First, Hello ;), this is my first post here.
I'll go ahead and explain my needs first. I do a lot of hiking and other outdoor activity. My photos go from macro to landscapes to wildlife.
After searching for a long time, I think I decided on a canon Rebel XTI EOS 400D. But the lens situation is a little unnerving, as I don't want to go with a lens and then find it to be completely useless to what I want.
The standard package comes with an 18-55 lens for about $450 I believe is the price I found.
I did find this deal for an 18-200 mm lens with a lot of other equipment for about $650, along with the rebel camera body.
http://shop.thenewconnection.com/vi-53072________.html
My problem is that with all this searching, I am still fairly confused on lenses and which would be best for my needs. Unfortunately I have a very limited budget, got a $600 bonus at work and decided I would probably put it towards a new camera, and am only willing to go up to maybe $800 camera/lens/other equipment combined.
I am a little concerned at the lack of IS on the rebel, however other photos that I've seen have turned out alright, and I have been working with a P&S camera with a slow shutter speed for a long time which has come out alright.
Any advice would be much appreciated. If possible, to cut down on price I would love to purchase all this in a pack, however if not possible then, as long as it's a good price I'll go for it.
I also had another quick question, can the Rebel stand up to normal shooting environments, such as slight rain or dirt? Obviously not putting it into a situation to get broken, but if it starts raining while I am shooting, will I need to put it away fast, or if I rest it on the ground to take a shot, would that be a problem?