New Camera Help

[Panzer]

I shoot a Nikon D3100 and a 55-200mm zoom got me this

[rolandsilvajr]

Bill if you can swing it look for a good used 5d mk2. It's way better than the 60d or 7d and the prices new are $ 2100-1800 so u can get a deal since the 5d mk3 came out. Canon had overstock. It's considered a pro camera I have been doing pro photography for 30 years and digital since the beginning in 2000. That is one of the cameras I used and it made me allot of money. You will be thrilled.

[Bill Cox]

Bill if you can swing it look for a good used 5d mk2. It's way better than the 60d or 7d and the prices new are $ 2100-1800 so u can get a deal since the 5d mk3 came out. Canon had overstock. It's considered a pro camera I have been doing pro photography for 30 years and digital since the beginning in 2000. That is one of the cameras I used and it made me allot of money. You will be thrilled.

its a hell of a camera, just not right for me. I looked at the 5d II and I just cant get past the sometimes slow AF and the slow continuous FPS is a turn off for me with my daughter starting school soon and soccer this coming summer. I know a FF senor will get me better image quality but I dont know if its a big enough difference to justify the cost, im ot looking at each of my images at 100% crop to see the difference. That being said if and when Pentax would offer a FF camera I might be swayed to pay the higher cost.

[SkogKniv]

Your first DSLR, then start simple. There is no need to jump right into a full frame camera. Get something entry level, and spend the rest of the money on good glass. Good glass is the real investment, not the body.

If you like the 60d, then take a look at the t4i. Or save some cash and get a t3i, and a couple good lens's.

[Spearo]

Zoom is not the same as magnification. Zoom is a cropping option. When the user zooms on a subject, the camera is simply making the picture bigger and then cropping it at a specified area of the picture plane. The more zoom the more the picture diminishes in quality and the more the picture is subject to blur from movement. When using point and shoot cameras on wildlife, even at considerable distance, I do not zoom. I can make the picture bigger when I get home and it will be better quality because it has less blur. The problem with point-shoots is that dirt gets into the barrel part of the lens. The more a person uses zoom, the more possibilities that dirt will get into the barrel of the lens. "Lens Error" is caused from bumping the barrel of the lens or getting dirt ino the barrel. If lens error occurs because of dirt, there are videos on how to fix the camera completely or to a varying degree.
When using zoom, the image is static in terms of the lower quality, the computer can do what the camera can do in terms of making a picture bigger, but a camera cant do what a computer can do. Nine times outa ten, the unadulterated image is going to be the better choice when you do the cropping on your computer.

[Lars]

I would go with a DSLR; it is worth it. I have a 7D and take it on all my hikes.

Here are some pictures I took with it (or some older Canon Rebel)..

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...1997720&type=3

[Bill Cox]

After much deliberation, looks like ill be ordering my new Pentax K5 next week. With image quality being paramount, its hard to go against it at its price point plus its completely weather sealed along with the kit lens.

Thanks Bill