Beginners needing guidance in choosing a camera

sovietdoc · Jul 12, 2012

Originally Posted by sovietdoc
"When" I have been to AK, it didn't rain in the places I went. But "when" I went to WA, it rained almost all the time. Therefore my argument wins. Right? Right?

...No?

I've been to Dover, England... And it rained the entire day I was there. Therefore it must be the rainiest part of England. It didn't rain in London while I was there, so it must be totally dry 24/7 and never experience any climate differences.

You guys are hopeless. Next time I'll just write the word "joke" above.

Sorry OP, carry on.

jaomul · Jul 13, 2012

Someone earlier said hold them and pick then. This is good advice. Both will be very close specs wise. If by holding them both feel ok to you go with the brand that a friend has. This may give you the option to try other gear such as lenses and flashes etc. As a side note as rain was mentioned the Pentax K5 comes waterproof with the option of an 18-55 and 55-200 weather resistant lenses. It is slightly more expensive but does have 2 stops anti shake tech built into the body. Well worth considering if your camera doesn't need to be one of the bigger 2 brands

Psytrox · Jul 13, 2012

As far as Nikon vs Canon goes, I would reccomend that you go to a shop that has both. Hold them, and see which button configuration feels best for you.
Weatherproofing, treat it like your cell phone. Take it out when you intend to use it, otherwise its in your pocket (in the case of your camera, in a bag/under your coat), dry off the raindrops with your sleeve when your finished taking your photos, you should be fine...

greybeard · Jul 13, 2012

The d5100 and T3i are designed for the exact same market and perform comparably. They both have a huge amount of accessories available so I would call it a dead heat. Handle both and buy the one that you like the best.

o hey tyler · Jul 13, 2012

I guess it's hard to discern your style of "humor" from plain old ignorance, bro.

sovietdoc · Jul 13, 2012

o hey tyler said:
I guess it's hard to discern your style of "humor" from plain old ignorance, bro.

There is a difference between ignorance and sarcasm.

In any case, my apologies. Let's get back to the topic shall we?

CarolinaGirl527 · Jul 13, 2012

Thank you all so much for taking the time to respond to my inquiry! (Although I certainly didn't intend to start a fight by posting.

) It has been very helpful.

Just to verify ... do you think I'm okay using this for recording video of my son's band performances or should I get a camcorder? (The one I'm using now isn't even HD, so just about anything would be an improvement.) Is it an easy task to go back and forth from recording to still pictures?

I'm looking forward to going and getting my hands on these cameras and deciding which to get. Getting started won't be easy since we're starting from scratch, even with all the photography terminology. We have so much to learn, but I'm excited to get started. I plan on keeping this site bookmarked and making use of all the expertise here!