I am new, think I want a Rebel Ti but yet enjoy manual focus

OverRunWithSons · Feb 11, 2004

A little bit about what I am looking for...I just enjoy taking
pictures of my 5 kids, landscapes, nothing speical or out of the
ordinary. BUt I am VERY VERY picky about clear crisp shots or I throw
them away, I like to blow things up to 8x10's alot. 5 yrs ago, I
bought a Nikon N70 with that standard zoom 28-80mm lense that came
with it, I found this thing extremely complicated & every time I have
used it, not liked my picture results-----in comparison to an old
Manually focused Pentax P3n camera with a simple 50mm 1.8 lense.
That took WAAAYYY better pictures as far as I was concerned, they
were brighter & better focused, I believe i used Aperure Priority
with it. It had some kind of metering thing that blinked inside the
viewfinder to help me adjust settings. This worked WELL for me even
though I hardly knew what I was doing. Anyway. I really want to
move onto a Auto Focused camera but that Nikon is causing me MAJOR
STRESS :x !!! So I was thinking this Rebel Ti might be perfect for
someone like me.. What do you think? I really have NO interest in
that Zoom that comes with it though - as this is what my Nikon
had. I want to know how EASY or hard it is to MANUALLY FOCUS the
Ti -beings that most people buy this for Auto focusing ???...and if
put in Aperture Prioirty, etc, does it have meters to help guide you
like my old Pentex did? I just fear the Auto focusing is lousy -
since my Nikon's left much to be desired. Help ! All advice apprecaited!

dlc · Feb 11, 2004

Your new AF cameras can still be focused manually, but some are more difficult because there is no split image circle on the screen as there is in your P3. The Canons are fine as well as other brands and will have the lenses you want. There are still older Canon manual cameras available and excellent FD lenses for them.

www.keh.com "new and used".

ksmattfish · Feb 11, 2004

It may be that your style works better with a manual system. There are plenty of wonderful used cameras out there, and new manual cameras come with all the latest sophisticated metering. If you prefer manual focus, don't feel compelled to go to AF just because everyone else is doin' it.

I've used many older and new model 35mm SLRs and I see little difference in image quality when comparing older to newer equipment, as long as it's in good shape. Some lenses are a little sharper than others; this varies from brand to brand, and even lenses of the same model can vary. Anything you buy from the major manufacturers from the past and today will produce beautiful 8x12 prints. Of course it's possible you had a lemon with the N-70.

Another thing about the N-70 that I'm just recalling; it had one of the worst operating interfaces you're likely to find on a camera. Even Nikon has dropped the space-age, bridge of the Star Trek Enterprise futuristic look, for a more functional arrangement of controls.

The new cameras do have lots of buttons and lights, but they can be set to operate just like your older model cameras. But you will have to read the manual, maybe a few times, to figure out how to set the functions you want and what the lights and symbols all mean. When it comes down to basics it's still just a light tight box with a lens and a shutter.

My recommendation for the perfect beginers' 35mm SLR is an older model, manual focus, manual exposure camera with a 50mm f/2 (or faster) lens, just like your first camera. But most folks still buy a Rebel with a zoom, and they do just fine. Read that manual; it's full of great information.

Kent Frost · Feb 11, 2004

Although there is no split screen circle, the Ti does have the focus points, which, when focused manually, will still light up and beep when it is in focus.

wwjoeld · Feb 11, 2004

if you are finding the nikon frustating the Ti is the perfect begginer camera and makes everything nice and simple, and all canons lenses have swithc right the lens to switch it to manual.

tr0gd0o0r · Feb 11, 2004

The problem may not actually be in the camera. It could be the lens. I just bought a new 135mm fixed lens and it is a lot clearer and brighter than my zoom lenses (the faster aperture helps). So before you completely abandon the Nikon that may be something to look at (if you can somehow borrow a lens or something like that)