cannon eos 400 d is it a good first time digital slr?

[andywatson00]

hi , im new to the forum and just wanted to know if u have one
( cannon eos 400 d rebel xti ) and if so what do u think about it

also i can get one with a with Tamron 70-300mm F4/5.6 DI LD Macro lens and EFS 18-55mm Lens

this will be my first digital slr and im on a tight budget just watned to know your opinions on the items ( if u have any )

thanks in advance

andy

p.s or the other option i was thinking of is teh nikon d40x is the cannon the better camera for a first timer?

[WesternGuy]

andy, Canon, Nikon, Minolta...and others, they all make great equipment and accessories, depends on what you want :idea: . Me, I am a Canon guy :thumbsup: , never used anything else and never had any personal complaints or concerns about image quality, etc. and I am sure you will find Nikon folks, and others, who will say the same thing about their products. In the long run, it probably doesn't matter what manufacturer you commit to as long as you realize that is what it is - a commitment. If you go Canon, then you are committted to using Canon lenses and other accessories because they don't mix and match with others, although you can buy third party accessories, e.g., Sigma, Tamron, etc. which are made with different mounts to fit the cameras of different manufacturers. One other consideration is whether or not you can get whatever you buy and all its accessories serviced where you live (or close by), or do you have to send it away to get if serviced in case of a problem. Also, not knowing where you live, I would suggest you look closely at the retailers in your area, what do they sell, what do they service - visit them and see what comfort level you have with them - where I live, there are 3 or 4 dealers that sell Canon equipment. I have shopped at all of them, but deal now with only one of them because I like the friendly customer service I get from them and I have made a friend of one of the sales guys and I tend to deal with him on most occassions (very knowledgable) . Nothing turns me off on a retailer more than when I walk into their store and I can walk around for 15 to 20 minutes and no one comes to see if they can help me - so friendly sevice is a factor. The other major factor is their knowledge of the product - you want to know that the person you are dealing with knows what he/she is talking about!! :thumbsup:

Going back to your original question, I do not have a 400D, but do have its predecessor (now my backup), the 350D, and it was a great first digital SLR for me and I learned a lot about digital photography from using it (so the 400D would be a good first DSLR for you)- specifically, after shooting 35mm film for more years than I care to admit to - I learned that digital is a whole new world and I had to learn to think about things that I never had to worry about before, e.g., white balance, etc., but then I am someone who believes that learning new things is an exciting part of life and if you stop learning, you stop living (so to speak). Anyway, I am going to stop now because I am rambling a bit - I hope this helps you in your decision and gives you some insight into what you are committing to.

Cheers,

WesternGuy

[gahspidy]

hi , im new to the forum and just wanted to know if u have one
( cannon eos 400 d rebel xti ) and if so what do u think about it

also i can get one with a with Tamron 70-300mm F4/5.6 DI LD Macro lens and EFS 18-55mm Lens

this will be my first digital slr and im on a tight budget just watned to know your opinions on the items ( if u have any )

thanks in advance

andy

p.s or the other option i was thinking of is teh nikon d40x is the cannon the better camera for a first timer?

The XTi was my first DSLR and it not only was a great first DSLR but a good camera for anyone. This is a seriously fine DSLR and its going to be the best bang for your buck as well.
The lenses that you say are included with the one your thinking of getting are ok. the 18-55mm is a kit lens and from what i hear is not too great, but not too bad either. the 70-300 Tamron is a very good and also gives you some close focusing ability for macro type work.
It is a good camera that you can expand on and you will not regret it.

[drewphotograph]

I just have my XTi last Decemeber for my first DLSR, and i'm satisfied with that : )

[andywatson00]

thanks for all the advice guys, im going to the local camera store on weds and i think ill be coming home with a xti anything else apart from the 2 lenses i should get with the camera i.e uv filter e.t.c?

thanks again for the help

[gahspidy]

thanks for all the advice guys, im going to the local camera store on weds and i think ill be coming home with a xti anything else apart from the 2 lenses i should get with the camera i.e uv filter e.t.c?

thanks again for the help

Make sure you don't forget to buy at least one CF card. Get something good like a Sandisk Extreme lll 2 GB or 4 GB card would be a good start. Don't forget a bag to carry everything in. You may also want to think about getting a decent tripod. About 100.00 will get you something pretty good for that weight camera. Look at the Slik 300 Able or Bogen makes something pretty decent for that price as well.
good luck.

[drewphotograph]

Yup tripod, tripod.
CF card too, i think 2 gig is enough, mine is 2 gig.
bag is a secondary thing, but if you were kinda worry to bring your camera without bag, it's better to have one than.
UV, hm.. you might need one if you're going to shot in the dusty area, raining, snowing. if you won't shot in such condition, you don't have to have it, since some filter would make your image look soft.
someone in here told me that

[JamesV]

I have to agree with everyone else on this one. I purchased my XTI about six months ago and love it. I had the S1 IS then stepped up, well jumped, to this and couldn't be happier. I just recently purchased a tripod and bag as I had some memory cards from the other camera.
Good luck with your purchased and post some pictures when you get it.

James

[Liz]

The XTi 400D is an excellent camera with many fine features. I have this camera and have been happy with it from the beginning. It will be a learning curve for you in the beginning, but you can also use it in "auto" while you're learning and get good results.

You might consider the Canon 50mm/f1.4 lens for low light, portrait and indoor shots - it's only $89 and one of Canon's best lower priced lenses. Check these different images all taken from 50mm lenses. The 2nd link is in case you want to check out the specifications, features, etc.

I don't use a UV filter. Unless you buy a good one, it can take away from the quality of the shots. My personal opinion is that if you take care of your camera/lenses you won't need a UV filter. However, opinions vary. It's subjective.

50mm Walk About

50mm/f1.8 specs/info

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...0mm_f_1_8.html

Liz

[andywatson00]

thanks for the imput liz, this is a link to the package i was going to get

http://www.jessops.com/Store/s35964/...y=False&comp=y

its at the bottom of the age priced at £477

it inclues Canon EOS 400D (Black) + EFS 18-55mm Lens + Tamron 70-300mm F4/5.6 DI LD Macro (Canon AF)+ Sandisk 2GB Ultra II Compactflash Card

would this be a good starter kit for me ? or would i be better geting the basic Canon EOS 400D (Black) + EFS 18-55mm Lens package and buying another lens to go with that £500 is around my budget, i want to take landscape, portrait and photos or live rock bands , thats the main use for my camera

any help would be great !!

[Liz]

thanks for the imput liz, this is a link to the package i was going to get

http://www.jessops.com/Store/s35964/...y=False&comp=y

its at the bottom of the age priced at £477

it inclues Canon EOS 400D (Black) + EFS 18-55mm Lens + Tamron 70-300mm F4/5.6 DI LD Macro (Canon AF)+ Sandisk 2GB Ultra II Compactflash Card

would this be a good starter kit for me ? or would i be better geting the basic Canon EOS 400D (Black) + EFS 18-55mm Lens package and buying another lens to go with that £500 is around my budget, i want to take landscape, portrait and photos or live rock bands , thats the main use for my camera

any help would be great !!

Well, that's a tough decision. I'm not sure the Tamron lens will meet your expectations. However, the Canon 18-55 kit lens isn't bad, although the new IS version is better, especially in low light due to the extra stops.

What I would do personally may not be what you want to do. However, I have 2 suggestions: either 1) get the 400D & EFS 18-55 package and either wait for a while to get a 2nd lens or 2) same as No. 1 and add the 50mm/f1.8.

The 50mm lens will be better than the zooms in low light - and for portraits, maybe live rock indoor or out - but only if you're close enough to the band - and useful for some landscapes. The 70-300 is not good for low light or indoor concerts.

I hope others chime in here to help you out. If you're unsure, you might consider opting for the 18-55 kit package and holding off on a 2nd lens for now.

Liz

[drewphotograph]

agree with Liz.
if you want to shot live performance in low light situation (indoor) you need aperture at least 2.8 bigger is better for sure.
get that 50mm f/1.8 it's a good cheap lens a very good lens for portrait too
18-55 is wide enough for landscape

[andywatson00]

thanks for all the help, ive ordered the 50mm lens of e-bay and im going to get my camera tomorrow im going to see what the best deal i can get is, but i know cannon are doing a cash back with the 400d so ill get a little money back

thanks for all the advice so far ( im sure ill be asking more questions soon )

thanks again and thanks for making someone new to digital slr's feel welcomed

andy

il post some pics once ive had a practice

[WesternGuy]

Andy, following on from what Gary said about CF cards, might I suggest you consider getting two of what ever size you decide to buy (they are fairly cheap these days). That way you always have a backup in case you fill one of them (you never know) and also if one of them goes a little screwy on you. I have seen too many postings here and on other forums where someone has run into trouble with a memory card and had no backup. I have a 2GB backup for my 4GB CF (SanDisk) card, because it is very difficult to find a dealer when you are out in the middle of the nowhere in the Rockies far away from your favourite dealer - so the backup gives me that extra bit of confidence that if something does go wrong, I will at least have a backup to help capture images I might loose if I didn't have the backup. My 0.02¢...

Good luck and good picture taking with what ever you choose.

Cheeers,

WesternGuy

[andywatson00]

thanks everyone for the advice i ust got home with my nice new eos 400d ( txi ) i got a 4gig card with the kit set i went for and talked the guy into giving me a 2gig card and charger with car charger for free as part of the package , so i ended up getting

Canon EOS 400D (Silver
EF-S 18-55mm Lens
Tamron 70-300mm F4/5.6 DI LD Macro (Canon AF)
Lowepro Slingshot 100AW bag
a 4gig and a2gig card

ive also ordred a 50mm lens from ebay.. time to get the instructions out etc...

ill post some pics when ive had a practice

thanks again for all the advice

[Xia_Ke]

Congrats on the new set-up!!! Gotta love new toys Looking forward to seeing some pics :thumbsup:

Happy Shooting,
Aaron

[Liz]

Congratulations! You will be very happy with the camera - and have made some good lens choices.

I'm looking forward to seeing some sample pics! Post a few on the viewfinder forum to share with us. Or the critique forum if you are ready to have the images critiqued.

Liz

[gahspidy]

Congrats Andy. . . .shoot what your heart desires!

[andywatson00]

ive taken some pics and im going to upload them i took quiet a few not all good but ehy its my first venture into digital slr ill put up a few of the better ones in viewfinder in a while

thanks again for all your help and kind words

im loving the camera already even tho some (lots) of it still confuses me but ill get there

[mikeb380]

The XTi was my first DSLR and it not only was a great first DSLR but a good camera for anyone. This is a seriously fine DSLR and its going to be the best bang for your buck as well.
The lenses that you say are included with the one your thinking of getting are ok. the 18-55mm is a kit lens and from what i hear is not too great, but not too bad either. the 70-300 Tamron is a very good and also gives you some close focusing ability for macro type work.
It is a good camera that you can expand on and you will not regret it.

Gary, A friend of mine used an 18-55 kit lens last year and won national first place honors in Canon's National Parks contest. I got rid of mine because I didn't like the way it felt, but there is nothing wrong with the glass. It just feels light and plasticy to me, gee, I wonder why?

Andy;
I just bought the EOS 350/XT and wish I had kept the 300D. There is no difference in photo quality between them and the 350 is too small for my hands, very uncomfortable. The 300 wasn't a lot larger but enough and heavier so I felt I was holding something and it balanced a 300 mm lens better than the 350. The difference between the 6.2 MP and the 8 mp is invisible. I imagine the same is true for the 400 and its 10mp. above 6.2 MP you won't see any difference unless you make really large blowups. I make 11X14 prints routinely with my 300D files and get extremely good results.

As to Nikon vs Canon, there may be differences between any two models but overall their lines are about the same. I bought my first Canon when I was working in a camera store. I tried both cameras, as well as Leicas, and finally chose the Canon because I could get a better price on it. At that time the Nikon and lenses were somewhat higher. I'd advise you to go to a store and try both. It is a matter of what feels better to you. As I said, I don't like my new XT. Once you have decided what feels better to you, check prices at Adorama and bhphotovideo, both are highly reputable and both have good prices. Not the lowest prices but you do get service and that is something many on line stores don't give. If you need to buy used, those two places are the best because they tell you up front what shape the equipment is in. If they say something is excellent you can bank on it.

Hope this helps
Michael