[loO4la]

i'm thinking about getting my father a DSLR camera for his birthday since he's been hinting about wanting to start taking pictures as a hobby again.

i don't know much about these cameras & am needing some recommendations as to which ones are best in terms of quality & price.

my father may mostly use the camera for nature pictures & to use for family events/outings. price is no matter, but preferably nothing over $1000.

thanks in advance!

[erure]

Nikon D80! My stepdad uses that

[loO4la]

Nikon D80! My stepdad uses that

i'm sorry...am i using the wrong term? dslr camera?

i'm looking for a digital camera but one of those big ones w/ interchangeable lenses, like the ones professional photographers use.
not point & shoot cameras.

sorry for the confusion.

[erure]

i'm sorry...am i using the wrong term? dslr camera?

i'm looking for a digital camera but one of those big ones w/ interchangeable lenses, like the ones professional photographers use.
not point & shoot cameras.

sorry for the confusion.

A Nikon D80 is a DSLR

[babilonix]

Nikon D40 is one of the classic entry level dSLRs.
I know, because I've been researching about dSLR for the past 2 weeks, since I'm getting one myself soon
and I'm going for the Nikon D40 because of the price and what it has to offer.
But since you have a bigger budget, you should totally consider the Nikon D80, I found your reply to erure's comment
funny 'cause... seriously xD

Hope that I could help

[loO4la]

A Nikon D80 is a DSLR

oh...i feel silly.

i don't know what i typed in...but when i typed in what i thought was supposedly "Nikon D80", it showed me pics of some point & shoot nikon camera.

sorry! but anyways...if you could give me more info on why it is a preferred camera, that'll be great...& i'll do more research on my own when i have the time.

thanks guys!

[theLOSER]

^The Nikon D40 is preferred more because its a "beginners" camera.
Since you dad isn't one, I think you should also get the Nikon D80 or D90 -- since your
budget is $1000.

You can read about it here:
http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Pr....page?pid=25412
& it compares the D90 & D80:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond90/

Good luck! Your dads gonna be happy!

[spixder]

Canon 1Ds MarkIII with:

580EX II
24mm f/1.4L
35mm f/1.4L
50mm f/1.8L
135mm f/2L
24-70mm f/2.8L
70-200mm f/2.8L IS

[erure]

Canon 1Ds MarkIII with:

580EX II
24mm f/1.4L
35mm f/1.4L
50mm f/1.8L
135mm f/2L
24-70mm f/2.8L
70-200mm f/2.8L IS

^She said preferably not over $1000. And there's no such thing as a 50mm f/1.8L

[[HyuNi]]

Well what did your father use before?
Does he still have his old equipment?
If that's the case, he might be able to use it on the new DSLRs.

Do you know the level of your father's photography skills?
Depending on how and what he shot before, he might feel limited by say a D40. Your budget could get you a prosumer camera like the Nikon D80/90 or Canon 40D/50D. (forgive me for not adding any other brands, I'm not familiar with them). There's actually still a deal on BestBuy.com for a nikon D200 camera body for $599. You could get a great used 50mm 1.4 and a zoom lens or a coveted Nikon flash for around $1k total.

Also, I believe the BEST deals are the used deals. They have already depreciated and you could buy them 20% less than buying new. Maybe you might want to buy the body new because it has a finite life (shutter count) but lenses can last a VERY long time, if they even break at all!

That's real nice of you to do that for your father. kudos!

[spixder]

^She said preferably not over $1000. And there's no such thing as a 50mm f/1.8L

Ya i know, but u know sometimes things do fall off the back of a truck

Should have been a 50mm f1.4

In relation to OP question, it seems as thou your father knows a bit about photography, due to this you might want to get him a prosumer camera like the Canon 40D, good lens to go with it is the 17-55mm f2.8 efs lens. It's a great combo, but the lens is quite pricey. Maybe get your dad the body and hint to him to get the lens. If u want to wait abit, the 500D should be up pretty soon.

[[HyuNi]]

the 50L is actually the 50 1.2L... not the 1.4. Close but no cigar.

spixder, I think you should refrain from suggesting setups that cost more than her $1K budget. $1K is a large amount of money and there's a LOT of options for the OP to choose from within that budget.
Also, I would seriously NOT get your dad just the camera body and suggest that he gets a lens for himself. It's like getting someone a car without tires. You can't use it!

[spixder]

HyuNi take chill pill and chill lax,

I was just offering my suggestion to lo04la, no need to get so feisty.

If your dad is a beginner then a budget DSLR + kit lens is perfect for him. However if your dad is not a beginner it becomes very hard to select Body and Lens with a budget of 1k, that was the reason y i said to select a good Body only (under the assumption that your dad knows the value of good glass over budget glass and have the capital necessary to purchase it). However if your dad cannot afford good glass then u might needa get budget DSLR + kit lens or maybe fork out a bit more for the good body + kit lens.

Btw don't get him 2nd hand goods for his birthday. It just ruins the special occasion.

[[HyuNi]]

^ done. chillaxed

getting a prosumer body (Canon 40D/50D) with decent glass is possible with a $1K budget.
Probably can't afford any L quality glass, but the EF-S 18-55 IS + 50mm 1.8 would be a good start with a 40D within budget. lo04la, remember you need to buy a memory card as well! If you're willing to do a little digging yourself, you can buy used lenses that are in mint condition. Other than the actual age and (on average 20%) lower price, there's nothing different than buying new and used. When you look around, make sure it includes the boxes and ask if it includes all the original packaging and/or extras like hoods or filters.
Here's some very reputable websites that sell used equipment:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/ <-- go to their classified:Sell section (You'll have to register)
http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/board/10 <-- (You'll have to register)
Those are sales made by individual sellers. I've bought & sold many things from the first link and never had a problem.
If you can't find anything there, you can always try craigslist, but I'd leave that as a last resort... especially if you have no camera you can test the lens out on before you buy.
Other than that, you can just buy new at amazon.com BHphotovideo.com or adorama.com for the cheapest prices. Really depends on how much money you want to save.

spixder, I'm assuming your original suggestion was a bit tongue and cheek? Made me chuckle heh. The 1DIII body alone is 7x more than the OP's budget and none of those, save for the 135L (by $20) is less than $1K alone.

[yimster900]

If you wanted something serious/professional it's only worth getting a Nikon or Canon like others have suggested, dont bother with something like Sony, Fuji, Pentax etc. The better Nikons like D90 and onwards are more expensive and perhaps your dad doesn't need it for a beginner, but the older Nikons like D40 will produce good quality results but not as pricey (maybe abou £260 now). It also depends on the lens you have, some of the really good ones are more than £1,000 (sorry using pounds here), many professional snappers will buy a different lens to the one that comes with the camera esp. if your dad wants to take long distance shots you maybe want to check out ones that can go up to 500 mm lens to get crisp quality close ups. Anyway hope some of that helps and sorry for any mistakes let us know what you end up getting your dad!

P.s IF you wanted to purchase a good lens but didn't want to splash out extra for it, the company Sigma does replicas but for cheaper but are up to a good standard.

[☆원이☆]

Nikon D80 with a Tamron 17-50 f2.8