Going to make the switch to DSLR, help!

My dad handed down his old Canon T70 to me which hadn't been used in at least 10 years and I've been using it since 2007 taking pictures of cars and just all sorts of random stuff to get used to the whole SLR system. The last car meet I went to the camera is not advancing the film correctly anymore and my last roll was ruined (Half shots galore) and I think it's time to get a DSLR.

Being a college student though has kind of put a huge budget lock on what kind of camera I can get. I'm really looking at either the 30D or the 60D, used of course.

What do you guys think I should shop around for? Also, is there any kind of way I can get my old lens's to work with the new body style? I've heard of the whole FD to EOS adapters, but are those really worth the money or should I start saving for a new 50mm and telephoto?

P.S. I just take pictures, I'm not really good at all of the photography lingo yet, but since I can see myself spending quite a bit of time on here I'm sure I'll pick things up pretty quickly (Goes back to reading all of the newbie guides)

Rather than a DSLR, consider an advanced compact camera such as a Canon SX10 IS or a Canon SX20 IS. They're far easier for someone with limited experience, and far less expensive.

What's your budget?

I think you should go for the 30D; your lenses will be a lot more of an investment than the body.
Invest in quality lenses if you can afford them, it will be a ton more effective than a cheap lens on a good body

DC Fan wrote in post #9112776
someone with limited experience, .

Doesn't sound to me like he has "limited experience"

I recently bought a 30D body for 300 bucks. I started with an Xt, but the viewfinder is pretty darn small, although they are capable of some VERY good shots.

Forget using FD glass on your new DSLR. On Canon gear, you have two choices with FD glass

1...an adapter with no lens in the adapter, which allows FD glass to be used ONLY for macro and short distances--no infinity focus

2.....an adapter with a lens in the adapter--allows for infinity focus BUT depending on the adapter, destroys the lens native quality and acts like a weak (1.2-1.4?) extender/ teleconverter.

So the REAL answer, forget FD glass. Sell it all if it's worth anything.

I DO use quite an array of stuff I've picked up in manual glass. You can buy adapters and use Nikon, Pentax K (bayonet), screw mount ("M42") Olympus OM, Contax / Yashica, the old so called T2 mount and a few others, by using adapters WITHOUT glass which will give you infinity focus.

One big disadvantage is that Canon bodies VARY in their metering accuracy with manual glass--you have to "chimp" them into correct exposure. My Xt wasn't bad, my 40D is horrid.

Conclusion? Don't know. You should be able to buy a capable body, maybe even with a "kit" lens for 300 or so, but this won't solve your problem if you need more glass and have no money.

DC Fan wrote in post #9112776
Rather than a DSLR, consider an advanced compact camera such as a Canon SX10 IS or a Canon SX20 IS. They're far easier for someone with limited experience, and far less expensive.

Heh.. :/ I dunno I really don't think I would like to go from an SLR to a Point and shoot. Something about point and shoots just irk me.

Karl Johnston wrote in post #9112789
What's your budget?

I think you should go for the 30D; your lenses will be a lot more of an investment than the body.
Invest in quality lenses if you can afford them, it will be a ton more effective than a cheap lens on a good body

Budget is around what I can find in-between the couch cushions, usually anywhere from $0.05 to around $5.00.

But realistically my budget is around $500 max. Thanks for thinking that the 30D is a good choice - I've been reading into it on some sites and people bash it for being old and the fact that it doesn't have all the bells and whistles that the new EOS cameras have. It seems like it'd be a great entry level DSLR that seems like it has a lot of potential still even though it's a couple generations old.

440roadrunner wrote in post #9112813
Doesn't sound to me like he has "limited experience"

I recently bought a 30D body for 300 bucks. I started with an Xt, but the viewfinder is pretty darn small, although they are capable of some VERY good shots.

Forget using FD glass on your new DSLR. On Canon gear, you have two choices with FD glass

1...an adapter with no lens in the adapter, which allows FD glass to be used ONLY for macro and short distances--no infinity focus

2.....an adapter with a lens in the adapter--allows for infinity focus BUT depending on the adapter, destroys the lens native quality and acts like a weak (1.2-1.4?) extender/ teleconverter.

So the REAL answer, forget FD glass. Sell it all if it's worth anything.

I DO use quite an array of stuff I've picked up in manual glass. You can buy adapters and use Nikon, Pentax K (bayonet), screw mount ("M42") Olympus OM, Contax / Yashica, the old so called T2 mount and a few others, by using adapters WITHOUT glass which will give you infinity focus.

One big disadvantage is that Canon bodies VARY in their metering accuracy with manual glass--you have to "chimp" them into correct exposure. My Xt wasn't bad, my 40D is horrid.

Conclusion? Don't know. You should be able to buy a capable body, maybe even with a "kit" lens for 300 or so, but this won't solve your problem if you need more glass and have no money.

And this is why I asked in a forum, no amount of reading reviews could reveal things like this. :P

So I suppose I could go pick up a 30D body with a kit lens for the time being until I can find some money laying around the apartment to get some different ones. I really can't find myself selling my dad's camera as he bought it brand new back in 1987 when it came out so I think I'll probably pick up an adapter with a lens in it and deal with the fact that I'll have infinity focus (At least I won't have to worry about wasting ~$.75 every single time I push that button. :P )

There is nothing to bash about the 30D. Even the 20D is great if you don't mind the smaller LCD screen (aside from that, they are pretty much the same camera). I wouldn't go any older then a 20D however.

If you are on a really limited budget you may want to consider a Rebel XT so you have some money for more lenses.

What lens or lenses did you have and use on your film SLR? Consider equivalents for the 30D or whatever you choose to buy so that you can have a similar range that you're used to.

I'd say that you probably won't see much benefit initially between a 30D and an XTi. You can find a used XTi for well under 500, and use the extra money towards lenses.

When looking at bodies, its always going to be tempting to buy the best you possibly can, but after a while you realize that once you get used to using a Canon DSLR, you will be much more interested in getting new and better lenses.

I had an XTi for a couple years, and can say without a doubt that I went from being a hopeful hobbyist to an experienced amateur. I have the 40D now, and just got my check in the mail for my first paid shoot.

Camera bodies depreciate very fast, but not as fast as lenses...lights tend to stay relatively the same and are pretty much invaluable, in fact I should stop looking at these forums so I'm not tempted to buy as many lenses

The Moose wrote in post #9113287
What lens or lenses did you have and use on your film SLR? Consider equivalents for the 30D or whatever you choose to buy so that you can have a similar range that you're used to.

I have a 75-200mm macro lens and a 50mm lens and quite a few macro filters (My father was a biology major and liked to take pictures of bugs REALLY close up. :P )

boclcown wrote in post #9119305
I'd say that you probably won't see much benefit initially between a 30D and an XTi. You can find a used XTi for well under 500, and use the extra money towards lenses.

When looking at bodies, its always going to be tempting to buy the best you possibly can, but after a while you realize that once you get used to using a Canon DSLR, you will be much more interested in getting new and better lenses.

I had an XTi for a couple years, and can say without a doubt that I went from being a hopeful hobbyist to an experienced amateur. I have the 40D now, and just got my check in the mail for my first paid shoot.

That's awesome! I really hope that once I get out of college and start working at LLNL then I can afford all of the stuff I really want.

I thought that the 30D was a lower spec than the XT? (Totally new to DSLRs)

Karl Johnston wrote in post #9119323
Camera bodies depreciate very fast, but not as fast as lenses...lights tend to stay relatively the same and are pretty much invaluable, in fact I should stop looking at these forums so I'm not tempted to buy as many lenses

Man, I know how you feel. FD lenses are are cheap too - but the camera has stopped working properly and film is annoying at times. :/ I find myself on ebay, craigslist, and amazon all the time now just dreaming about getting some of those bodies and lenses...


PS. Thank you guys so much for pointing me in the right direction - it's awesome that you guys are helping out such a DSLR newbie like myself.

tastypotato wrote in post #9119389
I thought that the 30D was a lower spec than the XT? (Totally new to DSLRs)

PS. Thank you guys so much for pointing me in the right direction - it's awesome that you guys are helping out such a DSLR newbie like myself.

The Canon line up is as follows with the most powerful down (ignoring different Mk numbers):
1D / 1Ds "professional"
5D
7D
XXD "prosumer"
XXXD "consumer" (also known as Rebel in the US and Kiss in Japan)
1000D

The XXD and XXXD series go up in number designating how new they are, newer=higher number).

So a 30D is from the prosumer range, whereas the XT/XTi/XSi are consumer range cameras.

I'm not sure on the exact release date, but Dpreview has reviews of the following:

April 2005- Rebel XT
April 2006- 30D
Oct 2006= rebel XTi

The 30D is newer, with more features then the XT (and of course, more advanced "pro-like" controls.

The XTi has the dust shaker on the sensor, and 2 more MP (10mp) over the 30D and XT. Aside from that no other real advantages.

That being said I would take a 20d/30d over any Rebel, they are faster and nicer to use.

neilwood32 wrote in post #9120014
The Canon line up is as follows with the most powerful down (ignoring different Mk numbers):
1D / 1Ds "professional"
5D
7D
XXD "prosumer"
XXXD "consumer" (also known as Rebel in the US and Kiss in Japan)
1000D

The XXD and XXXD series go up in number designating how new they are, newer=higher number).

So a 30D is from the prosumer range, whereas the XT/XTi/XSi are consumer range cameras.

As I recall the 500D (Rebel T1i) is newer than the 1000D (Rebel XS).
Other than that all is right.

LisaRae82 wrote in post #9120050
As I recall the 500D (Rebel T1i) is newer than the 1000D (Rebel XS).
Other than that all is right.

It is newer but the 1000D is actually a step below the 500D in terms of specification hence why it had a seperate level.

neilwood32 wrote in post #9120062
It is newer but the 1000D is actually a step below the 500D in terms of specification hence why it had a seperate level.

I know, it's entry-level.

Edit: sorry, I gotcha. Serves me right for getting up too early.