Which DSLr to Buy

[godfather_india]

Hi Friends I am new to PBASE FOrums. I am planning to Buy a DSLr. I have slected Canon 400 d. Actually I anew to DSLRs. Bu tIlike photogrphy with my Cybershot W50.

I will be basically capturing the moving object, viz, bikes. Because I Am a motorbike group owner. And the second purpose for the camera would be capturing images of my City. as I own one of the website dedicated to my City. Like building, peoples, roads, gardens etc.

So I can for now spend only on the DSLR stock things. I mean no new or extra lens. So can someone tell me how much capable is the Canon EOS 400d lens? The one which comes with it?

I will be aiting for your replies!

[ericvision]

The kit lens will be as good for that as any other manufacturer's kit lens, however, I would encourage you to get a "faster" lens to capture motorcycle action. This means a lens with a lower "f" number. For a very low price you could get the 50mm f1.8 which is a great little lens, although quite inflexible. The 70-200f2.8L would probably be perfect, but you're talking quite pricey!

The 400D body itself is very capable and you have made a good choice there.

[godfather_india]

Thanx mate for the reply. Hoe sharp the images would be captured by the kit lens? Its 10 MP so should I expect that I cant capture some distant, but not too far objects and then crop them to suite my needs with full sharpness? Actually we will be capturing high speed riding, stunting and all. So I have to click them from a distance. Wouuld that kit lens be serving my purpose?

Also, should I expect a great COLOR quality and sharpness while capturing
landscapes?

Any online place for the lens where I can buy?

[dang]

godfaterh india wrote:

Hoe sharp the images would be captured by the kit lens? Its 10 MP so should I expect that I cant capture some distant, but not too far objects and then crop them to suite my needs with full sharpness? Actually we will be capturing high speed riding, stunting and all. So I have to click them from a distance. Wouuld that kit lens be serving my purpose?

The kit lens is an okay starter lens, but needs to be stopped down a couple of f/stops to show it's best, and is fairly slow to begin with. As far as cropping, even with 10mp excessive cropping increases softness, blur & noise. I believe you'd be asking more from it than possible, and be disappointed unless you can afford additional lenses. It's not specific to just this camera, but any DSLR. For test results you can look here: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos400d/

If budget is very tight, you might instead consider Canon's long zoom "point & shot" S5 IS. Review here: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons5is/

If you've decided you want a DSLR regardless, you might consider the package deal offered on the Olympus E510 now. They have a body with 2 lenses which sells for little more than the Canon 400d with one. The Oly has a 2X crop factor compared to Canons' 1.6, which means a 150mm lens is roughly as long as a 200mm when mounted to a Canon.

Either camera will give nice colors, and sharpness... it's more dependent on how well you use them, and your ability to process you work. For a review of the Oly 510, look here: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympuse510/page2.asp

And, for an idea of cost for the 2 lens deal, check here: http://www.adorama.com/IOME510K2.html?s ... &item_no=1

Of course, prices might be drastically different in your area, but with new models coming soon you should find some good deals by checking around.

Good luck.

[godfather_india]

Thanx for the reply!

Actually I can't go for any other camera here, expect Canon. Because no after sales service is there.

I want to what do you mean by slow and fast lens? Also, the lens suggested in the first reply, I Can buy that one with the cam. So any sample pics of that lens?

[supersignet]

If it is an option you should look at the Sigma 30mm f1.4 or the tamron 17-50 f2.8

Both of these lenses are very very good and are resonably priced.

[godfather_india]

Thanx Supersignet!
Seems a Good Lens. But I think its for the wide angle photography, isnt it?

Also, as I asked, for the moving objects, like the high speed moving bikes, whic lens is best at the cheapest rate possible.?

[dang]

Also, as I asked, for the moving objects, like the high speed moving bikes, which lens is best at the cheapest rate possible.

Faster lenses are generally the best for this, since Image Stabilization does little to stop moving objects. Faster lenses are designated with a small f/stop. An example would be one with an aperture of f/1.8. Of course faster lenses also carry a higher price. And once you add the need for a longer telephoto style lens to bring distant objects closer in, they become slower due to their over all length. Personally, I truly feel you're asking for more than is capable without spending a reasonable amount of money. The old saying "you get what you pay for" really holds true under the circumstances you describe. If you purchase an inexpensive long lens with a slow aperture, you'll find you'll have blurred images which are soft and unusable. Bodies come & go, but good lenses last years and years. I'd suggest the possibility of going with the older 350D if you can save enough to add toward the price of better glass. If you can get close enough to the action, then add a 50mm f/1.8 to your bag, which is very reasonable for it's higher speed (although made of cheap materials, has fairly good glass) and much sharper than the kit lens. On the longer size, Tamron produces a 70 to 300mm LD macro lens that is fairly sharp, but it's slow and would require using a high ISO speed even in the best of light. It also suffers from a fair amount of flair due to it's less than best coatings. To help overcome some of the noise, you'll need a noise reduction program such as can be found here: http://www.neatimage.com

Good luck.

[godfather_india]

ya bro, I am tight on Budget. But I am looking for a organization who can sponsor me the cams. May be in a week or two, I will get someone who is ready to accept my ideas and is willing to help me. After tht I will checkout the things. But anways thanx for the hlep. I think I have got some good info before buying a lens. But I will surely ask before buying, a help from you guys!

[godfather_india]

Hi There,

SO finally I got someone who is ready to buy a cam for me

But now, I want to know, which lens should I buy? The main objective of buying the lens would be:
1. Capturing Bikes cars moving on high speeds, like during a wheelie.

2. Capturing some landscapes and some photos f my City, like Gardens, buildings, with night shots.

3. The lens you suggested would server for wide angle photography?

waiting for your responses.

[jdepould]

For the action stuff, Canon has 4 70-200 f/2.8 and f/4 lenses that would probably suit your needs, though I'm not sure about your budget.

Opting for the models without IS will save a fair chunk of change, but you'll probably want a decent monopod (relatively inexpensive). An f/4 will work fine for outdoors, but you'll definitely notice it inside.

[godfather_india]

hi There,

Thanx for the reply. I am new to lenses and DSLRs, so dont know much about these things. So I am again explaining my requirements as follows.

1. wide angle photographs like roads, buildings, malls etc.

2. Images of antiques like, paintings, jewellery, which will be indoor shooting and need very sharp and colorful images.

3. I can compromise for the moving objects whcih I written above like bikes and cars et.

So Please suggest me a lens which can fulfill the first two requirements but if possible, the third one too!

[supersignet]

It's going to be hard to get a lens that will encomp[ase all of your needs. If that's what you're looking for, on a crop sensor camera like 400d it will prove to be problematic. You will probably be forced to buy a couple of lenses.

A 30mm on a crop camera works out to be about a 50mm on a 35mm camera. So it isn't really a wide angle lens. For the most part if you want anything really wide you'd probably only have one choice and that'd be the Sigma 10-20mm.

If you're looking for a lens that might try to do everything for you as you learn maybe a Sigma 18-200 or a tamron 18-250 would fill your needs. These lenses are trade offs and can be viewed as an attempt to save money as learn.

If you could afford it I would recomend looking for a
Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 and a Sigma 70-200 f 2.8 EX HSM. The Sigma can be had for resonably cheap if you can find one second hand. If not I'm pretty sure that you could find a lot of good uses for the Tamron by it self and it should be able to cover most of your needs. If you want to know more about the focal length of lenses and how you can use them you should go down to your local shop and try some out.

[godfather_india]

thanx for the reply Sir,

I will buy 2 or 3 three lenses, I am not talking about the single lens to buy. I mean To fullfil those needs, Iwill be buying two or three lenses. But for now, to capture the buildings, antiques and all, which lens should I buy? Because it my primary need.

Let me explaing it other way. I have planned to make a pictorial journey of my city's some of the malls (indoor shooting). Hisotical buildings ( I Think it would come under wide angle), Water Amusement Parks. So which lens would serve best for this. As its my primary need.

[dang]

You're asking for a lot, and you haven't given us a budget. But considering if I were going out for a day of shooting such varied subjects this would be my personal choice.
Wide angle: Sigma 10-20mm It's a bit slow, but if you're shooting outside it does fine. At night, you'd need a tripod. US price around $525.00

Fast Prime: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Inexpensive (less than $100.00 US) and pretty fast for inside shooting, although the Sigma 30mm f/1.8 would be a better choice if you can afford it, due to it's wider angle. Otherwise you could use the Sigma 10-20 indoors with a tripod if you need a wider angle.

Medium long zoom: Canon 70-200 f/4 L Even though it's only f/4, you'd also be using it for outside. Using an ISO of 400 to 800 it should do a fine job for car and cycle shots. It's among the sharpest lenses of it's size available, and carries the reasonable price of around $550.00 US. If you can afford around double the price, the Canon 100-400L is also an excellent lens.

One thing to remember though, EF-S mount lenses (such as the Sigma 10-20) aren't compatible with full frame sensor bodies. So if you intend to upgrade to a 5D later on, you'd need to replace it.

All in all, you really need to research lenses yourself and make your own decisions. Ask 100 people, and you can get 100 different responses. It's not until you use a variety of equipment that you'll know what fits your needs best. But as a general rule, more expensive lenses Do give better results. But any lens is only as good as the person using it.