[Jarz]

Hey everyone, I've recently sparked my interest back into photography. It always has been something I respected and enjoyed (I'm a creative person), but I decided to take a swing at it with my mom's crappy point-and-shoot camera. Here's the album of what I did (I enhanced them because the images were washed out): Millenium Park 11/25/12
I really want a camera of my own (preferably a DSLR), but I have no clue where to start. I kind of picked out four different ones that I had been told were nice: Canon Rebel T3, Canon Rebel T3i, Nikon D3100, and the Nikon D5100. I want something that provides me with a nice shutter speed, and having great video quality isn't bad either. I just think I might as well have a nice camera, since I want to take photography courses anyways, and it'd be nice to film too.

So where should I start? Are any of those cameras good?

[Pakistani]

shutter speed will be dependent on the lens, not the camera itself. i think most cameras max out at roughly 1/4000 which is insane and you'll probably never need to use a shutter speed like that unless you're trying to catch bullets in flight or something.

both canon and nikon makes great cameras and you can't go wrong either way.
one thing to consider is that nikon lenses, in general, are more expensive than canon lenses.

as far as performance goes, there aren't really any major benefits of choosing one over the other.

[Old Dude PB]

Can't speak to the Canons, but the D5100 is a great camera, and you can get a fantastic deal on them now that the D5200 is out and Nikon is discounting. Adorama has factory refurbs with a kit lens for less than $500.

[Nobben #44]

All those cameras you mentioned are great for starters and they will get you far. SOme of your questions were already answered above, but if there's anything else stop by the photograpy club in the OT section.
If you want Nikon or Canon you should decide yourself, read a little about what's what on both brands. And believe me, they both are the best.

I myself prefer Nikon, but Pakistani here is for example a Canon man.

[Pakistani]

^ yep, stig and I are on opposite sides of the nikon/canon coin, but really, just pick one. you aren't missing out on anything by picking one brand over the other(at least not at this stage of your photography career)

[Blade of grass]

I'm a Nikon shooter.
Let's just start with that.

The one thing you also need to know is that good glass > good body.
All my stuff has been shot with a Nikon D80 (so a upper low end camer from 5 years ago) and it's still decent. Why? Because use as good of glass as I can get.
http://www.flickr.co...os/wch-imaging/
When you start out, a lens you defiantly want is a 50mm f/1.8.

Both companies make good cheap $100-200 50 1.8s.

Currently, I'd say go for either, Canons usually had better frame rates (talking about highend) and their video is usually a bit better. Nikon has better low light performance, and better skin tones IMHO (I also have a XT, so I have compared).
The learning curve is step then flattens, and then gets step again when you go into the specific types of photography.

You also need to get a foundation, which the members of this forum can help with, or go to Jared Polin (froknowsphoto), Adam Learner, and ThatNikonGuy (Matt Granger, he's actually very good at being neutral on the Nikon/Canon thing).

This post has been edited by Blade of grass: 05 December 2012 - 09:22 PM

[Jarz]

I'll be hopping into the club soon for advice. I think I'll buy the better ones, so at least I have a good foundation. I'll be looking out for deals on them.

[TechPB-Mike]

I really dig the Canon T3I

You can get them on sale for the mid-$500's which is awesome for such an amazing camera

Also, use Class 10 SD Cards, and always format them when you take them out of your camera and re-insert them. Your camera will thank you

[Blade of grass]

TechPB-Mike, on 07 December 2012 - 08:47 PM, said:

I really dig the Canon T3I

You can get them on sale for the mid-$500's which is awesome for such an amazing camera

Also, use Class 10 SD Cards, and always format them when you take them out of your camera and re-insert them. Your camera will thank you

Mike's completely correct, if you don't format them, they will lock-up and you won't be able to take any photos.

[hopper.23]

I have a D3000 and I love it. In my opinion you should buy the 3100 and put the rest of the money you saved towards a nice lens. You can get a nice 1.8 fixed 35mm lens for around 200$. And that lens is amazing

[IPlaySoccer]

I love my T3, but you can now get a T3i for the same price.

[Darksaga]

If you can stretch the budget some I'd pick up the D7000, it's what I use and it's the best prosumer DSLR. Dual card slots, amazing ISO range, IF (Internal focus)...

[Jarz]

I actually have a Canon 7D now.

[Darksaga]

Jarz, on 14 May 2013 - 09:24 PM, said:

I actually have a Canon 7D now.

Nice cameras, still like the 7000 for all it's features. I do like Canon for their good video support though.