Looking for a first camera

[Camshaft07]

I'm interesting in getting into photography and I'm really lost when it comes to all these cameras. I want to use it for shooting different places that I travel to but also I want to take it hunting with me to photograph wildlife. I'm also a big racing fan and would like to use it for that too... I'm guessing I will need to be able to take pictures (and maybe video) from a pretty far distance. I don't wanna break the bank but I don't want junk either (typical...haha) any advice or opinions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!!

 

[goodguy]

Well on a limited budget I would recommend a Nikon D7100
Its got a crop sensor which gives you 1.5X factor on your lenses so that means more reach then FF camera.
Its auto focus system is fantastic and its weather sealed so it can take rain and dust much better then other cheaper cameras.
Its got very good low light performance and if needed it has a crop 1.3 factor that gives you even more reach and 7 frames per second which is very good from a camera that cost less then 1000$
Dont forget though that to that you need to add lenses which probably will cost more then the camera new or if you willing to go used then a little bit less then a new D7100
D7100 is also a very capable video camera if you are a casual video shooter.

A classic option would be for your needs Canon 7D II but this camera new is 1800$
The 7D (classic) will cost about same as the D7100 but its low light performance are just not at the same level as the D7100.

Good luck!

 

[Camshaft07]

thank you goodguy! I'm definitely gonna check into those options! any lenses recommendations?

 

[Designer]

any advice or opinions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!!

Hey, camshaft, welcome!

1. There is no perfect camera for everything.
2. There are some good choices for any particular type of photography.
3. Add your budget, your tolerance for "gadgetry", your artistic ability, and "usability", and you'll get fairly close.
4. Any camera will do in a pinch.
5. You've hinted at weather resistance, portable, telephoto lens, and adaptability, so it looks like you might need three or four cameras (joke).

What's your budget?

 

[Camshaft07]

any advice or opinions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!!

Hey, camshaft, welcome!

1. There is no perfect camera for everything.
2. There are some good choices for any particular type of photography.
3. Add your budget, your tolerance for "gadgetry", your artistic ability, and "usability", and you'll get fairly close.
4. Any camera will do in a pinch.
5. You've hinted at weather resistance, portable, telephoto lens, and adaptability, so it looks like you might need three or four cameras (joke).

What's your budget?

I'd like to stay around $500-$700 range if possible but the more I look the less that seems possible haha . I found on Amazon this (Canon EOS Rebel SL1 18.0 MP CMOS Digital SLR with EF-S 18-55mm IS STM Lens With EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III Telephoto Zoom Lens + 58mm 2x Professional Lens +High Definition 58mm Wide Angle Lens + Auto Flash + Tripod +Uv Filter Kit with 24GB Complete Deluxe Accessory Bundle) for $650 seems like a good starter pack... now tell me its junk haha

 

[goodguy]

550$-700$ for the complete package is a very limiting budget, you will be able to get the most basic kits which will let you take pictures only in good lighting conditions and limit you on auto focus.
I know Canon SL1 is a camera designed to let you get a DSLR in the smallest size possible.
I don't know how effective its AF really is but looking at the price I have a feeling its a very basic AF system.
Sensor wise it has Canon's ancient 18MP which has been surpassed by the Sony sensors Nikon has in its DSLR's.
For this budget the D7100 will be out of your range, next best thing will be Nikon D7000 with 2 kit lenses 18-55mm and 55-300mm
Auto Focus system on the D7000 is very effective and will do the job nicely for basic needs.
If you plan on shooting wildlife in less then perfect daylight then you will need faster lenses which will cost you a lot more.

 

[Camshaft07]

550$-700$ for the complete package is a very limiting budget, you will be able to get the most basic kits which will let you take pictures only in good lighting conditions and limit you on auto focus.
I know Canon SL1 is a camera designed to let you get a DSLR in the smallest size possible.
I don't know how effective its AF really is but looking at the price I have a feeling its a very basic AF system.
Sensor wise it has Canon's ancient 18MP which has been surpassed by the Sony sensors Nikon has in its DSLR's.
For this budget the D7100 will be out of your range, next best thing will be Nikon D7000 with 2 kit lenses 18-55mm and 55-300mm
Auto Focus system on the D7000 is very effective and will do the job nicely for basic needs.
If you plan on shooting wildlife in less then perfect daylight then you will need faster lenses which will cost you a lot more.

I quickly found the D7000 body only for $500 or in a package with the 18-55mm lens and the Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens. If I were to do that should I pass on the lens and get better lens?

 

[goodguy]

550$-700$ for the complete package is a very limiting budget, you will be able to get the most basic kits which will let you take pictures only in good lighting conditions and limit you on auto focus.
I know Canon SL1 is a camera designed to let you get a DSLR in the smallest size possible.
I don't know how effective its AF really is but looking at the price I have a feeling its a very basic AF system.
Sensor wise it has Canon's ancient 18MP which has been surpassed by the Sony sensors Nikon has in its DSLR's.
For this budget the D7100 will be out of your range, next best thing will be Nikon D7000 with 2 kit lenses 18-55mm and 55-300mm
Auto Focus system on the D7000 is very effective and will do the job nicely for basic needs.
If you plan on shooting wildlife in less then perfect daylight then you will need faster lenses which will cost you a lot more.

I quickly found the D7000 body only for $500 or in a package with the 18-55mm lens and the Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens. If I were to do that should I pass on the lens and get better lens?

Get it because better lenses or may I say good lenses cost A LOT!!!
Even the basic 70-200mm 2.8 which are fantastic will give you very little reach for wildlife.
For the price the 55-300mm will give you best results.
Slightly better lens instead of the 55-30mm will be the Nikon 70-300mm VR, it focuses faster and is a bit sharper.
Even 300mm isnt a whole lot of reach for wildlife though, there are lenses like the Sigma 150-500mm which will be good for wildlife and you can look for a used one, mind you these are big heavy lenses.
At the end of the day it depends how deep your pocket is.

 

[mikoh4792]

I just got a Tamron 150-600mm VC f5-6.3 for shooting birds for around $1000. So far I really like it.

Here are some pics taken with this lens(Not my photos)
Full-size sample photos from Tamron 150-600mm F 5-6.3

 

[ruifo]

Your budget will not be enough for your needs. My recommendation is for you to get something like this:

Nikon D5200 camera (Body Only - Black Color) [$550]

• The extremely good 24 mpix sensor, in this entry level DSLR, is rated by many specialized sites as the best image quality camera among crop sensor APS-C DSLRs. Here are my sample shots with this camera. The flip out screen is ideal for video work, selfies and difficult angle shots (works like a charm). It does 5 frames per second, wich is not too bad at all for your first DSLR. I really recommend it as a first DSLR. Buy it as body only, with no kit-lens included, then you get this super-zoom lens recommended below. Get at least one extra battery (EN-EL 14A [$40]), and also a good SD memory card [$40] to use with this camera.

Sigma 18-250mm F3.5-6.3 DC Macro OS HSM lens for Nikon [$350]

• This is a super-zoom lens (18-250mm, or almost 14x zoom). As all super-zoom lenses, it has some downsides on image quality, but nothing really bad to serve as your very first lens. I have this lens and it really works well. Here are my sample shots with it and the D5200. It's not the best lens out there at all (these are very expensive), but I do like it for what it's meant to be.

Total investment: $980, with a garatee of great shots and fun ahead of you.

And after you buy that kit as your first camera and lens, you start saving for buying some extra lenses in the future, with much more improved quality (you won't regret), like these ones:

• Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM for Nikon [$800] -- today's best zoom lens for crop sensor APS-C DSLRs, fast and bright f/1.8, ideal for landscape/general/street/night/low light photography. Here some sample images.
• Nikkor AF-S 35mm f/1.8G DX [$200] - no zoom here, but a high quality fast/bright lens at affordable cost, ideal for general/street/night/low light photography. Here some sample images.
  
• Nikkor AF-S 40mm f/2.8G Micro DX [$250] - no zoom here, but a high quality lens at affordable cost, ideal for macro work and for general/street photography as well. Here some sample images.
  
• Nikkor AF-S 85mm f/1.8G [$500] - no zoom here, but a high quality fast/bright lens at affordable cost, ideal for portraits, given its added reach of 85mm. Here some sample images.
• Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD [$1,500] -- today's best cost-benefit high quility pro-level telephoto zoom lens, very fast and bright, ideal for mid-to-far way subjects, for portraits and for some action/sports as well. Here some sample images.
• Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD for Nikon [$1,070] -- today's bargain for super telephoto reach out there, ideal for far way subject with much extra reach, like wild life photography. Here some sample images.

Visit these two links below for studing lens and cameras reviews:

• Camera Lens Ratings by DxOMark - DxOMark
• Camera Sensor Ratings by DxOMark - DxOMark

Here is the look of the Nikon D5200 mounted with the Sigma 18-250mm lens:


D5200 and Sigma 18-250mm by ruimc77, on Flickr


And never forget the most important thing, among all: keep studying and practicing to be a better photographer. A good photographer will take good photographies with any camera and any lens out there, any...

 

[Camshaft07]

Your budget will not be enough for your needs. My recommendation is for you to get something like this:

Nikon D5200 camera (Body Only - Black Color) [$550]

• Very good entry level DSLR, rated by many specialized sites as the best image quality camera among crop sensor DSLRs. Here are my sample shots with this camera. I really recommend it as a first DSLR. Buy it as body only, with no kit-lens included, then you het this lens recommended below. Get at least one extra battery (EN-EL 14A [$40]), and also a good SD memory card [$40] to use with this camera.

Sigma 18-250mm F3.5-6.3 DC Macro OS HSM lens for Nikon [$350]

• This is a super-zoom lens (18-250mm, or almost 14x zoom). As all super-zoom lenses, it has some downsides on image quality, but nothing really bad to serve as your first lens. I have this lens and it really works well. Here are my sample shots with it and the D5200. It's not the best lens out there (these are very expensive), but I do like it for what its meant to be.

Total cost: $980, with a garatee of great shots ahead of you.

And after you buy that kit as your first camera and lens, you star saving for buying some extra lenses, with much more improved quality (you won't regret), like these ones:

• Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM for Nikon [$800] -- today's best zoom lens for crop sensor's DSLR. Here some sample images.
• Nikkor AF-S 35mm f/1.8G DX [$200] - no zoom here, but a high quality fast/bright lens at affordable cost, ideal for general shots. Here some sample images.
  
• Nikkor AF-S 40mm f/2.8G Micro DX [$250] - no zoom here, but a high quality lens at affordable cost, ideal for general shots and for macro shots as well. Here some sample images.
  
• Nikkor AF-S 85mm f/1.8G [$500] - no zoom here, but a high quality fast/bright lens at affordable cost, ideal for portraits, given its added zoom. Here some sample images.
• Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD [$1,500] -- today's best cost-benefit high quility pro-level telephoto zoom lens, ideal for mid-to-far way subjects, and for portraits. Here some sample images.
• Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD for Nikon [$1,070] -- today's bargain for super telephoto reach out there, ideal for far way subject with much extra reach, like wild life. Here some sample images.

Visit these two links below for studing lens and cameras reviews:

• Camera Lens Ratings by DxOMark - DxOMark
• Camera Sensor Ratings by DxOMark - DxOMark

Here is the look of the Nikon D5200 mounted with the Sigma 18-250mm lens:


D5200 and Sigma 18-250mm by ruimc77, on Flickr


And never forget the most important thing, among all: keep studying and practicing to be a better photographer. A good photographer will take good photographies with any camera and any lens out there, any...

thanks so much for the advice ruifo!!! that is definitely do-able, I can probably stretch my budget enough to accommodate that setup. I'm gonna do my research on the D5200 and that lens and see what the best deal I can find is.

 

[rudimaes]

You could also look at a good bridge like the Panasonic FZ1000. Very fast AF, up to 12 fps burst, good 25-400mm eq. Leica lens (F2.8-F4).
Can take 4K video, where each frame can be extract as a 8mp picture. (might be interesting voor races)
In 4K it crops to 592mm eq. zoom.
It's lighter than a DSLR with zoomlens and you don't have to hassle with lenses.
But of course it's each his own choice and whatever you buy, I hope you enjoy you new camera.
Rudi

 

[Solarflare]

Unfortunately both action cameras AND telephoto lenses are the most expensive kind of photographic equipment.

1. There is no perfect camera for everything.
2. There are some good choices for any particular type of photography.
[...]
4. Any camera will do in a pinch. [...]

1. There are some pretty great general cameras around. Specifically I know of no sports/action camera that isnt also a great general camera.
2. True, but specialists are usually not cheaper than generalists. The small series kills that part of the advantage list.
4. Not in this case. We are talking action, and we are talking extreme telephoto, and worst on top we might talk poor light as well. You wont get very far if you cannot focus on the subject, and you wont get very far if you have to drastically "digitally zoom" to get anything.

 

[Designer]

Solarflare; my points were intended to show the OP that he has to make some hard choices and that usually means compromise.

If you read my response carefully, and in the context of informing a newbie, and with the budget question as yet unanswered, you will see that there is no need whatsoever for arguing with any of the points.

 

[LostLensCap]

This will meet your wants at the price you are willing to pay.
Amazon.com Nikon D3300 24.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f 3.5-5.6G VR II Zoom Lens Black Camera Photo
The package that includes the 55-200 will do it for you. Many will poo-poo this package but, I have found the 18-55 55-200 combination to be really good, not great but good.