D80 vs 30D

[Ptyler22]

Would those lenses have ok results like could I use it and be fine for now, or is it really bad?

 

[bhop]

That lens you linked would be a waste of money.

 

[Ptyler22]

ok. If I were to get the 30d from adorama it comes with an 18-55mm lens. does anybody have a suggestion for a lens that i could get for $200 or less maybe used?

 

[Village Idiot]

Wait you said "you'd get $200 P&S results if you didn't know what you were doing." what do you mean by this?
I also have some pictures I have shot at some events on the link in my signature if you feel like critiquing or telling me theres no way I could ever sell any of my shots if that's the way you feel, lol. How much do you generally sell shots for?

Well, most sport shooters shoot on full manual, or AV mode. You'll have to know how to balance out your ISO, aperture, and shutter speed to get the desired results. Too much ISO and you get a lot of grain, not enough and you'll have to use a slower shutter speed. A slower shutter speed leaves you with blurry photos. Open your aperture too wide and you get an extremely shallow DOF, not enough and you'll need to compensate with higher ISO or slower shutter speed.

Ever pan? A really good shot that I see used in track events usually involves a bit of panning, where you move the camera with the subject as you're taking the photo, so that the subject is in focus and sharp but the rest of the stationary objects in the scene are blurred. This takes practice and is actually something you can use with every sport.

I also noticed in several of the photos I looked at that your subjects were under exposed due to taking pictures in noon day sun or with the sun to their back. This is not something you do when you can't compensate with a bit of flash to fill in the shadows. If you try and lower your shutter speed, ISO, or use a narrower aperture, you'll have a properly exposed subject but everything else will be over exposed and will probably have blown highlights.

Ever shoot hockey? That's where you have to learn to get the right exposure so your ice isn't gray.

The cheapest lens I would reccomend would probably be the 85mm f/1.8. It's like 200, has a very wide maximum aperture, and is a decent focal length for sports like basketball, track etc... It's not a good lens for games like baseball and football.

 

[Ptyler22]

OK, thanks, do you think that these exposure problems wouldn't happen with an slr? the biggest problem with manually doing those things on my camera is that it is such a pain because you have to go through a bunch of setting to get to them because the hp r817 isn't designed for manual use like that.

 

[Ptyler22]

Do you think I would be happy with the 30d and the kit lens to play around with for a while until I find a good lens?

 

[maXpower]

I'll tell you, like a friend told me......."If you want to ride the train, you'll have to buy the ticket."


Buy a 40D "there on sale right now" for $1,299 then expect to double that price for a f2.8 lense......that's the only way you 'll get pro looking pictures that will be worth selling....:thumbup:

 

[Mystwalker]

? Is that for real or does that lens suck?

Never used it myself ... BUT have heard so much bad things about Phoenix lens, i would stay away.

For lens, Canon, Sigma and Tamron are all reliable - rather, have heard good things about their service centers

With all three, you get what you pay for.

I'm pretty sure you can get pro lvl shots with an XT/XTi + a decent lens. Assuming you know what you are doing.

 

[Ptyler22]

I'll tell you, like a friend told me......."If you want to ride the train, you'll have to buy the ticket."


Buy a 40D "there on sale right now" for $1,299 then expect to double that price for a f2.8 lense......that's the only way you 'll get pro looking pictures that will be worth selling....:thumbup:

I don't have enough money . Well I do, but it will be most of my life savings. I am getting a job this summer but my parents probably won't even let me get one unless they are convinced that I would be able to make the money back for it in like a year or two. Do you think it is possible? If you do think it is possible how likely do you think it would be for me to do that?

 

[Ptyler22]

Never used it myself ... BUT have heard so much bad things about Phoenix lens, i would stay away.

For lens, Canon, Sigma and Tamron are all reliable - rather, have heard good things about their service centers

With all three, you get what you pay for.

I'm pretty sure you can get pro lvl shots with an XT/XTi + a decent lens. Assuming you know what you are doing.

Really? I thought tamrons were bad, since they are so cheap

 

[Syndac]

Instead of asking us which you should buy, it would benefit you a lot more to spend a few hours learning basic photography online (as I did when I started). Knowing what the differences are between the lenses you've mentioned will greatly aid your selection process. Nobody can really tell you which to buy. Obviously for sports you want decent range (200ish mm) and the largest aperture possible (2.8) in most cases, but until you understand why those numbers are important and how to use them properly it wont do you much good anyways.

I started off knowing nothing and to be honest I spent weeks reading up on kit and basic photography before making my first purchase. Without that knowledge I wouldn't have had the slightest clue where to start.

 

[Syndac]

Really? I thought tamrons were bad, since they are so cheap

They may not be as good as canon/nikon, but they'll definitely be better than phoenix. You're quoting a $189 28-210mm lens... it doesn't get much cheaper than that. The price is generally the determining factor on the quality of a specific lens, not the name.

 

[Senor Hound]

I'll tell you, like a friend told me......."If you want to ride the train, you'll have to buy the ticket."


Buy a 40D "there on sale right now" for $1,299 then expect to double that price for a f2.8 lense......that's the only way you 'll get pro looking pictures that will be worth selling....:thumbup:

I STRONGLY disagree with this. The camera and lens does NOT make the photographer, it only gives you more options.

If someone like Alex B and I switched cameras, his photos would still be way better than mine. He's probably curse my camera a bit, because its so limited, but the shots would be there. I suggest you buy something like a 20D or D70. Learn your camera, learn your controls, and get to a point where you start cussing your kit lens cause its not fast enough. As I said before, you may find it to be sufficient for quite a while before the desire to buy better equipment comes in. Many people are complacent with their kit lenses for as long as they own their camera. Don't let these people on here make you think you have to spend two grand to take a good photo, cause that's TOTALLY untrue.

 

[Ptyler22]

I STRONGLY disagree with this. The camera and lens does NOT make the photographer, it only gives you more options.

If someone like Alex B and I switched cameras, his photos would still be way better than mine. He's probably curse my camera a bit, because its so limited, but the shots would be there. I suggest you buy something like a 20D or D70. Learn your camera, learn your controls, and get to a point where you start cussing your kit lens cause its not fast enough. As I said before, you may find it to be sufficient for quite a while before the desire to buy better equipment comes in. Many people are complacent with their kit lenses for as long as they own their camera. Don't let these people on here make you think you have to spend two grand to take a good photo, cause that's TOTALLY untrue.

Do you think I would imporve faster with one of those cameras or with a 30d or 40d that I wouldn't outgrow very soon.

 

[Ptyler22]

If I find a reeaaallyyy good deal on a 40d real soon I might get it but I think in the next couple days I am going to order the 30d if I don't find anything