What Camera Should I Buy?

[Angelique]

My Cannon EOS Rebel xTi was stolen out of my car and I need a camera asap before I go away to Americorps.

I have always had DSLRs, but I don't know why I should buy one now. I won't be doing any fine art so I don't need to manually focus much and I won't have money for new lenses any time soon.

BUT

I need HIGH QUALITY. Really high quality. I take photos for modeling portfolios and have a little gallery. I spend an absurd amount of time taking pictures and am accustomed to professional quality.

I also need a great auto focus system, naturally.

My budget is somewhere in the 5-6 hundred dollar range, but if I could spend significantly less that would be great Or I could always scrounge up a little more.

 

[Johnboy2978]

If you aren't looking to get another DSLR at the moment, I would take a look at the Canon G10. It weighs in around $400 and has the ability to shoot in RAW. I was considering getting to as a regular carry around camera when I didn't want to lug the DSLR. I'm not sure about the whole modeling business though. I would think if you are selling yourself as a professional, then you would want to have pro equipment as well.

 

[bigtwinky]

Did only your camera get stolen or did your lenses get stolen too?

What lenses are / were you using with your XTI that gave you that high quality you are looking for?

"HIGH QUALITY" when it comes to modeling, portraits and such are more a result of lenses and light then the camera itself.

So if you still have your lenses, then getting another Rebel will net you pretty much the same results.

If you don't want to go the dSLR route, then I'd second that G10 recommendation