The Camera Thread

[Poser]

I'm a keen novice, really starting to want a DSLR for pics of my hound, and eventually of birds. So, wildlife stuff, mostly.

I like the look and feel of the Nikon D3200 as a starting point. Any thoughts on that body? Don't really want to spend more than £400 in the first instance. I've seen it for about £330 with no lens, or around £370 with the kit lens. Tempted by the latter.

Also quite like the fact that I can get the wireless adapter and link it to my Galaxy S3, too.

Recommend me up, kids. I am increasingly thinking I'll be purchasing this weekend so that I have time to practice before I head to the Lakes in June.

Edit: I am aware that the kit/basic lens will make it difficult to shoot birdlife: my expectations are reasonable on that front.

[False]

As I said in the other thread, Im a novice and I have one. Its pretty good and offers far more than my skill is able to get from it.

[Dual]

Which kit lens do they come with now? Is it still 18 - 55mm or have they gone to 100mm?

[False]

Was 18-55 on mine.

[Dual]

See if you can get the 18 - 100mm lens Poser and just get body only 3200. I had a play with one the other day and I think they're too plasticky and light and it has no front control wheel. But the spec sheet is quite high really. They'll bring out the 3300 within 6 months such is the turnaround of entry level DSLRs so don't get too hung up on it.

If you want nice dog and animal photos 55mm wont be long enough.

[False]

If you want nice dog and animal photos 55mm wont be long enough.

The 55 isnt really long enough for much. I want a 100, at least. Dont use it enough to justify one at the moment though.

[Victor Mildew]

I've got a 55mm prime, a 18-55 and a 55-250mm.

Ive used the 55-250 the most really as its just brilliant for getting shots that you just wouldnt be able to get with the 18-55.

[Poser]

I opted for the Nikon D3200, with my own choice of bag, the standard kit lens and fast 16gb memory card, for £500 (and £40 cashback, so £460).

Might have got it cheaper online but, like Verruca Salt, I wanted it now, and I couldn't be chewed with deliveries bouncing back because I'm at work all day.

Only had a short time to mess on with it so far, and I'm a novice so it'll be a huge learning curve. Took some snaps of the hound (obviously) and I'm already staggered by the results. I possibly should have done this three years ago, if I'm honest.


I need a longer focal length for shots of birdies (there's a whitethroat in the same place every morning when i walk the hound and I'm determined to get a decent shot of him) so I think I'm going to get a cheaper (possibly Tamron) lens, maybe the 70-300 for £100, while I learn my way around the camera. (yes, yes, you get what you pay for, cheaper lenses aren't as good, blah blah) - but I'm now skint until next payday so need something that'll do me for a year or so, get me through the seabird nesting season (off to see the puffins in July ) and then I'll look at better stuff next spring.

Can anyone recommend a Nikon prime lens, as I'm pretty sure I'll need one of those, too, sooner rather than later?

[Victor Mildew]

Poser gets a decent camera, mark this day

Dont' worry about cheap lenses while you're learning, i'm a novice and i'm still using cheap canon ones with my 60D but i'm starting to notice where the extra money would be going (sharpness at long zoom is an issue for example).

[Harry Bizzle]

If you want a prime, your only realistic choice is the 35mm 1.8 AF-S. The 50mm ends up a short Tele (75mm) and is just really awkward to use while walking about.

The 35mm is great though. My most used lens.

[False]

What is a prime used for?

[Harry Bizzle]

By the way, it's only 100 quid from Amazon right now. That's about 30£ cheaper than it's ever been. Get in quick before the gimps on HUKD start buying by the dozen for eBay.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B001S2PPT0

[Poser]

By the way, it's only 100 quid from Amazon right now. That's about 30£ cheaper than it's ever been. Get in quick before the gimps on HUKD start buying by the dozen for eBay.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B001S2PPT0

Cheers, I'll get in there. Thanks.

Poser gets a decent camera, mark this day

Dont' worry about cheap lenses while you're learning, i'm a novice and i'm still using cheap canon ones with my 60D but i'm starting to notice where the extra money would be going (sharpness at long zoom is an issue for example).

Cheeky git. But yeah, you're right. The massive, instant difference in clarity, vibrancy, sharpness and speed was frankly astounding. Pretty embarrassed to have been labouring for this long.

On the plus side, the past four years with a bridge camera have definitely helped me confirm my enthusiasm.

[False]

What is a prime used for?

[Poser]

Fighting the Megatron.

Naw... it's an fixed-length, great quality lens that gives better image quality and less distortion.

http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/ti ... y-use-one/

[Harry Bizzle]

That's not a reason to use a prime lens. For all intents and purposes, the sharpness of a lens doesn't really mean much any more unless you're blowing up images to massive, massive sizes or pixel peeping.


The reason to get one is they're pretty much the cheapest way to get a wide aperture lens, like that one is f1.8. That's three and a third stop of exposure over a lens at f5.6 (one stop of exposure lets twice as much light into the lens, so you can double your shutter speed, and worry less about camera shake in low light).

The massive aperture also gives you very thin depth of field, so you can blow out backgrounds completely, like this (this was taken with that lens, and not even at its widest aperture):




Also shooting with a lens you can't zoom restricts you in a good way. You have to think more about your position in relation the subject and it's a good way to learn framing.

[False]

Cool.

[Exxy]

35mm 4 lyf. Got some friends who use 50mm lenses on crop sensors and it seems dumb.

Also, good choice with 3200. I use a 3100 and it's fine, never needed to use anything more. Glad I went for it over a higher end model.

[Poser]

Fnnnng.

My Lightroom 3 won't import RAW (.NEF) files from my camera. It says it wants DNG files.

Also, the Adobe DNG converter I've downloaded also won't accept my NEF files, so I can't convert them using that, either.

I've been shooting in JPEG for now but want to change sooner rather than later - what is people's usual process for handling files, and what software do they use for conversions?

Cheers,

Steve

[Victor Mildew]

Hi Steve, thanks for getting in touch.