龙哥， The D-SLR is changing so fast that I can't even keep track of all the new toys. To choose one for yourself, you need to ask yourself what feature do you care most. 1) Resolution: 6M is the standard now (Nikon D70s, Canon 300D, Pentax *ist DS). They are enough for 8x10 inch prints. If you like to crop your picture after it's taken, you will need more resolution than 6M. Canon 350D has 8M and Nikon D200 has 10M. 2) Weight: Do you take picture for traveling or for in-door scenes? If you like mountain climbing and backpacking, every gram is important. Right now, Canon 350D is about the lightest you can get (540 g). Pentax *ist DS is a bit heavier (605 g) and D70s is a brick (679 g). The number includes battery, but not lens. 3) Price: Depends on what kind of deal you are getting, all the cameras I mentioned above costs < $900. But a more "professional" 20D will cost > $1000. The camera body is just a start. A full array of lens usually cost 2~3 times as much as the body. And the Canon "L" lens are so tempting that they can easily break your bank. You need at least $200 for a decent tripod and head, $50 for a good carry case, $120 for the cheapest filters (UV, CPL, ND), $50 for lens hoods. 4) Last but some takes as most important: size of the view-finder, the only thing that people who have used film SLR before will miss in a D-SLR. Looking through any viewfinders in a consumer D-SLR cameras (even those as expensive as 20D), is like looking through a tunnel. How can one possibly concentrate on composition through such torture. I blame the tunnel vision for all my mediocre shots! The only D-SLR that has a reasonable view finder is Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D. It also has a built-in anit-shake system, that can make an ordinary lens into a anit-shake lens, which can translate to an extra 1.5~2 stops on the aperture. Here is why you will appreciate it. The size of the aperture is measured by "stops". Larger aperture lens are more expensive and heavier. To get the same amount of light on your CCD (or CMOS) sensor, you need to keep "shutter speed" X "aperture size" a constant. So a larger aperture size gives shorter shutter speed. And since most people hand-hold the camera while shooting. A safe shutter speed is about 2 x (focal length). By safe, I mean your picture won't be blurred by hand shaking.
OK. After all these, what's the conclusion? It really depends. Personally, I use D70, 300D and 350D in combination, switching between them so that I don't have to switch lens in the field. If I were to buy another camera, it will be a Canon 5D, because I have invested too much in Canon EF mount lenses. If I don't have any camera to start with, I would buy a Maxxum 7D, for the reasons I mentioned, plus Minolta has some excellent lens on the used market, which former Minolta fans are dumping because they are busy switching to Canon.
As you mentioned middle-price-range, I didn't talk much about Canon 5D, which is a beast of other kind (called "full frame").
龙哥，
ReplyDeleteThe D-SLR is changing so fast that I can't even keep track of all the new toys. To choose one for yourself, you need to ask yourself what feature do you care most.
1) Resolution: 6M is the standard now (Nikon D70s, Canon 300D, Pentax *ist DS). They are enough for 8x10 inch prints. If you like to crop your picture after it's taken, you will need more resolution than 6M. Canon 350D has 8M and Nikon D200 has 10M.
2) Weight: Do you take picture for traveling or for in-door scenes? If you like mountain climbing and backpacking, every gram is important. Right now, Canon 350D is about the lightest you can get (540 g). Pentax *ist DS is a bit heavier (605 g) and D70s is a brick (679 g). The number includes battery, but not lens.
3) Price: Depends on what kind of deal you are getting, all the cameras I mentioned above costs < $900.
But a more "professional" 20D will cost > $1000. The camera body is just a start. A full array of lens usually cost 2~3 times as much as the body. And the Canon "L" lens are so tempting that they can easily break your bank.
You need at least $200 for a decent tripod and head, $50 for a good carry case, $120 for the cheapest filters (UV, CPL, ND), $50 for lens hoods.
4) Last but some takes as most important: size of the view-finder, the only thing that people who have used film SLR before will miss in a D-SLR. Looking through any viewfinders in a consumer D-SLR cameras (even those as expensive as 20D), is like looking through a tunnel. How can one possibly concentrate on composition through such torture. I blame the tunnel vision for all my mediocre shots!
The only D-SLR that has a reasonable view finder is Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D. It also has a built-in anit-shake system, that can make an ordinary lens into a anit-shake lens, which can translate to an extra 1.5~2 stops on the aperture. Here is why you will appreciate it. The size of the aperture is measured by "stops". Larger aperture lens are more expensive and heavier. To get the same amount of light on your CCD (or CMOS) sensor, you need to keep "shutter speed" X "aperture size" a constant. So a larger aperture size gives shorter shutter speed. And since most people hand-hold the camera while shooting. A safe shutter speed is about 2 x (focal length). By safe, I mean your picture won't be blurred by hand shaking.
OK. After all these, what's the conclusion? It really depends. Personally, I use D70, 300D and 350D in combination, switching between them so that I don't have to switch lens in the field. If I were to buy another camera, it will be a Canon 5D, because I have invested too much in Canon EF mount lenses. If I don't have any camera to start with, I would buy a Maxxum 7D, for the reasons I mentioned, plus Minolta has some excellent lens on the used market, which former Minolta fans are dumping because they are busy switching to Canon.
As you mentioned middle-price-range, I didn't talk much about Canon 5D, which is a beast of other kind (called "full frame").
Eric, can recommend me some D-SLR cameras in medium price range?
ReplyDeleteExcellent suggestions. Thx eric. I tried both canon and nikon b4, and it seems canon is easier to use for a lazy bum like me.
ReplyDeleteThose camera reviews always recommend high-end products which is prohibitive.
Millions of thx again!