Which DSLR camera would suit me best?

by Paul Garland

I’m going to admit that this camera research has overwhelmed me.

-I’m a student going to major in Photography (Digital)
-My main interest is Fashion and Nature
-I will retouch my final images to give it that fairy tale-esque vibe. (i.e. http://www.saga.vn/Upload/tuntt/fashion/Escada/2007_03_Escada.jpg)
-I will do in studio and on location shots

*Right now I’m contemplating on the Nikon D300 or a full frame D700. Which would be better? Feel free to recommend lenses or any other camera.
This is the image I was linking to above:
http://www.saga.vn/Upload/tuntt/fashion/Escada/2007_03_Escada.jpg
As of right now I don’t have the kind of demand that will push me to get the D3x. It’ll probably my graduation gift or something.

Answer by fhotoace
Either are fine.

The D700 of course will give you more control.

For fashion, you will want a 24-70 mm f/2.8 and 70-200 mm f/2.8.
For nature, either the 60 mm or 105 mm VR macro lenses

The sample you have shown us is half photography and half post production.

Since you will be doing both studio and nature photography, the new D3x may eventually be the camera you will want.

Answer by carnaby_fudge
ok, before you go and blow a couple thousand dollars you might consider starting a little smaller with an entry level dslr. both canon and nikon have dslr’s in the $ 500 range that are excellent cameras and take the same lenses that their more expensive cousins do.
i’m not super familiar with nikon because i was raised on canon. but may i recommend the canon rebel xsi. this is canon’s latest entry level dslr. it takes the full range of canon ef lenses, they FINALLY switched to sd memory chips and the xsi now has a live view lcd screen. this is an excellent little camera and the image quality is superb.
if you compare the various models (including nikon) you will see that the sensor chip is the same. the more expensive models have a few more automatic features (which you probably won’t use) and the construction of the body is more sturdy. this is great if you’re in situation where you may drop your camera a lot like combat photography or extreme sports. but it sounds like you’ll be in fairly controlled situations.
there’s nothing wrong with going top of the line but if you’re a student i highly recommend starting with the basics.

Answer by Sugar and Spice
Both are great cameras… I have a classmate who owns the D300 and it’s great… I’ve gotten to use it, and I love it!

However, do realize that a fancy camera isn’t the only thing that is necessary to become a pro photographer. There are a lot of other equipment needed as well… especially for fashion! To name a few, lights, tripod, reflectors, etc. Also, prepare to spend a lot of money on props!

Since you’re just starting school I recommend you get a good entry-level… most of the students at the Art Institute (including myself) use the Canon Rebel XTi.

Best of luck

Answer by vicseo
If you are really on a budget and want the best quality for the money, check out the P&S Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28 which has more features than most pro DSLRs that require auxiliary lenses not even equal to the single initial full-range lense that comes with the FZ28. It is reviewed at:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2008_reviews/panasonic_fz28.html

It just came out on November 4, 2008.

It’s an all-in-one 10.1 megapixel DSLR camera which includes (i) built-in image stabilization; (ii) HDTV quality video [Quicktime]; (iii) a 18x zoom [27 - 486 mm (35mm equiv.)] “Leica” lense for nature photography; (iv) up to 0.39 inch macro option; (v) up to 6400 ASA; (vi) takes up to 380 pictures per 120 min. battery charge; (vii) has a “burst speed” of 13 fps; and sells new for $ 270 at samys.com [tax free].

Here’s an actual handheld picture of the moon:

http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/ciu/bf/1b/a83ac060ada0881604bad110.L.jpg

Good luck!

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!

I made the decision to get a Nikon D90 (I was researching D700 but because I am relatively new the SLR family cameras I figured I should learn with the D90).
With lens, however, I have no idea what to look for.
The lens that comes with the camera is the 18-105mm.
But I will mostly be capturing scenery, architecture, family gatherings, things like that…
What would be a good lens for what I want to do??
There is this one package where the D90 comes with the 18-105mm and a 70-300mm.
I might as well ask about how to know what lens it right for me.
The larger the numbers mean the more it can zoom in and the less the number the more it zooms out correct??
Like I said in the beginning, I am beginning, but really want to learn and get better with the digital SLR camera. I think the D90 will be best for me. If you know of any other camera (Canon, Olympus, etc…) that might be better for me please let me know!!!

Answer by Cain A
You are correct: a focal length is essentially the “zoom” a lens is capable of.

In general, you would want a shorter focal length for things such as architecture and landscapes, just because of the sheer expanse of your subject matter. You want to be able to capture the entire landscape or building without having to be too far away, so I’d suggest a short to medium focal length lens. If you have a 70-300mm, it would be ideal for you to shoot nature or portraits, but not ideal for shooting landscapes or buildings. The wide-angle of a shorter focal length allows you to get up close to your subjects and shoot them entirely.

I’d stick to the 18-105mm if you can’t afford another lens because of its versatility (105mm is fairly good “reach”, especially on the type of sensor the d90 has). Since you are experimenting which types of photography you like, you can use the gamut of lengths from 18-105 which is enough zoom for the average person. You can always upgrade later.

If you can manage it into your budget and really want to do architectural and landscape photography, I’d strongly suggest something with a wider angle such as the 10-24mm.

Answer by John
I’d say the 18-105mm was fine for beginning in the type of photography you describe. The 70-300mm is a rather long lens which would be better suited to wildlife or sport. You would also find it difficult to use at the long end without a tripod.
The 18-105mm will be fine at the wide end for landscape and near the long end for portraits etc. It will also do architecture – if you are fussy about keeping your buildings square you might want to correct perspective with software.
There are specialist lenses for architecture but you probably won’t want to be thinking about them at this stage.

Answer by Phil
Yes, a smaller number, means that you can had a widescreen overview, larger is more zoomed.

The D700, D3 are other types of camera, it’s almost the same, but the chip is larger, witch gives better quality, less noise and you can play with a “blurry” background even more

a D700 with 28-75mm (called an FX lens) (these are fullframe camera’s)
a D90 has a chip that is 50% smaller, so you have the same wide, zoom with this when you have a lens with 18-55mm (DX lens) (multiply x 1,5)

You can’t use DX lenses with FX, if you would 50% less of the sensor. So no advantage
You can use all FX lenses with DX camera’s

http://static.photo.net/attachments/bboard/00Q/00QJNr-60089784.jpg

There are lot’s or lenses, primes like 50mm (all 50mm versions can be used on FX and DX)
Macro lenses
Fisheye lenses
Lenses that are more sensitive for light and have a more “blurry” background like a f/2.8 lens

A beginners lens for overall use could be a 18-105mm, the 70-300mm could be nice to

Nikkor AF-S 16-85mm DX f/3.5-5.6 G ED VR (Think this lens has good sharpness, built quality and color rendering)
Nikkor AF-S 18-200mm VR II DX

Answer by Al Scusi
Take a look at your local library photography shelves. Look at the books covering the subject matter you will want to take pics of. Most books will list the lens focal length and speed & aperture used for each image. Get to know which type of image you are most likely to want to take and note the focal length used.

Generally for landscape you will find the standard lens [50mm] is about the best length. However, I have used from 24mm through to one exceptional rooftop sunset taken at 3x 210mm; equivalent to 620mm! So there really is no guarantee that you will prefer one length over the others.

The advantage of a zoom lens is that you can crop the image as you take it. Disadvantages are that zoom lenses generally need more light for a given speed setting and are often a little inferior to fixed length lenses, though that really depends on the quality of the various lenses.

My favourite landscape lens was a Canon 50mm f1.2. However, I tended to travel with a trusty Tamron 24-48 zoom as that allowed me to grab shots with tighter framing. My favourite shot was taken with a Vivitar 70-210. For woodland type treks I used the 70-210 as that allowed me to grab shots of animals at some distance. Every so often I’d spot a really nice landscape and shoot with the wider lenses.

Most of the subject matter you mention would be covered in the range 35 to 135 so I guess the 18 to 105 would be a good choice though I cannot comment on that actual lens.

With 50mm being standard the smaller number 18 represents a very wide angle and the 105 is often described a ‘portrait’ length as it is ideal for taking a portrait shot of someone’s face without background clutter.

As for the Canon vs Nikon argument… I prefer Canon for colour quality across the frame but the Nikkor lenses tend to be very punchy in the centre. So there is argument to support Canon for general work and Nikon for sports. In practice very few people can see the difference unless the pictures are set up specifically to reveal them.

Answer by mister-damus
For scenery you want wide angle. For architecture it depends (either wide angle or telephoto can work depending on what you want to photographs; i.e.e entire buildings or architectual details, respectively). For family gatherings it depends (group shots or portraits? wide angle or telephoto, respectively).

“things like that”? Those are all very different things. You can’t generalize.

Those two lenses (the 18-105 and the 70-300) should cover everything you mention. So go for it.

D90 is fine. Most cameras (canon, olympus, pentax, sony, nikon, etc.) are capable of taking good quality pictures. So just get the nikon and be done with it.

Give your answer to this question below!

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