Used equipment for beginners?

[Shutterdog]

Greetings.

I am currently looking at acquiring my very first dslr, and was thinking of getting it second-hand, but would appreciate opinions from those who actually use such equipment.
Photography for me is a hobby. I played with Canon and Pentax 35mm SLR years ago, doing color and B&W photography. Never actually owned a slr but always wanted to.

I enjoy taking shots of where I travel, and have made quite a few interesting ones regardless of the poor equipment I had on hand.

I was in Australia with my cell phone not long ago when I took shots for a few friends on their dslr, that is when the bug got me... Lol.

As I said I was thinking of going second hand, mainly for two reasons. I don't believe I need 35+Mp - I don't plan to print posters, plus it requires much more storage - and used is generally much cheaper, I am just a hobbyist.

The biggest I foresee doing a print would be 16x20 for the living room. I am thinking 10-12Mp to be an interesting format. I hear it is easier to shop used lens on Nikon, but am not sold on brands. What's the word on best newbe dslr brands???

Unless the shutter count is impressively high, should I steer away from ebay or kijiji/Craigslist?

Thanks for any and all discussion on this topic, it is greatly welcomed.

 

[SCraig]

You can reduce the resolution of a high-resolution body but you can't increase the resolution of a low-resolution body.

There are good places to buy used equipment and there are bad places. B&H, Adorama, and KEH are good places since they rate each piece of used gear they sell and they also warrant it. EBay and Craigslist, not so good.

 

[Shutterdog]

Thanks for your input.

It is really appreciated.


I am Canadian, and haven't found much in term of second-hand camera stores in Montréal. Maybe there's somewhere that Google doesn't know about.

I agree you can't add Mp to a camera while you can reduce the saved format. Doesn't that include some sort of compression on the processing end?

I was thinking a better lens was better invested money than extra Mp.

 

[waday]

Most important question: what is your budget?

As long as you buy from a reputable place or can get your hands on to look at it before purchasing, used is good. Any local camera shops you can go to rather than online?

What type of photography do you want to do? Do you travel a lot?

Don't discount mirrorless. They're small, but pack a big punch.

 

[Shutterdog]

I find the concept of mirrorless slr intriguing...

I like to travel. How much traveling is a lot? Lol

I take landscape and architectural mainly. I like old buildings or odd furniture, nice sceneries, and such.
I like to play with sunlight or perspectives.

 

[waday]

If you like to travel, definitely look into mirrorless and micro four thirds.

But, seriously, without a budget, it's hard to recommend anything. Throw something out to get started.

 

[Frank F.]

What is your budget?

Ican recommend some very serious gear that is dirt cheap and can be had with very low shutter counts.

 

[Shutterdog]

I can recommend some very serious gear that is dirt cheap and can be had with very low shutter counts.

I am interested, can you please elaborate?

I was thinking of getting a used kit for a few hundreds, and build a set of lens. And if things go smoothly, invest later on a more serious body when I know what I like and dislike, keeping the first one as backup.

I think anything I can get now would feel like luxury compared to the Pentax I used to shoot with way back.

 

[dunfly]

I can only speak to Nikon equipment since that is what I use. I don't buy used, but I do buy factory refurbished items. There are some good buys on refurbished Nikon bodies and lenses. Also, B&H and Adorama periodically sell OB (open box) items that are essentially new. I would also not be afraid of buying good condition used from them either. I travel with a D5200 that suits my needs. It is light weight with an articulating screen, which are critical considerations to me. Also, the DX lenses are relatively small and light. I have looked at mirrorless, but like the optical viewfinder.

 

[Frank F.]

My philosophy was always "buy a used Mercedes Benz instead of a new Fiat and never buy a used Fiat."

A Nikon D3 with a Nikkor 1.8/50G is a nice used set and can be had with a low shutter count for less than 800 US$.

These cameras are built to last am image quality is outstanding.

Get a 24mm 1.8G later and you will have a great set for your purposes.

 

[Shutterdog]

Thanks Frank, Dunfly.

I think at least for now I'll go with something that has an optical viewfinder.

 

[jaomul]

If you could get a good condition used d700 it might be a good option. It's a nice fullframe imager, well built, can use older (less expensive) Nikon lenses, has a good autofocus and is weather sealed (double check the weather sealed bit).

I've seen them go for 400-500 euro, I'm sure with the bigger market where you are you'd bag one for 400-500 dollars.

It does a lot of what the d3 mentioned above does, but has a slower (but not slow) 5 frames per second, but is smaller lighter and cheaper.

I use among other cameras a Nikon d7200 and if you could get one for up to 700 dollars I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one, either second hand or refurbished. It's a crop sensor camera that does not have earth shattering specs, but does most things well

 

[beagle100]

i agree, if you're buying for travel look at mirrorless cameras, They are smaller and lighter with all the features of a DSLR and can easily use DSLR lens.

or look at a used or refurbished Canon and lens if you want the best value
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless

 

[Shutterdog]

I don't mind traveling with a full sized slr, it fits my carry on. Thinking about it, I very much prefer optical viewfinder to anything they can come up with, I don't think I'll go for a mirrorless, even if it's smaller and lighter.

If you could get a good condition used d700 it might be a good option. It's a nice fullframe imager, well built, can use older (less expensive) Nikon lenses, has a good autofocus and is weather sealed (double check the weather sealed bit).

There's one on ebay right now that has 111,000 on the counter, with a couple lens and a travel case. I am tempted, but the shutter count scares me.

 

[Solarflare]

Well, a D700 is sadly "only" rated for a 150k shutter count. Mind you thats a very conservative estimate of the producer; most D700 should actually manage more actuations.

The actual shutter count ultimately depends a lot upon how you treat the camera. Do you keep the back of the lenses clean. Do you keep the rear lenscaps clean. Do you keep the lensmount clean.

Usually people dont - and thats why dust enters their camera and kills the shutter blades.

With a used camera you dont know what the previous owner did, but again - usually they dont realize how important this is.

Thats why a 111k shuttercount wouldnt fly with me.