Well, she’s gone and done it. Blondish bought a camera. It must of have been months ago when she first asked me what she should get. She told me she was interested in a point-and-shoot, so I recommended a Canon Powershot. Still do, for those who want a point-and-shoot. As I understand it, Canon makes the best of these, providing the best quality and the most control for these kind of cameras. I’d actually really like to have one for myself, but my photo gear list is many pages long, and I’d have to burn through three to five grand before that particular item came up. My favorite photographer who uses this camera is Officially A Mom, on Flickr. She used to have a blog, too, but she rarely posts there anymore. Her photographs, however, continue to amaze.
But if you want a camera with interchangeable lenses (and you do), you want an “SLR.” Stands for “single-lens reflex”. Sometimes you’ll see “DSLR”: “D” for digital. I’m already in trouble for it, but I recommend that you go with either Canon or Nikon. There are many other fine brands out there, and many fine photographers using those brands, but I think going with one of the two big guns makes sense for a number of reasons. Not the least of which are the large communities of users that you can tap into if you have questions along the way.
Canon or Nikon?
With only a few exceptions, most everyone I know shoots Canon. Everyone else I know shoots Nikon. These brands have been around a long time. They both have what are widely considered to be superior lenses, and large secondary markets for lenses and accessories. If you get into this photography thing, you will want lenses. You will want speedlights, and lighting gear, and tripods and eyepieces and filters. You will want stuff that costs all kinds of money, and If you go with Nikon or Canon, you’ll be able find the stuff you want, both new and used, in a number of places. You’ll be able to compare prices, and find more information about whatever expensive thing you’re considering, and how it compares to other, similar less expensive and more expensive things.
First Cameras To Consider:
Canon’s entry-level offering is the Rebel. My good friend Aaryn got started with that, and you can see all kinds of amazing images she took with it, here. Melanie, my new idol over a BeanPaste does all kinds of cool stuff with her Rebel, and K-k-k-katie has a 20D (It’s a step up from the Rebel, but an older model. Canon’s got a 40D now, which Aaryn is presently making use of.)
Nikon’s entry-level offerings, are the D40, D50, and D80. And now a D60, I hear, but know nothing about. I suppose it’s the new D50? I have a D80, which I love. If I didn’t have one or two kids and husband in bed with me every night, I’d probably sleep with it. But the reason I probably love it so much is because it’s been my first camera. I learned to shoot on it; I’m attached to it. I love the way it feels in my hands, and because the camera is a manual as well as a visual instrument, there’s a lot to be said for how it feels in your hands, where your fingers fall in relation to the buttons, etc. . . . So that’s another piece of advice. Before you buy a big-girl camera, go to the camera store and get your hands on the models you’re considering, see how they feel. When you get your hands on the one for you, you’ll know.
Trustworthy places I like to buy online are here, here, and here.
MOST IMPORTANTLY: GET YOURSELF A FIDDY
A normal lens on a digital SLR means a lens with a focal length of 30 to 50mm. “Normal” means not telephoto, and not wide-angle. It means that when you lift the viewfinder to your eye, what you see through the viewfinder doesn’t change that much. You don’t get a telescopic “zooming in” or a wide-angle “stepping back” effect.
Nikon has three good options here, the Sigma 30/1.4 (it lives on my camera), the Nikon 50/1.4 (it’s in the mail to me now), and I think there’s also a Nikon 50/1.8 (cheaper than the 1.4, a fine lens, but not as sharp at all apertures). Canon also has a fast, sharp 50/1.8, which is supposed to be excellent, and 50/1.2, which costs well over a grand—not your starter lens, probably.
A fast normal lens will allow you to shoot indoors, using natural light. And natural light? Makes prettier pictures. These lenses are sharp and fun and you will take beautiful portraits, fabulous night shots, and really get a handle on what your camera can do and your eye can see. Note: these are fixed-focal-length lenses. They do not zoom.
The kit zoom lenses that come bundled with your camera are kind of crap, frankly. Zoom lenses, unless they’re super-fast (like 2.8, which makes them cost about $1500 minimum) are not as sharp, have less attractive out-of-focus areas, and are useless indoors without flash. On-board camera flash creates harsh shadows and ugly highlights, and freezes all the life out of most pictures when you’re starting out. There are good uses of flash, but almost none of them come attached to the camera, and none of them are cheap or easy to figure out when you’re just getting started.
There’s more I could say (there’s always more to say about cameras) but I’ll stop here with a call-out to all my photographer-grrrrrlz. You know who you are. What do you say when someone asks you what camera they should start with? What lens lives on your camera?
10 Responses
June 17th, 2008 at 3:46 am
Thank you. Perfect timing. Still nibbling around the edges-I’ll go for it any day now. Natalie has offered to come to the camera store with me, so that’s a help.
Thanks again!
June 17th, 2008 at 4:00 am
[...] can read the rest of this blog post by going to the original source, here [...]
June 17th, 2008 at 5:10 am
I started with the same camera Aaryn has. Hi Aaryn! But I am not worthy of it. You and Aaryn rule. I drool.
June 17th, 2008 at 7:12 am
I would love to get something like a rebel - we made the mistake of getting a hybrid (Fuji S9500), and while it’s spectacular at portraits, it’s quite big and eats batteries for breakfast. Plus you can’t take the lens off it.
In reality, I just need to stop taking pictures with my camera phone. I have become incredibly lazy.
June 17th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
This is great, having this in writing to reference. I’m still excited for the Pentax (which I should have ordered from somewhere OTHER than the place I ordered it from, because it’s taking FOREVER to get here (re: my email yesterday)), and can’t wait to try it out. I don’t have too many subjects, so there’ll probably be a lot of self-portraits.
Have I mentioned lately that I can’t wait to see you?
June 17th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
Thank you for making me daydream about cameras and lenses all. day. long. !
June 17th, 2008 at 8:51 pm
Just as I was beginning to think about upgrading my point-and-shoot, along comes this post. Impeccable timing!
June 17th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
I’ve had the pleasure of checking out your work. You go girl! The comment about the 50 1.4 is really on point. So many photographers overlook the value of this lens. When it arrives, it may quickly be your new fave. Give my regards to your boo.
June 18th, 2008 at 10:09 am
Fantastic post for the camera buff in all of us. And thanks for the shout-out. Of course, I’m a Canon Girl and am biased in that direction to a fault. That being said, I actually know someone who switched from Canon to Nikon and is extremely happy. I think she’s a traitor who’s playing down, but I still love her.
I agree that the Rebel is a fantastic place to begin with the DSLR and I loved mine so. When I upgraded to my 40D, I sold my Rebel to a friend because my husband pushed me to it. I did so grudgingly, as I couldn’t imagine the 40D being as good in bed. But what do you know? The 40D rocks my world and sleeps wedged between my man, my dog and my babe.
As to the Fiddy: It is the one lens that should be purchased immediately upon procuring the camera. It is, hands down, my favorite lens. I got the 50/1.8 for around $80 from B&H and without question it’s the best (and cheapest) lens I own. Best money I’ve spent on lenses. Someday, I’ll throw down the big bucks for the 1.2 but until then, my Fiddy is like my heart outside my body.
That is all. I must go kick some college kid ass now. 3am and they’re still partying. On a Tuesday night…wait…Wednesday morning. Grrrr.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:51 am
Well, first of all, I am hardly worth idolatry. (Adultery, MAYBE.)
Second of all, the Rebel is my first SLR and it has been so, so good to me. I do have lust in my heart for a bigger camera, but that seems a bit greedy, doesn’t it?
I currently own the 50/1.8, the 18-55 kit lens, a telephoto zoom lens, and a cheap, junky macro for taking fun, abstract, close-range stuff.
If I had to pick only one, it would be the 50/1.8.
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