Hello everyone, advice please and thank you

[hliang]

Hello, I am completely new to photography, by that I mean I have never owned my own camera, well at least not a SLR. Over the years I have slowly saved up and after everything was set and done I had about 600 dollars left to spend it on whatever and I decided I would buy a camera.

That seems good for a little background story.

I was wondering what would be a good camera for my price range? (600 dollars) I plan on using this for, dance photography (mainly bboying(break dancing); which would also be in dance studios, gyms and such, the lighting does vary from place to place, and cars.

-edit- Oh i forgot, for the dancers, I will most likely be up close to the dancers since most of the events I go to are held in a dance studio or gym so I can make my way to the front and be close to the dancers taking pictures.
BUT there are times where events are held on stages and I have no access on the stage and will be in seats

Of course I do plan on upgrading later on, new lens, new body etc... but that will have to wait till I save up more money.

Just curious as to what you guys suggest and such. If nothing seems to be good for me, then would you guys just suggest a camera in my budget so I can start taking pictures and learning?

Thank you again, Have a great day :thumbup:

 

[reznap]

I'd try to find a used T1i or Xsi, get a 50mm f/1.8 lens for it and take it from there.

Or find a used Nikon.. same idea basically.

Keep your eye on your local craigslist.

 

[hliang]

Thank you for the quick reply

I browsed around craigslist and found the XSi + the 18-55mm lens it came with for 400


Any more suggestions?

 

[o hey tyler]

That's actually a pretty good idea. You'd get the Xsi and the kit lens, you could probably walk away with the camera for $350 if you drop phrases like "potential for high shutter count", and "well this sensor looks a bit dirty, I may have to get this professionally cleaned... etc"

Then just invest the rest of the money in glass. :thumbup:

 

[Vinny]

Going used is a great idea but something to think about is how far away from the dancers will you be? A lens with a maximum focal length of 50 -55 mm might be great if you're 5 to 10 feet away but won't work too well if you're sitting 20 feet away. Also, something to consider since your new to photography is that a flash, especially the on camera flash, will not really work at longer distances (think about going to a concert and seeing flashes going off from the stands - they're not doing anything to light up the scene).

Getting a used DSLR with a kit lens is a good idea but you probably going to need a longer range lens if you are not going to be close so you may want to get another lens as well - a used one that goes to 200 or 300 mm focal length. If you are not going to be far from the action you won't need it but you'll be disappointed if you expect one result and get another.

 

[GeekSquad]

I am by no means an expert as I just got my DSLR a mere week ago. I got this kit - Sam's Club-Canon EOS Rebel XS Double Zoom Lens Kit - and did get it from Sam's Club. Although it's showing here at $749, it was in the store for $599. Others can weigh in with their thoughts regarding how good of an intro camera this is. All I know is that I'm enjoying learning it.

 

[sobolik]

I am by no means an expert as I just got my DSLR a mere week ago. I got this kit - Sam's Club-Canon EOS Rebel XS Double Zoom Lens Kit - and did get it from Sam's Club. Although it's showing here at $749, it was in the store for $599. Others can weigh in with their thoughts regarding how good of an intro camera this is. All I know is that I'm enjoying learning it.

"Others can weigh in with their thoughts regarding how good of an intro camera this is. All I know is that I'm enjoying learning it. "

The best one is the one that is in your hand and being used. But any SLR DSLR is good to learn on. Or become completely baffled and lost. It is like a kit bird house. A beninner can put it tohether and go on to become a skilled craftsman or the beginner can become hopelessly confused and give up. At lot of it is simply aptitude and motivation.

 

[Robin Usagani]

If you are not planning to get serious I would buy Sony A230. They are 10.1 MP and you can buy them on ebay refurbished for like $240 and it comes with a kit lens. You can always sell it if you decided you want to get more serious.

 

[hliang]

So would you guys recommend me getting a Canon EOS Rebel Xsi that comes with the original 18-55mm lens,
The seller says he bought it in 2008, only used it for 2 big trips, 400 dollars. He also never said the price was firm so maybe Ill try to talk him down a couple of bucks also lol

Then buy the Canon EF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 lens?
Here is the link for the lens, just in case your wondering?
Canon 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 III Autofocus Lens 6473A003AA - B&H

Thanks again everyone!

-edit- Oh i forgot, for the dancers, I will most likely be up close to the dancers since most of the events I go to are held in a dance studio or gym so I can make my way to the front and be close to the dancers taking pictures.
BUT there are times where events are held on stages and I have no access on the stage and will be in seats.

Then for cars, i will just be taking pictures of cars during car shows so I am right there in front of the cars so yeah.

 

[LCARSx32]

GAH! My post didn't show up. :x

See the post below, I expanded a bit on my first thoughts the second time through.

 

[LCARSx32]

Rather than getting the 75-300mm f/4-5.6, I would look for something "fast". Basically, something f/2.8 or smaller. If you try to shoot indoors with the 75-300mm f/4-5.6, you're going to get blurry shots unless you have lighting equipment set up. Either that or you'll have to bump the ISO up and live with grainy pictures.

Something like a 50mm f/1.8 or f/2 or maybe a 135mm f/2.8. Since you're looking to shoot dancing pictures, you'll need the speed.

The problem with the 70-200mm f/4-5.6 is you'll need to be back a good ways to get the whole dancer in the frame, and it's slow. The f/# determines how wide the aperture opens in the lens. The wider the aperture, the more light gets in and the less light you need for a given shutter speed.

Yes, it will give you good reach, but it's really only useful in well-lit (daylight) or still subjects.

 

[hliang]

thanks for that info

So would this work?

Canon Normal EF 50mm f/1.8 II Autofocus Lens 2514A002 - B&H

I was looking at the 135mm f/2.8 one and it seems around ~$500 i guess depending where I buy it, that is a out of my price range for the moment so i guess ill live with not taking pictures if I am far away, at least till i save up more money.

 

[Duess]

If you're up close, make sure that you have a 'fast' lens. Everyone here has told you that. It's a must, or you will be tweaking settings to accomplish what you need and images coming back blurry. You will be so frustrated, the camera will be up for sale quick enough. That is what happened to me. My first DSLR just couldn't accomplish what I needed it to. I told myself I would always go research before I made a purchase like that again.

Since you're taking action shots, are you also going to be shooting consecutive shots? My guess is YES. If so, you're going to need a camera with a decent fps rate and a high speed media card (so the camera can write to it fast and get the next shot off).

Most DSLR 'Kits' don't come with equipment that is all that great. That is why this hobby/passion for people gets so expensive. If you have $600, I would suggest to buy used, and try to find a deal that has what you need. Since you're trying to capture pretty clear images of America's Next Best Dance Crew type of stuff, see if you can fin what other crews are using for their shots.

My two_cents. take it for what it's worth, I am definitely amateur, but I learned my lessons and was in the same kind of boat you are (except I didn't want to capture dance shots, I wanted moving vehicle shots)

Good Luck and Post up some images to check out.
-D

 

[hliang]

^ thank you,

and ya, I am actually at the moment looking for used stuff lol.

 

[Vinny]

The one thing with a fast lens is at its fastest you have a shallow depth of field; if dancers are 5 or 6 feet away from each other someone or someones are going to be out of focus. It all depends on what is needed to get the correct shot.

And if you need to stop down to f8 or f11 to get the whole scene in focus ... it doesn't matter how fast your lens was.