Beginner camera

[lindaheartyou]

Hello everyone!

I have been using sony alpha 100 for last two years since it is my fathers camera (he got it when it came out), but he never bought another lens, so it only had the kit lens and and sometimes I took his camera while I was traveling, but now I am looking for a camera for myself. I am still a beginner at photography and I have to learn so many things. So yeah, lately I've been looking around Youtube videos and reviews of cameras, but I can't really find what I want. And I understand that the lense is more important than a "new" camera to get good pictures. I want a camera which could take good photos in daytime (I will travel a lot), would do a good job capturing sunsets and sunrises, do some good portrets and do some astrophotography. Too much to ask, huh? I bet I would need different lenses for different kind of activities, right? 

Since I am quite new to this, I would love to hear your opionion on which camera should I consider. As you might guess, I don't want too expensive camera, since it would be my first real camera. Also, could you suggest which lenses should I buy for each activity? 

I was considering Canon Rebel T4i (650D), because it has flip out screen and touchscreen, has quite good picture quality and is popular, not too expensive as well. Also Nikon D3300 was considered. Maybe you have any better suggestions? Maybe I should look for older camera?

Thanks a lot!  

[Alien 13]

You cant go wrong with a 650D the 700D is very similar the slightly older 600D is also worth considering if you can get one with the 2 kit lens set then you are ready to go.

Alan

[jambouk]

Yup, the flip out screen is lovely, and really useful.

James

[wuthton]

Yup, the flip out screen is lovely, and really useful.

James

But that'd take away all the fun. I believe in Yoga it is called the "side revolved astronomers pose".

[lindaheartyou]

You cant go wrong with a 650D the 700D is very similar the slightly older 600D is also worth considering if you can get one with the 2 kit lens set then you are ready to go.

Alan

Thanks for the answer, Alan! Which lens should I consider buying for astrophotography, if I decide to go with 650D? And what EF-S 18-55mm IS II and  EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III  lenses are for? 

[Alien 13]

The two lenses are fine for general purpose photograpy and cover most situations, for AP the 18-55mm will give good results with the Milky way and whole constelations ideal if you are using a fixed tripod.

Alan

[hjw]

Hi Lindaheartyou,

There are a lot DSLR cameras out there and all will do the job more or less good. You are looking for a swivel screen and I was looking for performance and weather sealing. I ended up with the Pentax K-30 and I an very happy with it (un-modded). Pentax (old K-30, K-50 or K-5) is a little bit left-field compared to Canon or Nikon but I am very happy with it.

And I did not mean to confuse you . Depending on your budget Nikon just brought out the D810a, which has the full spectrum and there is the Sony A7s which is probably the most sensitive camera on the market right now.

Clear skies!

HJ 

[Apharov]

A word of warning about the EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III: it's considered to be a rather horrible lens. The EF-S 55-250mm tele zoom is much better.

[happy-kat]

Cannon is very well supported and they can be easy controlled from a PC or android device.

An inexpensive extra lens could be the cannon 50mm f1.8 also know as the nifty fithty. Could use that for a astro, portrait, sunrise and sunset.

There is lots of easy support for cannon, other makes are available if you prefer but may not be as versatile as cannon for communicating with.

Swivel screen is useful but not essential if your budget is tight.

You may need to keep some budget aside for a tripod.

[cjdawson]

Thanks for the answer, Alan! Which lens should I consider buying for astrophotography, if I decide to go with 650D? And what EF-S 18-55mm IS II and  EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III  lenses are for? 

A 650D with those lenses would be a great start, I think.

Astrophotography can be devided up into a few areas.

Wide field - Landscapes taken at night.

The important thing here is long exposures of about 2 mins.  Being able to put the lens to infinity focus, tripod mounting the camera is essential, as is using a cable release so that you don't get camera shake.    If you have the ability to use mirror lock, that will also help get pin sharp images.  (There is a technique for using this with an interval timer so that you can make multiple exposures automatically)

Having a screen that flips out from the camera is useful as you'll be able to point the camera up, swivel out the screen and see the image that the camera has taken without moving the camera.  (great for getting that shot of the moon making an "i" dot over a mobile phone tower, or framing the scene)

To be able to take longer exposures, you'll need a clock drive so that the camera tracks the stars - I use my telescope for this, but you can get them for direct mounting on a tripod.  The longer the exposure, the more accuracy you'll need from the tracking.

Lunar

Same setup as before only this time you are needing that 300mm lens,  can zoom in on the moon.  The exposure will be shorter, but still needs the cable release etc.

Planets

Now we are getting into deeper sky, a telescope will be essential.  The Cannon or nikon cameras can be fitted to a telescope using a T-Adapter,  This will turn the telescope into a very large lens.  You'll not need a separate lens at this point.  Again, it's all about getting the focus pin sharp, taking multiple images and stacking them.

DeepSky

Again, the camera will be attached to a telescope.  The exposures will be long, and there will be multiple exposures too.  Tracking will be essential.

[elmacus]

A lot of info in this site for astrophoto: http://www.lonelyspeck.com/beginner-astrophotography-kit/

I just bought Canon 760d. Great general purpose camera.

Best lenses are the primes ( no zoom at all). Wide 10-20, low f = 1.4 to 2.8.

Good luck.