Camera Knowledge

nick hanson

I'm looking to get a DSLR camera & would appreciate some advice
I've got an old Pentax 35mm SLR camera I haven't used for YEARS,(it must be about 25 years old now,but i have 3 lenses to cover most applications)
I have No technical knowledge of cameras,just want to point & shoot some pics,is all.
Would I be as well getting something like the Nikon D40 or D60 with a 'normal' (18-55) & 'zoom' lens (i have a BUDGET OF £300 TO £500 max)
The other option seems to be that I could get a Pentax K200d body for,say,£300,
& am told I would be able to use my OLD pentax lenses,as apparently The new Pentax body is compatable with ANY pentax lenses
Without delving too far into the technical side of things,which would appear to be my best option?
Thanks in advance

drewfromrisca

I just got a Canon 450sd last night. Coming from a compact digital all I can say is WOW :shock:

Awesome piece of kit and is going to take me a while to work it all out!!!

Simon Notley

Are your old Pentax lenses compatible with autofocus? If not, then I'd suggest just getting something like the D40.

I have the D40x and my dad has the D80 - both great cameras (d60 wasn;t out when we bought them). Go to a shop and have a play. You could always sell the old lenses to help pay for one new one. The Nikon 18-55 that comes with the D40 is quite well regarded as a starter lense, so just a longer lens needed to complete your setup.

Verbal

I agree with the 450D. Got one before I went on honeymoon last year and the photos it took are just fantastic. Have some of them framed at home and some friends have asked if they were taken by a professional. Daunting to use at first, but well worth it. Plus most places do a deal where they throw in a zoom lense, memory card etc.

Eau Rouge

Cameras are worse than bikes for eating you money. You get what you pay for, but how much you want is always up for debate (kind of like different levels of drivetrain Sora, 105, Dura Ace etc)

Kit lenses (the lens that comes with the camera)are perfectly useable, if not remarkable, lenses, but are usually from the lower end of the market. Thats not to say that isn't going to be perfectly fine, and if all you really want to do is point and shoot, they would probably be fine to be honest. Again, if you wanted to point and shoot, £500 will buy you a decent zoom lens to compliment the kit lens.

However, using a DSLR as a point and shoot is a bit like using a full carbon bike for a short commute. They aren't *that* technical and with digital you can practice away and get comfortable with it all fairly easily. Thats when the cheaper lenses will start looking like a mistake, money that should have been spent on better glass. There is no getting away from the fact that in photography, the lens will always be the most important part of the package.

There is another catch too, once you buy into a system (Canon or Nikon or Pentax or Sony) it's very hard to switch, since you'd need to sell the lot and start all over again, which is expensive. The good news is there isn't really that much between them, sure, there a small differences, and people prefer one or the other, but really you can't go wrong)

I would suggest sticking with the lenses you have, assuming you're reasonably happy with the pictures they produce right now. Then if thats as much photography as you need, you're sorted, and if not, you can upgrade lenses as needed in the furture, with no real loss of money.

Darge

Pentax have kept their lensmount fairly standard throughout their extensive range. Unless your current Pentax lenses are the old (very old?) M42 screw thread mount, you've got little to worry about if considering a Pentax DSLR body. That being said, it's still possible to use the old M42 lenses, but they'll need a lensmount convertor.

Bear in mind though, as well as obviously loosing the autofocus functions, your old lenses won't have any electrical connections the DSLR might have. If the aperture linkage on the DSLR is via electrical connections, you're going to have to manually stop-down the old lenses.

Above all though, it's very difficult to get a bad DSLR in the current consumer-level market. It's only physical differences that should sway your choices and decisions.

Hello all, btw.

nick hanson

Thanks for the advice everyone
One of the reasons for DSLR over a standard compact digital is that I fit full bathrooms as one of my jobs,& a nice picture helps to show the workmanship to future customers.To get a decent picture with a compact is a struggle to get a large enough view,so hence,the plan is to get a DSLR,& a couple of extra lenses (telephoto for the big bike races (!) & a shorter lens for the small room pics)
As with bike kit (campag/Shimano) I'm sure people will always have their preferance,but not being up on photography,I wanted really to know if there is a brand to definately stear clear of

camerauk

Hi
One thing you will need to factor in is with a Dslr what ever lense you put on you will have to x the length by 1.6 for Canon or 1.5 for Nikon so for example a can 35-70mm will be a 56-112mm and Nikon will be 52-105mm unless you get a full frame camera which is very expensive I have a Nikon D3 for work very expensive!!!!!
Both Nikon and Canon are the leaders in Dslr's and there is not alot to choose between them at that price apart from feel
make sure you try the cameras out in a local shop as the all feel different friend has the canon 450D and loves it!
Try and get a kit set with say a 18- something lens as a good starting option for your inside pictures

pneumatic

I was in exactly your position - two pentax's from way back in the last century and a load of associated kit, mostly bought second hand. They took great pictures (even when I was holding the camera!) and I was loath to give them up.

I bought a compact digital and was pleased with the versatility but always disappointed with the quality of the pics.

Then, last year, I bought a Canon EOS 450D and a zoom lens in some absurdly discounted deal at Jessops.

In brief, it is the best camera I have ever used. Well up to, and beyond, the quality of my old pentax kit, which is now in the loft.

At the time I was doing the research, everyone said either the Canon or the Nikon equivalent. I liked the feel of the Canon better.

demmerson

nick hanson wrote:

The other option seems to be that I could get a Pentax K200d body for,say,£300,
& am told I would be able to use my OLD pentax lenses,as apparently The new Pentax body is compatable with ANY pentax lenses

If you are considering Pentax it's worth noting that Pentax share R&D with Samsung so Samsung DSLR cameras are badged Pentaxes but generally sell at a lower price because Samsung is not a major brand in the "serious" camera market. The Samsung equivalent of the K200d is the GX-10. I got one with 18-55 and 50-200 kit lenses for £349 last December from Park Cameras.

Headhuunter

Try looking at http://www.dpreview.com/

cakewalk

Think very carefully about buying an DSLR. Most people do not need one - or use it to anywhere near it's full potential.

When buying a camera always start with the quality of the lens. Quite a number of manufacturers make all in one cameras with very decent bits if glass.

Headhuunter

cakewalk wrote:

Think very carefully about buying an DSLR. Most people do not need one - or use it to anywhere near it's full potential.

When buying a camera always start with the quality of the lens. Quite a number of manufacturers make all in one cameras with very decent bits if glass.

When buying a digital camera it's also v important to think of the quality of the digital sensor and digital processing electronics and whether or not the camera can store pictures in raw, unprocessed format (higher quality than jpeg or TIFF formats). The days of traditional film format when the lens was the major thing affecting quality are gone...

cakewalk

Headhuunter wrote:

cakewalk wrote:

Think very carefully about buying an DSLR. Most people do not need one - or use it to anywhere near it's full potential.

When buying a camera always start with the quality of the lens. Quite a number of manufacturers make all in one cameras with very decent bits if glass.

When buying a digital camera it's also v important to think of the quality of the digital sensor and digital processing electronics and whether or not the camera can store pictures in raw, unprocessed format (higher quality than jpeg or TIFF formats). The days of traditional film format when the lens was the major thing affecting quality are gone...

hmmm. Yes. But it all starts with the lens. Sh1t in sh1t out.

MichaelW

I think digicams have got to the point that you can get good enough pictures out of any DSLR and most compacts. Compact cameras use smaller sensors which are not as good as the larger ones used in DSLR but they are good enough. My latest camera is a n 8mp canon Powershot 820, pretty old and low spec by current standards but the pictures are impressive.
For illustrating fitted bathrooms and kitchens you need a wideangle with good curvilinear distortion (ie straight lines appear straight, not curved). I think a widest 24mm (equivalent) lens is about right.
You can get this in compact form. Panasonic are esp good for wideangle, quality compacts. The TZ28 is the best of the long-zoom types and they make a couple of more pocketable ones with 25mm (equiv), I think they are FX , LX and TZ models.
The secret of Panasonic quality is that they correct the lens for every other fault except curvilinear distortion then use digital processing to straighten the curves. Its a bit of a cheat but the results are excellent.

I seem to do a lot of DIY before and after shots with a compact.
If get yourself a small tripod you can setup a shot, frame it with care and take a long exposure under available light without having to use harsh flash. Direct flash is the worst ligh to use, it kills chrome and shiny surfaces. DSLR ( and a few hotshoe-capable compacts) gives you much more advanced flash capability, eg to diffuse the light by bouncing it off the ceilling.

nick hanson

Thanks for all the above,certainly giving me plenty to think about.The Panasonic tz28 certainly seems worthy of consideration,without having to have multiple lenses?