what camera?

[trackmagic27]

Hi, first of all id like to say hi, since im new here. i had registered some time ago but i didnt post, or maybe but once or twice. now im back with some questions.
1) im looking into a new camera, mainly SLR, but im not sure if im good enough or ready for it? thats kept my hands from having an SLR for 5 months:confused: now, what camera do you recomend? im leaning towards the Canon EOS Rebel XT. I mainly want it for sports (racing) and nature/sunset/outdoor/animals pics. im open for any other suggestions, your the experts;)

2) I understand that to get different type of pics you can get different lenses. now, on the lenses there are these number reading that i dont have a clue as to what the are (ie:EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM)
my guesses are that the 70mm and the 200mm are the focusing ranges of some sort? and doesnt the F 2.8 have to do with apperture?
can somebody please explain what those numbers mean?

BTW, if you want to see some shots taken by me, click here (http://photobucket.com/albums/y264/nachomijares/)
thanks in advance,
Nacho

[lostdoggy]

Wow you asking Alot. The XT is very good Camera and I'm glad you're looking at Canon. I have the DRebel. The XT has alot of improvement over the Original,but because I have relatively large and not so nimble fingers the XT is kind of small. If haven't already done so pick one up at a local store and see how it feels.
The 70-200 f/2.8L is a really good lens from what I've read here and from other sites you will be very happy with it. The Numbers, 70-200, is the focal length. In simpler terms it will change how you will see the image. With 70 been the widest angle of view on this particular lens and increasing the focal length to 200 will narrow the angle of view. The image will appear closer as you increase the focal length. The f/2.8 is the Aperature of the lens this this is the largest opening for this lens. As you increase the number f/ the smaller the aperature will be. This will change the amount of light entering the lens. By increasing the f/ number (f/stop) the Depth of field will also increase. This means that the point of front to back focus will increase. Eg, if you were to focus on a point closest to you with a distant background at f/2.8 the background will be blurred. But, as you increase the f/stop or stop down the background will start to be in focus along with the foreground point.
There some really good info online you just got to do some searching.

If you do find the XT to be too small for your hand then try the 20D. It has gotten alot of good reviews here and on other sites.

[tim]

I'd suggest you do a class in photography in your area, after that you'll be more qualified to choose a camera and lenses yourself rather than trusting others to make the decision for you. I did an intro to digital photography class, it explained lenses, apertures, etc, was only eight 2 hour lessons, and I learned a lot.

The XT with kit lens is a good starter camera, has image quality pretty much the same as the 20D, the 20D has a few extra features that make it handy but probably aren't necessary to start with.

[lostdoggy]

Good Point Tim!!!

[MTalley]

What camera are you using now? Most people that come from the point and shoot camera world to the SLR world usually think in terms of the zoom factor. For example, my old HP Point and Shoot camera had an 8x optical zoom. The sensor on that camera was 1/5 th the size of a 35 mm film camera frame, and the 35 mm camera equivalent to the lens was a 37-300 mm lens. If you take 8 time the 37, you get about 300, thus the 8x zoom factor.

If you buy a Rebel XT with the "kit lens", it will probably come with an 18-55mm lens. If you take 55 and divide it by 18, you'll see that it is essentially a 3x zoom lens, in point-and-shoot camera terms. Correspondingly, the Rebel XT's sensor is slightly smaller than a 35mm film frame, making the effective multiplication factor 1.6. Therefore, the 18-55mm lens becomes a 29-88mm lens in 35mm equivalent terms.

For your 70-200mm example, this becomes a 112mm to 320mm equivalent on a 35mm film camera. What you'll find when switching to a Digital SLR is there probably will not be one single lens that will suit all of your requirements, thus the tendency to need two, three or more lenses, based on what you are doing.

For example, I have the 18-55mm kit lens that came with my Digital Rebel that is a good general purpose lens. I also have a 50mm (fixed) lens that is good for portraiture. Finally, I have a 75-300mm lens that is good for wildlife stuff, zooming in on things far away, and so forth.

Most all lenses will also have a maximum aperature rating, as you correctly surmised. For example, my 75-300 lens has an f/4-5.6 rating. That means that at it's widest angle (75mm), I can set an aperature open as far as f/4. At full zoom (300mm), I can only set an aperature as wide open as 5.6. Correspondingly, for lower f numbers, a lens is generally faster (good for sports photography) and, generally, also more expensive, since it requires larger glass and potentially a longer barrel.

A lot of folks on here have their selection of lenses listed in their signature blocks (as I do). Lurk around some more and you'll see which lenses folks like a lot, depending on their needs. I've learned a lot that way. Also, a good general purpose book on photography (especially as it relates to digital photography) will teach you a lot.

Good luck. And yes the Rebel XT or the 20d sounds like they would serve your needs pretty well. Looking at your gallery, you've taken some pretty good shots already.

[trackmagic27]

thank you very much guys, id prolly do as MTalley said, take a photography class. My sister is was taking one at school, but she was to lazy to exaplin, and shed get mad when i asked.