Best buy Digital SLR

[Jonzjob]

[quote user="alittlebitfrench"]I will break this as gently as I can boys, but the Fuji X series cameras are the best you can buy.

More importantly, their glass (lenses) are even better still. And that is what counts.[/quote]

Is that why all the pro photographers use them [blink] I seem to have heard that somewhere before [8-)]

I can only agree with you Richard and that is why I kept my Canon EF-S 18 - 200 lens. My 80D will take either the EF-S or the EF range and if I ever got to the stage where I could afford an EF lens to match the one I have now then I would get it. With the 1.6 crop factor om the EF-S lens mine is the same as an EF 32 - 310mm jobbie which gives me a huge range and at very good quality

A spider on the wall paper

[url=https://flic.kr/p/Gdqg7n][img]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4449/26394802189_9bd554d3e9_z.jpg[/img][/url][url=https://flic.kr/p/Gdqg7n]Spider of the toe[/url] by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/45489029@N07/]John[/url], on Flickr

If they have toes then this is a crop of that photo

[url=https://flic.kr/p/Gdqg7c][img]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4466/26394802179_fc51a1cd81_z.jpg[/img][/url][url=https://flic.kr/p/Gdqg7c]Spiders toe[/url] by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/45489029@N07/]John[/url], on Flickr

Why would I want a different lens?

I am sat whilst I trype this by the way [:)]

I have only just found this TP, but it may well be of interest to you

It's a bit long but possibly well worth the time to learn some of the tricks and advantages of your new toy. I watched several videos on my new toy jobbie and they opened up a lot of things I would have struggled to find

[Théière]

Ha ha John, I watched that very one this morning. No doubt I shall have to watch that a couple more times.

[alittlebitfrench]

Ok, serious hat on ALBF head. Photography is my thing, I been doing it since learning it at school/college.

First of all 'pro' photographers (whatever that means) will choose a camera based on the type of photography they do. Sports, weddings, nature, architecture, landscapes, street etc etc etc. So there is no real 'pro' brand camera. Nikon, Canon, Fuji, Sony, Leica. Some are good at some things and others are better at other things. Also remember, their are far better 'amateur' photographers out there than 'pro' photographers using all different types of cameras. But at the end of the day it will come down to the lens.

One thing you got to bear in mind with digital cameras is 'post processing' i.e shooting in raw and manipulating the image on the computer later.

I had the Nikon D70 (with lots of lenses) when digital photography first started and the images it produced needed a lot of manipulation.

Now I hate post processing, so I sold the D70 and got a little Leica compact which produced really nice jpegs (SOTC).

When Fuji started producing the x series cameras I got the XT10 which is now been replaced by the XT 20. They can produce near perfect Jpegs. So no boring post processing required. Also, the camera has simulation modes which are designed to mirror the 'films' that 'fuji' used to produce. Astia, Provia, Velvia, B&W etc etc etc. Which are great fun.

Anyway, any camera is a good starting point but I must say that if you want to learn photography, BUY A PRIME lens. In terms of the Nikon the that has to be the 50mm 1.8.

99 % of the time I shoot only with a prime. In my case the 18mm (28mm in old school). I have one zoom but very rarely use it although it is 'nearly' as good as the 18mm in terms of IQ. But it is heavier on the camera and not as fast. Two very important factors in photography.

So yes, BUY A PRIME lens. And if you ever what to change system, look at the fuji x series. You can pick up an XT 10 quite cheaply secondhand now that it has been replaced with the XT20

They produce (straight out of the camera) wonderful images and used with a prime, you will be taking pro images in no time.

[alittlebitfrench]

Also, if you want to see what a Fuji can do look at this site. These photos are simply stunning.

http://www.bjornmoerman.com/

He is a pilot not a pro photographer.

A lot were shot with the XT1 which is basically a larger and weather sealed XT10.

Both cameras can be bought second hand on ebay quite cheaply now.

[BritinBretagne]

It’s a bit like asking which make of car to buy. Different people make subjective decisions and at the end of the day ‘value for money’ will usually have an influence too. A long time ago I chose Canon over Nikon but could easily have gone the other way. The cameras available from the two manufacturers, in my price range, performed very similarly. I have never regretted that decision and if I were to want to change now it would mean selling a lot of equipment and that’s not going to happen.

The cameras that I don’t understand are the bridge cameras. Compact cameras are so good why buy something bulky that does not offer any advantage?

[Théière]

Probably the reason I haven't done any photography before, the subject is much like HiFi. If you have a £100 budget or a £20,000 there is a system. Like the lens of the camera it has to be decent so do the speakers.

Happy in the knowledge I am making the same mistake as ALBF has starting with a Nikon but I won't commit any more money until I have taken some pictures and I looked at the Fuji even second hand x3 what I paid for the Nikon that has only 2,936 shutter actions. I am happy.

[alittlebitfrench]

There is nothing wrong with D80. Remember of course that the D80 has higher specs than the D100 which was considered a pro amateur camera at the time. Remember also, today digital photography is a marketing con because camera manufacturers try to convince you need this that and the other and what you to upgrade every year. A D80 with a Nikon 50mm will compete with any of todays pro camera in terms of IQ. Well if you are not printing poster size images. Who does that ? Given what you have spent, I think you have done well. Like I said, a prime lens will make the difference and they are more fun.

The reason I had a D70 was because I had before a Nikon film camera and loads of nikon lenses. But digital photography did not turn me on in those days so I sold it.

I am a bit 'old school' when it comes to photography. I like the Fuji range because they have twisty knobs like on old cameras for adjusting parameters rather than menu driven. I like that because that is what I am used to.

I need an aperture ring on the lens as well otherwise I am lost.

[Théière]

Asking a question, I think there are adapters for one manufacturer to another, Canon to Nikon for example. I saw one from Konica to Nikon which could be handy, as my father had some Konica AR gear which I have kept inc the lenses.

Would this work?

[alittlebitfrench]

The thing you have to remember when using old lenses with an adapter is that you will lose TTL (through the lens metering) and you will be manually focusing. So essentially you will manually do everything with the most important part being trying to exposure correctly.

That is more for the advanced photographer. Not something I would advise to be honest at this stage. The optical quality of the lenses will unlikely be as good as the Nikon ones designed for the camera so really it is just for fun to use adapters and old lenses.

[Théière]

Thanks ALBF, I got the old lenses and Konica out of the loft, apparently that Konica started a revolution in camera TTL an auto reflex TC? not worth much looking at an auction site but I think I will put it up there with the lenses and teleconverters and a set of bellows!? might buy me something a do want. Sorry for all the questions, bound to be bored with it in 6 months and move on to another hobby [:D]