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09/07/2008 09:05:59 AM · #1 |
Hi,
im looking at buying a new camera and have narrowed down to 3 camera's - Sony H50, Nikon Coolpix P80 and Canon Rebel XT. My budget is under $500. Currently i use a Canon SD750 IS, but im not happy with the night photo's especially of city skylines and thats the reason i need a new camera with better quality Photo's. Im not a professional photographer, but i do like my photo's with good quality. I know its hard to compare digital with SLR, but i just need comparison on the quality of photo's. Is the quality of Rebel excellent enough to pay $500 when i can get similar quality(??) with H10 or P80 which i can get for $300. How big is the difference in quality of night pics for these camera's.
Can anyone advice which of these 3 would have the best quality for night photo's. Im not worried about day pics as even a 3mp camera takes excellent day photo's. Also i wont be buying new lenses if i get the Rebel XT, i will use the 1 that comes with it which is approx 4x optical zoom which is fine with me. My main concern is quality of night pics, 18x or 4x zoom is not a concern for me. Also i dont want to carry lots of lenses for now neither do i want to change lenses everytime, its more of point and shoot with some manual changes but good quality of night photo's. so 1 lense with Rebel would be enough for me. Also if anyone is wondering why i didnt chose Canon S5, then its because of AA batteries.
Thanks,
CN.
Message edited by author 2008-09-07 09:09:20. |
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09/07/2008 09:12:37 AM · #2 |
I would get the SLR. With the point and shoots you have what you have - no upgrade and it frankly won't have the capabilities of the SLR.
If you can stretch for the XTI - which is about 625 new in kit form. If you can't do that consider a used one which would be within your budget. You can find them for sale on craigslist, ebay and fredmiranda. I would bet the kit lens with the rebel is optically equivalent to the glass installed in point and shoots, and you can then save to upgrade to better glass.
Message edited by author 2008-09-07 09:13:31. |
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09/08/2008 07:22:16 PM · #3 |
| Whats the big difference between Rebel XT and XTi ? |
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09/08/2008 07:26:25 PM · #4 |
Originally posted by cncity:
Whats the big difference between Rebel XT and XTi ? |
The letter "i". :P |
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09/08/2008 08:17:12 PM · #5 |
If quality at night it your major criterion for choice, it has to be one of the Rebels.
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09/08/2008 08:25:25 PM · #6 |
I would recommend a Rebel XT or a Rebel XTi for the body. The difference between the two is the resolution as far as I know 8MP v/s 10MP (I might be wrong). I recent bought a Rebel which is on its way.
As far as the quality of night shots etc. go, I think it will also depend on the lens you mount. The default kit lens with the Rebel XT/XTi is decent enough, in fact I saw a picture taken with that lens win the FS ribbon:-)
Costco had a new Rebel XT kit for 499.99 and a free memory card... not sure if its gone already P.S. I dont work for them:-) and you will need a membership to buy from there.
I agree with the comment about upgrading.. I would say get an SLR body and you can keep getting new lenses per your needs to swap.
Good luck!
ETA: Here is another discussion you might like.
Message edited by author 2008-09-08 20:29:57. |
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09/08/2008 08:29:12 PM · #7 |
| Don't be scared of used cameras, you can get a Nikon D40X with kit lens for around $300 I think and it will blow away a point and shoot for quality. |
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09/09/2008 08:35:22 AM · #8 |
| I just bought a d300 body last night. Not quite within your budget, but man I'm pumped. |
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09/09/2008 08:59:36 AM · #9 |
Originally posted by togtog:
Don't be scared of used cameras, you can get a Nikon D40X with kit lens for around $300 I think and it will blow away a point and shoot for quality. |
I second togtog. Something you may need to consider is choosing the brand, which might be a taugh choice. If you decide to go dSLR, my advice would be Canon, Nikon or Pentax, mainly because they have a well established collection of lenses. You can think third parties, but sticking with one of these three companies will assure you adequate updates as times goes.
I will be less tempted by the other brands (i.e., Olympus, Samsung, Sigma, Sony), but that's my personal opinion. |
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09/09/2008 09:31:23 AM · #10 |
Keep doing research...
Narrow down the selection...
Go to a couple of camera shops and handle a few different models - see what feels right in your hands.
BTW - Sony is on the move (in a good way). Certainly worth consideration in your search for a new camera. They bought out Konica-Minolta and have really moved along with their DSLR lineup - plus they've kept and enhanced the internal anti-shake feature that really does give you a couple of added stops for hand held shots in low light scenarios. Biggest plus is that you don't have to pay for anti-shake technology multiple times (as you do when other brands include this technology in the lens rather than the camera body). Lens? New ones being added all the time (Sony and 3rd party - i.e. Sigma, Tamron) - plus all of the A-mount Minolta lens available in the used market.
Some recent Popular Photography reviews:
DSLR Shootout: Five Top Cameras Compared - - PopPhotoAugust 2008
Sony Alpha 200: Camera Test - - PopPhotoSeptember 2008
Good resource for KM & Sony info at Dyxum.com. |
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