Is this a good deal?

[pgriz]

@ sactown024: 90-98% of poorly performing equipment when one is a newbie, is due to user error or lack of knowledge/skill. When you have the knowledge and skill, that number is usually 90-98% due to equipment. And by knowing exactly what you can/should expect from your equipment, you will be a much smarter buyer.

Where the better equipment stands apart from the basic stuff is at the edges: low-light, fast action, extreme closeup or telephoto, high dynamic range, challenging lighting situations, etc. Weddings require good low light equipment (fast lenses, good AF mechanism, excellent high-ISO performance, sharpness and resolution). So do sports under less-than-ideal conditions. So does photojournalism, where ruggedness, weather-proof seals, easy access to controls, and reliable performance all make the difference between getting the shot and coming home empty-handed.

Studio photography, nature photography, landscape photography, and urban photography are all eminently do-able with basic equipment, because they rarely present extreme conditions.

We've given the following advice many times: buy the equipment to accomodate the shooting you are going to do. We're not saying for you not to get gear. We ARE saying when you get gear, know WHY you are getting it, and HOW it will help you do things that you currently can't do. And to know the Why and How, you need experience. I'm all for renting gear to understand what that gear is about, but to get the most learning usage out of it, you should try to do side-by-side tests (old gear, new rented gear) to see if the improvements justify the cost.

Edit: Dang, I type slow. Tirediron beat me to it with basically the same advice...

 

[sactown024]

...yes, i understand there are basics to photography and a lot to learn just like building cars or houses or anything else in this world, that is the obvious, I would hope everyone starting a hobby would uinderstand this concept. BUT this doesnt mean you have to learn everything using basic equipment, it can be learned using better equipment and getting better results each time you learn something new...

True... you don't have to, but today's basic equipment is so advanced that unless you know why you need to upgrade, you probably don't really need to. The reason that you have received most of the answers that you have is because there are a number of us with a fair few years behind the lens, and we have all seen far too many people decide to run out and buy another piece of equipment because they thing it will improve their images. They are almost always disapointed. Just to put things in perspective, compare your current camera and kits lens to the 4x5 field camera that Ansel Adams used to make his iconic "Half Dome" image. The image quality that your kit is able to render compared to that which Adams used is many, many, MANY orders of magnitude better, so...

maybe i am being ignorant or maybe its because I am younger and this is more attractive to the veteran photographers but i dont see whats so great about this, not my style...

Moon and Half Dome by Ansel Adams


as far as glassandgear.com the shipping was only $15 to my camera shop a mile down the street from my house.

 

[tirediron]

What I meant was, that with a camera that didn't have a fraction of the capability yours does and a single, fixed lens, he was able to produce an image that is recognized all over the world. Regardless of whether you like or not (I do) you have to admit that it's a photographic icon. My point was: learn to work with what you have. Zoom not wide enough? Move back further, or try shooting a panorama... Up until only a few years ago, having multiple lenses for your camera was a real luxury. The 35mm SLR and 50mm 1.8 lens was almost the universal standard!

 

[MLeeK]

...yes, i understand there are basics to photography and a lot to learn just like building cars or houses or anything else in this world, that is the obvious, I would hope everyone starting a hobby would uinderstand this concept. BUT this doesnt mean you have to learn everything using basic equipment, it can be learned using better equipment and getting better results each time you learn something new...

True... you don't have to, but today's basic equipment is so advanced that unless you know why you need to upgrade, you probably don't really need to. The reason that you have received most of the answers that you have is because there are a number of us with a fair few years behind the lens, and we have all seen far too many people decide to run out and buy another piece of equipment because they thing it will improve their images. They are almost always disapointed. Just to put things in perspective, compare your current camera and kits lens to the 4x5 field camera that Ansel Adams used to make his iconic "Half Dome" image. The image quality that your kit is able to render compared to that which Adams used is many, many, MANY orders of magnitude better, so...

maybe i am being ignorant or maybe its because I am younger and this is more attractive to the veteran photographers but i dont see whats so great about this, not my style...

Moon and Half Dome by Ansel Adams


as far as glassandgear.com the shipping was only $15 to my camera shop a mile down the street from my house.

Part of why you aren't very impressed with the Ansel Adams image is lack of knowledge. Part of the appreciation is in the knowing of what went into that image. It may not be your cup of tea. It's not mine either, but it's an impressive image and there is a REASON that Ansel Adams is the icon that he is.
You simply lack knowledge. You could be gaining it as you sit here trying to purchase new lenses or you could keep purchasing lenses and have a great amount of gear that is pretty useless.

 

[sactown024]

What I meant was, that with a camera that didn't have a fraction of the capability yours does and a single, fixed lens, he was able to produce an image that is recognized all over the world. Regardless of whether you like or not (I do) you have to admit that it's a photographic icon. My point was: learn to work with what you have. Zoom not wide enough? Move back further, or try shooting a panorama... Up until only a few years ago, having multiple lenses for your camera was a real luxury. The 35mm SLR and 50mm 1.8 lens was almost the universal standard!

yeah i hear what you are saying.

 

[sactown024]

True... you don't have to, but today's basic equipment is so advanced that unless you know why you need to upgrade, you probably don't really need to. The reason that you have received most of the answers that you have is because there are a number of us with a fair few years behind the lens, and we have all seen far too many people decide to run out and buy another piece of equipment because they thing it will improve their images. They are almost always disapointed. Just to put things in perspective, compare your current camera and kits lens to the 4x5 field camera that Ansel Adams used to make his iconic "Half Dome" image. The image quality that your kit is able to render compared to that which Adams used is many, many, MANY orders of magnitude better, so...

maybe i am being ignorant or maybe its because I am younger and this is more attractive to the veteran photographers but i dont see whats so great about this, not my style...

Moon and Half Dome by Ansel Adams


as far as glassandgear.com the shipping was only $15 to my camera shop a mile down the street from my house.

Part of why you aren't very impressed with the Ansel Adams image is lack of knowledge. Part of the appreciation is in the knowing of what went into that image. It may not be your cup of tea. It's not mine either, but it's an impressive image and there is a REASON that Ansel Adams is the icon that he is.
You simply lack knowledge. You could be gaining it as you sit here trying to purchase new lenses or you could keep purchasing lenses and have a great amount of gear that is pretty useless.

art is suppose to be attractive to the eye, its not attractive period. doesnt matter what went into it, maybe it was amazing for its time period but so was the 1994 honda civic back in 94, well guess what its sucks now.

 

[cgipson1]

maybe i am being ignorant or maybe its because I am younger and this is more attractive to the veteran photographers but i dont see whats so great about this, not my style...

Moon and Half Dome by Ansel Adams

I agree totally! You are a total noob, and yet you argue and then argue some more... with experienced people who are trying to help you!

Guys.. I call it a waste of time and effort!

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

art is suppose to be attractive to the eye

Please tell me more about what and how art is suppose to be. Please?

 

[MTVision]

Please tell me more about what and how art is suppose to be. Please?

Art is selective coloring, OOF, odd colored people, etc. All that stuff people Like on FB.

I kid. I kid.

 

[Jaemie]

...maybe it was amazing for its time period but so was the 1994 honda civic back in 94, well guess what its sucks now.

I had a 94 Civic. But it drove more like Jeffrey Pine than Moon and Half Dome.

 

[mjhoward]

'32 Ford's are still bad@ss

 

[IByte]

'32 Ford's are still bad@ss

71 cuda

 

[cgipson1]

'69 Firebird with a tweaked pontiac 400, Munsey 4 speed, 4:11's and some good cheater slicks!

 

[MLeeK]

1997 trans am LT1 with a 6 speed
1980 porsche 928, 5 speed

 

[SCraig]

'69 Firebird with a tweaked pontiac 400, Munsey 4 speed, 4:11's and some good cheater slicks!

Actually, it's Muncie. Like the city in Indiana. I had a '68 Z-28 Camaro with one.

This whole topic is a waste. The guy is going to buy what he wants, he is then going to find out he doesn't like it and sell it. I suspect the same scenario played out with that fisheye that he just sold, and it will play out over and over and over. Sooner or later he'll realize that he isn't getting much better and switch to Nikon because the Canon stuff is obviously junk.

I'd recommend that he take that $90 and invest in a few books, an online photography course, or a membership in a local club but I'm sure that wouldn't fly either.

Photography is an expensive hobby. Good bodies are expensive, good lenses are even more expensive. People can choose to do one of two things: They can buy bottom-end gear and then replace it for better and then replace that for good, or they can buy the good stuff in the first place. You have been given some excellent advice in this thread. Whether or not you choose to take that advice is entirely up to you.