DSLR within 60k

[codename5302]

Well, higher dynamic range will make editing easier as there will be less occasions where the highlights or shadows are clipped. You can't always shoot in HDR, can you (especially for portraits/moving objects)? And higher cont shot framerate is kinda important as I usually like to shoot kids and you know what they do... they move so fast. So I almost always end up with blurred hands or faces, unless I use flash (I hate flash).

And... am I right about the camera prices going up in near future? Because if it stays as it is now for ... about 3-4 months, then there is no hurry and I can buy a higher end model (maybe even the D7000) afterwords.

And you guys are recommending low end cam + high end lens rather than the other way round? Am I not sacrificing image quality this way? Correct me if I'm wrong as I'm not familiar with interchangable lens cameras.

hdr is a technic you can even use in photoshop. it is even built in in newer version of photoshop. an are you going to edit in camera. most probably not.
flash is your preference.
continous shot 3/4 fps is more than enough unless you are a sports photographer. with a little patience you can learn anything and can do anything even with compact cameras.
i always like to say and believe in investing on good lens. a good lens with a low end camera can make your photo outstanding than a high end camera with low end lens. again it is only my opinion.

if you have relatives or friends in abroad then try to buy from them. you can even get a good deal if you buy lens and camera together. but i would suggest whatever you buy try to avoid 18-55 f4-5.6 lens. it is totally useless. try to get a 18-200 if you find cheaper on ebay. i dont know how many times i lost on bidding on good lens with silly prices. i even got a chance to buy 50mm f1.4 for just over 120 pounds, where i put my last bid of 100 pounds.

d5100 is an excellent camera. if you have budget then go for it. or if you are really short of budget then go for canon 450d/550d whatever with good lens. whatevr you buy at least try one prime lens, you will see how good picture quality is on prime lens.

or if you win a lottery buy hasselblad h4d-60. worth invsting.

[asif105878]

@eXsTatik, @codename5302, @Hemlock

I spotted these deals on a Canon EOS 60D:

http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.a...6CNEOS60D18135
http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/prod...6CNEOS60D18135

What do you think? Are these deals good? Is the lens good?

I wanted to buy the Nikon d7000 but its price is ~ $1800 with a decent lens and I cannot go higher than $1200. The Canon EOS 60D is supposed to be better than the Nikon d3100 and d5100. Is there any chance the price of the Nikon d7000 will go down to my budget in the next few months? If so then I am going to wait.

[codename5302]

@eXsTatik, @codename5302,


I spotted these deals on a Canon EOS 60D:

http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.a...6CNEOS60D18135
http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/prod...6CNEOS60D18135

What do you think? Are these deals good? Is the lens good?

I wanted to buy the Nikon d7000 but its price is ~ $1800 with a decent lens and I cannot go higher than $1200. The Canon EOS 60D is supposed to be better than the Nikon d3100 and d5100. Is there any chance the price of the Nikon d7000 will go down to my budget in the next few months? If so then I am going to wait.

the deals are quite good but if you are not intersted in printer then look for 450d/550d with at least two lens. i saw many places and with a little search i think you can get it within 1200.
and yes the lens is better than the other kit lens.

[Hemlock]

@eXsTatik, @codename5302, @Hemlock

I spotted these deals on a Canon EOS 60D:

http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.a...6CNEOS60D18135
http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/prod...6CNEOS60D18135

What do you think? Are these deals good? Is the lens good?

I wanted to buy the Nikon d7000 but its price is ~ $1800 with a decent lens and I cannot go higher than $1200. The Canon EOS 60D is supposed to be better than the Nikon d3100 and d5100. Is there any chance the price of the Nikon d7000 will go down to my budget in the next few months? If so then I am going to wait.

The 18-135's nice, but do consider a f/1.8 prime, it makes the world of difference. And i don 't know why they would b throwing a Pixma in the deal! lol.
Btw, are beachcamera and buydig well reputed? I mean, i see these guys throwing deals in ebay and everywhere and they always list exactly the same items with just a little bit of price variation. Both are located in NJ i guess and seem to be the same sellers. And they list products at unbelievable prices. I was about to order a pair of $330 Ultrasones from them which they listed for $180, but i refrained from doing so because something looked fishy to me and i was suspecting if it's a scam. I mean, i know, they sure do have a lot of products, but may be not everything that they list. I once ordered the K-x from 'bestpriceelectronics' because they had it for an unbeleivable price and the camera never arrived, after a wasted week they did return the money though but this created a lot of problems for me then because the camera didn 't arrive in the appropriate time-frame and it was too late to order another one and make sure it arrived before my uncle 's flight.

So, let us know how it goes when u deal with buydig/beachcamera, will help us decide before placing orders.

[asif105878]

The 18-135's nice, but do consider a f/1.8 prime, it makes the world of difference. And i don 't know why they would b throwing a Pixma in the deal! lol.
Btw, are beachcamera and buydig well reputed? I mean, i see these guys throwing deals in ebay and everywhere and they always list exactly the same items with just a little bit of price variation. Both are located in NJ i guess and seem to be the same sellers. And they list products at unbelievable prices. I was about to order a pair of $330 Ultrasones from them which they listed for $180, but i refrained from doing so because something looked fishy to me and i was suspecting if it's a scam. I mean, i know, they sure do have a lot of products, but may be not everything that they list. I once ordered the K-x from 'bestpriceelectronics' because they had it for an unbeleivable price and the camera never arrived, after a wasted week they did return the money though but this created a lot of problems for me then because the camera didn 't arrive in the appropriate time-frame and it was too late to order another one and make sure it arrived before my uncle 's flight.

So, let us know how it goes when u deal with buydig/beachcamera, will help us decide before placing orders.

Some other deals that I found:
http://www.adorama.com/ICA60DL11.html
http://www.adorama.com/ICA60DK1A.html

The lens is different in both of them though. Adorama seems a more reputed dealer than buydig/beach camera. Do you know of any other online retailers that are good?

The Nikon d7000s are out of stock in most retailers for some reason

[Hemlock]

Some other deals that I found:
http://www.adorama.com/ICA60DL11.html
http://www.adorama.com/ICA60DK1A.html

The lens is different in both of them though. Adorama seems a more reputed dealer than buydig/beach camera

Settle for the $1219 deal....the other one has a 55-250mm telephoto lens, it 's not a multi-purpose lens and you 'll have to buy another lens in the 18-xx range to go along with it to shoot indoors.
Adorama is well-trusted.

[asif105878]

Settle for the $1219 deal....the other one has a 55-250mm telephoto lens, it 's not a multi-purpose lens and you 'll have to buy another lens in the 18-xx range to go along with it to shoot indoors.
Adorama is well-trusted.

Some more deals:
http://www.adorama.com/ICA60DK1FA.html
http://www.adorama.com/INKD90KA.html

Is the speedlite flash really necessary?

This one looks fishy
http://www.certifieddigital.com/prod...t/341/5/view/0

[proton_chain]

hdr is a technic you can even use in photoshop. it is even built in in newer version of photoshop. an are you going to edit in camera. most probably not.

LOL, you probably misunderstood me. I am NOT talking about in-camera HDR $hit, I prefer to do every tweaking manually. My point is, you have to combine 2/3 or more images (depends on the atmosphere) to form a 32-bit HDR image. True, you can split the RAW file into 3 exposures but you get only 12/14/16-bit info from one RAW file. With 3 or more, you are working with a lot more information and the results will be more realistic. That's okay if the subject is still... like a building or mountain or something, not an object which is constantly moving (images won't align perfectly).

I made an HDRI tut for beginners back in 2010. In case you didn't see it, here it is.

[codename5302]

LOL, you probably misunderstood me. I am NOT talking about in-camera HDR $hit, I prefer to do every tweaking manually. My point is, you have to combine 2/3 or more images (depends on the atmosphere) to form a 32-bit HDR image. True, you can split the RAW file into 3 exposures but you get only 12/14/16-bit info from one RAW file. With 3 or more, you are working with a lot more information and the results will be more realistic. That's okay if the subject is still... like a building or mountain or something, not an object which is constantly moving (images won't align perfectly).

I made an HDRI tut for beginners back in 2010. In case you didn't see it, here it is.

then you will have to go for midrange anfd newer models.
personally i use hdr efex pro plugin for hdr. it has the abiliy to create hdr image even from one image.
btw nice tutorial.

[eXsTatik]

35mm is not a usable lens ? well either your one is broke or theres something else wrong, I have the 35mm F1.8, 85mm F1.8, 24-85 AFS (Fx) and a samyang 14mm 2.8 (fx).

I use the 35mil the most. I also used an 80-200MM F2.8 for a short while and I love my 35mm f1.8 and 85 the most. The 35 is a tad soft wide open but that also gives a dreamy touch to the photos and is good for portraits.

---------- Post added at 22:54 ---------- Previous post was at 22:52 ----------

then you will have to go for midrange anfd newer models.
personally i use hdr efex pro plugin for hdr. it has the abiliy to create hdr image even from one image.
btw nice tutorial.

Creating HDR from one image will not yield as much as dynamic range as one from multiple exposure but its much easier to do, personally I don't do HDR. Its fun but I stopped fiddling with it long time back.

---------- Post added at 22:56 ---------- Previous post was at 22:54 ----------

hdr is a technic you can even use in photoshop. it is even built in in newer version of photoshop. an are you going to edit in camera. most probably not.
flash is your preference.
continous shot 3/4 fps is more than enough unless you are a sports photographer. with a little patience you can learn anything and can do anything even with compact cameras.
i always like to say and believe in investing on good lens. a good lens with a low end camera can make your photo outstanding than a high end camera with low end lens. again it is only my opinion.

if you have relatives or friends in abroad then try to buy from them. you can even get a good deal if you buy lens and camera together. but i would suggest whatever you buy try to avoid 18-55 f4-5.6 lens. it is totally useless. try to get a 18-200 if you find cheaper on ebay. i dont know how many times i lost on bidding on good lens with silly prices. i even got a chance to buy 50mm f1.4 for just over 120 pounds, where i put my last bid of 100 pounds.

d5100 is an excellent camera. if you have budget then go for it. or if you are really short of budget then go for canon 450d/550d whatever with good lens. whatevr you buy at least try one prime lens, you will see how good picture quality is on prime lens.

or if you win a lottery buy hasselblad h4d-60. worth invsting.

I would rather go for a Leica S2 as its alot more 'portable'.

[Ra's al Ghul]

It's not the camera, it's the user
D3100 vs 550D, temon kono difference nai.
Here's my shots taken with the D3100 http://beafraid22.deviantart.com/

Chobi dekhe decide koro konta niba.

[codename5302]

^ nice photos!!!

[eXsTatik]

It's not the camera, it's the user
D3100 vs 550D, temon kono difference nai.
Here's my shots taken with the D3100 http://beafraid22.deviantart.com/

Chobi dekhe decide koro konta niba.

I said the same thing, but as a camera I feel the d3100 is a bit better, Im talking about while snapping photos, its operation is quite and snappy thats one of the quality that has made me fall for D3100 .

P.s check my flickr although havent been active for a while ^^
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zulksflickr/page1/

[proton_chain]

Okay guys, I have finally chosen the D5100. Fotoblaze asks for 74k with intact box and warranty. Camera Zone asks for 72k, but when I asked them about warranty they first tried to avoid the question but when I asked again they just said that DSLRs usually don't malfunction unless dropped. If anything is wrong they will fix it, and will send to Singapore for fixing if they can't in which case I will have to pay the price for the parts. Please note that the price is with the 18-55mm kit lens. See this post (look at the bottom, last 3-4 comments). Is he referring to the service that Camera Zone is offering? I am so confused.

And I am planning on not taking the 18-55mm kit lens and going for 50mm prime f/1.8. Good choice or not?

I may have to buy it today (my preparatory test will start from Saturday, the day after tomorrow so I don't really have a choice) so I need immediate response. Mentioning @eXsTatik ; @error ; @codename5302 ; @Hemlock so that you can give me feedback as soon as you see this. I have maybe a few hours in hand.

[Ra's al Ghul]

You'll need a wide lens, nahole shudhu portraits chara kisu nite parba na. 18-105 and 50 prime should be ideal for everyday use.

[proton_chain]

I just want the camera with "a" lens now, I will buy additional lenses like wide angle ones after my HSC. So, I am going with the 50mm one (as I will need it now or later) rather than the 18-55mm VR kit lens. And portraits are more important now (before HSC).

[error]

I may have to buy it today (my preparatory test will start from Saturday, the day after tomorrow so I don't really have a choice) so I need immediate response. Mentioning @eXsTatik ; @error ; @codename5302 ; @Hemlock so that you can give me feedback as soon as you see this. I have maybe a few hours in hand.

IMO, you should get the kit lens or the 18-105 now instead of the prime, should be enough for random portraits for now, get the prime later on. Oh and, get it from anywhere you feel safe about, fotoblaze is the one i'm assuming.

[eXsTatik]

You'll need a wide lens, nahole shudhu portraits chara kisu nite parba na. 18-105 and 50 prime should be ideal for everyday use.

Ekta prime lens die chobi tula give you much more involved with taking photos than a zoom lens. Its much more credible too , I would most definitely take the 50mm F1.8 above all else, but since they do translate to 75mm in the crop bodies they arent as versatile as they were in the film era, before kit lenses were 50mm F2 or 1.8

[Hemlock]

Nope, i 'd rather take the 18-55 now and buy the prime later. Granted, the prime shoots in much better IQ than the kit lens, but it 's simply not versatile enough for every situation, you may have to step back while shooting indoors and even worse, there might not be enough space for you to move back in order to fit the scene in the frame. Definitely not suitable for shooting kids indoors like you mentioned in your list of requirements if i remember correctly.

[proton_chain]

Got the D5100 today. Unfortunately the 50mm prime they offered did not have autofocus support for D5100, so I just left with the body. BTW, I bought it from Camera Zone (HM Plaza branch). They don't have AF-S 50mm prime f/1.8 G in stock (only 35mm) so I am thinking about ordering one. Fotoblaze comes into action here. Fotoblaze representatives told me that they will require 2 days to bring it from Bankok. Its 2.3x more pricey though.

Nope, i 'd rather take the 18-55 now and buy the prime later. Granted, the prime shoots in much better IQ than the kit lens, but it 's simply not versatile enough for every situation, you may have to step back while shooting indoors and even worse, there might not be enough space for you to move back in order to fit the scene in the frame. Definitely not suitable for shooting kids indoors like you mentioned in your list of requirements if i remember correctly.

I'm not shooting much now, when I will I may buy a wide angle (must) and maybe a 18-105mm VR lens (if budget permits). But that's a few months later. All I'm gonna shoot now is portraits (if I do any shooting).