What's a good (generally popular) and inexpensive model of a digital SLR camera for an amateur photographer.?

Question

I want to start photography to make a photo journal but I have no idea which digital SLR camera to get. I find that regular digital cameras look really fake or sometimes the quality is grainy or pixelated.

Anyway, I know Nikon make good Analog cameras, but are they a good brand for digital SLR cameras?

Also, I don't want to spend more than $1000 for one.

Thanks for your answers :)

Answer 1

Nikon D60

Answer 2

Good quality brands (in alphabetical order) are Canon, Fujifilm, Leica (BIG $$$), Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax and Sony.

My personal favorites are those made by Olympus because they have a range of models for the consumer market and make stellar optics that have been designed for digital sensors rather than converting their 35mm optical designs.  EVERY ONE of their Digital SLR lenses was designed specifically for digital imaging and there are significant design differences.

The other advantage in optics is that Olympus makes consistently higher quality "kit" lenses then most of the other big names.  The biggest knock you will hear against Oly DSLRs is that the image sensor is too small but Olympus developed a standard jointly with Kodak, Leica, Panasonic and other companies called "Four Thirds" that is designed to maximize quality while keeping cost and size lower and able to take advantage of advancing technology and it works VERY WELL!  Here is a link to my Flickr site with many pictures taken with OLDER Olympus DSLR models and I have had not trouble getting enlargements to 11 x 14 inches or larger.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/robs-photo-...

Check out the Olympus E520 "kit" which includes two zoom lenses of high quality anw will be in your budget with leftover cash for memory cards and a few other accessories.  The E520 is the newest model with some useful upgrades from the E510.  

http://www.adorama.com/IOME520K1.html

They also have E4xx models that are smaller, lighter and less expensive but with fewer features.

Here are some useful links - The first one is to a buyers guide for first time DSLR buyers and is pretty good starting point.

http://www.digital-slr-guide.com/index.h...

http://www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_...

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2007_revi...

http://olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/cp...

Hope that helps.  E mail me if you have specific questions or want more details..

Answer 3

Please review www.dpreview.com

Canon, Nikon, Olympus are one of the best digital SLR makers.

It depends on your taste and budget. For D-SLR, there are many alternatives. There are even excellent quality point and shoot digital cameras cost around $300-$500. And there are doing a great job compared to $1000 & up d-slr cameras. Any entry level d-slr needs some investment such as buying new lenses, flashes etc. On the other hand, good P&S cameras needs only a bunch of rechargeable batteries to do the job. And they do almost all sort of things - movie, macro shots, zooms etc.

Quality is something else. It is effected by the quality of the lens, image sensor, light, and your experience. At the moment almost all cameras (even cellphone cameras) take outstanding photos.

It is not easy to explain all aspects of the cameras here, it is like buying a car. Please refer to my reference website above.