First DSLR - Make it a Cannon?

[27bslash6]

Hi all,

 

So I'm planning on buying my first DSLR. The Digital Rebel line looks very enticing. My concern is that I can't

afford to invest heavily in lenses at the moment. I've been looking at the Pentax K200d, and the backwards

compatability with old film lenses is appealing due to the low cost. Are there any Cannon lenses (particularly

telephoto zoom) that won't break the bank? I think I'd be set for a while with the kit lens and a decent

telephoto zoom. Any suggestions? Should I make the Cannon XTI or XSI my first DSLR?

 

Thanks!

[elmroc]

Neither.

 

Go with the Nikion D80

[bobatkins]

The Canon EF-S 55-250 IS isn't a bad telephoto for the digital rebel series and it's under $300. With that and the EF-S 18-55 IS kit lens, you've got most of the bases covered. You should be able to get the whole outfit for under $1000.

 

You can put old Pentax M42 screw mount lenses (and other old manual focus lenses) on and EOS body. See http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/eosfaq/manual_focus_EOS.html for deatils on what can be adapted and what can't be).

 

The big advantage of the Pentax DSLRs is that with their "in body" stabilization, any lens you put on them results in a stabilized system, even if you use a 50 year old Pentax screw mount lens.

[phule]

Any entry level DSLR (Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony, Olympus) will offer you a tremendous amount of value. Each one comes with a kit lens that is more than adequate for a beginner to use. There is always time later to buy lenses when you figure out what it is you need to buy.

 

Go with what you like the most. You can't pick incorrectly. Really. If Canon is appealing to you, go for it.

[jeff_higdon]

Canon XSi with 18-55 IS (new kit lens). Go to Adormama, Amazon or B&H. About $739 USD for that package.

 

If you have room in your budget now or in the near future then add a telephoto: the Canon 55-250 IS about $279 or, if you have more room in your budget, the Canon 70-300 IS - around $570 USD or the 70-200 f/4 (non IS).

 

Are these along the price lines you expected?

[elmroc]

Josh,

 

The same advice holds true today as it did yesterday. If the Canon fells right in your hands, over the Pentax, Nikon or any other brand, then go with the Canon. If you like to Controls, and are easy for YOU to use, then go for it.

It really boils down to fit and feel of the camera in your hands, and what exactly is the type of photography you plan on doing with said DSLR..Once again,good luck in your decision.

[KenPapai]

A Cannon is WAY too powerful for a beginner.

 

But... Canon or Nikon is a perfect first choice -- what is your budget? What do you friends or local experts shoot? That should help influence you to N or C.

[yog_sothoth]

One reason to avoid Canon and Nikon is that they are avoiding in-body image stabilization for legacy reasons. They could build an in-body IS camera, but they want to milk money out of people with their expensive IS lenses.

[KenPapai]

Stephen, Canon also has cheap IS lenses for their EF-S line (1.6 sesnor-sized lenses), or, are you unaware of that (no surprise there)?

 

Lens IS trumps in-body IS anyway. Esp. in telephoto.

[victor_kunkel2]

Lots of choices out there depending upon your budget. You can go to a big box store or good shop to handle some units and see what feels

best. If you like the Rebel, then the XSI is a great choice. As you learn you will grow into it; nothing wrong shooting full auto Green Zone for

awhile until you get a feel for it. For a one lens solution, the 17 - 85 IS is a good start. It may be a bit slower than the shorter zoom, but

quality is good, IQ is very good in my experience and the extra reach is very handy. Considering the 1.6 crop, it acts like a 28 - 135 lens,

perfect for walk around, has IS and is close focusing. Hope this helps..

[JDMvW]

Pentax K>EOS mounts are also available to fit the old Pentax film lenses on any EOS camera, though they are a

little harder to find than the M42 screw-mount adapters.

 

Old film manual lenses can be fun to use on a digital camera, but they are no substitute for a decent auto-focus

system.

 

So I would not let backward compatibility be an important criterion in choosing a new dSLR (except that Nikon

would be your _worst_ choice in that regard - so there, Vanacore ;) ). As several have said, you will want to get

a new system that meets your current and future digital needs. Any of the major lines of dSLR will do that, they

have all got decent entry-level dSLRs at good prices thanks to competition. Canon does have the advantage of

allowing a large variety of old manual lenses (such as old mirror telephotos, etc) to be fitted with adapters,

and I do think that the latest Rebel +IS (image stabilized) kit lenses are really nice, speaking as a film

Nikonian who went Canon for digital.

[dogbert]

I use a bunch of old Pentax lenses on my 450D via an ebay focus confirmation adapter and they work about as well

as they would on a Pentax camera. The only disavantage is that the body will not stop down the lens at the time of

taking the picture. Instead you can focus wide open and then stop down to meter, or alterntively focus and meter

while stopped down. In either case it is a bit slow to work with, but if you want speed you should just go for

autofocus lenses in the first place. Modern Pentax bodies have a similar issue as you ahve to press the green

button to meter, so you can't see how exposure changes automatically as you chnage aperture.

 

The old an cheap Pentax lenses are mostly as good optically as the cheap Canon primes, but anything approaching

L quality in the Pentax lineup will be just as expensive if not more so.

 

The big advantage of the Penxta system is image stabilisation built into the body. Once you go beyond the cheap

Canon kit IS lenses, building a stabilised Canon system gets very expensive are there are no stabilised offerings in

the Canon lineup as far as normal/wide/and short tele primes, wide zooms or macros go.

[nhut-nguyen]

check the Costco's XTi bundle, it comes with an XTi, 18-55 f/3.5-5.6 IS, 55-250 f/4-5.6 IS, a camera bag and some other stuff. And YES please make it a Canon :)

[igort]

If you're planning on taking pictures just for a hobby go and get the XSi Kit. Like Nguyen said, Costco would be a great place to start, and if you aren't satisfied with it you can always bring it back :) they have a very generous 90 day return policy. So, if I was in your shoes that is what I would do.

 

Remember, if you don't like something about it, bring it back. They'll be more than happy to take it! :)

[sbp]

I agree with Rob, John and Victor. Most of today's mid to upper range DSLRs can produce very high quality images, certainly satisfying for an

entry level shooter. Here's what I suggest to friends. Buy a 1 or 2 Ghz CF card, go to your local DSRL dealer, load the card into several models

that fit your budget (and feel good in your hands), take multiple shots with each model using different settings, take the card home and load images

onto your computer. The camera for you is the one that feels good in your hands and produces image quality you like.