happyday123 Loc: Northwest Iowa

I am 57 years old and haven't picked up a camera of any kind for decades. I enjoy mostly learning about outdoor shots, family, natural light and black and white. I am definitely not wealthy and would like to purchase a dslr.

The first camera I built was a point and shoot by removing the cover off of a pin hole in the lid of an oatmeal box tube with photographic paper taped the the bottom of the box.

I wanted to become a photographer in middle school and for some reason the teacher thought I needed to memorize an entire page of . . .I think it was f stop/shutter speed calculations. That put a quick end to working with that teacher.

Roaming through your web site I find lots to learn and am picking up on terminology that is totally new to me.

What type of inexpensive dslr and good lens would you suggest. The photo is of my 87 year old mother Mary and I did not take the photo.

Papa Joe Loc: Midwest U.S.

Welcome to the Hog, Happyday! You've come to the right site to meet some good photographers. I'm no 'youngster', (near your Mom's age), and have fooled with the trade for a good many years, but am still learning. Like the little old lady on the TV commercial says, "I Never want to quit leeaarrnning!" (More effective when you can hear her say it :)
Enjoy the hobby, that's the main thing!

happyday123 Loc: Northwest Iowa

Thank you sir.

indycaver Loc: Indianapolis

I suggest the Canon Rebel T3 with the standard lens for around $500 or a refurbished one from Canon for around $450 with full warranty. It's a great camera and Canon has really good support and includes a good editing program that's very user friendly. I'm sure Nikon has an equally good entry level DSLR as well. I just don't have any experience with them.

happyday123 Loc: Northwest Iowa

Thanks a lot for the info. Have a great day!.

lilac

Welcome to the UHH. I can't help you with your camera selection though.

happyday123 Loc: Northwest Iowa

No problem. It was nice to meet you. I am in no rush at all. :) :thumbup:

Doddy Loc: Barnard Castle-England

I hope I am as fit and happy looking as Mary when I get to 87 happyday. Anyway a DSLR Is the best option for the serious photographer, but for the less adventurous a Bridge (travel) camera like a Canon sx50 can give very good results.
By the way welcome.

happyday123 Loc: Northwest Iowa

Good morning to you Doddy in England I think. I will look up that camera on the internet and see what pops up. Thank you for your input.

HowardPepper Loc: Palm Coast, FL

Hey happyday123, and welcome to the UHH!

I second what indycaver suggested, pick up one of the low-end DSLR cameras from Canon or Nikon and enjoy it. The beauty of modern DSLRs are they have a very low barrier to entry. They will let you start off in auto mode, and you can take very good photos with them. As you learn more about the camera and photography, you can slowly move to the "creative zone", and start taking more control, but you get to do it at your pace.

Anyway you do it, enjoy photography!

JoeB Loc: Mohawk Valley, NY

Hello and welcome to UHH.

Erv Loc: Medina Ohio

Good Morning! And welcome to the fun. You will love it here. We have so many awesome folks that hang out here. All can help you in one way or another. You just have to ask.:)
As far as your new camera, what is your budget? There are so many to pick from and I am sure we can find you one that fits.:):)
Erv

creativ simon Loc: Coulsdon, South London

Welcome and enjoy

ebbote Loc: Hockley, Texas

Welcome to the site.

Jiminyclicket

I agree with Doddy. Buying a SLR can get pretty expensive when you start adding on lenses. A good bridge camera that looks like an slr, but isn't because it has a single all purpose lens and a smaller sensor. But unlesss you are going to print pictures above 8 by 10 inches it doesn't make a awful lot of difference. I recently did a lot of research for another person on good bridge cameras and came up with three choices. Doddy's Canon SX50, a Panasonic Lumix FZ200 and a Fuji Finepix HS50EXR. The Canon is an excellent all rounder; the Panasonic has a fabulous F 2.8 lens that remains wide open at its full 26x zoom length and the Fuji has amazing shooting speed and a manual zoom control which most pros prefer. All are great choices, recommend that you go to your nearest camera shop to check them out and see which feels best in your hand. The dslr cameras give superior results, but you'll need several lenses to get them and this can eventually add up to thousands of dollars. A really good bridge camera like the three I listed usually can be had for less than $400. and do almost as good a job. Go to B&H photo.com select these point and shoot models and read the reviews. Several include acatual pictures taken. They are pretty good. Welcome to UHH, but watch out this site can get really addictive.