$3000 for beginner setup...

<p>"Even better, get a used Minolta XD11, 50mm f/1.4 lens (that's under $100 for the kit) and a bunch of film. The interface is so simple and the viewfinder is so good, there's nothing to worry about but shooting, and it looks so good people will walk up to you on the street with compliments."</p>

<p>I wholeheartedly agree with that. And it doesn't necessarily have to be the XD11. Add a manual flash and some filters and start learning. I know there are plenty who will argue with this but I find nothing makes me think about exposure/composition/etc more than potentially wasting film.</p>

<p>If you can spend $3,000 that would be a great start toward a long lasting system.<br>

I suggest that you stick with one system (body and all your lenses from same manufacturer) as you learn and start out. Build a system that you will have ans use for a long time. Same manufacturer will reduce variation from lens to lens for things like placement and action of focusing and/or zoom rings, clockwise vs counterclockwise zoom in/out, etc. As you learn and practice it will become second nature, if everything works the same way.<br>

I have built a Canon system over the last few years, so I would recommend the following if I was starting over and had $3,000 and my focus was landscapes and macro. Priced at Amazon as new (w/o shipping/taxes)<br>

Canon T1i Body only - $770<br>

Canon EF-S 10-22 zoom lens - $699<br>

Canon EF-S 17-55 IS zoom lens - $959<br>

Canon EF-S 60 Macro prime lens - $370<br>

8GB SD memory card - $15<br>

Sunpack 620-080 8001 UT Tripod - $30<br>

Photoshop Elements 7.0 - $59<br>

Total for above is $2,902.<br>

Very good reviews for all these lenses - fast enough for indoor low light as well as outdoor photography. Add some lens hoods and some filters and you should be near your $3,000 budget. I would wait until later to add a fisheye lens, longer zoom lens (I like the Canon 70-300 IS) and/or a lensbaby and an external flash. Learn good techniques first with a decent body and some good glass. Then you can supplement with more exotic equipment.<br>

Good luck.</p>

<p>"Canon EF-S 10-22 zoom lens - $699<br /> <br /> Sunpack 620-080 8001 UT Tripod - $30"</p>

<p>I would skip the 10-22mm and spend a lot more on a tripod. It's good you mentioned a tripod because it seems we've neglected an important piece of kit in this thread. I sold my 10-22mm because I rarely shot it wider than 16-17mm so I think a good solid tripod with a ballhead would be better to start with. He could always buy the 10-22mm later if he found that he wanted to go wider.</p>

<p>Speaking of tripods, I just got a great deal on what seems to be a quite nice one from KEH. Its one from the Induro line, and they seem to have a lot of demo models right now, with great prices.<br>

Mine was new except for a little demo sticker and I payed half of the normal cost.<br>

They have bot alloy and carbon. The are made in china (not so great) but then again so is the camera that you plan on purchasing.</p>

<p>Yes, I had a carbon fiber model from Induro, loved it until my friend ran over it, now it's just carbon fiber splinters.</p>

<p>I don't care for their ballheads, though, which I'm still using. The ball does not lock well at all. A year ago I read a review from someone who tore an Induro ballhead apart and compared it to Kirk or something similar and the Induro was lacking in many ways.</p>

<p>I am also new to photography, but not lucky enough to have a $3k budget. Instead, this is what I bought: <br>

Nikon FE2 w/ 50mm f.18 and bag, etc. - $130<br>

Nikon Nikkor 135mm f3.5 - $50<br>

The rest has been spent on film and an Epson V300 scanner. I got the scanner to keep me from wanting to buy a DSLR. Like Greg mentioned above, I am very, very careful to properly compose my shots so as to not wast film. I felt that if I started off with a DSLR I would have been more trial and error and there was no guarantee that I'd even try to remember how I managed to get a good shot. With film, I pay extra close attention to what I'm doing.</p>