Going to buy my first dslr today

artoledo · Mar 21, 2009

I have been looking at the Sony Alpha series, Nikon D60 & 90 and the Canon xsi. Any suggestions? I have never owned anything greater than a point and shoot digital cam. I am wanting to become a photographer and will be taking classes next month. Your input is greatly appreciated.

JE Kay · Mar 21, 2009

Canon 40D has dropped a ton. For the money it's no contest. :thumbup:

adman_glazer · Mar 21, 2009

artoledo said:
I have been looking at the Sony Alpha series, Nikon D60 & 90 and the Canon xsi. Any suggestions? I have never owned anything greater than a point and shoot digital cam. I am wanting to become a photographer and will be taking classes next month. Your input is greatly appreciated.

Go by feel. The differences between the Sony, Cannon and D90 aren't enough to sway a decision. Pick them both up and see how the layout feels and how it fits in your hands. If you have a camera that you love to hold, you will take more pictures more often and get better results. A better camera that feels off in your hands will become a bookend at your desk.

Ecas32 · Mar 21, 2009

adman_glazer said:
Go by feel. The differences between the Sony, Cannon and D90 aren't enough to sway a decision. Pick them both up and see how the layout feels and how it fits in your hands. If you have a camera that you love to hold, you will take more pictures more often and get better results. A better camera that feels off in your hands will become a bookend at your desk.

words of wisdom right there! +1

i have shot a sony alpha before (forget wich model it was) and it felt pretty good. i didnt get to see the outcome of the shots on the computer though, so i dont know how good the image quality is.
for me, i own a XSi. i love it. feels great for my hands and has great image quality, especialy for someone who is just getting into photography. its very user friendly unless you dont read the manual at all. it can handel high ISO fairley well as it works good for 800, but not so good when you get into 1600

artoledo · Mar 21, 2009

Thanks guys..... i am sorry for what I am about to ask... but what is ISO used for? lower to higher means what?

Ecas32 · Mar 21, 2009

artoledo said:
Thanks guys..... i am sorry for what I am about to ask... but what is ISO used for? lower to higher means what?

ISO is how fast the sensor records what it sees. the lower the iso the better image quality you will have. with high ISO you will start to see noise, which is equivilent to film grain. the reason you will sometimes use a high ISO is if you are in a low light situation.

i shoot wildlife/birds so i pretty much have to always use my camera handheld. on top of that, i have to use a telephoto lens so i dont scare away the animals. since i am handheld, their is alot of camera shake, and zooming in with a big telephoto lens just magnifies it even more. to fix all that, i have to use a fast shutter speed (1/320-1/500). since the fast shutters dont let in as much light as a slow shutter speed (1/100), i have to compensate by putting my ISO high (800-1600)

hope this helps!

kinosoo · Mar 21, 2009

one thing with the sony is take a good look at the lenses that you want / will want in the future. Nikon and canon have a huge line up of lenses for there cameras, and sigma, tamaron, ect have nikon and canon mounts for most of there lenes. last year when i looked at the sony there was not mutch of a slection, it is the mlinota mount though i beleve, so you might be abole to find some used lenses.

Also in the future it is a lot easer and cheaper to upgrade back rather then go out and buy everthing all over ageain. if you get a cheaper back and some good glass it will pay off in the long run.

ANDS! · Mar 21, 2009

adman_glazer said:
Go by feel. The differences between the Sony, Cannon and D90 aren't enough to sway a decision. Pick them both up and see how the layout feels and how it fits in your hands. If you have a camera that you love to hold, you will take more pictures more often and get better results. A better camera that feels off in your hands will become a bookend at your desk.

There is quite a bit of functional difference between those cameras.

adman_glazer · Mar 21, 2009

ANDS! said:
There is quite a bit of functional difference between those cameras.

Really? Wow thanks for the update. If you read the original post, they are just getting into this. For someone getting into DSLR don't you think getting them to take hundreds to thousands of pics for experience is going to do more for them then the functions of a camera?

ANDS! · Mar 21, 2009

adman_glazer said:
Really? Wow thanks for the update. If you read the original post, they are just getting into this. For someone getting into DSLR don't you think getting them to take hundreds to thousands of pics for experience is going to do more for them then the functions of a camera?

No. Because having to relearn the features that the utility of a "better" camera offers is a pain in the ass. If the OP has the capability of buying a camera like the D90 over the D40/D60 or 40D/XSi or whatever Sony offers - he should go for it. Period. Being new to the game is even more incentive to do so.

This nonsense about "camera feel" is silly - your muscle memory will adapt to the fell of WHATEVER camera you get. Unless a manufacturer is building camera bodies with spikes in them, or that are so ergonomically **** that a person suffers from using it - then yea, camera feel would rate somewhere around "What media does the camera use. . ." as far as importance to my decision.

artoledo · Mar 21, 2009

Ok guys, just bought my first DSLR..... and I bought the D90. My wife is going to kill me on the price of it but I am sure she will appreciate it when I become a pro and begin to make money.

Sherman Banks · Mar 21, 2009

artoledo said:
Ok guys, just bought my first DSLR..... and I bought the D90. My wife is going to kill me on the price of it but I am sure she will appreciate it when I become a pro and begin to make money.

Good luck with that! Congrats on the new purchase! There are many of us d60/d40 users who would love to have that camera.

AlexColeman · Mar 21, 2009

Great choice!!! You will love it and Nikon.

Josh66 · Mar 21, 2009

Congratulations - I'm sure you'll be happy with it. You should have brought home some flowers too - to soften the blow, lol!

LordNikon · Mar 21, 2009

artoledo said:
Ok guys, just bought my first DSLR..... and I bought the D90. My wife is going to kill me on the price of it but I am sure she will appreciate it when I become a pro and begin to make money.

You will never regret buying the D90, thats a great DSLR, also have the advantage that it records HD video ( 720p ). Enjoy your toy :thumbup: