Entry level DSLR discussion

[TXRams86]

so, if you've read my "getting married" thread, i've mentioned that the fiancee and I have been planning a trip for our daughters. well, with the trip only being a month away, we've tossed around the idea of getting a DSLR to capture the trip. for those curious, we're taking our 8 and 9 year old daughters to Disneyland in California.

this will be our daughters' first time to Disneyland, first time to California and first time seeing a beach so we want to make it memorable. we DO have a pretty decent point-and-shoot digital camera but i've always been intrigued with SLR's and their photo quality. not that i'm a complete expert on the matter but i do like to dabble with taking photos, editing and printing.

the thing is, i'm a complete noob when it comes to DSLR's. with the budget i'm considering (<$500), it seems that the two contenders are the Canon Rebel T5 and the Nikon D3200. after doing some reading up on the two, the Nikon seems to be the better of the two but does carry a slightly larger price tag. both of them seem to get the job done but "experts" claim that the lenses they come with are average at best. so, ROD experts, what are your opinions? get either the T5 or D3200 bundles? get only the camera body and get a decent lens? ditch the idea altogether and use the point and shoot?

lets hear it!

 

[Ramhusker]

I'm still a point and shoot guy mainly because of a great little camera I bought a few years ago. It fits in my pocket, takes great pictures and videos and has a 20x zoom. Did I mention it fits in my pocket? It's a Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS8. I'm sure they have improved on it since I purchased it but I love it because of the monster zoom in such a small camera and all of the point and shoot options and .................it fits in my pocket!

 

[shovelpass]

I own a 3200, it's great. I have also used the T5, it's also pretty good. The 3200 is lighter and somewhat sharper, the only issue with that I have had is that it took me some time to get acquainted with making adjustments, but I learned on a Canon. I would stil say go with the 3200, but there isn't a huge difference between the two, I would say try both of them out and see which one feels better to you. The price is higher on the 3200, but you can usually find a great deal on them, try Best Buy or a local camera shop, or bhphotovideo.com . And you don't necessarily need the bundle, the base lens will do just fine.

 

[HeiseNBerg]

I'm still a point and shoot guy mainly because of a great little camera I bought a few years ago. It fits in my pocket, takes great pictures and videos and has a 20x zoom. Did I mention it fits in my pocket? It's a Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS8. I'm sure they have improved on it since I purchased it but I love it because of the monster zoom in such a small camera and all of the point and shoot options and .................it fits in my pocket!

^^ THIS ^^

Shortly before a trip to Cabo San Lucas in 2009, my wife bought a Canon point-and-shoot digital camera for less than $150 at Best Buy. That little camera takes amazing pictures -- and the technology has only gotten better over the last 6 years. And like 'husker said, having a camera that fits in your pocket is a big plus.

I also own a Nikon D70 DSLR -- it takes great pictures, too. But it's a lot more cumbersome to drag around. I hardly ever use it anymore -- and it has never gone with me on vacation.

If you're still hell-bent on going the DSLR route, just remember that the quality of the photos is only going to be as good as the lens you're using. There are lenses that are absolute crap -- you might want to google reviews on the lenses that will fit whichever camera body you'll be buying.