question for the camera gods

[burrito]

im debating right now to go with a rebel xt with kit lens for 650$(used with 4500shots from a friend) or the sony h5 420$ or canon S3 IS for 380$

i know the rebel is very different from the other 2 but for over all shooting,(not just tanks) which would i be best to go with, my previous camera was an older point and shoot from 3 years ago,(still quite good btw) im just having such a hard time deciding, i like the ability to have all my picture needs for the most part taken care of with the lens thats comes with the sony and canon s3 but i know that the rebel is much better but less of a go out and take vacation shots here and there.

idk if my post made sense but i'd figure i'd ask.

thanks

 

[jwedehase]

Some people feel an SLR isn't portable, but I say it is. I take mine everywhere. Heck, my Canon 20D went river rafting (in a waterproof bag) then hiking to a water fall in Hawaii, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Sure, I can't fit it in my pocket, but no point-n-click is going to take the pictures an SLR will.

My wife also had our first child 3 months ago, and as we share photos with family, I get a constant feedback of how great the photos come out. Again, I feel it's the equipment.

For me, there's absolutely no question which camera I'd buy. And 4500 shots is nothin'. I have 8000 through my 20D, and it's just over a year old. Don't fret that, at all.

 

[burrito]

oh, one question about the rebel, how easy is it for a electronically challenged person(my gf) to take a photo if i have it on auto focus?

 

[BlueCorn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8252531#post8252531 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by burrito
oh, one question about the rebel, how easy is it for a electronically challenged person(my gf) to take a photo if i have it on auto focus?

In automatic(program) mode the only difference between an SLR and a P&S is that with only one exception that I know of you have to use the view finder, not the screen, to compose the shot.

Point and click.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I would buy the DSLR and never look back.

 

[astrogazer]

I agree, I too would buy the DSLR. With the kit lens, shooting in full program mode is pretty easy, i don't agree that it's as easy to shoot as a P&S, even in a fully automatic mode. The program modes are designed around the lens on the camera at the time and is not nearly as forgiving, especially at the fringes of the program as would be the average P&S model. The high end P&S cameras are almost foolproof these days, even using the tougher programs like macro or balanced nightime shooting.
I have a Nikon D200 and I take it everywhere, sometimes a little bulky, but I've done this for years and am used to carrying a bunch of crap around everywhere.

 

[burrito]

i was looking at some prices online, how come the black body cost more than the silver body for the rebel xt? its the same camera right?

 

[BlueCorn]

I've never seen the two price differently.

 

[PL-Reef]

I think it depends on how much you want to spend, both time and money. I have an XT and love it, but did alot of reading up on SLR's first. You also have to remember that with the XT you're buying in to a system, there's not one lens that will do portraits, macro, landscapes, etc... you have to buy some seperate lenses to get the effect that you want, unlike the S3 where you can do it all. I had an S2 and at the time it was perfect because I understood nothing about photography, but could take family photos, do macros and everything in-between. Eventually I was using nothing but manual and figured it was time to buy into the DSLR world. I'm not tring to discourage you in any way, I love my XT and it takes great photos, but it's the photographer that makes the photo, not the camera IMO. My suggestion is to decide what you would want to take photos of, and look into the lenses (and pricing) to see if that's really what you want. If you're going towards canon, check out photography-on-the.net It's a great site with lots of useful information for all canon cameras. Just my .02

And by the way, the black body is more expensive because it's more wanted, as it has the more 'pro photographer' look, but they are the same camera.

 

[Ebn]

I'd go with a DSLR any day of the week over a P&S. It gives you room to grow into as your get more involved with photography and will give you better shots overall. The sensor on the XT is twice as large as that of both of those P&S cameras. Right off the bat you'll get better pictures due to less noise and more pixels to crop with.

Weight isn't an issue either. It's something that you get used to.

 

[Atticus]

If you got the XT what lenses would be needed for immeadiate use of taking pictures of your tank and kids?

 

[Blazer88]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8261716#post8261716 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Atticus
If you got the XT what lenses would be needed for immeadiate use of taking pictures of your tank and kids?

That is really too broad of a question to answer. You can get it with a kit lens which will allow you to take immediate pictures of the tank and kids, but the quality is sub-par with other Canon lenses. There are a ton of lenses to choose from but it all depends on what you need in terms of quality, speed, and weight.

 

[mdt178]

Re: question for the camera gods

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8248832#post8248832 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by burrito
im debating right now to go with a rebel xt with kit lens for 650$(used with 4500shots from a friend)...

I believe you can easily find that kit NIB for under $600.

 

[lmuller1]

I have had a Rebel XT for about 9 months. I love it! It is not a pocket camera, but it takes superior pictures. What is so cool about the DSLR cameras is the changeable lenses. I recommend you stick with the Canon lenses if you can afford them. I bought Sigma and now wish I had spent the extra monies for Canon. A good starting lens would be a 28-105mm. You get a nice midrange field of vision. Once you learn the camera, then you can expand.

 

[burrito]

Re: Re: question for the camera gods

Re: Re: question for the camera gods

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8263229#post8263229 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mdt178
I believe you can easily find that kit NIB for under $600.

i've been looking and found the rebel kit NEW for 650-680ish but the guy is throwing in an extra battery and a few filters, polorizing,warming, etc. if someone can link me to a rebel xt kit new for under 600 though i'd appriciate it.
thanks

 

[mdt178]

Re: Re: Re: question for the camera gods

Re: Re: Re: question for the camera gods

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8264877#post8264877 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by burrito
i've been looking and found the rebel kit NEW for 650-680ish but the guy is throwing in an extra battery and a few filters, polorizing,warming, etc. if someone can link me to a rebel xt kit new for under 600 though i'd appriciate it.
thanks

I should have said you used to be able to find them under $600. I guess retailers were dumping them a few months back. Now that the Rebel XTi are in stock, the older XT are just harder to find. Deals are still out there, you just have to look harder. Fatwallet or SlickDeals would be good starts.

 

[mummra100769]

don't overlook the point and shoot cams. check out some of the high end fuji cams as they produce a very rich and detailed picture.

 

[burrito]

well i went with the rebel xt, does this particular camera benefit at all from the Higher speed/more expensive CF cards or is a normal kingston or sandisk CF card sufficient?

 

[jwedehase]

Do you plan on shooting action shots where you're holding down the trigger and letting the camera fire away? That's where you'd notice it most. Again, I have the 20D, and I purchased the high speed CF cards (Sandisk Ultra II, at the time). When I let the camera fire away, I get about 4 shots per second, and I think I can count about 12 or 13 shots before the camera slows down to keep up with the write speed. With a normal CF card, this would probably drop to 8 or 9 shots. Is it worth it? That's up to you, really.