Cheapest dslr camera?

[manicmike]

isn't cheap dslr kind of an oxymoron?

 

[ecnal]

I enjoy how he showed up, asked a valid question nicely, then proceeded to insult the suggestions people put up.

You want a cheap SLR? Buy a Nikon FM2. I have one, it takes great pictures. If it's just for learning, maybe you can learn some patience waiting to get your film developed.

My first DSLR was a D40, I still use it. I love it. Paid about 375$ for it refurbished two and a half years ago.

Check out this Leica. Makes even 1400 for a D300s seem cheap:

Leica | S2 SLR Digital Camera | 10801 | B&H Photo Video

 

[AUZambo]

I would check craigslist. I sold my Sony A100, 18-70 lens, 4 gig CF card, and bag for $350.

Of course, realize that you will probably one day want to upgrade bodies, so make sure you buy into a system you're willing to go with in the long haul.

 

[skieur]

Sony A230 with 18mm to 50mm lens $459 CAD less in the US.

skieur

 

[skid2964]

The most bang for your buck would be a Pentax from the *ist line. (*ist D, DS, DL, etc.) or even a K100d they have shake reduction.

I've seen these cameras sell on eBay with a kit lens for much less than $300, several around $200 and one even went for $130!

I own three *istD's and love these cameras. They have very respectable high ISO performace and can use all the Pentax lenses. I picked up a *istDS body for my daughter the other day for $160 and bought a 18-55mm kit lens for $50.

 

[iolair]

my main concern is lighting. Cameras fall short in dim lighting. They get blurry because the shutter isn't getting enough light to capture fast enough, they get noisy on ISO, and they paint your face white with a flash. It's funny because the nightlife is where I want to use the camera for mostly. Clubs, concerts, street racing, you get the idea.

Poor performance in dim lighting --> Get a faster lens. For example, the Canon 50mm 1.8 is a bargain (I presume other brands have similar equivalents). Most modern digital SLRs (last four years or so) have good high ISO performance with the noise well controlled.

Face whited out by the flash --> Don't use the flash on auto settings, learn how to control it properly. Even better, once you've learnt how to use the flash, get an external one on cable or remote control to use it at a distance from the camera.

 

[skieur]

Welcome to Photography. I started digital on a 1MP Kodak... today I am well over $10,000US in equipment and it keeps on getting deeper and deeper and deeper... lol

You were latee into digital. I started with a 300 pixel by 200 pixel Canon Xap Shot.

skieur

 

[GTR]

I enjoy how he showed up, asked a valid question nicely, then proceeded to insult the suggestions people put up.

You want a cheap SLR? Buy a Nikon FM2. I have one, it takes great pictures. If it's just for learning, maybe you can learn some patience waiting to get your film developed.

My first DSLR was a D40, I still use it. I love it. Paid about 375$ for it refurbished two and a half years ago.

Check out this Leica. Makes even 1400 for a D300s seem cheap:

Leica | S2 SLR Digital Camera | 10801 | B&H Photo Video

I hope you aren't talking about me...lol.

That price tag on that camera is the very definition of insanity. You could buy late model high-end sports cars with that kinda money.

Anyways, I also found out that Canon T1i also has the features I am looking for, and does more than the K-x. Still, both the K-x and the T1i are a bit overkill for me, even though they do exactly what I'm looking for.

I just have a hard time believing that no one has ever thought of a lower end camera with similar features as those two cameras.

 

[usayit]

I just have a hard time believing that no one has ever thought of a lower end camera with similar features as those two cameras.

Please list out the features you are talking about.

A whole bunch of people just posted cameras that are available well under your specified budget.



Btw.. people often miss the fact that the Leica S2 is

1) not out yet
2) medium format digital in an SLR like body.
3) Price range is within its competitors. Top end Hassy digital is $35k
4) is not targeted towards the consumer market but towards the professional.

 

[GTR]

I just have a hard time believing that no one has ever thought of a lower end camera with similar features as those two cameras.

Please list out the features you are talking about.

HD video recording
Good performance in low light
(Preferably) DSLR

A whole bunch of people just posted cameras that are available well under your specified budget.

Not really...they are good DSLR cameras though, that's for sure.

 

[usayit]

HD video recording
Good performance in low light
(Preferably) DSLR

HD video recording suggests a newer DSLR since that feature is relatively new to the market. Good performance in low light (which needs to be more accurately defined) can easily be an expensive proposition outside your budget. Low light.. ie high iso performance, low noise, and maintaining a wide dynamic range, has been a very difficult problem recently tackled by some very advanced technology. Expensive technology which will to trickle down to consumer level cameras over a period of time.... but not yet.

This is counter to

What struck me the most was how someone said $1800 on a camera is normal. No, it's not. It's for professional photographers, normal is 100 dollars on a compact P&S camera. You know, those cameras that are, oh I dunno, normal? For normal people?

I don't think it is "normal" for someone to shoot at ISO3200+ by candle light and expect the same image quality while shooting at ISO 100. That is no more normal than hoping into a car capable of the fastest lap around Neurburg ring. For those that require this capabilities, you have to expect to pay the price of admission.

 

[GTR]

HD video recording
Good performance in low light
(Preferably) DSLR

HD video recording suggests a newer DSLR since that feature is relatively new to the market. Good performance in low light (which needs to be more accurately defined) can easily be an expensive proposition outside your budget. Low light.. ie high iso performance, low noise, and maintaining a wide dynamic range, has been a very difficult problem recently tackled by some very advanced technology. Expensive technology which will to trickle down to consumer level cameras over a period of time.... but not yet.

This is counter to

What struck me the most was how someone said $1800 on a camera is normal. No, it's not. It's for professional photographers, normal is 100 dollars on a compact P&S camera. You know, those cameras that are, oh I dunno, normal? For normal people?

I don't think it is "normal" for someone to shoot at ISO3200+ by candle light and expect the same image quality while shooting at ISO 100. That is no more normal than hoping into a car capable of the fastest lap around Neurburg ring. For those that require this capabilities, you have to expect to pay the price of admission.

I guess "good" is a relative term...I don't mean perfect lighting in candle light, I mean just being able to see what's going on in the lighting of a night club. Not looking for perfection here, just something decent. Not looking to get the best lap time around the ring, just something that isn't laughable and performs well for its price.

 

[CupCakeCommando]

basically the cheapest you'll find will probably be the Original Rebel 300d (or nikon's equivalent) the 350d from Canon I've seen go in the $250 range.

yep. i found one today on Craigs list for $125. woulda bought it too if i had the cash :/ that was with a lens.

 

[CW Jones]

this thread should have stopped when the OP said "I'm 13"

No job, and looking for a cheaper DSLR than $350? Not going to find ones for $50 and a shoe lace.

 

[RancerDS]

Wow. So thats the cheapest eh?

Highway robbery much?

Even though it's not in your preferred budget, you have to bear in mind that ANYTHING dealing with photography will get expensive. The cheap reseller market of film SLR's doesn't mean they were inexpensive when they came out or that they would sell for less than $125 new. I think the Pentax ZX-M was a modernized version of the K1000 and ran about that price, which was bare-bones as it gets.

I remember when Ingram Micro-D (wholesale distributor) carried the earliest version of a Minolta digital SLR camera, it was about $4,000 at my cost. So count yourself lucky you can buy a dSLR kit for $275-350 used.

Also bear in mind the computer chip technology and circuitry involved in processing a 10 or 12MP image.