

Check out B & H photo and video out of new york. Thats where most my guys get their stuff. also have a used and refurbished section

[spearchucker]

I think you mean B&H Photo not B&K, right?

[pureinsanity]

I think you mean B&H Photo not B&K, right?

Correct! thanks for spotting that!