DSLR for the lad's birthday

[Woofage]

Master Woofage (15 next birthday) has been taking photos - good ones - since he was about 3. He currently uses my Lumix G6 (I have 4 lenses) or Nikon D3300 (18-55 & 55-200), preferring the latter.

I want to get him going with his own kit. An obvious choice would be a Nikon D90 or D7000 so he can start with my lenses until he's got his own. The latter is above the usual birthday budget but he "casually" mentioned the other day that he'd put up a contribution.

The other option is Canon but here's where I need advice as I've never owned/used one. Looking at what's available there's a lot of possibilities and it looks like a lower cost entry to full frame when he's ready to upgrade. Is, say, a 500D a decent alternative to, say, a Nikon D90 or D7000? Thanks for any advice.

[Torslanda]

Just gone thru this, see 'Budget DSLR' thread.

Went Canon. He's getting fabulous results, duck to water.

[T42]

I want to get him going with his own kit. An obvious choice would be a Nikon D90 or D7000 so he can start with my lenses until he's got his own.

...then you can pinch his.  Lots of cheap good Nikon & compatible glass out there, and both those cameras have focussing motors so you can use practically any of it.

[LEE]

Canon vs Nikon disputes will take longer to resolve than the Isreal vs Palestine one.

I see it this way:

 - At any given price-point Canon and Nikon have models so similar that you won't be able to tell any difference, unless you print something poster-size (and even then probably not).

- I prefer Canon Menus, always have, so simple and intuitive.  You may think a menu system isn't important....until you try and use a Sony menu system.

- Canon have the biggest selection of lenses available, new or used, Canon or 3rd Party.  This is the biggest reason to choose Canon in my opinion.  It nearly always comes down to the glass and the choice is simply huge.

I think Canon are very much the Honda of the Camera body World, never that exciting but do the job and do it reliably.  They do have some stunning glass though.


I actually decided on a Canon based on holding a few cameras and preferring how it felt.  I knew that the tech specs would be similar for my given budget.

[Woofage]

- Canon have the biggest selection of lenses available, new or used, Canon or 3rd Party.  This is the biggest reason to choose Canon in my opinion.  It nearly always comes down to the glass and the choice is simply huge.

This is the reason why I'm thinking of Canon rather than (the perhaps more obvious choice of) Nikon. Also, whilst I like Nikon cameras I don't like the way they bodged their AF system.

[D.A.L.E.]

Yebbut. Have you seen the D850 yet?

[Woofage]

Just gone thru this, see 'Budget DSLR' thread.

Went Canon. He's getting fabulous results, duck to water.

Yes, I read through the thread and it's very useful. I'd be interested to learn why you chose the model you did (you can PM me if you prefer).

[LEE]

Yebbut. Have you seen the D850 yet?

Yes. £3500 gets you a nice camera.  No news there.

[D.A.L.E.]

You mention about using your D3300; what about the 5600? Going Nikon means you can share lenses, which was the deciding factor for me when I went DSLR. The D7000 is discontinued, isn't it?

I shot a wedding the other week on a D3300 and a coupla cheap primes. You really don't have to spend a lot.

[T42]

You may think a menu system isn't important....until you try and use a Sony menu system.

Oh yah*.  I loathe my RX100.

I loved my D200 & D300s because they both had the pro interface, bristling with buttons.  Then I went full-frame and took a D600 refurb because I needed to buy lenses too and couldn't afford a D800. Fiddle fiddle fiddle. Bah.

* Fargo accent, please

[Woofage]

You mention about using your D3300; what about the 5600? Going Nikon means you can share lenses, which was the deciding factor for me when I went DSLR. The D7000 is discontinued, isn't it?

I shot a wedding the other week on a D3300 and a coupla cheap primes. You really don't have to spend a lot.

Nice, but over budget (if I blow that much for his b'day, I might have to do the same forever after, plus the same for his sister). A used D7000 comes in about the limit we normally set.

I'd rather get an older model but with more advanced features (& more buttons) as I'm sure he'd soon outgrow an entry-level camera. As I wrote above, he's been taking photos since he was about 3 and he's way better at it than I will ever be.

[Torslanda]

Just gone thru this, see 'Budget DSLR' thread.

Went Canon. He's getting fabulous results, duck to water.

Yes, I read through the thread and it's very useful. I'd be interested to learn why you chose the model you did (you can PM me if you prefer).

Being a photographer of the standard that is point and shoot, I've never been able to get the hang of f-stops, iso and aperture priority. I'm rather better at fixing bikes...

Budget, budget, budget was the overriding factor. I just HAD to be able to get him the best camera and lens I could afford whilst still being able to afford our holiday. As I sit in France typing this the jury's still out on whether we get home next weekend!

Having worked out the affordable I set to finding the best condition body and lens available for the money. He wanted an EOS 40D but I went for the 400. To the untrained eye the specs were broadly similar and they take the same lenses. Rather than mpb I used CameraJungle but that was only because the body and lens were both described as immaculate - and so it proved to be.

When we're in a better position I'll get something 'better' for Foxbat and use this myself.

[David Martin]

I don't think you will have any problem with lens availability for either Canon or Nikon. You have the advantage of already having some lenses with the Nikon. Try them, see what works. I found the D3/5xxx series too small to be comfortable.

Having said that, if you go Canon and want a macro flash setup that may or may not work with a  modern Canon, DM me.

[Woofage]

Having worked out the affordable I set to finding the best condition body and lens available for the money. He wanted an EOS 40D but I went for the 400. To the untrained eye the specs were broadly similar and they take the same lenses. Rather than mpb I used CameraJungle but that was only because the body and lens were both described as immaculate - and so it proved to be.

When we're in a better position I'll get something 'better' for Foxbat and use this myself.

Thanks, I'd not heard of CameraJungle before (although I've bought from MPB before amongst others). I'm thinking of a 600d as it has the flippy screen which helps with video. That and a kit lens just about comes in on budget.

[Torslanda]

I can't see any way you or he would be disappointed.

[Foxbat]

Torslanda and I have been through this process already, I'd recommend the Canon EOS 400D. It's has excellent image quality* a fantastic battery life and above all else the ergonomics make it easy to use. I consider it to be better than a Nikon system because all EOS cameras take the same lenses whether its an EF or EF-S lens. One tip however you can use the EF and EF-S lenses on a Canon body with an APS-C sensor however because the EF-S lenses are APS-C format only they can't be used on a full frame sensor otherwise you will see vignetting (black areas) around the corners of the frame. The latter point is how I understand it, after all I have only just got my system (thank-you Torslanda)  
Hope this helps

*10.1 Megapixels more than perfect for me

[Woofage]

Woofage jnr is 15 today and now the proud owner of a Canon 600D plus 18-55. Can't wait to see what he does with it.

[Foxbat]

Hope he enjoys it 

[T42]

Health to use it, my father would have said.  Tell him to avoid that "Intelligent Auto" setting, though.

[Woofage]

Health to use it, my father would have said.  Tell him to avoid that "Intelligent Auto" setting, though.

He turned it on and put it straight into manual mode. He takes all his photos like that apparently. I think he's making work for himself but each to his or her own .