digital slr or 35mm

i have never used a slr camera before, but i am very eager to begin. i am debating between getting a digital slr (have nikon d70 mainly in mind) or 35mm (was thinking mainly of nikon n80). i will be taking mostly outdoor landscape photos, though i will do some of everything. image quality is of extreme importance to me. i have this feeling that i'm not going to get the kind of image quality from a digital than i would from a film camera. i know this is a very general question, but some kindly direction would really help me. i am very interested in learning as much as possible and becoming an artist with the camera rather than a point and shoot zombie. perhaps you could also help me with lenses. the $1000 more for a digital is certainly scary, but then i consider the constant cost of film and developing. i also have a new apple computer i thought might love to get it's curcuits around some digital images.

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Originally Posted by uzibear

i have never used a slr camera before, but i am very eager to begin. i am debating between getting a digital slr (have nikon d70 mainly in mind) or 35mm (was thinking mainly of nikon n80). i will be taking mostly outdoor landscape photos, though i will do some of everything. image quality is of extreme importance to me. i have this feeling that i'm not going to get the kind of image quality from a digital than i would from a film camera. i know this is a very general question, but some kindly direction would really help me. i am very interested in learning as much as possible and becoming an artist with the camera rather than a point and shoot zombie. perhaps you could also help me with lenses. the $1000 more for a digital is certainly scary, but then i consider the constant cost of film and developing. i also have a new apple computer i thought might love to get it's curcuits around some digital images.

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Unless you are really strapped for up-front cash, a DSLR is the way to go. It is more expensive upfront but much less expensive over its lifetime. A DSLR will produce higher quality images than 35mm, allows you to get instant feedback (a fantastic tool), gives you vastly more control over the imaging process, and lets you shoot as many shots as you want for free. You'll learn much faster with a DSLR.

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Originally Posted by uzibear

i have never used a slr camera before, but i am very eager to begin. i am debating between getting a digital slr (have nikon d70 mainly in mind) or 35mm (was thinking mainly of nikon n80). i will be taking mostly outdoor landscape photos, though i will do some of everything. image quality is of extreme importance to me. i have this feeling that i'm not going to get the kind of image quality from a digital than i would from a film camera. i know this is a very general question, but some kindly direction would really help me. i am very interested in learning as much as possible and becoming an artist with the camera rather than a point and shoot zombie. perhaps you could also help me with lenses. the $1000 more for a digital is certainly scary, but then i consider the constant cost of film and developing. i also have a new apple computer i thought might love to get it's curcuits around some digital images.

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I'm going to agree with Michael for a change. Let's look at this more closely.

If you want to be an "artist" then you have to have control over your camera (N80 & D70 are both fine) and the treatment of the image (need to have the images on your Apple with Photoshop - unless you want to do exclusively black & white and develop & print it yourself).

Assume you want the images on the Apple - if you buy a film N80 you're going to have to scan the film. A standard lab CD with 1500x1200 pixel images is far short of what the D70 can do. A 3200dpi flatbed scan is an improvement but if you want to have something that rivals the D70 then you're going to have to invest in a dedicated film scanner (700$ for a Nikon Coolscan V). Add the cost of the N80 and the cost of film & development and you quickly see why a D70 is competetive.

Charles