All brands and body styles: What kit for $800

I have had a request made, by a friend of mine, to help him find "the right kit", with an $800 budget. Part of my trouble is setting aside my own biases toward gear, because they're radically different from his needs. So, figured I'd expand the brains applied to the problem and ask here. Qualifications or 'must haves' for this little exercise are:

Budget: $800 or less
Focal requirements: Good for shooting family events/portraits (think Christmas gift opening, Thanksgiving dinners, etc), general travel with *some* level of telephoto capability
- My estimate here is something equivalent to a decent 24-70 combined with an equivalent of 70-200
- Shorter end end should be f/4 or faster (better body ISO handling can mitigate this)
Size: Smaller is better; no FF or Pro bodies
Resolution: 15MP or better

Pretty much everything else is fungible. His primary drive is more useful focal lengths than the cell phone has available; primary usage is web/PC displayed photos. Kits that can come in budget and include a basic flash (non-popup) would be stellar but not necessary.
I am imagining a smaller ILC of some form (m4/3, Canon M, etc) but even bridge or advance P&S w/ the appropriate focal ranges, etc could be considered.


Thanks in advance, All!

For the lens, I would recommend the Sigma 17-70 f2.8-4 OS C. On a crop, at 70mm, you get about 105mm FOV. The lens can be had for under $400. I owned the lens for a while and you get close to 1 to 2 macro ratio. Is damn good for some near macro, close distance shots. So, you have about $400 left for the body and memory cards..... For Nikon, maybe the D5200 or D5300. For $400, you can try the D7000 used. Is about under $300 now. But D7100 would be out of the price range...

And Nikon makes several all purpose zoom too...the 18-105 vr and 18-140 vr.

TooManyShots wrote in post #18552138
For the lens, I would recommend the Sigma 17-70 f2.8-4 OS C. On a crop, at 70mm, you get about 105mm FOV. The lens can be had for under $400. I owned the lens for a while and you get close to 1 to 2 macro ratio. Is damn good for some near macro, close distance shots. So, you have about $400 left for the body and memory cards..... For Nikon, maybe the D5200 or D5300. For $400, you can try the D7000 used. Is about under $300 now. But D7100 would be out of the price range...

Totally forgot about that Sigma; definitely going on the list! Thanks! 52/5300 is probably viable, too. Will evaluate some more.

Whatever he ends up doing, I'd convince him of the wonders of ETTL flash over worrying with megapixels, focal-ratios, ISO performance, etc. Flash is king in the house full of family get togethers. Bring the light.

An old APS-C, any decent mid-range zoom, and a general telephoto zoom will cover everything, like a Sl1 or T6 or 70D with 10-18 STM or 18-55 STM or 24-105 STM and a 55-250 STM. But with an ETTL flash for sure.

Very best,

MalVeauX wrote in post #18552142
Whatever he ends up doing, I'd convince him of the wonders of ETTL flash over worrying with megapixels, focal-ratios, ISO performance, etc. Flash is king in the house full of family get togethers. Bring the light.

An old APS-C, any decent mid-range zoom, and a general telephoto zoom will cover everything, like a Sl1 or T6 or 70D with 10-18 STM or 18-55 STM or 24-105 STM and a 55-250 STM. But with an ETTL flash for sure.

Very best,

You can get a Yongnou TTL flash for under $100...unless you need to use OEM speedlite...

TooManyShots wrote in post #18552143
You can get a Yongnou TTL flash for under $100...unless you need to use OEM speedlite...

The Flashpoint R2 TTL Zoom would be top choice for budget cost. Excellent flash. ETTL & HSS. State-side warranty and support.

https://www.adorama.co​m …zca.html?Catego​ryID=65022

Very best,

MalVeauX wrote in post #18552146
The Flashpoint R2 TTL Zoom would be top choice for budget cost. Excellent flash. ETTL & HSS. State-side warranty and support.

https://www.adorama.co​m …zca.html?Catego​ryID=65022

Very best,

Thanks Mal!

I buy stuff used, and still look for bargains. With this price limit, I'd stick to super-zoom bridge cameras like the HS60, or FZ300.

The cheaper end of my kit:
Tokina 11-20mm f/2.8, used $400.
EF-s 18-135 USM, used $250.
EF 70-300 II, refurbished $379.
... and the budget is already blown, and you don't have a camera yet.

Substitute 55-250 STM for the long zoom and you can save about $250. That still only leaves you $21 for a camera. There isn't much to choose from in that price range.

Canon EOS Rebel SL2 DSLR Camera with 18-55mm and 55-250mm lenses kit, bag, and 32GB card is $799.98 at B&H. No OCF in there, unfortunately, but that would be a very usable set of kit for the level he is looking at.

https://www.bhphotovid​eo.com …es&sts=ma&Top+N​av-Search=

Snydremark wrote in post #18552196
Thanks Mal!

Swivel/articulating LCD, warranty, video, 18-55 STM & 55-250 STM:

https://shop.usa.canon​.com …f-4-56-is-stm-refurbished

50mm F1.8 STM in case they get into outdoor portrait stuff or want to get creative with shallow depth of field (which everyone gets into it a bit):

https://shop.usa.canon​.com …50mm-f-18-stm-refurbished

Flashpoint R2 Zoom TTL Flash:

https://www.adorama.co​m …zca.html?Catego​ryID=65022

That fits into the budget.

Very best,

DaviSto wrote in post #18552256
Canon EOS Rebel SL2 DSLR Camera with 18-55mm and 55-250mm lenses kit, bag, and 32GB card is $799.98 at B&H. No OCF in there, unfortunately, but that would be a very usable set of kit for the level he is looking at.

https://www.bhphotovid​eo.com …es&sts=ma&Top+N​av-Search=

That's precisely the kit he wants to replace. Will keep it if a better combination can't be had out of any other system or combination.

Snydremark wrote in post #18552331
That's precisely the kit he wants to replace. Will keep it if a better combination can't be had out of any other system or combination.

Oh wow, if he's looking to go smaller than an SL2 and 18-55, the only way is with a true compact, such as a mirrorless APS-C (but a zoom will still be largeish, so not much space savings honestly) or a M43's setup.

Maybe have him take a look at something like the Olympus Pen series, with a 14-42 zoom. They're fairly small and can be had around $500 on Amazon as a total kit. Or maybe Panasonic?

https://www.amazon.com …=8-2&keywords=olympus+pen
https://www.amazon.com …I6&keywords=oly​mpus%20pen

You get the idea, maybe look at M43 bodies with interchangeable lenses.

And then, instead of the big flash, the Flashpoint R2 Mini (TTL & HSS), which is awesome (I have a couple and they're truly excellent little flashes and do the job inside, off camera TTL for family home events):

https://www.adorama.co​m …nio.html?Catego​ryID=65022

Very best,

Take a look at the Sony A6000 with kit lens (16-50mm) and the 55-210mm bundle.

https://www.amazon.com …mm-55-210mm/dp/B00NO1T55I

gregr2 wrote in post #18552346
Take a look at the Sony A6000 with kit lens (16-50mm) and the 55-210mm bundle.

https://www.amazon.com …mm-55-210mm/dp/B00NO1T55I

That looks very nice.

Interestingly the Canon SL2 seems to be much the lighter camera/lens combination. The SL2 with two lenses combination weighs in at c. 2.2lbs, while the Sony A6000 set-up is quoted at 3.2lbs.

The difference seems to be in the weight of the lenses with the SL2 body unsurprisingly weighing quite a bit more than the A6000 body.

Not expressing any view as to which would be the better overall set-up but very surprised that the A6000 mirrorless kit weighs half as much again as the SL2 DSLR kit.

DaviSto wrote in post #18552358
... very surprised that the A6000 mirrorless kit weighs half as much again as the SL2 DSLR kit.

So I checked them both ... piece by piece. Amazon quote the wrong figure for the A6000. By my own calculations, the Canon kit weighs 35oz, while the Sony kit weighs 28.5oz.

This is more in line with what I would have expected.