thunder04

iTrader: (1)

I've always been interested in photography. When I was 9 my dad gave me a Nikon 35mm film camera body and a couple of lenses and I went to town with that set. It got lost when we moved a year or so later and all I've had to play with since are point-and-shoot grade cameras.

Over the years I've gotten pretty good at pushing the limits of my 6 year old Kodak EasyShare DX6490 point and shoot camera. I feel it's time to take things up a notch.

I was browsing cameras at my local Costco and they have two "starter kits":

Nikon D5100 D-SLR Kit - $999Canon Rebel T2i Kit - $799 or $749 (I can't remember )This is my first adventure into purchasing a camera above "point and shoot" territory, so I don't know a whole heck of a lot yet.

My budget right now is $1k max. I want something that I can tinker around with but has a "dummy" mode for when the wife wants to use it.

Googling around I found this:

http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon_EO...vs-Nikon-D5100

The comparison above has the Nikon as the winner, but it seems they each have their trade-offs.

Gizmodo seems to love the T2i in terms of a first DSLR: http://gizmodo.com/5541310/canon-reb...our-first-dslr

The T2i seems to be more "bank for your buck", but the D5100 ultimately has a superior image quality.

Is any of the above even worth considering?

What are your thoughts/is your opinion Azine?

MWalsh9152

you really cant go wrong with either camera, it all comes down to personal preference really. What you should do is go someplace where you can get both cameras in your hands and mess around with them. See which one you prefer as far as navigating through the menus etc, and most importantly....how it feels in your hands. Personally, the Canon T series of bodies are way too small for me to comfortably operate.

JLatimer

One consideration is do you have any buddies with either brand. The benefit is if your buddy has gear you can borrow stuff like lenses. It really helps you learn what works and what doesnt when you can try before you buy.

thunder04

iTrader: (1)

^Unfortunately no. My circle of friends doesn't involve photography.

MWalsh - Thanks for the input. I'll see if I can handle both. I'm leaning towards the Canon mainly because of the price.

is300eater

Delete

2001AudiS4

This is a good point. I've had a few people ask me my opinions on cameras. I have always recommended Nikon because a) I have Nikon lenses I can lend and b) I know their menu system and can help teach more efficiently. In all cases, they ended up buying Canon cause they were cheaper. I just told them to enjoy their cameras and haven't helped any of them. I don't care if you want to buy Canon, they are great cameras as well, but don't ask my opinion if you just want to go with the cheapest option.

MWalsh9152

^ if I had any friends that were into photography before me I would have absolutely gone the route they did after doing a little investigating into the craft

thunder04

iTrader: (1)

Welp, after doing some more research, doing a bit of "touchy feely" of various cameras, and plain asking around...I ended up going with the Canon. Although I truly don't know what I'm doing, so far I love it.

My list of photography wants is growing quickly. First on the list is a decent external flash. Then maybe a monopod/tripod of some sort.

Oh, what is one's opinion on Apple's Aperture? It looks like there's a 30 day trial version...I may play around with it.

So much to learn...