need a camera

[cszakolczai]

Ok guys, saved up money and am ready to buy a nice camera, really tired of the point and shoot digital so I need something nice. I currently have a Minolta 35mm but want to get away from 35mm and into digital. Can anyone give me an idea of good camera's that are digital. Also if there are any nice digital camera's from Minolta that would be great, that way I could hopefully keep the lenses. Maybe I can't keep the lenses not really sure, don't know much about digital camera's. So if you guys could say what your shooting with and what you would reccomend that would be great.

Thanks a lot,
Chris

[97TurboDSM]

i have a barely used Nikon D70s, two lenses, case, 1gb card, tripod, etc that i might be willing to let go. PM me for details if you wanna work something out

[WhiteXFire]

I also have a Nikon D70s, but I'd buy the D80 in a second if I had the choice today.

[97TurboDSM]

bah. the D70s is a wonderful first camera!!

[Chris_PA]

Any Canon or Nikon DSLR will be good

I say go Canon, they do digital better IMO
I've owned both brands

[grimm]

Canon rebel xt or xti is a very nice camera. I have one and love it.

[i like rice]

Before buying anything, head over to Best Buy or any store that would have these on display to handle each camera. I love Canon gear but their entry level dSLRs are made of cheap plastic, which makes them lightweight, but feel inferior to the Nikon bodies. The ergonomics on the Nikon are also superior. The Canon XT/XTi are very small so some may not like how they feel in their hand. Image quality is pretty close on both bodies, though the Canon will have the slight edge at ISO 800 or 1600, which most won't use much.

[Ender81]

Originally Posted by cszakolczai

Ok guys, saved up money and am ready to buy a nice camera, really tired of the point and shoot digital so I need something nice. I currently have a Minolta 35mm but want to get away from 35mm and into digital. Can anyone give me an idea of good camera's that are digital. Also if there are any nice digital camera's from Minolta that would be great, that way I could hopefully keep the lenses. Maybe I can't keep the lenses not really sure, don't know much about digital camera's. So if you guys could say what your shooting with and what you would reccomend that would be great.

Thanks a lot,
Chris

Depending on which Minolta you have you could go with used or old stock Minolta D5 or D7, or since Sony took over Minolta's camera division you could get the Sony Alpha which uses the Minolta lense mounting system. Not exactly in line with what is most popular on here but the Alpha has received great reviews. You can find reviews of all the cameras the people on here have mentioned at http://www.dpreview.com/ they are fairly honest and thurough there so it should save you from people only recomending what they own or are a fan of. Hope this helps.

[S4toSTI]

Originally Posted by Chris_PA

Any Canon or Nikon DSLR will be good

I say go Canon, they do digital better IMO
I've owned both brands

Not gonna start a whole battle here but for a first camera i think a Nikon is a lot easier to use. Canon may be better at digital but they are surely not better at ease of use. I would recommend a d50 or a d70 for a first camera... or i guess a d40 or d80 since those are the new models.

[grimm]

Originally Posted by S4toSTI

Not gonna start a whole battle here but for a first camera i think a Nikon is a lot easier to use. Canon may be better at digital but they are surely not better at ease of use. I would recommend a d50 or a d70 for a first camera... or i guess a d40 or d80 since those are the new models.

obviously thats your personal opinion. I would love to hear concrete facts that support this? My first Digital Camera was a Canon and I didn't find it hard to use at all?

[S4toSTI]

Originally Posted by grimm

obviously thats your personal opinion. I would love to hear concrete facts that support this? My first Digital Camera was a Canon and I didn't find it hard to use at all?

Thats fine. I just think the dial is hard to use and the menu's aren't setup well. With nikon there are quick ways to change your iso wb and quality with only 2 buttons. The couple canons i have used seemed to be hard to get used to.

[cszakolczai]

thanks guys for all the replies. Obviously everyone has there own opinion and I'm taking them all into consideration. Thanks a lot, and I'm probably going to be moving away from the Minolta/Sony.
Thanks a lot everyone,
Chris

[thewake]

Go to a regular camera shop and hold them. They all feel very different. Find one that is comfortable in your hand. I like Allen's Camera in Levittown, they have plenty of new and used stuff. They don't have much of a web site, but you can get the address and phone number there.

You could also try Classic Cameras in Runnemede. They have plenty of used equipment as well.

While digital bodies are not easy to find used, the good lenses are and they tend to hold thier value.

[i like rice]

Originally Posted by grimm

obviously thats your personal opinion. I would love to hear concrete facts that support this? My first Digital Camera was a Canon and I didn't find it hard to use at all?

The Canon menus are fine, imo, but their controls/buttons aren't set up as good as Nikon. Once you move into the Canon prosumer bodies (ie 20D, 30D), the ergonomics are much better, but Nikon definately has the ergonomic advantage at the entry level bodies (D40, D50, D70, D70s, D80 vs Canon 300D, 350D, 400D), especially in the materials used for their body and the way it feels in your hand.

If you learn on a Canon dSLR it's fairly intuitive but once you try a Nikon, it's totally foreign and vice versa.

[S4toSTI]

Originally Posted by i like rice

The Canon menus are fine, imo, but their controls/buttons aren't set up as good as Nikon. Once you move into the Canon prosumer bodies (ie 20D, 30D), the ergonomics are much better, but Nikon definately has the ergonomic advantage at the entry level bodies (D40, D50, D70, D70s, D80 vs Canon 300D, 350D, 400D), especially in the materials used for their body and the way it feels in your hand.

If you learn on a Canon dSLR it's fairly intuitive but once you try a Nikon, it's totally foreign and vice versa.

Thats what i was trying to get across thanks for wording it better. Lol. I would really like to try someones camera sometime just to see some of the pictures i can take with it and so on.

[i like rice]

Originally Posted by S4toSTI

Thats what i was trying to get across thanks for wording it better. Lol. I would really like to try someones camera sometime just to see some of the pictures i can take with it and so on.

You going to the Sonic meet tomorrow? I'll have my 1D MKII and 20D with me. I might bring my 350D if anyone wants to mess with a dSLR.

The 20D/30D probably has the best button setup for the Canon bodies. The 350D/400D lack a 2nd wheel for quick adjustments. They use 4 direction buttons for those adjustments. You hit one button, use the arrow buttons to select, then hit the SET button. The 20D/30D use 3 buttons to cover iso/wb/metering/exposure bracket/fps adjustment. Each of the 3 buttons is controlled by either the shutter dial or secondary dial. The 1D MKII set up is very cumbersome since it requires you to hold one or two buttons with your left hand then make the adjustment with your right hand on the shutter dial. The 20D/30D adjustment can be made with one hand.

It's hard to explain on a forum, much easier to see how it works in person lol.

cliff notes: 350D/400D & 1D series body - adjustments not as easy as the 20D/30D

[S4toSTI]

Nope work blahhhh. Definitely another time i am very interested in trying the 1d.