Newbie needs advice Re: DSLR vs SLR-like

[Andrew Waters]

I'd say you did one terrific job with that lens at that speed in those conditions. Good stuff. Very good stuff.

[wolfroolz]

Just to throw in my two cents. About 4 months ago I decided I needed a new camera, and figured, well, I don't really want to spend the money/have the extra bulk of a dslr. So I gotthe FZ30.Acouple of days ago Ijust gave in and got myself a DSLR (400d). And I am not knocking the FZ-30, it is a good camera, but I was just not able to get the shots I wanted. Low light/action shots. If I was taking pictures of something with a lot of light or didnt move, you could get some amazing shots. Other then that it was noisy, or just couldnt lock on. Now I know there are some more and better choices then the FZ30 that you might be quite happy with and I am sure they are great cameras, but for the pictures it sounds like you want, think carefully. Because my decision for the FZ30 and saving some money has cost me a lot in the long run, because of all the money for the fz30 and its accessories. Hopefully I will be able to sell it for a decent price and put that towards the cost of the DSLR.

Jamie

[JohnG]

wolfroolz wrote:

Because my decision for the FZ30 and saving some money has cost me a lot in the long run, because of all the money for the fz30 and its accessories. Hopefully I will be able to sell it for a decent price and put that towards the cost of the DSLR.

Jamie

Wolfroolz,

Thanks so much for providing hands-on experience. Your experience points out why it is critical for a potential camera buyer to seek out first-hand experience with a suggested camera AND IN THE TYPE OF PHOTOGRAPHY you plan on doing.

Your situation illustrates just how dangerous it is for someone with no first hand experience to extrapolate based upon either features or reviews alone or even based upon extrapolating (e.g. the xyz camera works great for my low light just-hanging-out or low light still shots so therefore it must work well for action).

Hopefully, as you say, you can get a decent buck for your fz30 equipment. I'm sure you'll get decent money for it - it is a good camera just the wrong camera for what you needed.

[BenjaminXYZ]

Thanks guys, for the experience. :O

BTW, reviews also said that the FZ30 wasone noisy camera! :-)

[rfortson]

wolfroolz wrote:

Just to throw in my two cents. About 4 months ago I decided I needed a new camera, and figured, well, I don't really want to spend the money/have the extra bulk of a dslr. So I gotthe FZ30.Acouple of days ago Ijust gave in and got myself a DSLR (400d). And I am not knocking the FZ-30, it is a good camera, but I was just not able to get the shots I wanted. Low light/action shots. If I was taking pictures of something with a lot of light or didnt move, you could get some amazing shots. Other then that it was noisy, or just couldnt lock on. Now I know there are some more and better choices then the FZ30 that you might be quite happy with and I am sure they are great cameras, but for the pictures it sounds like you want, think carefully. Because my decision for the FZ30 and saving some money has cost me a lot in the long run, because of all the money for the fz30 and its accessories. Hopefully I will be able to sell it for a decent price and put that towards the cost of the DSLR.

Jamie

Been there, done that. :-) I went from a Canon S1 IS to a Kodak P850 to Pentax *istDL to Pentax K100D. The dSLR move was the best thing for me. I was perfectly happy with the Pentax*istDL, but I got a great deal on the K100D and got more than I paid for the *istDL, so I made one final move.

I love being able to change the lens and totally remake my camera. I'm having the most fun ever taking pictures, and that's what it's all about.

Russ