What kind of camera should I get?

[Aurora]

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[JIP]

What exactly do you mean by "become a photographer".

 

[~Stella~]

Why did you edit out your other posts, out of curiosity.

 

[JIP]

Why did you edit out your other posts, out of curiosity.

Who what posts??

 

[JIP]

Sorry now I see..

So Aurora what do you have now?? Usually the best place to start is expanding on the kit you already have that is why people always say tht you are buying in to a system that may take you down a very long road.

 

[usayit]

I mean professionally. Not just a hobby anymore.

Just like any profession, it takes more than just deciding on equipment. Have you thought about further education? constructing a portfolio? internship?








(Well equipped != professional photog)

 

[Mike_E]

OK, lets start from the beginning. What would you like to take pictures of?

What kind of business experience do you have?

How many years do you have to invest?

And how much money do you have to invest?

How strong is your marriage? Starting a business is as time consuming as having a full time mistress, I hope your S.O. isn't the jealous type.

*do you have a wife? If not get one cause you'll need some one to feed you the first couple of years. *

So, this is a short list, where do we begin?

 

[JIP]

I agree with all of the previous post and to add on to it. If you are in high school right now and you are really serious about taking up photography as a long term career. Be it fine art, Photojournalisim, portrature, or wedding or whatever you decide you want to do education is the best possible way to start. Where do you live? is there a good school near you? you really should be figuring this kind of thing out right now whatever grade you are in if of course you are in HS like I am assuming.

 

[JIP]

If you are in school for photography/art shouldn't you already have a decent camera?. If not go to a camera store and handle all the cameras you possibly can (personally I would only pick between Nikon or Canon for professional use) and figure out wich system fits your needs. Hold lenses, bodies and whatever you can to get a feel for what feels best to you. Just remember you are buying into a system that you may continue with for many yeara to come so choose wisely young Jedi.

 

[Sideburns]

You CAN take photogrpahy without all that sheesh mixed in...maybe not at your school, but it's available at a lot of colleges.

Anyways, go to the store, and hold a Canon, and a Nikon. Pick up a few in your price range. Buy which one feels right to you.

If you're gonna be in business right off the bat, go for like...20D or above (I dono what the is in Nikon terms)

Both Nikon and Canon will do the same thing, but doing them is different for each. Then you have different choices for lens options. That's mostly the biggest difference is the glass.

 

[usayit]

Hold the camera.

* does it feel comfortable?
* too heavy
* too light
* switch to aperture priority. Are you comfortable with how the camera changes the aperture?
* switch to shutter priority. Are you comfortable with how the camera changes the shutter setting?
* switch to manual. Can you easily change both the aperture and shutter without feeling confused
* go through the menus. do they make sense to you? How easy can you find features like ISO settings?
etc..

Nikon and Canon have different "user interface" designs. Some take to one or the other pretty consistently.


Honestly.. I am surprised that you have made it this far without so much as basic knowledge of an SLR (film or digital). Your original post made it sound like you just woke up one morning and said "I want to be a professional photographer".

If you really dig to the core of your question, you are asking a pretty broad question "What camera should I buy?". This is so broad that all you will get are general responses. If you dig into past posts, the "Which camera should I buy" posts that get the most useful feedback are those who provide a lot of information regarding what they like or expect out of a camera.

This is similar to asking "What clothing makes me look good?" without saying what type of clothes I want, what I planing, or even knowing if I am male or female.

 

[usayit]

oh yeh.. if you tried the Olympus E-500 and like it, I think that you should also consider Olympus; no reason that you should limit yourself just to nikon or canon.

 

[JIP]

oh yeh.. if you tried the Olympus E-500 and like it, I think that you should also consider Olympus; no reason that you should limit yourself just to nikon or canon.

Yes there is a reason if you plan to shoot professionally someday you would be doing youself a great disservice to buy into Olymus, Sony or any other company who decided in the last couple of years to jump into DSLR's when the market got hot. What is going to happen to your wonderful Olympus system when they decide the market for DSLRs is slowing down and they jump out of it again. I know this may sound harsh but Olympus has already done this once before. So now back into reality as has alredy been stated go to a store hold the different models (of Nikon or Canon) and figure out wich system overall fits your hands wich one feels the best to you personally. Make sure you compare apples to oranges though don't hold a Nikon D300 and a Conon Rebel xti and say "wow Nikon is soo much better" because neither one is it is just a matter of personal opinion.

 

[stormbind]

If I were you I would find out what the first "real" photography class you will be taking is and then talk to a couple of the professors that teach the course. This way you will not get to class to find out that the course requires you to have a film camera.

What type of school do you go to...there is a good chance that the library's media center may have nice camera's for you to check out.

I would hold out buying a DSLR until you have taken a few photography courses. Remember that waiting will give you the chance to save more money to get a better camera...and you will have more experience and know what better will suit your needs.

 

[sabbath999]

If not go to a camera store and handle all the cameras you possibly can (personally I would only pick between Nikon or Canon for professional use) and figure out wich system fits your needs. Hold lenses, bodies and whatever you can to get a feel for what feels best to you. Just remember you are buying into a system that you may continue with for many yeara to come so choose wisely young Jedi.

Better yet, get a job at that store and get a store discount on whatever you buy, while at the same time learning everything there is to know about photography hardware... you can make a few bucks, get a great deal on your equipment, and further your education all in one swoop.