Help me decide

[Moreboost]

Hey all,

Soo i am in the market for a new camera. I have always owned crappy/semi decent point and shots but now want to upgrade to a proper DSLR. Ill have taking a photography class this coming semester and would like to purchase something i can use for the next couple years. I am a beginner so my purchase will reflect that. I don't think its wise for me to spend too much, 1000+

I have used a few DSLRs. My brother has a D90, my cousin (who is on this board, Dreamps) had a Cannon XTI, and my other cousin has an EOS T1i 500d. I have used all three of these and love them all. So now what it comes down to is price and what's the most i can get out of that price.

I love cars thus the user name lol, so majority of my money gets spent there. I am a strong believer in "You get what you pay for" and i know this will be a long term investment so to speak. I would prefer to keep the cost below $800 but if i can spend a little more and get a lot for my money i will do so.

Here are some things i have seen.

This basic T1i/500d

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16830120355

$750

Then on ebay i have seen bundle packs like this

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...t_17955wt_1095

for $1100 but i get a whole lot in return (back pack etc etc)

then i found this the Rebel XS/1000d

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...t=Combo.293494

for $550 i get the camera body plus standard lens and telephoto lens.

Any suggestion tip or any information is welcomed. Like i said i am a beginner when it comes to photography, so what ever you know share it with me

TIA

-Imran

[TCav]

What do you want to take photos of?

[Hards80]

I would choose the t1i over the xs if at all possible. like you say, you get what you pay for. the xs is a good camera for the price, but you really get alot by upgrading to the t1i. the image quality is better, the handling qualities are much improved, the AF is much improved as well. so if your budget can handle it, i would definately go with the T1i.

that said, i think you should probably start with the standard camera and 18-55 IS such as you found on Newegg.

the bundles from ebay such as the one you found are loaded with very low-quality accessories. you can do much better by purchasing better quality accessories separately. so i would just forget that option.

you may want to pick up an external flash, such as the Canon 430 EX II if your budget can handle it. later on, as you get to better understand your photography needs, you may want to add a fast prime ($75 Canon 50 1.8 is pretty good) or a telephoto (the canon 55-250 IS is cheap ~250$ and pretty good). but for a start i think the camera + kit lens + canon flash would be a great start.

[peripatetic]

Stay away from those ebay bundles.

Hard to choose a bad camera nowadays. Start with just the camera and kit lens, the days are gone when it was easy to choose something sub-standard.

[Moreboost]

Originally Posted by TCav

What do you want to take photos of?

Honestly, everything. I don't have a specific thing i'd be taking picture of. Family gatherings, landscape and scenery, cars and various motor sports, so fast shutter speed is important to me i guess.

Originally Posted by Hards80

I would choose the t1i over the xs if at all possible. like you say, you get what you pay for. the xs is a good camera for the price, but you really get alot by upgrading to the t1i. the image quality is better, the handling qualities are much improved, the AF is much improved as well. so if your budget can handle it, i would definately go with the T1i.

that said, i think you should probably start with the standard camera and 18-55 IS such as you found on Newegg.

the bundles from ebay such as the one you found are loaded with very low-quality accessories. you can do much better by purchasing better quality accessories separately. so i would just forget that option.

you may want to pick up an external flash, such as the Canon 430 EX II if your budget can handle it. later on, as you get to better understand your photography needs, you may want to add a fast prime ($75 Canon 50 1.8 is pretty good) or a telephoto (the canon 55-250 IS is cheap ~250$ and pretty good). but for a start i think the camera + kit lens + canon flash would be a great start.

I honestly was leaning towards that because it was a better camera than the XS but i liked the fact that i could get a telephoto lens with the camera for under $600. The only thing is idk if i would even need a telephoto at this point.

As far as when to purchase the camera, i would like to get it before the semester starts at the end of january. Should i wait till after the holiday season or would i get best prices during the holiday season??

[TCav]

Originally Posted by Moreboost

Honestly, everything. I don't have a specific thing i'd be taking picture of. Family gatherings, landscape and scenery, cars and various motor sports, so fast shutter speed is important to me i guess.

... as would a fast AF system. The Canon T1i and Nikon D90 have the best AF systems of the cameras you mentioned. And it sounds like you could borrow more Canon lenses than Nikon lenses.

[Moreboost]

Originally Posted by TCav

... as would a fast AF system. The Canon T1i and Nikon D90 have the best AF systems of the cameras you mentioned. And it sounds like you could borrow more Canon lenses than Nikon lenses.

Sorry to sound stupid but what does AF stand for?

Another question i have is, i know my brothers D90 you can manual focus where as the T1i the lens has a motor in it that focus. What are the pros and cons with these features?

[mtclimber]

moreboost-

AF is an abreviation for auto focus. All DSLR' s anf or that matter, all point and shoot cameras have an AF System, or an Auto Focus System.

You might be confused. your brother will manually adjust the lens on his Nikon D-90, but he is manually setting the zoom position on the lens. Then, when he depresses the shutter half way, the D-90 then goes through an auto focus cycle.

Your proposed Canon T-1 purchase will work exactly the same way. I hope that helps.

Sarah Joyce

[Moreboost]

Originally Posted by mtclimber

moreboost-

AF is an abreviation for auto focus. All DSLR' s anf or that matter, all point and shoot cameras have an AF System, or an Auto Focus System.

You might be confused. your brother will manually adjust the lens on his Nikon D-90, but he is manually setting the zoom position on the lens. Then, when he depresses the shutter half way, the D-90 then goes through an auto focus cycle.

Your proposed Canon T-1 purchase will work exactly the same way. I hope that helps.

Sarah Joyce

Ahh thanks, i feel stupid now. There is always a learning curve i guess. I understand that both cameras have AF but with the d90 you can manually focus it as well. Can you do that with the T1i? With the T1i or 500d (same thing i presume) that i have used the lens is motorized. So when you depress the shutter half way the lens it self moves to focus. Are there any advantages to having a motorized lens?

[mtclimber]

moreboost-

Yes, your T-1 will work just like/almost exactly like the D-90 owned by your brother. All modern lens are motorized. You will very,very rarely ever manually focus.

Sarah Joyce