Looking at Digital SLRs

[Scarman]

I'm looking at moving up to a digital SLR camera. I currently have a Lumix FZ10, which is a 4 MP SLR like camera. The FZ10 has been an incredible piece of hardware for the past three years. In large part due to the Leica 12x zoom lens with its F2.8 brightness through the entire zoom range.

I'm looking at moving into a digital SLR so I can utilize different lenses and I'd also like to move up to a faster 6 MP+ camera. I'd like to capture wider angle shots with an 18 or 28 mm lens and 6+ MP will give me better sharpness when I crop some of my pics. I like a camera with good auto functionality, but I also want to be able to quickly change any and every setting possible. Auto settings are pretty good on most cameras, but there are times when I want to control the shot myself.

Two that I'm looking at right now are the Nikon D50, and the Canon EOS 350D. Both very similar so it's hard to choose. The Nikon is 6MP and uses SD cards (I have plenty) for storage. The Canon is 8MP and uses CF cards (I have none) for storage. Other than that, I don't see any huge advantage one has over the other. I like to purchase equipment that's been on the market for a while to get the best price / performance advantage and I'm looking to stay in the $700.00 range.

If anyone has comments about either camera or maybe other cameras I should consider, I'd like to hear what you have to say.

Thanks,

[Vtec44]

We have 3 Canon EOS 350D (Digital Rebel XT) at my work place. I use a Fujifilm S2 Pro/Nikon N80 w/ a 28-300mm lense for personal use. It depends on what you'll use the camera for, but I'd go with the Canon if you're comparing just the 2. However, that will push the price slightly above $700 and that doesn't even include additional lenses. It has a slightly faster FPS (great for shooting fast action shots), lower aperature (great for indoor shooting), and higher resolution. If you're going with the Canon, don't forget to also check the Nikon D70/D70s.

[ogmike]

I bought the Nikon D-50 with a two lens kit, from Beach Camera. It has an 18-55 lens and 55-200 lens, wish I would have just got the 18-55 and sprung for the 70-300 lens. I'm going to go ahead and buy the 70-300. The battery life is great and I love the pictures I get. I'm not much of a photographer so can't really tell ya much more.

[motowriter]

Dave, I'm very pleased with the performance of my 350D so far. I can't remember why I didn't look at the Nikon. I had narrowed it down to a choice between and Olympus eVolt and the Rebel XT. The Rebel had better performance at high ISO levels and it's a Canon, so there's a ton of lenses available for the Rebel. I've shot plenty of shots on full auto that I was happy with. I'm on the left side of the learning curve as to custom settings, but the two high-use settings, AV and TV, are very easy to manipulate when you're in that mode. At this point, it's probably academic, which model you get. The upgrade to a full SLR is a big step, but, IMO well worth it.

If you have specific questions about the 350D lemme know, I'll answer as best I can.

Good luck!

G

[Scarman]

Thanks for the info Gary,

I'm seeing the the same thing. Better performance at higher ISO speeds. That's one thing that I've noticed with all the SLR like cameras. They take great pics, but image quality degrades above ISO 200. Not a bad thing in most cases, but it becomes a problem when you want to take the quality up a notch. I wouldn't mind trying some prints larger than 8X10.

I looked at the eVolt briefly, but my brother just bought one and some of the pics he took looked washed out. Not just noisy but the color wasn't very bright. He barely understands how to use the programmed functions so that might be part of the problem.

The Nikon is nice, but when you look at the detail of a cropped pic, the Canon image is slightly sharper. I'm sure under most conditions it wouldn't be noticeable, but I'll know it's there. It won't matter if I think I see it in every pic or not, it'll bug me.

I actually minored in photography in college, but I've forgotten so much since then I'll be starting from scratch. My favorite was shooting 4X5 and 8X10 in the view camera with Black and white film. There's something about B&W that trips my switch.

[motowriter]

I'm sorry I didn't hand over the Rebel to ya on our ride. You should have told me you were looking to upgrade! Not that I'm confortable with all the options, yet. But you could have gotten an idea for how the model fits for your hands and could have paged through the menus, etc. Next time we ride, for sure! I'm also ready to get a zoom lens for the cam, but don't want to buy cheap glass. Photogs tend to say the body is not as important as the lenses! I wish I had a couple thou laying around to buy something now, but it may be a bit.

Let us know how your search progresses and if you have model-specific questions. FYI... I put a copy of the user manual for the Rebel XT (PDF fike) here.