Need camera recommendations, please

I know next to nothing about the world of cameras. We have a little point-and-shoot type dealie, but my wife is wanting something nicer that she can use to experiment and actually take some nice pictures and stuff with for Christmas. I have a budget of about $300-350 that I can use for this, but I’m kind of stuck. As far as I can tell from my cursory poking about of Amazon, cameras come in two genera - point and click and SLR, whatever that stands for. But SLRs seem to start at about $500.

So what is there that inhabits the ecological niche between this and, say, this?

We’re not looking for anything terribly fancy - just something that will let you play with things like focus, flash, uh, F-stop - all those photography words and stuff. Even better would be if someone could provide an actual recommendation for a particular model. Thanks muchly!

This is more a testimonial for a brand. I have an older Canon Powershot A95 that started to get blurry on the viewscreen, eventually just taking pictures that were purple smears. I searched online and found it was a known problem. Even though the camera was years out of warranty, when I contacted Canon they said send it in, we’ll pay for all shipping. They fixed it in a week and sent it back all for free and no hassles. It’s the best customer service experience I’ve had in years.

That’s a good start, thanks.

But c’mon, Dopers! I need more! MORE!

Have you considered a second hand DSLR? If you want to play around with the fundamentals, you really need something more than a point-and-shoot, but it won’t kill you not to have a zillion million pixels, a three inch screen, or video capability. The way technology advances, and obsoletes everything that came before it, you should have little trouble finding a 3, 4, 5 year old DSLR at your chosen price point.

I’m Nikon-centric, so something like a D70 or D50 would be about as old as you’d want to go. Six megapixels, internal focus motor for older auto-focus lenses, control options from full auto to fully manual, and great image quality. All you lose over the current generation is some resolution that you didn’t really need, some low light ability, and the screen on the back is pretty small. But, you know, if you want to get amongst it with the hands on fundamentals of photography, on a budget, you don’t need the latest and greatest.

Get yourself the kit lenses that came with those cameras (the 18-70mm, or the 18-55, and/or 55-200mm), which will either come with the camera, or you’ll pick up for cheap separately. Then get yourself a fast prime, one of the 50mm or 35mm f/2.0, 1.8 or 1.4 versions, and go from there. If it turns out you like photography, it’s not a huge leap from there to a current model camera and more exotic lenses. If you don’t like it, at least you’ve tried.

You can get point-and-shoots and crossover models that let you have a go at manual control, but a DSLR is probably what you really want. Any brand will do, I just have Nikons so that’s what I’m familiar with. Don’t go older than say 2004, or less than 6 MP. If you have a friend or acquaintance who is into photography, they probably have an older camera they no longer use, and could lend or sell to you. Or auction sites, camera stores, camera clubs…

About like ChickenWire said.

A 7-year old DSLR is a huge step up from a new $300 point and shoot. In the Canon Universe the 10D and the Rebel cost under $220. Add a used Canon kit lens, 18-55mm, for about $65 and you’re ready to fly.

The 10D was a serious metal body camera that weighed more than the Rebel and was more versatile.

These items can likely be had at Adorama.com or KEH.com

I’d also recommend a used DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex). You can find good entry level or above Canon or Nikon well within your price range. Start with the kit zoom (18-55) and/or a 50mm f2.0 lens and you should be able to learn about photography and how to take pictures, not just snapshots.

Go to ebay, buy a gently used Sony DSC-F717. The best camera I ever owned, and I’m considering buying another since the charger circuit on mine seems to be fried after six years of use. It’s a 5.25 megapixel point-and-shoot, with a high quality built-in lens. It was the top of the “prosumer” line when it came out in 2002, but don’t let the age put you off. This camera takes amazing pictures in everything but low light, and it has a good flash to compensate there.

One thing to note, it has a large lens body, meaning it’s a two-handed camera(as are most of the DSLRs). This is a blessing in disguise because it means you hold the camera by the lens, stabilizing it and thereby getting better shots. It also has a feature called a laser hologram autofocus, meaning it projects a laser pattern on the subject(kind of like a supermarket checkout scanner) and uses that to focus on. This makes the focus fast and accurate. It’s disorienting at first, but you get used to it.

The review of the camera on DPReview has a great breakdown of the features. I’ll add that it works fine with a 2GB memory stick pro duo in a memory stick adapter. This allows you to take about a thousand shots at full resolution JPEG. I have a 10MP and 12MP camera now, one Sony, and one Fuji, both highly rated/reviewed, but on a pixel by pixel comparison, they don’t take as good a picture as my old 717 did. You can use it full auto, or use it in various manual modes, so if you know what you’re doing it’s still a good camera for you. Unless you’re routinely printing large format prints from your photos, the lower megapixel rating is irrelevant.

That having been said, if you’re willing to learn how to use a DSLR, it may be a better choice than the F717, but you’ll have to commit to that for both yourself and your wife. Having a friend who is knowledgeable about SLRs is something I’d recommend.

Enjoy,
Steven

Second hand DSLR’s are becoming more common now as well. I broke my Pentax K100D body while in India and recently picked up the previous model (the Pentax *ist…not as good…but still jives with my lens arsenal) for $100. Aside from scratches and such, the cameras are usually in good condition. I kind of like the beat-up look myself…