I recently bought a used Canon 20D and I so love it.

Have used a Nikon before, but for right now? Canon had me at, "hello! *click* *snap* and *whir*"

Nice! I asked about getting a camera a few months ago on OS; here's what people said, including the inimitable bbd.

I would suggest getting a camera that can take photos in RAW format.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAW_image_format

It is basically an uncompressed and unprocessed format that gives you maximal options in your electronic "darkroom."

I do not have such a camera, but hope to some day. A friend has one and here's an interesting thing that he said one could do with RAW format -- He said that you could take a black and white photo, and then using software apply a "yellow filter" to the photo. So it would be the same as if you used a yellow filter in the field, except with RAW format you can apply it at home. That's just one example of the kind of flexibility that RAW gives you.

Hey, thanks for the tips. What camera did you get, Rob? Mishima, I will definitely be buying a camera that has RAW format. I think most dSLR's do these days.

Ah, unfortunately I haven't yet scraped together the cash... So I'm still on the market, sort of, in the sense that I read reviews every once in a while and wish I could afford one.

At the end of August I got a Nikon D60, with the kit lens (18-55 mm). I absolutely adore it. It is definitely smarter than I am. I played around with 35 mm for a couple of decades -- 70s-90s -- but the DSLRs are a different beast. My previous camera was an Olympus C750UZ that I really liked. But this one is amazing. With some unexpected Christmas cash, I got an 18-200 mm 1:3.5-5.6 Nikkor lens. I'm in heaven.

Here are the things I like most: The lens is incredibly fast. It has some bells and whistles like vibration reduction and a nifty thing that automatically cleans the sensor every time you turn it off. The battery lasts FOREVER, or close to it.

Yes, you can not only save images in RAW, but also you can save an image simultaneously in RAW and JPEG. This is the part where my camera is smarter than I am. :/

I'm going to the local camera club meeting on 1/15 to see if I can find people to learn from.

Also, I got both the camera and the lens from Amazon. With major purchases like this, I go to a brick and mortar store, touch, hold, click, etc. and then go home and compare the price on Amazon. Usually their prices are a lot lower, plus here in Texas at least, we don't pay sales tax. That saves me another 8.25%. And I have a "prime" membership where I get unlimited 2 day shipping for a year for $75.

Good luck with your shopping. I hope you find something you love as much as I love this.

I also carry a little Canon P&S around in my purse. :)

I'm getting Barry over here.

hi Chris, hi guys...Freaky slapped me awake and said get over here.

I see Rob and linked to a similar request. I don't think I can add much of anything to what I said before in that thread, but there are a couple of points.

I agree with Mishima re RAW. I have the Canon G10 P&S that does RAW and at 14Mpx it's a terrific cam for that type.

I'd also emphasize a point I made over there and that is that it really depends on whether or not you have any legacy lenses. If you have old Nikon lenses, then most all of them work on new Nikon cams. There are some caveats and the lower end cam bodies in the DSLR line, like the D40 and D60 will have some limitations on autofocus with some lenses. Canon has far fewer legacy lenses that work on newer cam bodies, so if your preference is for Canon and you have some older Canon lenses you should do some research on what lenses work.

Lenses comprise the largest investment for a camera outfit in DSLR format. So that should be your starting point. If you don't have any lenses, then you should go with either Canon or Nikon, the two big players. Not that other cams aren't very nice--Sony etc, but C and N are ubiquitous and have readier options for purchasing and for repair if needed.

Figure out your budget, and squeeze out a skootch more and get the one step higher option. Buying used is also an option, but be careful of what you get. As I said on Robs post, "actuations" relate to MTBF. There are software exif extrapolators that will tell you how many times the camera shutter has been fired. If you're up over 100,000, then caveat emptor. So you get an image from the used camera, find the exif app on VersionTracker.com and see how "old" the cam really is.

Be aware also that there are differences between US hardware and "Gray Market" hardware. Gray Market stuff is imported by people other than Canon and Nikon and usually have much lower warranty coverage, like 1 year only instead of 5 for a Nikon with a USA warranty.

hth, feel free to send me an OS mail or ask any questions here and if I don't know I'll find someone smarter than me to get you an answer

Thanks for the advice, Julie.

And Freaky, ummmm, what exactly is getting Barry? Is that like getting jiggy? And how does barry relate to cameras? You are truly an enigma to me.

Ah, that's what getting barry meant. Sorry, Freaky. Thanks for all the advice, Barry. I wish I could afford a G10, but I am just a starving artist. : ( Do you prefer Nikon to Canon?

Chris, there's not much difference between the two. I shoot Nikon, but it's like the Mac vs PC thing. You should use what works best for you and there shouldn't be any evangelism involved. Right now I think Nikon has an edge on hardware both on cam bodies and on lenses. But they leapfrog each other all the time, so either one is good.

If you're starving, you might try going to Costco (or with a friend to Costco who has a card) and check out the kits available. Nikon D90 is a great prosumer lens, but they still have the D60 I think for quite a bit less. Also consider using Amazon as a vendor. You won't pay sales tax on the purchase (I'm not entering the argument on whether or not you should, it's just that they don't charge you unless you're in Washington state. Check the level of cam you want on Amazon and read the reviews. Throw out the top few and the bottom few reviews and see what the rest say.

Best of luck to you.

you can see some of my shots here on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbd/

and this is one with the brand new Nikon 50mm 1.4 lens:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbd/3150439441/

I shoot a Nikon D300 with a host of lenses. A Canon with comparable lenses will do as well.

Thanks again, Barry. I can't wait to get something nicer than my cheap point and shoot. Do you use a telephoto lens much?

Hi Chris...hope you saw my latest post with some images taken with a variety of lenses, found here:

http://open.salon.com/content.php?cid=75016

Re the telephoto: I really prefer to use primes for a couple of reasons. One, they often have better optics, sometimes spectacularly better optics. Look at this image taken with the estimable Nikkor 85mm 1.4 prime. It produces amazing detail and is a fabulous portrait lens.

Two, Prime lenses usually provide better light management and especially better low light abilities.

Zoom lenses present some compromises. Unless you get up into the pro level, the optics are as good, but it's sometimes hard to tell. One good zoom walking around lens is Nikkor 18-200mm. But the light starts at 3.5 with this lens and ramps up to 5.6 depending on the settings used. Sometimes that's ok, sometimes not. The added advantage though with that lens is that it has VR--vibration reduction--which equates to using a stop or two slower.

On the other hand, I use the Nikkor 70-200 which also has VR, but the lens can open up to 2.8 and stays that way regardless of your other settings if you're in Aperture priority mode. But it's a pro lens and the price of $1800 for just that lens reflects that.

Also, primes (lenses with fixed non zoom focal lengths) often offer much better bokeh (those elements in the picture in the background that are out of focus). The 50mm 1.8 prime delivers beautiful bokeh and retails for about $110.

I have the 18-200 lens, but it's not the first lens in my bag when I go out. But for daytime street photography, it's incredibly versatile.

Good luck with all your decisions!

well, after reading your question again, I should make a distinction.

zooms are telephotos, but have a range of focal settings, such as the 18-200 or the 70-200.

but telephotos can be primes too. You can get a fixed 200mm lens, 300, 400 etc. But those are astronomically expensive. The 400mm 2.8 is more than $5k

Take a look at NikonUSA.com or the equivalent Canon site for more precise lens data and msrps.

hth

I got a Nikon D200 a while back and love, love, LOVE it. (Yes, I know the D300 is out already, but yeesh, I can't imagine what it does that the D200 doesn't. I suspect the damned thing would vacuum under my vanity if I could only figure out all the right settings.)

Message me if you want to go Nikon. I have a few lenses I'm no longer really using...

I recommend either the D40 or Nikon D3000. Both are pretty inexpensive right now.