Which way to go?.

[markuspd]

I am recently getting back into photography after having had my own darkroom many years ago and being a full on black and white fanatic.
My questions are how long will it be before it is very difficult to get traditional film related chemicals etc?.
Secondly I like the 6x6 format such as that of a 500c so what digital camera would I chose with this in mind?.
Thirdly is all manipulation and processing of pictures done by computer with digital, and how much would it cost to set this up?.

[tim]

Welcome to POTN, and the world of digital :)

1) I have no idea.
2) For your first digital i'd suggest getting a Canon 30D, and a decent lens like the Canon 50mm F1.4 or the Tamron 28-75 F2.8. If you decide digital's for you you can upgrade to a 5D or 1DsMk2 later. The 1DsMk2 is about the only thing that will compete with medium format, and you're unliklely to find a square format digital that's less than $10K (if at all).
3) Get yourself a decent Dell PC, preferably dual core, 2GB memory, and perhaps 200GB of hard drive. Add Adobe Photoshop CS2. Not sure on the cost, but it's not cheap.

Hope that helps :)

[SuzyView]

Tim, you sound like you've answered this question before. :)

Welcome, Mark. I hope you know what you are getting into. If you've been around for a while, then you do know and it is a slippery slope. There are 3 ways to go: 1. start slow and cheap to test digital out; 2. jump into it with decent gear so you won't feel like you are depriving yourself; and 3. go all out and not miss a thing about film.

I am for the #2
1. Film will always be around. If you love it and don't feel like quiting, have fun with it. A lot of people here even have film cameras they use. I have an EOS 3 and I use it, esp. for B&W. I take it out when I want to hear that great shutter release and winding film sound. Pictures are fantastic with film.
2. The 30D is around $1499 with the kit lens 18-55mm. That lens isn't great, but is useful. I used it yesterday for a location test and it was fine. I am still considering another better lens, though. There are some decent zoom and prime lenses under $500. Tim mentioned the Tamron 28-70 2.8, Sigma has the 18-200 and 28-75 (?, I think) and Canon's primes 50 1.4 and 85 1.8 are wondrerful. Big bang for the buck.
3. I just bought a Dell E510 desktop with dual core, 1 gb RAM, 160 GB hard drive, 2 DVD drives and 19 in LCD monitor for around $850 delivered. If you are in the market for a good PC, there are some wonderful deals right now. Don't underestimate the use of a good computer. For a laptop, Dell has another deal with the similar set up for under $1200. PS CSE2 costs around $350 new, $150 for the upgrade from any other PS product. I started with PSElements 2 and just upgraded to the 4.0 version for around $79, very cheap and it accepts RAW.

Good luck!

[tim]

The Sigma equilivent of the Tamron I mentioned is the 24-70 F2.8. If you want to go all out get the Canon 24-70 F2.8L, but that's around $1000. The Sigma and Tamron are much cheaper and are meant to be comparable, especially on the cameras with smaller sensors.

[markuspd]

Thanks a lot for the direct answers.
Lucky for me these days time and money are really no option which is the reason I put photography on the backburner in the first place.
20 years ago I was engulfed in B& W, the whole world of it, so my idea is to get a traditional darkroom set up again and buy a hasselblad 500c and take it up where I left off.
I do have a very new model computer so thats no issue.
Having looked at the work of Martins and in particular Richard Smith has given me the inspiration to get into the colour side as well and in this respect I think digital will only get better and better, it seems so much more efficient and accessible than traditional colour.
I realise a camera is just a box and the lens really is the key but I really would prefer a smaller type camera with this in mind do they have a standout rangefinder equivalent on the market with a Zeiss lens?.
I am thinking the 1D may be the way to go but size is my only question, definately don`t need or want a winder, can you guys recommend the most compact SLR available?.
What a great forum to stumble upon!.
Thanks for your advise.

[tim]

You can get digital rangefinders, i've never used one. Have a read of http://www.smartshooter.com and use their search, I think I read a review there recently (free registration required). dpreview.com is good too.

If you want compact go with a Canon 350D, but if you're serious about photography read the dpreview reviews of the 30D, the 5D, and the 1DsMk2.