Please help me First DSLR ordering online

[texas_renegade]

Hello,
This is my first time buying a DSLR camera and i am going to order it online. I am going to get a Canon Rebel XT Body Only. I am going to order it from www.Adorama.com. I have a couple questions...

1. Is Adorama a good place to buy online, is it a scam or is it actually a legit online seller?

2. I only want the camera body does this seem like a good price and the right description for the Canon Rebel XT Body Only...keep in mind i want it new not used
http://www.adorama.com/ICADRXTB.html

3. I am also going to need a lens so I was considering a nifty fifty lens (50mm 1.8)...or would i be better off going with that or the kit lens (EF-S 18-55mm f3.5-5.6)?

Thank you so much for you help...i really appreciate it.

 

[Josh66]

1 - Yes, Adorama is reputable store. I personally get most of my stuff from B&H though (no reason really, just "discovered" them first).

2 - Yes, the price looks right. I thought I saw it for $350 a week or two ago, but maybe I was mistaken (or maybe there was a rebate going on). It's $410 at B&H right now.

3 - Either would be a good pick I guess. More of a personal preference thing I think. Me - I use my 50 (1.4) all the time (all the time as in "a lot", not as in "the only one I use"), I don't even keep the kit lens in my bag anymore.

 

[texas_renegade]

1 - Yes, Adorama is reputable store. I personally get most of my stuff from B&H though (no reason really, just "discovered" them first).

2 - Yes, the price looks right. I thought I saw it for $350 a week or two ago, but maybe I was mistaken (or maybe there was a rebate going on). It's $410 at B&H right now.

3 - Either would be a good pick I guess. More of a personal preference thing I think. Me - I use my 50 (1.4) all the time (all the time as in "a lot", not as in "the only one I use"), I don't even keep the kit lens in my bag anymore.

Does this look like the 50mm 1.4 for a DSLR, sorry I am really new at this...and also can you change the aperature to a higher fstop then 1.4 meaning like f1.8 f2.0..sorry for the stupid questions.
http://www.adorama.com/CA5018AFU.html?searchinfo=canon 50mm&item_no=2

 

[Josh66]

This is the lens I'm talking about:
http://www.adorama.com/CA5014AFU.html?searchinfo=ef 50mm f/1.4&item_no=1

It's slightly faster (f/1.4 vs. f/1.8), but I don't know if that's really a big enough difference to matter. The build quality is a lot better though. Most people say that the image quality is pretty much the same on both lenses.

The f/# on the lens is just the maximum aperture, they can all stop down smaller (bigger number) than that.

 

[texas_renegade]

thank you for your reply unforunaltey i do not have enough money for the 50mm 1.4...so do you think the 1.8 would be better than the kit lens? i will mostly be shooting portraits and scenery not a whole lot of sports.

and it says the recording medium is a "CF card Type I and II" i know what a compact flash card is but what is type I and II...do i need to worry about that?

thanks

 

[Josh66]

what is type I and II...do i need to worry about that?

thanks

I'm not really sure what that is either...but I don't think you need to worry about it. Just get some good CF cards from a reputable manufacturer.

The 50mm 1.8 will give you better image quality than the kit lens (the kit lens isn't a total POS, the 50 is just better), but you may find yourself wanting something wider than 50mm later on. The "nifty fifty" is pretty much too cheap to pass up. Probably the best bang for your buck that you're going to find.

I would get the 50, and if you start wishing you had something wider save up and get a new lens.

 

[texas_renegade]

Thank you so much...

I have added the following items to my cart

Canon Digital Rebel XT SLR Camera Body Kit, 8 Megapixels, U.S.A. Warranty - Black Finish

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Standard AutoFocus Lens - USA

SanDisk 2 GB, 60x Speed Ultra II Compact Flash Memory Card.

just to check all of these items are compatible with the rebel xt right?

would you recommend any more accessories?

and my local camera shop wanted $600.00 for the Rebel Xt with kit lens...looks like i will be saving some money and get a better lens too!

and once again thank you so much...you saved me a lot of money.

 

[Josh66]

Yup, all that stuff will work.

More accessories to consider? not sure what the budget is, but how 'bout:

-A bag (might not need one 'till you get more lenses)
-Tripod
-Wireless remote (You'll need the RC-1 remote, probably won't do much good without a tripod too though)
-Some kind of lens cleaning kit (you could just use a t-shirt though...)
-Spare battery

 

[Josh66]

You really should get at least one spare battery. I can't remember how much they cost, but it shouldn't be much.

 

[texas_renegade]

basically right now i am just wanting to get off the ground and start taking pictures...so I actually phrased the question wrong...i was just wondering if that is all i need to take pictures...but the accessories you recommend will come in handy when i get more serious about photography (have more money! lol)..but thanks a lot for your help...now all i have to do is place my order.!!

 

[Dao]

I got my 50mm F/1.8 from Adorama as well. (But went through buy.com so that I can use the google coupon that I had since Adorama sell stuff through buy.com)

Everything was smooth. Shipping was fast.

After you get your camera, you may want to also check it out from overstock.com for the extra battery. I got mind from them and it works pretty good. It is not made by Canon, but for less than $13 with tons of good review. I do not think you can go wrong with it. Original Li-ion rated at 720mAh cost about $60 at bestbuy and the one I got from overstock rated at 1000mAh cost around $15 including shipping. I also pick up a charger from them that can plug to the Car 12V outlet. It comes in handy sometimes.

 

[Montana]

I willl second the higher mAh battery at the cheaper price! I bought 2 for my grip and have just recharged them for the first time. No need to get a battery w/ the canon logo stampd on it.

Derrick

 

[Mystwalker]

I get my extra batteries at "sterlingtek.com"

I also have the Ultra II - unless I'm shooting in rapid fire mode (sports, flying birds), and am timing the card's save time, I do not find the Ultra II that much faster then my cheaper CFs (Kingston, PQI, Transcend). I think you can buy two of the cheap ones for price of one Ultra II, or a 4gb cheapy for same price as 2gb Ultra II.

50mm f/1.8 - Canon should make this "the kit lens" because it is the best lens for buck

Unless you have a specific purpose for camera (portraits?), 50mm may be a bit long (full time).

In place of Canon's kit lens, you may want to look at Sigma or Tamron, 17-50, 17-70, 28-75, 24-60. All of these are around $400 @ Adorama/B&H.

 

[Rachelsne]

get the kit lens- I find 50 isnt wide enough for some shots or be prepared to back way up!

I have heard great things about Stirlingtek.com for batteries-I bought mine form there although never needed to use it as yet

 

[ANDS!]

Everytime I read "nifty fifty" I want to punch something.
As for purchasing, be sure to check out CametaCameras on Ebay (or other ebay "stores") as they usually have some VERY good deals on older/newer cameras, and oftentimes you will get a warranty included. Don't go for the bloated camera "packs" though, as they are just trying to offload product at your expense.
If you can afford it (its 100 bucks) get the 50MM and the kit lens. Kit lens is fine to play with wide to mid-range, and starting out you'll want a nice nice broad focal length to play with, but the 50MM is an entirely different beast for different situations than the kit may be able to provide.
For your lens needs, check your local Craigslist. Im just curious though, is there any reason youre NOT going through CL for any of this stuff? I understand the peace of mind of buying from a "reputable" source, but I have not in my time working with CL received any junk goods from any seller. Especially buying a 350D/300D - those things are all over my local CL for 200-300 bucks. Just another option.