Camera Recommendation- Street Photography

ch4o · Oct 21, 2008

Its my first post here, but I've been going through lots of threads since I joined the fast few days. There are lots of helpful info/people on this site and I'm lovin it.

I'm interested in street photography (i.e. urban life, people, and buildings), could you guys recommend a DSLR and lens for this type of photography? I'm guessing that any brand of dslr should be OK and it should be more about lens, but I am just wondering if some dslr are better than others for street photography. After looking/researching different models, I think i'm narrowing my search down to Nikon D40-D80, and Canon XSI. I would like to spend around $1000 (would be better if it was not more than $1000 :lol:

).

Should I include the kit lens with my purchase or get the body + other lens?

Any help/comments?

ch4o · Oct 21, 2008

Just to clarify

"Nikon D40-D80"= D40 or D60 or D80

Thanks!

usayit · Oct 21, 2008

Selecting a DSLR for street photography is no different than selecting a camera body for general photography. It is a factor of personal preferences that is best determined by personally holding and handling the camera bodies. Some might prefer smaller compact cameras just to be more discreet. What does matter (at least for me) is lens selection... I prefer wide angle MANUAL focus lenses with DOF markings. This makes it much easier to prefocus and leverage hyper-focal. Since Canon EOS is not backwards compatible with manual lenses, I'm more inclined to consider Nikon with a nice zoom paired with a manual focus wide angle lens. (I am a Canon shooter who likes the EOS system for other reasons).

SilverGlow · Oct 23, 2008

usayit said:
Selecting a DSLR for street photography is no different than selecting a camera body for general photography. It is a factor of personal preferences that is best determined by personally holding and handling the camera bodies. Some might prefer smaller compact cameras just to be more discreet. What does matter (at least for me) is lens selection... I prefer wide angle MANUAL focus lenses with DOF markings. This makes it much easier to prefocus and leverage hyper-focal. Since Canon EOS is not backwards compatible with manual lenses, I'm more inclined to consider Nikon with a nice zoom paired with a manual focus wide angle lens. (I am a Canon shooter who likes the EOS system for other reasons).

But all Canon AF lenses can be focused manually, and most of them have the DOF markings too.

usayit · Oct 23, 2008

Canon EOS system doesn't lend itself well to manual focus. Not all have DOF markings.

The idea is to select the most comfortable body and focus on the lens.

TUX424 · Oct 23, 2008

i would a D40 or a D80 skip on the D60 (its the samething as the D40)
i would get the D40 for a budget (but it wont auto focus the 50 ƒ1.8)
i get the D80 b/c it have a heftry fell ad it will auto focus the 50 ƒ1.8 and the lens that arnt AF-S which the D40 wont.
O you could get a D70 with a 18-70 kit lens for $475 and have enough for some more fun photography stuff such as a wide angle.
As for wide angles there is the Sigma 10-20 ƒ4 and the Tokina 11-16 ƒ2.8
Happy Hunting

ch4o · Oct 24, 2008

Thanks for the help guys...
I think I have narrowed it down to the D80/D70... but I'm leaning towards the D80...

The D70 is really cheap right now tho... so i'll do a bit more reading...

Thanks

Heck · Oct 24, 2008

If your thinking of going the D40 way I have a used D40x for sale in the buy section..

dan.rpo · Oct 25, 2008

i just purchased a brand new d40 with kit lens, 4gb memory card, card reader, nikon bag for $475 yesterday....the camera is EXCELLENT for the $$, especially on a budget...i spent less than i thoguht i was going to and now have extra to purchase the 55-200mm VR lens! i suggest the D40 to ANYONE!

skieur · Nov 1, 2008

I find that the best camera for street photography is the Sony A350. The reason is two important features. The best implementation of Live View with fast autofocus etc. and a tilt LCD screen. I can shoot with the camera in my lap, sitting in the shade. No one even notices what I am doing.

skieur

Dao · Nov 1, 2008

skieur said:
I can shoot with the camera in my lap, sitting in the shade. No one even notices what I am doing.

hum ..... what are you trying to take?

Don Simon · Nov 2, 2008

Dao said:
hum ..... what are you trying to take?

Photographs

Street photography has always required some 'stealth'. It is hard to have spontaneity if you first announce your intentions or go around asking everyone permission to take the shot. Plenty of people just don't like having their photographs taken and you may not want all your photographs to be full of surprised or angry faces. Currently it's getting even harder to simply take a photograph without facing suspicion, so it's perfectly understandable that street photographers want to work unnoticed.

Patm1313 · Nov 2, 2008

Camera body, like said, is really a matter of preference. As for the lens, you really don't need something much over 150mm, and instead you might want to invest in a wide angle lens.

skieur · Nov 2, 2008

Patm1313 said:
Camera body, like said, is really a matter of preference. As for the lens, you really don't need something much over 150mm, and instead you might want to invest in a wide angle lens.

Camera body is important in that how easy is it to use for street photography in terms of autofocus, metering, framing, stabilization etc. I find that it is easy to be spotted once you put your camera to your eye, so a tilt screen produces a more natural shot of a person.

As to lenses, the challenge is to isolate your centre of interest from a lot of the visual distractions in the background which means a 28mm to 40mm focal length and being very close, or being back farther and using a telephoto zoom and depending on location that could be from 100mm to 400mm.

skieur