Upgrading newbie

Hello all, just moved to Tennessee and living in the country which perked up my interest in photography and printing.

I want to upgrade from my Sony Cybershot DSC-S85.
I am interested in the Canon 20D
I am not interested in video , WiFi or GPS features.
I'm on a fixed budget being on Social Security
also interested in the Nikon 3100 because of price but has features I'm not interested in at all. Should I buy a Canon 20D body only and get a better lens that comes with the camera or just buy the 20D with the lens it comes with. I like shooting pics as I travel through the county side of nature and animals,(turkeys, deer, birds,dogs,insects) mostly and a lot of people shots standing still and plants and flowers. I also like to print out my pictures on a Epson R800.

Thanks all

Heya,

So a budget of under $300? What's the highest you can go? I would suggest saving and getting something very functional and able to expand in the future as you develop more skill, experience and your own style. Used will get you further with a budget. I would shoot for a dSLR if you want to have a big range of options. It will cost a bit more than point & shoots. You also have the learning curve of using a dSLR and properly setting up shots (not just using auto). Banking $300ish for a camera and another $200ish for a lens would be a safe bet.

Sounds like you have three different things you're shooting. Lanscape. Wildlife. People. Those require three different focal lengths. Landscape, wide angle (on a crop sensor, that would be 10mm to 18mm). Wildlife, telephoto (200mm to 400mm as a starting point, if you want to fill the frame, if you're ok with 20~25% frame fill for a heavy 60% cropping, then 200mm can do that, this will be your biggest challenge on a budget). People, anything really, but to be safe, 35mm to 135mm is a very wide range depending on how you are shooting people, but something in there is likely to be your zone.

You could get any basic dSLR camera for this. A simple used crop sensor will be the most inexpensive way to go. Or you could go new on something like a SL1 for example, as it's not that expensive. Then add lenses over time. I would also just look at the Canon T3, which is $279 shipped right now (body only).

For lenses, you could use basic prime lenses. But an entry zoom with a broad range will likely give you your common focal lengths for less money so you can get to shooting right away with less lens swapping.

Tamron 18-200mm is a great little zoom and very inexpensive. This covers the wider angle and the portrait zone and the telephoto zone. Would be a great entry point. Sigma has an alternative to this lens too. Canon does as well but it's quite a bit more expensive. Here's the Tamron for $170 shipped. Or maybe a Sigma 18-250mm with OS (stabalization) for $300 shipped.

That'll get you started pretty quickly. Then learn photography well with that. And from there with some experience, save up some budget to specialize your setup for what you know you need after you learn to use what you have.

Other accessories to look into:

Extra batteries.
A manual flash + batteries.
Tripod/monopod.
Remote shutter release.

Used equipment that is in good shape will get you further per dollar.

Very best,

First thing you should share with us is your budget, since it is clearly the key constraining factor as you have stated.

I personally think you should attempt to move up a few notches from the desired Canon 20D. That camera is just short of 10 years old, having been released in August 2004 as I recall. You can probably find one on eBay for an attractive price but keep in mind that if anything goes wrong with the camera you might not even be able to get it repaired.

Do yourself a favor if you remain with the 20D, buy from the used department at Adorama, B&H, or KEH and see if you can get something that might come with a 30-day warranty.

Something like $300 to $350 for a body right now and months down the road $200 to $300 for lens.

If you share your budget, there may be used cameras of more recent vintage that may be candidates.

My Epson R800 was released in February 2004. Monk would make sense out of all this

Here's a T3i for $430. All cameras will have features you don't need. Just don't use them.

https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1357037

I would go newer and likely a Rebel for your price range. They have better sensors, more features, better rear LCD, cheaper SD cards, and sensor cleaners.

for 300 bucks my vote is a 40D, rebel xsi, or T1i. buy it from KEH or adorama and you get a 6 month warrantee.

TaranScorp wrote in post #16644550
Something like $300 to $350 for a body right now and months down the road $200 to $300 for lens.

This makes no sense to me. You can't take pics without a lens. I'd wait until you had all the cash and try buy something together.

MalVeauX, really has me interested in the Tamron 18-200mm lens on a 20D.
I'm looking at this from this standpoint
The Canon 20D has to be worlds better the the Sony I have and am used to. Later I can get fancy if I'm still really interested in Photography. I really like printing out my pics. I'll look into the 40D

Try your local craigslist for some used DSL stuff. It seems like you should be able to get a Rebel, perhaps even with a lens, with your budget. When I sold my Ti1 with 18-55mm lens, I sold it for $325.00.

I understand you want a better camera than what you have now, but not sure what you have your heart set on. The Canon EOS M with lens goes for just a bit over $300. It does an excellent job and you can do a lot with it. Just something to consider.

Good luck with your search.

I think the SX50 is your best bet. One camera, fixed lens, nothing else to pay for. You have all the versatility of a DSLR in one small, relatively inexpensive package. What you give up is a fair amount of image quality when you are working with less than ideal light. Buy used and you risk next to nothing to try it. If that level of control suits you, move to a DSLR later.

TaranScorp wrote in post #16644628
MalVeauX, really has me interested in the Tamron 18-200mm lens on a 20D.
I'm looking at this from this standpoint
The Canon 20D has to be worlds better the the Sony I have and am used to. Later I can get fancy if I'm still really interested in Photography. I really like printing out my pics. I'll look into the 40D

Heya,

Used, "like new" condition T3, with free shipping. $260 (from KEH Camera via Amazon).

Used, "very good" condition Tamron 18-200mm, with free shipping from amazon (allows easy returns). $170 shipped from amazon's warehouse.

$430 for a very versatile setup that gets you going, can do landscape at 18mm, stop her down to F8~F11 for that. 35~135mm on the zoom range does portraits easily, leave it wide open aperture wise for that. And 200mm should get you going for wildlife and stuff (on a crop sensor this is a field of view more like 320mm which gets you pretty close on large animals; small stuff will be hard to photograph even at this range, but big stuff is good to go).

Very best,

Canon store has a T3i with 18-55 kit lens for $447. Look into the Canon Loyalty Program - you can get 20% off this price (I think) if you find an old Canon camera (nonfunctionong, junk camera ok) to turn in as an exchange. That should get you well into your budget range. The 18-55 is a decent lens to get you going. A 55-250 is $120 refurbed. If you purchase the lens when you buy the camera, you can get 20% off the lens as well. I think the CLP is a great option for you. A T3i wtih 18-55 and 55-250 is a decent kit. Add a 430EX II flash for $200 bucks used and you'll be prepared for just about any shooting situation.