canon 300D: online source & what accessories?

[richards1052]

I'm in the market for a Canon 300D. The lowest price I've been able to find is $688 at cameraandelectronics.com. Anyone know of a lower one online?

Also, I'd like to ask what accessories I should be sure to purchase. I will be using the camera for mostly outdoor (80%) shots of hiking & garden.

I already own a Canon rebel slr & own the 300 mm telephoto lens.

Should I get a long life battery & extra (sorry I'm new to digital) card potential to store more images? ANything else?

[BrandonSi]

I'm in the market for a Canon 300D. The lowest price I've been able to find is $688 at cameraandelectronics.com. Anyone know of a lower one online?

Also, I'd like to ask what accessories I should be sure to purchase. I will be using the camera for mostly outdoor (80%) shots of hiking & garden.

I already own a Canon rebel slr & own the 300 mm telephoto lens.

Should I get a long life battery & extra (sorry I'm new to digital) card potential to store more images? ANything else?

Well I'd start with getting the battery grip and an extra BP511 battery (don't buy the canon ones, they're overpriced..) That'll probably run you ~$120, and I would start with a 1GB flash card (speed does not matter when writing images to the card with the 300D, no need for a 40x or 80x) which you can probably pick up for around $70.

[su719]

Richard,

The Battery Grip is a waist of money IMO for the Rebel. It does give you another point of handholding which may or may not be valuable, but the extra battery power is overkill if you are not shooting sports or weddings where you cannot stop for a moment to change batteries. I would invest in lenses. You have a telephoto and the Kit lens which gets you some good coverage for starting out. I would pick up a fast CF card and reader as it will make a difference when downloading your images. Anything else I would invest in a flash or glass, but it is hard to recomend without knowing your needs.

Congrats on your purchase.

[vfilby]

I myself don't own the grip, but I would say try it before you buy it. Especially if you are always hiking. It seems to me that the extra bulk/heft/weight would not be desirable in those situations. Definitely get an extra battery (you would need an extra for the grip anyways, but you can always sub in another battery. Carry an extra battery is more compact thatn the grip and an extra battery.) Also if you are away from a downloading station extra storage is a must, as was said above.

I just bought an extra battery from an ebay seller in my area for $20 CDN. You can get them cheaper, although the super cheap ones look pretty sketchy.

Other than that maybe a small backpack or other bag in which to haul gear on hikes and a small light tripod. You might also want to consider a wide angle lens (if you don't have one) for photographing landscapes and such.

Not saying these are necessary (except for batteries and flash) just things you might want to think about, to see if you suit your needs.

Long live the Rebel,

[iof]

Check reseller ratings:

http://www.resellerratings.com/seller6402.html


this is not a very good score!

[blinking8s]

SanDisk Ultra II 512Mb (holds like 140 HQ jpeg and 60 RAW on the rebel)

a good tripod and a cable release for nature shots

50mm f1.8 is a must

I liked the batter grip, but its justification is personal, if you like a big heavy steady camera then yes, but is it needed...no

[vfilby]

I have bought many things of the fredmiranda.com 's buy/sell forum. They get a bit more traffic than here. Keep an eye on the used goods boards. You can probably get a deal on a rebel package with extras. Just look for a low shutter actuation count.

Excellent call on the shutter activation, although not necessarily needed. You can use the delay. (I have two, both the rc1 and the rs60-e3)

[richards1052]

Check reseller ratings:

http://www.resellerratings.com/seller6402.html

this is not a very good score!9 lifetime reviews is not a fair picture. Besides, the store is closed & I can't order it from them now anyway till at least Sunday.

[richards1052]

SanDisk Ultra II 512Mb (holds like 140 HQ jpeg and 60 RAW on the rebel)

a good tripod and a cable release for nature shots

50mm f1.8 is a must

I liked the batter grip, but its justification is personal, if you like a big heavy steady camera then yes, but is it needed...noPardon me if I'm misunderstanding the terms, but hasn't someone in this thread recommended getting a 1 Gb flash card. Are you saying a 512 Mb is sufficient? Or are these 2 separate items?

[Jon]

I don't have the DR, but when hiking I leave the grip for my 20D behind. Bulky, and doesn't add a lot - I can deal with cranking my hand around for verticals. Definitely more card space. If you do any overnighting or longer, a gig won't be too much. If you're just day-hiking and back to the computer every night, 512 MB may do you. At ISO 100, my D60 (same 6.3 MP) claims an estimated 400+ shots per gig. YMMV and it's around 325 at ISO 1000. I'd recommend more smaller cards rather than fewer and bigger. That way even if you're downloading, you still have a card that can be in the camera.

[iof]

iof wrote:
Check reseller ratings:

http://www.resellerratings.com/seller6402.html

this is not a very good score!
9 lifetime reviews is not a fair picture. Besides, the store is closed & I can't order it from them now anyway till at least Sunday.

Suit yourself, but this does not look like a well established retailer with a good reputation:

http://www.donwiss.com/pictures/BrooklynStores/h0051.htm

[richards1052]

THanks for all the great advice.

I decided to buy the camera body (since I already own lens for the slr version) online for $618 at Stop4camera.com (http://www.stop4camera.com/shop/Product.asp?sku=cneosrd). It includes a standard accessory kit (bp-511 battery) as well. I only need to get the 1 Gb flash card from Dell for $94 & I"m ready to go.

[wolf]

THanks for all the great advice.

I decided to buy the camera body (since I already own lens for the slr version) online for $618 at Stop4camera.com (http://www.stop4camera.com/shop/Product.asp?sku=cneosrd). It includes a standard accessory kit (bp-511 battery) as well. I only need to get the 1 Gb flash card from Dell for $94 & I"m ready to go.

That retailer is way down in the ratings at: 1.82

I wish you luck with your purchase.

[richards1052]

I decided to buy the camera body (since I already own lens for the slr version) online for $618 at Stop4camera.com (http://www.stop4camera.com/shop/Product.asp?sku=cneosrd).That retailer is way down in the ratings at: 1.82

I wish you luck with your purchase.Thanks for letting me know that. It'd be a b^$# if after spending an entire afternoon figuring out how to get a good price, I messed up choosing an awful online retailer. I'll have to stay on top of it. Maybe that's why the price is so low.

But again, 11 lifetime reviews w. only 6 in the past 6 mos. isn't a good sample on which to rate a company. ALso, I'd guess dissatisfied customers would be more motivated to file reviews at resellerratings.com. Anyway, I hope I'm able to file a good review when I get my camera.

[Ogrt48]

IF you get your camera.. ><

[richards1052]

IF you get your camera.. ><Such optimists in this forum!!

[richards1052]

Suit yourself, but this does not look like a well established retailer with a good reputation:

http://www.donwiss.com/pictures/BrooklynStores/h0051.htmInstead of worrying about the building that houses the store, take a look at the store's page at epinions.com (http://www.epinions.com/Cameras_and_Electronics_Online_Stores_and_Services ) which lists 4 checks out of 5 out of 246 reviews. I don't understand why folks here in this thread are using a review site that has 9 (or in the case of stop4camera, 11 reviews) when another is available with 246!

[Headcase650]

you might want to read it again out of 21 reviews 14 were rated at 0ne out of 5.

http://www.epinions.com/Stop4Camera_com_Online_Stores_and_Services/display_~reviews

[Hellashot]

Best place for 3rd party batteries:

www.batterysavings.com

[malla1962]

get the grip and a remote.

[richards1052]

you might want to read it again out of 21 reviews 14 were rated at 0ne out of 5.

http://www.epinions.com/Stop4Camera_com_Online_Stores_and_Services/display_~reviewsI think you may've missed a 2nd listing for this company at epinions.com. At this url, http://www.epinions.com/pr-Online_Stores_Services-STOP4CAMERA , 79 reviewers give it 4 out of 5.

I know it's a bit of a crapshoot. BUt I read every one of those reviews & discovered an interesting pattern. First, when stores like this essentially sell you a camera almost at cost, they have to make it up some other way. SO they do this selling somewhat overpriced accessories.

You have to expect to do what's called in Yiddish, hondeling (dickering or negotiating). It's like a Middle Eastern or European bazaar. You want to buy something. They quote you a high price. You say I couldn't possibly buy it at that price. The price comes down. Finally, you both settle on a deal you feel comfortable with.

At a price of $618, I figure I could spend $80-100 on accessories & still get a good deal while making the sales person happy too.

People who give this store bad reviews hate 2 things about it: the hard sell to buy accessories & slow delivery time. But if you go into the sales process looking at it as a negotiation then it's perfectly reasonable. I'm not saying this is the way retailing should be. In fact, many people (esp. Americans) hate this way of doing business.

Some reviewers of this store complain about bait & switch or cheating or whatever. I think they're looking at it the wrong way. If you look at buying a camera from this store the same way you would buying from amazon.com, then you're bound to be disappointed. If you refuse to buy any accessories when you buy a supercheap camera from this etailer, then they might tell you it's not in stock. Yeah, that stinks. But I bet if you make a federal case out of it & tell a manager you're going to report them to the NYC Dept. of Consumer Affairs, that you'd get your merchandise. BUt why go to that trouble? BUy $75 worth of accessories you're gonna need anyway & get your good deal & make them happy. OH & another thing, everything's negotiable here. Don't like the price for the accessory? Tell him you'll pay less. Don't like the accessory he's pitching you? Tell him you want something else.

Bottom line, if you do hate this style of selling, there are other ways to buy this item.

As for delivery delays, I read a review of the store in which the purchaser told the store salesperson that he would write a positive review of the store at epinions.com if the merchandise arrived in a timely way; and that he'd write a negative review if it came late. Guess what happened? Yup, it arrived in time & he wrote a good review.

That's what I told my salesperson & I'm hoping the same will hold true for me.

UPDATE: My camera shipped today (11/15) and is due for UPS delivery on Nov. 22nd. Looks like my comment to the salesperson succeeded in impressing him.

[richards1052]

There's apparently a bp 511 battery at 1,100 mamps & one at 1,500 mamps. Any major diff. bet. the 2? Is it worth getting the 1,500ma version?

[commando]

As long as it's designed for the camera, more MAh is better. I've ordered from 1300 or 1500 ones myself, from another place.

I would suggest the 1GB card, you can fit in the region of 300 high quality jpg photos on it, and to start with you'll want as many as you can get for experimenting with. Good cards like the Sandisk Ultra II don't cost much more than cheapies.

[vfilby]

Although I still stand by my original advice, I must say the grip has a nice feel to it. I am a bretty big guy with big hands and the grip seems to fit much nicer than the rebel alone.

That said, I am not sure I would carry it if I was travelling light.