Deciding between two budget dslr systems—advice, please

Hello,

I'm leaving for a trip to Hong Kong in a month and a half and its motivated me to upgrade from my trusty Pro1 and take the plunge into DSLR land.

I had found a Rebel XT body for $215 on craigslist, and I was going to pair it with the 50mm 1.8 ii lens for around $85. I'd have a solid beginners kit for close to $300.

I really like the idea of having one standard prime lens to teach me composition. HOWEVER, I realized that with the crop factor taken into account, it's effectively 80mm.

So now I'm considering a Nikon D50 body on CL for $200. With the 35mm 1.8 DX lens for $170 (also on CL).

PROS AND CONS
Canon
pros:
Less expensive,
Better noise reduction in lower light.
Sharp Lens, low chromatic aberration

cons:
I really, really, like the idea of having a single prime lens.
80mm might be too much (for my only lens).
Poor lens build quality

Nikon
pros:
Applicable focal length of 50mm
Sharp lens, good build quality
SD memory.

cons:
More expensive
Noise reduction in low light
high(er than the canon) chromatic aberration

What is your opinion?

About the noise reduction and chromatic aberration - there really isn't any appreciable difference between the two.

The main factor in getting great images out of a DSLR is a cunning eye for composition. The technical stuff across brands are fairly well matched, and differences are usually only apparent at 100% viewing.

If you are really picky about NR and CA, NR can be dialed down in camera. CA can be corrected later with software.

Either kit will serve you fine, and as for build quality that's going to be what you get for that little. Those lens won't last for generations like real Leica lenses, but are sure to last quite a long time as long as you take care of them - always use the lens cap, don't drop it , etc.

If your looking for decent, metal construction lens that go for cheap you'd have to buy a Sony DSLR - like an a230.

Pair the a230 up with a Minolta 50 mm f/1.7 which goes for about 50 - 100 dollars on eBay.

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313&_nkw=minolta+50&_sacat=See-All-Categories

Or get a Minolta 28mm f/2.8 which goes for about 50 - 100 dollars on eBay as well.

http://shop.ebay.com/i.html?_nkw=minolta+28mm&_sacat=0&_odkw=minolta+50&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3286.c0.m270.l1313

Both Minolta lens are metal.
--

Overall I can't say enough positive things about this camera. Sure it would be nice if it had HD video or a higher resolution screen but those aren't required to take fantastic pictures.

These bodies are old. Be aware that the mirror and shutter are mechanical and can fail. Rated mean life to failure on these is about the same for these cameras - of the order of 50,000 actuations. In my view you'd be taking a risk with a camera of this age of getting a heavily used body that might fail. People who bought these cameras held onto them for much longer than people buying DSLR these days seem to.

I'd suggest you save a little more and go for a newer used or even a new model. Some people do seem to "upgrade" ( as they like to think of it ) every time the makers announce new bodies and some of the newer used bodies are hardly used at all. A lot of people also sell because they really aren't ready for a DSLR, which does, as you may appreciate, take some work to get the best from.

Of the two I'd prefer the XT, but the viewfinders and feel are quite different.

Again, I'd recommend looking for a more recent model, used or new.

Photokina 2010, a major photographic industry fair, takes place in September. Normally new models are announced them and followed by a flurry of eager sales from those keen to donate funds to camera makers. It might be worth waiting for this to pick up a better used model for perhaps a little more money.

--
StephenG

Pentax K100D
Fuji S3 Pro
Fuji S9600

Yes, repairs can cost 200 dollars or more for outdated models where parts are rare.

As for the photographic trade shows, etc., I think the OP is going on vacation. Can he wait 6 or 7 months for manufactures to release new models in Jan/Feb 2011?

You can get the Sony a230 body only for $329 or with the kit lens for $379 on Amazon.

The kit lens showed decent sharpness in DPreview's testing. The only thing about it is that the bokeh isn't particularly impressive - messy - but at least it's a rounded aperture so you don't see polygons but circles.

I think the kit lens will be more versatile and maybe the better choice for your travels, so you don't wish you had something wider or something with a little more reach.

Although I've been living with an almost normal 39mm equiv. lens on my camera, and sure, it would be nice if I had a room grabbing 24mm, it's simply a minor annoying sometimes.
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Overall I can't say enough positive things about this camera. Sure it would be nice if it had HD video or a higher resolution screen but those aren't required to take fantastic pictures.

The 50mm focal length is a short telephoto and is not considered by most people to be suitable as a general purpose lens on a crop sensor camera. If that is the only lens you are going to carry with you, I believe it will be a source of much frustration.

If buying used see if seller will send you a JPEG. You could download Opanda free shareware and it will tell you how many shutter releases were made with the camera. Google it. I have a 1.8 35mm prime AFS for my D5000 and it works great. Quicker autofocus than kit lenses pretty fast and about $200.
--
JohnE Nikon

lorenkp said:

Hello,

I'm leaving for a trip to Hong Kong in a month and a half and its motivated me to upgrade from my trusty Pro1 and take the plunge into DSLR land.

I had found a Rebel XT body for $215 on craigslist, and I was going to pair it with the 50mm 1.8 ii lens for around $85. I'd have a solid beginners kit for close to $300.

I really like the idea of having one standard prime lens to teach me composition. HOWEVER, I realized that with the crop factor taken into account, it's effectively 80mm.

So now I'm considering a Nikon D50 body on CL for $200. With the 35mm 1.8 DX lens for $170 (also on CL).

PROS AND CONS
Canon
pros:
Less expensive,
Better noise reduction in lower light.
Sharp Lens, low chromatic aberration

cons:
I really, really, like the idea of having a single prime lens.
80mm might be too much (for my only lens).
Poor lens build quality

Nikon
pros:
Applicable focal length of 50mm
Sharp lens, good build quality
SD memory.

cons:
More expensive
Noise reduction in low light
high(er than the canon) chromatic aberration

What is your opinion?

Click to expand...

Hi

While I mainly use Pentax, I do have a D50 and that would be my choice of the two.

IF at all possible I would get that and ALSO get the Nikon 50 1.7 and non VR kit lens as well....certainly get them later....I have neither the 35mm 1.8 or 50 1.7 but both are on my list to get ...I have the VR kit lens and it is great....if not getting a kit lens now, then get the VR kit len later.

I got the D50 manly because it has 1/500 flsah sync (very few have that and it has a focus motor for Nikon scewdrive lenses).....some of which can be had very cheap but good quality.....another to look for is the 28-80 3.3-5.6 G lens...very cheap and will af on the D50 and very good...anothe on my list to get.

The Canon would also be a good choice though so good luck with it.

neil
http://www.flickr.com/photos/26884588@N00/

An alternative suggestion if you are considering the D50, get the kit lens, the 18-55, it will be considerably cheaper than $170. I bought a D50 and 18-55 (non VR) from ebay at $285 Canadian (about $260 US) in the springtime. It will be slightly heavier, but not much, and will give you more versatility, a modest wide angle, a modest telephoto. It really is a sharp lens. I've seen the lens alone for $90-$100 and the VR version for $125.

I've moved on to a D200 and 16-85 myself, but the images from the D50 still look good.

I'd buy something in Hong Kong.
Surely that's one of the places to get deals.

Apparently the 20mmF1.7 Panasonic lens is very good in micro-4/3rds... but new, so more expensive than your first mentioned options.

The 50mm f1.8ii has very ugly bokeh in my opinion.

The Nikon D-50 is a classic and will serve you well. Buy the best within your budget.

The 35mm is a great lens, better focal lenght than the 50mm.

Agreed great images on first use, and can use older AF lenses. Very happy with it.

I bought a used D50 several months ago for $125. It only had about 2000 actuations and was spotless. The D50 is unique (for Nikon bodies of that era)...it has a built-in AF motor, so you can use cheaper lenses.

Either get the 35mm f/2D AF lens (less than $150) or the 18-55mm "kit" lens (less than $100).

The reason you thought the Nikon kit was too expensive, is that you selected a very new lens with AF motor...with the D50, you don't need that!

--
Charlie Davis
Nikon 5700, Sony R1, Nikon D50, Nikon D300
HomePage: http://www.1derful.info

"If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin."
-Samuel Adams, 1776

I found a listing for a 20D with the 18-55mm (non IS lens) for $300. I hear that kit lens is bad, but I'll sell it and buy the second version with IS.

Better than a N50?

If the standard prime is really your priorty, I would go with the Nikon (and I am a Canon user). Canon has its 35 mm prime but it is an FF lens. One could expect it to be not as sharp as a crop lens, and a bit outdaded. On the other hand, 50 mm on a crop is too long. Canon's 50/1.8 is good starting from f/2.8 but soft wider open than that, and has very poor AF.

The 18-55 IS/VR on both systems are good.

You are choosing a system now. In a few years, you may not even own what you will buy right now, but most likely, you will stick with the brand. So I would do more research about what each brand offers, at what price, etc.

lorenkp said:

I found a listing for a 20D with the 18-55mm (non IS lens) for $300. I hear that kit lens is bad, but I'll sell it and buy the second version with IS.

Better than a N50?

Click to expand...

Since the N50 was a film body, I suspect you meant "D50", but can't begin to figure out how you mistyped it to get "N50"?

Heck, " YES "...get the 20D and dump that lens. Good plan.

BUT , be sure the 20D is not worn out! Ask the seller to send you a pic of today's newspaper (showing the date) and then look at the EXIF data to see how many shutter actuations it has had...

--
Charlie Davis
Nikon 5700, Sony R1, Nikon D50, Nikon D300
HomePage: http://www.1derful.info

"If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin."
-Samuel Adams, 1776

The 20D is a classic - one of Canon's best. However, it may start you down the path of wanting the xxD cameras at $1400 new instead of the xxxD cameras at $600 to $800 new.

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EOS 50D, 20D, 10D, 630, A-1, FZ28, SD1000
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