kit lens or body + prime lens (sony a6000, a5100, Nikon D5300)

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Hi everyone,

I've been reading this forum for a while but only now I needed to ask something that I didn't find the answer for yet.

I've been looking to buy a new camera but I'm having problems chosing the right one. At first, I wanted to give a look at the Nikon P900 and the Canon SX60 HS but then I quickly changed to the Nikons and Sonys. BTW, I'm not a professional - only someone who enjoys photography (I've been shooting with a Minolta X-700 just to feel how nice it is to take nice shots manually).

At the moment, I have this options:

- Sony a5100 with the 16-50mm + 55-210mm lenses for 649€
- Sony a6000 with the 16-50mm lens + a case + a 16GB SD for 659€
- Nikon D5300 with the 18-50mm lens for 599€ (not a fan of the big sized bodys and lenses though)

The thing is the more I read, look and experiment (in several stores) the more I find out that the kit lenses don't make justice to the real camera quality/potencial. So, I started to think about the option of buying the body only and then add a prime lens. For example:

- Sony a6000 body (479€)
+ the Sigma 30mm 2.8 DE Art 179€ (total 658€)
or Sigma 60mm 2.8 189€ (668€)
or Sony 50mm 1.8 NEX 229€ (708€)

- Sony a5100 body (369€)
+ the Sigma 30mm 2.8 DE Art 179€ (total 548€)
or Sigma 60mm 2.8 189€ (558€)
or Sony 50mm 1.8 NEX 229€ (598€)


- Since the D5300 Body is way more expensive (539€), I'd have to go for the D3300 for example. I that is not something I'd like to do because the D3300 lacks some features that I really like (tilt screen, hight burst mode and wi-fi+NFC for example).

So, after all this, my question is if it's worth it to buy the body only + a prime lens and, if so, if this option for prime lens is good. I could buy later on (next year for example) a telezoom lens.

I'd use it for a variaty of situations, from urban photography to landscapes and night shots. I just need some more inputs from more experienced people as if it's a better option to buy body+prime, fixed zoom lens or one of the other options.

Also, I'm open to other suggestions but that's not my priority.

Thank you!
 
Ok, well ultimately the results you'll achieve will be more about your skills than they will the equipment your using.

Any of the options listed above will give you great pictures if you take the time to learn how to use them. I've seen some really remarkable pictures taken with kit lenses, and while primes are great for speed and being lightweight the aren't as flexible as a zoom, so for me at least I prefer to have both.



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You have the basics from the Minolta , so you are not a beginner .
I would advise to buy the best body you can afford with the kit lens which are not that bad .
You can add a 35mm f1.8 [ 52mm equ] at some stage plus whatever you need to extend your horizons .
 
If you want WiFi or NFC, then make choices accordingly. A capable digital body with ONE, single prime lens makes little sense, and is a waste of potential until you can acquire some lenses. And then, once you have lenses, the body's potential can be realized, and your photo horizons expanded. A fancy body with one,single lens length is basically, a point and shoot. Modern zooms are decent, sometimes even very good, so do not discount the "kit" zooms.

This is a long-term purchase, so do not let short-term economy allow you to arrive at a dumb buying decision. If you want a small body, buy one of the Sony cameras.
 
Hi everyone,

Ok, well ultimately the results you'll achieve will be more about your skills than they will the equipment your using.

Any of the options listed above will give you great pictures if you take the time to learn how to use them. I've seen some really remarkable pictures taken with kit lenses, and while primes are great for speed and being lightweight the aren't as flexible as a zoom, so for me at least I prefer to have both.

That's true. Yes, that's a fairly reasonable point and I've reconsidered the kit lens. I'll definitly buy the kit lens and not only the body.

You have the basics from the Minolta , so you are not a beginner .
I would advise to buy the best body you can afford with the kit lens which are not that bad .
You can add a 35mm f1.8 [ 52mm equ] at some stage plus whatever you need to extend your horizons .

Yes, and the MD 50mm 1.4 is quite remarkable. Talking about the Minolta, I just found that an MD/MC adaptor for the e-mount is pretty cheap (15 to 20€) and, that way, I could buy some old school lenses that are cheaper than the more recent ones. Despite not having image stabilization or auto-focus they can give as good results as modern lenses. For example, I know I could mount this MD 50mm 1.4 in the sony without any problems and being able to control the aperture in the lens itself is really handy too.

A 35mm lens would be te next buy for sure. I'm not sure I could buy a 1.8f though. :)

If you want WiFi or NFC, then make choices accordingly. A capable digital body with ONE, single prime lens makes little sense, and is a waste of potential until you can acquire some lenses. And then, once you have lenses, the body's potential can be realized, and your photo horizons expanded. A fancy body with one,single lens length is basically, a point and shoot. Modern zooms are decent, sometimes even very good, so do not discount the "kit" zooms.

This is a long-term purchase, so do not let short-term economy allow you to arrive at a dumb buying decision. If you want a small body, buy one of the Sony cameras.

That last sentence makes a lot of sense. It's better to spend a bit more money and make a good choice than to save some €s and ending up with a bottleneck situation.

Thank you very much to all of you for your insights and tips. I'm now taking a look into the Minolta MD/MC lenses and some other old stuff. I just found a guy selling a XD-7 + 4 lenses (Tokina 28mm f2.8 + Minolta MD 50mm f1.7 + Minolta MD 35-135mm f3.5-4.5 + Vivitar 200mm f3.5) + a flash and a case for 90€.

This is really interesting, since I don't have any problems with manual focus.

Do you think that not having image stabilization can be important when shooting with this lenses handeld?
 
I just finished camera shopping. I was positive that I knew what I wanted- then I changed my mind (what felt like) 150 times!

Eventually ended up with the Nikon D5500 which was perfect for MY current needs. I actually considered the 5500 to be the "small" camera in my choices. Other final option (and early front runner) was the D610. The question that I really needed the answer was what did I need, and what was I inclined to bring with me and actually use?

The D 5500 was actually the smallest camera that I thought I could carry without major limitations to what I wanted to accomplish. A giant awesome camera that you left at home, is not really an awesome camera. If you feel certain that the D5300 is more camera than you want to carry, then it probably is. No shame in admitting that.
 
There are manual lenses which would be OK with the camera plus older AF lenses which could help until you can afford the better lenses.
I have taken this route with a Pentax K10D and a Minolya A35.
dee
 
the kit lenses do the sensors in all these just fine.
 

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