Help! Digital SLR camera needed!

[mlakrid]

Hey guys... if you help me with this REPS as always...

I am going to buy a nice camera, something nearing a PRO quality Digital SLR

I want two things...

1) What you think is the best quality digital SLR camera for the PRICE...
for #1 I want a model and its associated price at a major on-line retailer...

2) and what if any add-ons would you purchase with it??

We have some people who are really into photography, and I know they will ask some questions the ones I know they will ask which I have the answers to are below:

What is your price range?

There is no set range per se ... I can spend all I want, but I needed to be realistic with the wedding coming soon. So I chose $1500 as the MAX... which only leaves a few cameras to choose from.

What type of photography are you going to be using this camera for?

Mainly outdoor wildlife photography... which will cost me alot of money later, and I want the ability to use future lenses on future camera bodies.

The camera does NOT have to be brand new, but does need to come with some sort of warranty, even if it is purchased with an electronic repair company and not the original manufacturer...

Personally I chose:
Rebel XT with the 17-85mm Lens KIT which I found for a very good price: $1169 (SHIPPED) at 42nd Street Photo... through pricegrabber.com

Thanks!

Mike

 

[fitz]

I would go with the Rebel and a nice additional lens.

THe Nikon would be my 2nd choice.. both cameras are very nice and from companies that have *nearly* always produced good cameras over the years.

Personally, don't know much about the Sony camera lines..

If you ever decide to upgrade though, i woudl look hard at the Canon line because the lenses are *mostly* compatible as you work your way up the DSLR Canon EOS product line.

 

[rushm001]

I'd say the Nikon as the camera's I've had from them always have been good.

 

[Luna]

I own a Nikon D50 and have been fairly impressed with it. You may want to do some searches for reviews on each camera.

 

[tdinc]

I can only offer these links to help you out

http://www.dcviews.com/reviews/Canon-350D/Canon-EOS-350D-review.htm
http://www.dcviews.com/reviews/Nikon-D70s/Nikon-D70s-review.htm
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2006_reviews/alpha100.html

hopefully it works..

 

[Aprox]

In my recent camera purchase I used both these sites for a lot of valuable information.

http://www.dpreview.com/
http://www.megapixel.net/

They have professional reviews for mostly high end digital cameras. Good Luck!

Canon Digital XT reviews
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/
http://www.megapixel.net/reviews/canon-rebelxt/rebelxt-gen.php

Nikon D70 Reviews
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Nikon/nikon_d70s.asp
http://www.megapixel.net/reviews/nikon-d70/d70-gen.php

Check out what else those sites have though, you might find something better to choose from than you have. Are you sure you need/want a dSLR? My recent purchase a Panasonic DMC-FZ20 is near dSLR quality for a fraction of the price. There is a new model out as well (DMC-FZ30) that has some decent upgrades (8mp vs 5mp). Just food for thought, although I am sure you know what you want.

 

[mlakrid]

Well thanks for everyones inputs...

I have to say however, not to sound ungrateful, you didnt really help me much :lick: I know these are all good cameras, I was looking more for people who actually own the the cameras or cameras very close to the ones I posted... or maybe your experience in a similar situation (buying a new dSLR) and WHY you chose that camera over another sort of thing...

Canon and Nikon (as obvious by my poll choices) are my two major contenders... the Sony Alpha is going to be a MAJOR competitor, especially since they bought all the rights to all the Koinca/Minolta technology, and the CEO of Sony said they will own the largest percentage of the digital SLR market in the very near future.

I guess I will wait a while longer, try and save up some more $$ and get what I want... unless you all have more of an opinion which you dont want to share openly, if thats the case, just PM me...

Thanks!

~Mike!