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Which Camera? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Plentiful
- Start date
I would first decide whether you want to go down the superzoom or DSLR route. If superzoom you're probably looking at choosing between Panasonic and Canon and £400 will get you everything you need.
If DSLR, then I'd get a Canon because they do more affordable wildlife lenses than Nikon - something like a second hand 50D with an all-round lens and then save for a 400mm or 100-400mm lens. But until you get the long lens you would be limited in what wildlife you could take photos of.
Have a look at MPD Photographic for second hand cameras/lenses
If DSLR, then I'd get a Canon because they do more affordable wildlife lenses than Nikon - something like a second hand 50D with an all-round lens and then save for a 400mm or 100-400mm lens. But until you get the long lens you would be limited in what wildlife you could take photos of.
Have a look at MPD Photographic for second hand cameras/lenses
And there's the third option of a micro four-thirds camera and lens (panasonic or olympus). Weight close to a superzoom but better image quality; intermediate price too.
Birdman7
Bird photographer
Canon 650D
Hi Plentiful. I do not know what your shooting style and nature preferences are, but the Canon 650d is a very capable body with 18MP sensor, tillable LCD screen, HDR mode, touchscreen and all the bells and whistles of the latest cameras and currently selling at very good prices body only.
Hi Plentiful. I do not know what your shooting style and nature preferences are, but the Canon 650d is a very capable body with 18MP sensor, tillable LCD screen, HDR mode, touchscreen and all the bells and whistles of the latest cameras and currently selling at very good prices body only.
Check out the SX50 thread here.
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=240202
Especially look for images posted using this camera over the last few pages - there are some stunners.
I love mine - and it has the further advantage that you can use it to identify birds out of binocular range. And go from macro to 100x zoom in seconds, so insects, flowers and fungi can be taken without missing a shot as you struggle to change heavy and expensive lenses.
David
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=240202
Especially look for images posted using this camera over the last few pages - there are some stunners.
I love mine - and it has the further advantage that you can use it to identify birds out of binocular range. And go from macro to 100x zoom in seconds, so insects, flowers and fungi can be taken without missing a shot as you struggle to change heavy and expensive lenses.
David
Birdman7
Bird photographer
The most important considerations are budget and ask yourself how serious one is about photography. Also consider a 5 year plan with regards equipment / upgrade plans. Canon SX50 is a very capable camera with a 50X optical zoon lens attatched which will giving you an approximately 24-1200mm range amongst other bells and whistles.
If you can live with not ever being able to change lenses, 15sec minimum shutter and 1/2000 max shutter, which can be limitting for various photographic genres such as long exposures or freezing fast action in bright sunshine, then its a great purchase. Personally I would recommend a DSLR such as the Canon 650D as a starter camera but it would be unfair to say the former is not recommended and neither is the 650D flawless either
Other considerations are the Canon EOS M which is a compact mirrorless camera which accepts all Canon's EF range lenses but has a rather slow AF SERVO performance.
Three very different cameras for different shooting styles and requirements.
If you can live with not ever being able to change lenses, 15sec minimum shutter and 1/2000 max shutter, which can be limitting for various photographic genres such as long exposures or freezing fast action in bright sunshine, then its a great purchase. Personally I would recommend a DSLR such as the Canon 650D as a starter camera but it would be unfair to say the former is not recommended and neither is the 650D flawless either
Other considerations are the Canon EOS M which is a compact mirrorless camera which accepts all Canon's EF range lenses but has a rather slow AF SERVO performance.
Three very different cameras for different shooting styles and requirements.
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mid glam sam
Well-known member
Personally if I was on A budget I'd go for a second hand 550D I loved mine It took great pics and as I was told its like a baby brother of the 7d
O.Reville1989
I started off with nothing and I've still got some
For wildlife photography £400 is quite limiting but we all have to start somewhere.
Always been told (and believe this a very important point) that having the top glass is better than having the top body.
So I would maybe try and get a Canon 30D for around the £150 area then save for the Canon 400mm f5.6 or similar lens, the sigma 120-400mm lens is very capable and a lot cheaper so worth a look too.
That said superzoom/bridge cameras will give you all of this for within your budget so it just depends how far you want to take it
Lots of helpful people here so ask away!
Always been told (and believe this a very important point) that having the top glass is better than having the top body.
So I would maybe try and get a Canon 30D for around the £150 area then save for the Canon 400mm f5.6 or similar lens, the sigma 120-400mm lens is very capable and a lot cheaper so worth a look too.
That said superzoom/bridge cameras will give you all of this for within your budget so it just depends how far you want to take it
Lots of helpful people here so ask away!
Birdman7
Bird photographer
Beginners equipment
A used body is also a very viable option as O.Reville says and you can get lots of good deals on the internet and I agree that £400 is quite limiting but not impossible if you look in the right places and you'r patient. Photography as a whole is an expensive hobby, even more so if one eventually decides to specialise in any area. With bird photography though, there is a requirement for longer focal lengths which in itself makes it even more expensive that other genres.
Amazon UK for example is also offering a Canon Spring Cashback offer when you purchase a qualifying Canon camera product between March 7, 2013 and May 31, 2013 and receive up to £235 cashback from Canon which is a good oportunity if you intend to purchase new equipment and make a generous saving in the process.
For wildlife photography £400 is quite limiting but we all have to start somewhere.
Always been told (and believe this a very important point) that having the top glass is better than having the top body.
So I would maybe try and get a Canon 30D for around the £150 area then save for the Canon 400mm f5.6 or similar lens, the sigma 120-400mm lens is very capable and a lot cheaper so worth a look too.
That said superzoom/bridge cameras will give you all of this for within your budget so it just depends how far you want to take it
Lots of helpful people here so ask away!
A used body is also a very viable option as O.Reville says and you can get lots of good deals on the internet and I agree that £400 is quite limiting but not impossible if you look in the right places and you'r patient. Photography as a whole is an expensive hobby, even more so if one eventually decides to specialise in any area. With bird photography though, there is a requirement for longer focal lengths which in itself makes it even more expensive that other genres.
Amazon UK for example is also offering a Canon Spring Cashback offer when you purchase a qualifying Canon camera product between March 7, 2013 and May 31, 2013 and receive up to £235 cashback from Canon which is a good oportunity if you intend to purchase new equipment and make a generous saving in the process.
Robert L Jarvis
Robert L Jarvis
I think WEX have the same offer, for SH look at MPB Photographic.
So much information from you all who have been there. Thank you. I like the idea of purchasing a second hand body and aiming to buy brand new glass lenses down the line. I would prefer to go for a DSLR as I suspect there is more room for controlling the set up this way. Will also check out the spring deals at Wex and Amazon. Its helpful that the deal ends in May - buys time.
I walk a lot - mountains and so on - so any camera I bought would not only be for birds but scenic and distant shots too.
Reville - you mentioned buying a Canon 30D camera. Is the Canon 400mm f5.6 you also mentioned, a separate lens that can be bought separately?
I walk a lot - mountains and so on - so any camera I bought would not only be for birds but scenic and distant shots too.
Reville - you mentioned buying a Canon 30D camera. Is the Canon 400mm f5.6 you also mentioned, a separate lens that can be bought separately?
Yep. Not cheap though. They cost about £1,200 new, but you can get them second hand. I bought one off someone on here for around £700.
Hor Kee
Penang birder
A used Rebel or XXXD series goes for even cheaper than the used 30D, but their capabilities are somewhat more limited. Nonetheless, I've seen good shots until today shot from these purportedly 'obsolete' bodies.
As for the lens, the cheapest prime lenses would be used Tokina or Sigma 400mm 5.6s. Some eBay links here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Canon-EOS...=UK_Lenses_Filters_Lenses&hash=item27d0b1a8ce
Note that they may or may not AF with the Canon bodies. If you do decide to go down that route, better to buy used Nikon bodies like the D70 or something like that (with an in-body AF motor) as generally these third-party lenses maintain compatibility with older Nikon bodies in a much better way compared to Canon. That way you could squeeze a DSLR and a long prime lens into your budget.
As for the lens, the cheapest prime lenses would be used Tokina or Sigma 400mm 5.6s. Some eBay links here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Canon-EOS...=UK_Lenses_Filters_Lenses&hash=item27d0b1a8ce
Note that they may or may not AF with the Canon bodies. If you do decide to go down that route, better to buy used Nikon bodies like the D70 or something like that (with an in-body AF motor) as generally these third-party lenses maintain compatibility with older Nikon bodies in a much better way compared to Canon. That way you could squeeze a DSLR and a long prime lens into your budget.
Birdman7
Bird photographer
The Canon 30d has only 1 cross-type AF point (central) whilst the 650D has 9 cross-type AF points (centre point also dual-cross senstiive to diagonal lines). The 650D compared to the 30D, also built-in speedlite transmitter, 63 zone metering, video, has DIGIC V & 14bit image processor compared to the DIGIC 2 & 12bit of the former. The 650d also has Live View LCD, useful for many other wildlife projects. I wouldn't buy a camera without LV anymore so I would strongly disagree that the the 650D would be limited in capability, considering it also has more than twice the amount of pixels which would help in post-processing & cropping. In fact, I would safely assert quite the opposite!
Having said all that, the 30D is a good starter body agreed, but def not superior that a 650D in terms of potential. With good technique though, good results are possible with any DSLR. I am not brand-concious or biased and I give my opinion on the basis that a camera is just a tool and choosing a brand is not the foremost consideration, but as this is a Canon thread, to recommend some1 lenses that might not AF with a Canon body and advise to buy a Nikon body is a bit misguided and might end up making the buyer spend more money than originally intended and defeat the purpose of his excercise. Therefore, I would strongly recommend a solid starting Canon camera, and for me, the 650D is a good candidate selling new at very affordable good prices and has the technology to boot too.
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There is a Canon 650D for sale on Amazon for considerably more - £549. Would I need to shell out for another lens in the future or does this have all thats needed in one body?
To be truthful I am not so expert in photography to understand the terms here but assume it is recognised to be superior camera for those who know the difference. Thanks to all for your time and expertise.
To be truthful I am not so expert in photography to understand the terms here but assume it is recognised to be superior camera for those who know the difference. Thanks to all for your time and expertise.
Just found this recommendation for the 650D on Amazon which is so brilliantly written and by a bird photographer too. I am going to share it here. There is more but I’ve chosen a snapshot of the overall piece.
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I film the eagles on Mull and the landlady I stay with was telling me about this other photographer who visits her little cottage (it's beautiful by the way, you should visit if you get the chance). So anyway, she is cooking tea , as she does if you ask her nicely. While it's cooking he shows her one of his photos, probably of a sea eagle catching a fish. Everyone wants to photograph one of those even though its on every other postcard in Scotland. Next to a highland cow looking over a gate its the top photo/cliche to get.. Anyhoo, she looks at the photo and says "wow that's great...you must have a brilliant camera" .
So they sit down for supper a bit later and its delicious, she is a great cook. He says "This is lovely...you must have some great saucepans!" boom boom.
But herein lies the real point of this camera. You know its the person behind the camera that takes the pictures but do you really know it? This and the 600d take pictures so good (if you have the skill) you could blow it up the size of front door but are you going to want to. The thing no sellers want to tell you is that for years, maybe 5 , all of the big names have been making great dslr. Since the nikon d40 perhaps. But you really want to know, if you bought this, would you be happy or buying a pup. Be reassured that neither canon, nikon or sony make chocolate teapots. They know how to make a great camera and this is one. It's biggest difference as you will have read ad nauseum , is the touch screen. is it worth it. It is if you like touch screens (I do). That's not flippant, it's how it is.
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I film the eagles on Mull and the landlady I stay with was telling me about this other photographer who visits her little cottage (it's beautiful by the way, you should visit if you get the chance). So anyway, she is cooking tea , as she does if you ask her nicely. While it's cooking he shows her one of his photos, probably of a sea eagle catching a fish. Everyone wants to photograph one of those even though its on every other postcard in Scotland. Next to a highland cow looking over a gate its the top photo/cliche to get.. Anyhoo, she looks at the photo and says "wow that's great...you must have a brilliant camera" .
So they sit down for supper a bit later and its delicious, she is a great cook. He says "This is lovely...you must have some great saucepans!" boom boom.
But herein lies the real point of this camera. You know its the person behind the camera that takes the pictures but do you really know it? This and the 600d take pictures so good (if you have the skill) you could blow it up the size of front door but are you going to want to. The thing no sellers want to tell you is that for years, maybe 5 , all of the big names have been making great dslr. Since the nikon d40 perhaps. But you really want to know, if you bought this, would you be happy or buying a pup. Be reassured that neither canon, nikon or sony make chocolate teapots. They know how to make a great camera and this is one. It's biggest difference as you will have read ad nauseum , is the touch screen. is it worth it. It is if you like touch screens (I do). That's not flippant, it's how it is.
If the 650D for £549 comes with a lens it won't be one suitable for wildlife photography. Even second hand you are looking at £1,000+ for camera and wildlife lens. For £400-500 you can get either a very good compact camera with fixed lens (bridge/superzoom) or a DSLR with a basic lens NOT a full DSLR set-up
If I were you I'd go to a camera shop, have a look at the options and have a chat to someone.
If I were you I'd go to a camera shop, have a look at the options and have a chat to someone.
