A Question From A "Wanna-Be"

ac!d · Oct 18, 2008

Hello everyone, I've been thinking somewhat seriously about getting into photography. I'd be taking pictures of mostly landscape and skiing.

What type of camera do you think would suit me best?

I was thinking that a "Bridge Camera" would be a good suit me well considering I'd be able to put images on my computer without having to sacrifice quality. Being able to put pictures on my computer is a definite must. But basically anyone would know better than I about what kind of camera would be my best fit. I also am not willing to use film. Basically I want a bomb ass digital camera.

Budget: I'd like to spend no more than like $700. (US)

Any input would be most appreciated, thanks a ton.

Ls3D · Oct 18, 2008

Budget, budget, Oh,.. and what is your budget? -S

Johnboy2978 · Oct 18, 2008

On a sub $700 budget, you are pretty much going to be limited to a bridge camera then. You can get several different DSLR bodies for less than $700 right now, but you can easily spend $500-1000 on a lens for a DSLR. Someone will come along to give you some cameras to look at which are bridge type.

ac!d · Oct 18, 2008

Can I get someone's opinion on a Canon EOS 400D / Digital Rebel XTi ?

Josh66 · Oct 18, 2008

ac!d said:
Can I get someone's opinion on a Canon EOS 400D / Digital Rebel XTi ?

Should be fine (I have a 350D). I think once you start buying lenses and all that your budget will be blown though.

It'll come with the kit lens, but for a "bomb ass digital camera" you're going to want better than that.

ac!d · Oct 18, 2008

If I were to go with the Canon 350D, what sort of start up lens would one suggest? Lets forget about making a "bomb ass" camera and start looking for a somewhat reasonable idea; I started off too bashful, honest mistake.

By the way, I'll most likely be carrying this around everywhere I go and it would be in cold weather a lot of the time (I live in NH and I ski six days a week in the winter). What sort of battery life would this thing have, are there larger batteries available to buy, and what sort of effect would cold temperatures have on it?

Also, what sort of memory would this have, I realize I am to buy like 1GB memory cards for it, but are there any compatibilities I should be aware about? It's a 2005 camera but I expect it should be compatible with most memory cards. Am I accurate in this?

Thanks again everyone, you're all so helpful.

Josh66 · Oct 18, 2008

If you were to go with the 350D (body only) and a 50mm f/1.4, you would come in under your budget, and I think it would work well for what you want to use it for.

Get one or two spare batteries, they won't last long in the cold. Keep the spares in your pocket, close to your body (where they'll stay warm). You could get the battery grip, which uses regular AA batteries, not sure what the life will be in cold weather though.

You're probably not going to want to be dragging around a camera bag with 5 lenses in it skiing all day. I would go with the 50 and a zoom (kit lens, maybe...?) - something you can keep in a pocket.

tirediron · Oct 19, 2008

O|||||||O said:
If you were to go with the 350D (body only) and a 50mm f/1.4, you would come in under your budget, and I think it would work well for what you want to use it for.

I'm afraid I don't agree with this. Yes, the 50mm is a good lens, but don't forget on an APS-C camera, it has a 75mm equivalent focal length which is mild telephoto. For landscape work you generally want a wider angle, say 18mm (27mm equiv). For things like skiing, a zoom is going to be essential, and I would think something wide to at least medium telephoto. I'm not overly familiar with the Canon lens lineup, but I'm sure someone can chime in with recommendations for the 18-150mm range or thereabouts.

ac!d · Oct 19, 2008

tirediron said:
I'm afraid I don't agree with this. Yes, the 50mm is a good lens, but don't forget on an APS-C camera, it has a 75mm equivalent focal length which is mild telephoto. For landscape work you generally want a wider angle, say 18mm (27mm equiv). For things like skiing, a zoom is going to be essential, and I would think something wide to at least medium telephoto. I'm not overly familiar with the Canon lens lineup, but I'm sure someone can chime in with recommendations for the 18-150mm range or thereabouts.

I just found one of my mom's, I think it was, Tamrom 70-300 Tiffen. It's a really nice lens, would that work for what I'm going to be doing?

ac!d · Oct 19, 2008

I've been looking on eBay and I think I found a pretty nice deal. It's a Canon 400D Rebel XTi that comes with an 18-55mm Lens and some other goodies, like an 8GB memory, an extra battery and a 5 piece cleaning kit. This is all for a little under $600. What do people think?

Josh66 · Oct 19, 2008

70-300 is going to be pretty long.

As tirediron pointed out, even the 50mm might be too long for what you want.

Exactly what kind of shots are you looking for? I don't see too many "landscape" opportunities on a ski slope (I didn't always live in Texas...

). I personally think that a 50 will suit you just fine, but I guess it depends on what you want to take pictures of.

A 70-300 on a ski slope will most likely only be good for head shots, unless the subject is pretty far away. If you already have it, I wouldn't get rid of it though.

NateWagner · Oct 19, 2008

well, if you backed out a bit more on the camera body you could get an xt, or perhaps a 20d plus maybe a tamron, or sigma 18-50ish range 2.8 for your 700 dollars

ac!d · Oct 19, 2008

So that would be a good idea for me to go with the deal I found on eBay I described above; the one where the 400D comes with the 18-55mm lens.

Josh66 · Oct 19, 2008

Sounds like a decent deal (the 400D goes for around $500, body only), just make sure the seller is reputable. (I would personally buy from somewhere like B&H or Adorama, but it's your choice.)

A4Effort · Oct 19, 2008

Ok, if you want to shoot those alley oops, corkscrews, flatspins, 5's, 7's, and 9's than you will need a fast lens. You won't need a huge zoom lens but something along the lines of a 24-105 or even a nice 24-70 will do just fine. Fisheye lenses definitly make these shots stand out even more but get boring really quick.

My suggestion is to browse the web and look for sites on ski photography and see if you can find out what lenses they are using.