# After a New camera.



## grant motox (Dec 30, 2010)

Hi all, 

Iam looking into buying a new camera, i have debated over the DSLV vs. Bridge argument and edged towards the DSLR. 

could you recommend me a camera that's available through Argos for around £350-£375 (Or justify why i should pay a little more). Reason for buying via Argos is because the Mrs. works there so discount and a few extra little benefits. 

Looked at the Nikon D3000, But the only thing that puts me off is no video, be a nice added benefit if needed. 

Thanks


----------



## lobotomy (Jun 23, 2006)

A quick comparison going by the camera prices on Argos:

Olympus E450: £289.99 [10MP]
Sony Alpha A390: £299.99 [14.2MP]
Pentax K-x: £329.99 [12.4MP]
Nikon D3000: £349.99 [10.2MP]
Canon EOS 1100D: £389.99 [12.2MP]
Pentax K-r: £399.99 [12.4MP]

DP Review Camera Comparison

I'm swayed by the Sony Alpha A390 (only because I'm a Sony shooter now) but the lower end sony's have been diluted a bit. Very user friendly, but lost a few features that my A100/200 had. For the price of the A390 you can also even get a second lens (SAL30F18 for example)


----------



## grant motox (Dec 30, 2010)

The A390 isnt in stock, and doesnt seem to be coming back in


----------



## bretti_kivi (Apr 22, 2008)

If being able to shoot in low light is of interest, either the k-x or k-r will float your boat. The E450 is tiny. The rest? It's a lot to do with what batteries you want, what cards and how it feels to you. Personally, I really like the way the K-x works but would miss the focus point in viewfinder. But that's just one opinion. 

Bret


----------



## lobotomy (Jun 23, 2006)

Seems to be the case with Argos in general unfortunately! the SAL30F18 is a cracking price! I got mine at £145 when it first came out and I thought I had a bargain then!

Another thing to note is that the Sony/Nikon are CCD sensors whereas the Canon is CMOS - Historically CCD provides better image quality (IQ) but CMOS sensors handle High ISO noise better. But then again, the Canon 1100D was released in 2011, so advances in CMOS will probably negate the difference c/w older CMOS cameras.

Also to note Sony make the CCD chips for most camera manufacturers (even Nikon) but the difference between these will be the image processing.


----------



## Happy (Aug 16, 2010)

just out of curiosity, do you have to buy brand new?

i managed to get a nearly new Canon 450D with lenses and a CPL battery pack and remote trigger, for £470 from ebay, if its your first DSLR id highly recommend going the ebay route as sooner or later your gonna wanna upgrade and you wont be able to justify the money again and again


----------



## LeadFarmer (Feb 23, 2011)

grant motox said:


> Hi all,
> Looked at the Nikon D3000, But the only thing that puts me off is no video, be a nice added benefit if needed.
> 
> Thanks


Dont worry too much about the lack of video. I bought a Nikon D5000 last year, two of the features I liked were video recording and being able to use the lcd screen to take photos (like a compact).

Ive never used either of them! Focusing in video mode isnt very good, and using the lcd sccreen to take a photo on a DSLR is completely pointless and just feels wrong.

I use my DSLR for great photos, and my HD Camcorder for great videos.


----------



## 335dAND110XS (Dec 17, 2010)

Extremely dumb question but what sort of camera do you need to be able to take photos INSTANTLY - I mean as soon as you click the button.

We have a fairly decent compact (Lumix TZ5) but there is always that very slight delay as it focusses.

Would a hybrid do the job or does it need to be full DSLR?


----------



## lobotomy (Jun 23, 2006)

All cameras will need to focus - What I think you want is something that focusses very quickly.

SLR's will do better at this as they open up the aperature to get more light to focus with. the faster the lens (lower F number) the wider the max aperature and the quicker it will focus (in general)

What you may also be struggling with is the fact you're using it to take shots of panels (I only assume here) all cameras will struggle with focussing here, and will "hunt" for a while to get the best focus. This is due to a lack of contrast or anything specular to get a focus of.


----------



## tmitch45 (Jul 29, 2006)

I think your talking about shutter lag, the time taken from pressing the shutter release to taking the pic. If thats important it really needs to be a DSLR. I started with a compact but soon realised that for motorsports photography I needed a DSLR so got a Nikon D70. Now I have a D7000 and aggree with the above in that I don't really use the video function.


----------



## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

I dont see the point of video on a camera although the future of DSLR will be it shoots video and you take out the best pic.

Stil think bridge cameras are a great thing saves a fortune in lenses...:lol:

Wish i stil had mine and keep toying with getting another despite now having 2 DSLR that i dont really use much Nikon D50 and D300.

Unless its arty setup shots your after often needing more kit lighting or lenses.

The bridge cameras are fantastic only lacking a few bits say on the aperture side.

Second hand is good idea both my DSLR have been second user.

The D50 from ebay.
The D300 from Detailing world itself.
Lenses i have got of other Talk Photography members.


----------



## lobotomy (Jun 23, 2006)

> I started with a compact but soon realised that for motorsports photography I needed a DSLR


Hmmm... not so. Before I had my DSLR I had a Powershot G7 (_good compact btw_) and I just pre-focussed on the point on the track I wanted to shoot and panned, fully depressing when the camera passed that point. Instant exposure.

I'm saving for my next Body at the moment - Luckily I've had some paid work from my photography [_casual work for a mates business_] so I am re-investing.

Sony DSLT A77

It's the future...


----------



## 335dAND110XS (Dec 17, 2010)

Cheers all. While I do usually "pre-focus" it's sometimes tricky on the hop.

My wife seems to have got the hang of it better though as shown in this pic taken with the Lumix:

(this is a low res version BTW)


----------



## Brazo (Oct 27, 2005)

lobotomy said:


> Hmmm... not so. Before I had my
> 
> ```
> 
> ...


A77 is looking superb although my money is likely to be spent on the Nex 7 

To the op have you considered Sony Nex cameras? The 5n has tiny dimensions and looks to at least equal top end dslr quality!


----------

