Looking for a simple slr body

[anthony_jimenez1]

i've been getting color film processed at our local lab, which costs 17

dollars a roll including processing and 4x6s. this is getting to be expensive

and i'm really considering a digital slr. i can save so much money once i buy

the body/lenses. but the problem is that a lot of them i see have a bazillion

features and mode and stuff. i was wondering if there a digital body that

basically serves like an old manual camera.

[gluteal cleft]

Sure. Any of them, just choose the "manual" mode.

 

steve

[peterblaise]

.

 

Which manual SLR are you using now?

[wbowman]

DSLRs will have a manual mode where you can set everything yourself, but they generally

make it far more difficult to use it in that mode than in the fully auto mode. If you're used

to an old manual camera, you miss several things from a DSLR - especially in manual

mode. Among them are a bright, large viewfinder with a microprism or split screen

focusing aid; seperate controls for aperture and shutter speed; and dampened focusing

action on your lens. The upside is that modern metering is much better; autofocus can be

more convenient if used well; and you have the option to allow others to use your camera

in point and shoot mode.

 

Sadly all the additional features are really only a software update - so they cost the

manufacturer very little. There is a baseline of features that all of them have (various scene

modes, aperture priority, shutter priority, and program. From there the primary difference

is generally usability for the more manual modes (how ironic!) and build quality. The basic

Nikon (D50?) and Canon Digital Rebel (XTi?) are as basic as you're going to get and they

both work quite well. I think what you're really looking for might be a Leica M8 - you get

the basics like an old camera but the price of a top-of-the-line DSLR.

[godfrey]

What system do you have now?

 

Pentax makes a very good bottom-of-the-range body, the K110D, which supports

automated modes if you want to use them but is also very easy to use exactly as you have

used a manual focus, match needle film SLR as well. It's compatible with all Pentax lenses.

One step up from that is the K100D which adds in-body image stabilization as well.

 

Take a look at them. They're as simple as a DSLR will get. Solid, practical cameras with

excellent lenses.

 

Godfrey

[robert lee]

"...costs 17 dollars a roll including processing and 4x6s."

 

Are you in the States?

 

It's $4.25 for 36 exposures and index sheet at Costco. Walmart is probably even a bit cheaper.

[anthony_jimenez1]

a couple of people asked what system i use. i use a yashica fx-2 with a zeiss 50/1.4. thank you all for the suggestions, i'm definitely going to look into them. the pentax and Leica M8 sound good so far. also, i didn't realize costco was that cheap, is that for true color film? i currently shoot fuji nps 160 film.

[nokiah]

also at costco you can print relatively large digital prints for amazingly low prices. an 8x10 is $1.50, as is an 8x12. 11x14 and 12x18 prints are $3.00 . I've never been anything but satisfied with their printing jobs, but if you're not happy, i'm pretty sure they'd either refund your money or print it again, though check on that to be sure, again i've never had to do that.

 

Noah

[andrew robertson]

Leica M8 is $5000+. A nice DSLR that I like the looks of is the Pentax K10D. In body anti-

shake plus weather sealing make it a unique offering at this time, and used autofocus and

manual focus Pentax optics are cheaper than ever.

[anthony_jimenez1]

how do you guys that shoot digital print your pictures? do you have to buy a nice photo printer and use that? or do you take it to a shop and have them make prints?

 

i'm having a hard time deciding to go to digial or not. thank you all for your help, by the way. that leica m8 is exactly what i want, but it's way toooooo expensive. the pentax k110d seems like the best if i went digital (most reasonable, i care more about the lens than the body). the problem too is my zeiss lens that i use awesome. does pentax make a nice 50/1.4?

 

what i'm also thinking is that i really like having the photos in my hand, and i like to store them in a book. i'm afraid if i shot digital, i would never print pictures, or only a very few

[robert lee]

"how do you guys that shoot digital print your pictures?"

 

I shoot both digital and film. The film gets developed only, then I do the scanning with a Nikon scanner.

 

In either case, I output snapshots to 8x10 on a $100 Epson photo inkjet. The print quality far exceeds anything you'll get coming out of bulk film finishers. This isn't a digital capture or film capture issue. Tremendous amounts of image potential gets lost if you rely on the typical consumer level finisher for the (digital) darkroom and print making work.

 

Total cost per sheet probably comes in at around $1, but only a small fraction of images shot ever get printed.

 

The jets also tend to clog if left unused for a month or two. I tend to print in infrequent batches, so clogs beyond repair happen about once a year. With a new printer costing just a bit more than a inkset refill, this isn't a problem.

[anthony_jimenez1]

i am sort of confused. so, i didn't know exactly what you meant when you said you use a nikon scanner, but i found this. <a href="http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10360806&SearchEngine=Froogle&SearchTerm=10360806&Type=PE&Category=Comp&dcaid=17379">Nikon Scanner.</a> Is this what you're talking about? i've never seen one before, do you just insert your negatives and it scans them to your computer?

and also, what is considered normal bulk film finishers?

[robert lee]

"i didn't know exactly what you meant when you said you use a nikon scanner"

 

Yes, Nikon makes two models for 35mm film, the V that you referenced and the 5000. The 5000 cost more, but is faster; it can take take accessories that lets you scan a whole 36 exposure roll and a stack of slides at once.

 

Think carefully before you plunk down that wad of cash. For most, a modern DSLR like the Canon XTi will give better images than 35mm film.

 

In absolute terms, 35mm scanned with the Nikon still provide better final prints. Be forewarned, however, expenditure in time for both acquiring the initial skill set and the actual film/scanning workflow is nontrivial.

 

I bought my Nikon 5000 scanner primarily to digitally archive 30 years worth of family memories. That I actually use it with new images is just an added bonus.

 

"...what is considered normal bulk film finishers?"

 

I meant basically any shop whose primary customers are the weekend, birthday, holiday snapshooters. This spans the high volume places like Costco (Qualex) down to the 1hr kiosk at the corner drugstore. Film development quality varies, but I've found prints from these places uniformally unsatisfactory (what do you want for $0.17 per 4x6?)

 

Color negative processing is standard, so the thing to look for is adherence to that standard. I primarily use Costco's 2 day turn-around for my 35mm film. The stores ship the film to Qualex. Qualex stills see enough film volume so that the chances are better that the chemicals are to spec, machines maintained, etc. By the same token, I'd have more of a concern with the corner drugstore that sees almost no volume at all now.

[klix]

Output from a DSLR -- I print at Costco, from 4x6 all the way up to 20x30.

 

B&W Film (35mm & 120) - I develop it myself, and scan the negs. Then, I print at Costco.

 

Slides - these I take to a local place for processing. Then I view them on a lightbox or a projection screen. If I need to print them, then I scan them, and print at Costco.

[rjacksonphoto]

I get a 36 exp. roll of Superia 1600 processed and scanned (18mb files) to disc for around $5 (US) total cost (not counting the cost of the film). You might consider this and then only print the ones you want at home.

[aaron meyer]

<<a couple of people asked what system i use. i use a yashica fx-2 with a zeiss 50/1.4.>>

 

Nope, there's no such beast in the digital SLR world. Something that works like the automated RTS III? Yes. Something that works like an FX-2? Nope. I looked long and hard for something that was "simple" and ended up not being able to find a perfect match.

 

I ended up ordering a Sony DSLR A100. In a few months I plan to replace the kit lens with the Zeiss 16-80 that is available for the Sony. I like the control interface and the camera felt good in my hand. Of course, I fully intend to continue shooting Velvia with my old non-automated RTS II (once I get the RTS II's shutter fixed), so I chose not to fully "replace" the film SLR but rather augment it.