74images Loc: Los Angeles, California

Welcome Brother...

When it Comes to Photo Advice & Topics on Photography This is the Site to Ask, & Photo Discussions Kind of Get Tense Depending on What the Topic is.

74images

Jeffcs Loc: Myrtle Beach South Carolina

Here's what I've learned over the years and I wish I'd come to this decision a long time ago. As stated above marry the lenses, means make the right choices get great glass and stick with them; bodies change so much more so the beginners cameras. My advice is to get the most camera that you can grow into it instead of settling for a basic body wishing for more than spending more cash for a little better until you've jumped up 5 times and spent 10 times the cash 💰 just go for the better so instead of a Nikon D7*** just go for the D500 you won't be sorry and in the end you'll save cash you could put towards some glass
Btw I'm a Nikon shooter with Olympus vacation stuff
Welcome to the hog

gmango85

Yes Welcome, this is a great site! I am an old Canon guy, probably due to the optics in their telephotos. I gave my 7D Mark II to my son and he uses my lenses. But I think you are right in the camera body you are considering, I am not familiar with Nikon's yet they are fine cameras. Put your bucks in good optics. The difference is unbelievable! In the Canon line up it's the L series lenses, I am sure Nikon has equally good lenses. I know these line of optics are expensive, but as you become more avid you will appreciate the difference. I hope this helps and the Best of Luck to you!
George

Jeffcs Loc: Myrtle Beach South Carolina

This is from another blog as to what I was saying above get the best body you can
Well . . . A couple of months ago I upgraded from my D5500 to a D500. I kept my D5500, thinking it could be a backup . . . So a couple days ago I got it out and put a lens on it. I was so disappointed trying to use it . . . The D500 has got me so spoiled, that the slow focusing, small viewfinder, and controls issues of the D5500 was hard to deal with.

Boris Ekner Loc: From Sweden, living in Guatemala

Here's my answer to a similar question in another thread.

Here's what I did:
-Budget: no more than $500. (This was the most important criteria I had.)
-Searched for $500 DSLR's on eBay & Amazon in order to understand what I might get.
-I found some favorite models that I compared at cameradecision.com. I refused to have any brand preferences.
-I read plenty of reviews on the cameras I found interesting.

My priorities were; very good professional reviews, the highest pixel count possible, RAW format option, wifi, built in GPS, fair prices & f/values on future lenses.

Nikon D5300 turned out to be the final option. With my personal preferences, and budget, it was by far the best option. Price paid: $449 on eBay, including an 18-55mm lens, plus some other (now useless)-stuff in the bundle.

I've had the camera since January 2017, and I have no regrets on my purchase. On the contrary, I'm very happy with what I got for the money spent.

Later I've bought a 55-200mm(used) and a 35mm(used) lenses. A better speed light/flash, a good tripod, petal lens hoods, third party battery grip, extra batteries, twin charger, better/faster memory card, and some other stuff. All from eBay who time after time confirms to have the best prices.

Your best option is probably not my best, and vice versa. It is not about the camera as much as it is about the photographer. Just as a good stove and pan isn't enough to cook you a good dinner, right?

In order to update my knowledge I started off with reading Nikon D5300 For Dummies as well as Stunning Digital Photography by Tony Northrup. The third book was Secrets To The Nikon Autofocus System by Steve Perry, which is my favorite so far. It was all well invested pennies. The book I'm reading right now is Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. As knowledge has no weight it is easy to carry...

http://backcountrygallery.com/secrets-nikon-autofocus-system/

Best of luck on your persuit of your best camera. ...and don't rush it to get one. Take your time, i.e. weeks, to learn about your options and what you favor.

A very informative D5300 Review:
https://sleeklens.com/nikon-d5300-review/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly-blog&substat=blog

Examples of pictures I've shot are found under my name at 500px.com as well as at Instagram.com.

www.instagram.com/borisekner

www.500px.com/borisekner

The most important subject in photography is not the equipment, nor what is in front of the camera. The most important subject in photography is what is behind it, the photographer.

PS
I had the same procedure when I looked for, and bought, my sons camera. (He turned 6 at the end of July) The budget was no more than $80, had to be fully automatic, as well as having manual features to grow with as he gets older and if his photo interest persists. Best option: a used Fujifilm Finepix S8600 (it's a bridge camera), for $76 on eBay. And there are instructive videos on his camera on YouTube for him to watch later.

PPS
Here’s a different opinion on this issue.https://petapixel.com/2017/03/24/battle-micro-43-camera-outsold-full-frame-dslr/

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

You have but one choice, actually two but the other one is a Canon. I would seriously recommend the Nikon D500 with the Nikon 200-500 mm f5.6 lens. Then, use GROUP AUTO FOCUS and pick the center focusing spot. Use Aperture Priority at f6.3, continuous auto focus, center weighted metering. My keep rate on birds in flight is almost 98%, that's because the D500 has the same focusing system as the D5 (at $6500). Your other choice is the Canon D7 Mark II with the new Canon 100-400 lens. I believe you would be happy with either one but the Nikon is a little faster focusing. That new Canon 100-400 is sweet but I feel, of course, that the Nikon lens is a LITTLE better. Have fun and keep on shooting until the end.

rydabyk Loc: Florida Panhandle

Ain't that the truth :)

Jeffcs Loc: Myrtle Beach South Carolina

It is but why do the step thing (cheep beginner body-a little bit better- advanced- prosumer body- pro body) why go through this just jump in go pro save the money and put it towards a nice lens
Speaking of lenses not all are equal get great glass it does make a difference in image quality

Sally D

If you've read through all of the responses, your head is probably spinning already . . .but I still have to throw my hat in the ring.
I started shooting about a year and a half ago. My son had a couple of Canon lenses so that's what I looked for. I bought a new Canon Rebel that came with a kit lense. If I'd belonged to this forum then, I definitely would have looked at refurbished equipment. The telephoto lense that came with it just didn't take sharp pictures so I added a Canon EF70-3000mm f/4.5-5.6 IS USM lense.
My equipment is far inferior to that of most forum members . I've wondered if I need to step up to something better so I posted a couple of pictures that didn't seem quite sharp to me. I was amazed at how different they looked after a couple of members did some additional post processing on them. Now I've decided that my equipment is fine . . .for now . . and that I need to work on my processing skills.
I have a total of about $1000 invested, plus the one wide-angle lense my son gave me. We live in the East Valley. I've had great luck with Tempe Camera although there may be something closer to you.
BTW, I shoot mainly wild horses, other wildlife, and travel pictures. Good luck and have fun. You will never meet a more helpful group of people than the members of this forum. I'm continually amazed by their willingness to share their knowledge with beginners like me!

techwolf Loc: Edgewater, Fl

I am continually surprised by the lack of attention to Pentax! Go see Tony Northrup's review of the Pentax K7 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIVfRji8JMM) which is a beast of a full frame camera with every menu command also adjustable from a dial or button on the camera. If you are looking at APS-C then the K-3II is am amazing camera (8 FPS!). Both of these give much more than their competitors for significantly less money including weather proofing, 100% pentaprism (rather than pentamirror) viewfinder, astrotracker, built-in HDR, Pixel Shift, in-camera shake reduction, and GPS with Geotracking (working with Google Maps!). Additionally, used lenses are copious and relatively cheap. FYI, I am not a brand groupie! I started many years ago with an Olympus OM-1 (film) that I just loved, and then a Canon AE1-P (film, I still have), and a Leicaflex (my sister broke-sad day). Do not follow anyone who every hints or says that anyone brand is "the" camera to get! Olympus, Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji, Panasonic, Pentax all make fantastic cameras but you have to know what you want to shoot and which camera offers you the best feature set and ergonomics for that type of shooting. If you are unsure go to YouTube and watch a lot of Tony and Chelsea Northrup's videos and get their "DSLR Book: How to Create Stunning Digital Photography" which covers almost any kind of photography. Also look at DxoMark and Dpreview which cuts through the hype and gives you real comparative numbers. That all being said, the old adage that says its not the camera but the photographer has a lot of truth to it! None of these camera's feature sets are only as good as you are at understanding how light works in the environment and how well you can master perspective and composition.
I am currently a Pentax K-3ii shooter and probably will get the K-7 soon as it is according to Northrup the best nature camera out there. However, you can hand me a Canon, Nikon, Panasonic, or Olympus I would be happy to click away. Money not being an object, I would certainly consider the Sony A9 as the ultimate dream camera! The Sony A7 series is also sweet and worthy to consider. Don't hem yourself in to Canon or Nikon unless the feature set and ergonomics you need is there! I was leaning towards the Nikon D5500 but at the time it was much more expensive than the Pentax K-3ii and for my big hands the Nikon just was uncomfortable. The features of the K-3ii far surpassed the Nikon D5500 but if you spend much money more Nikon has cameras just as good if not better; that new Nikon D850 is just coming out and it is very nice but will be $3,249-$3,499 (depending upon the article)! Just know what you need and don't be a groupie!

67skylark27 Loc: Fort Atkinson, WI

I will second all the info in this post. I love my d5300 and its a great way to get back into shooting and
learning your way with advanced digital cameras.
I started back in on a d3300, passed that along to my son and got a d5300 to get some more options after
I learned what I was doing. I may try a d7200 at some point and when I get really good move
on to having a d500 with the 200-500 lens and shoot some birds and wildlife in action.
My recommendation from a Nikon point of view is to start out with a d3300, an 18-140 or 18-200 lens
and add the 35mm 1.8 prime fixed lens, or jump right to the 50mm 1.4mm prime fixed. If you feel
you have a good feel for a camera with more options jump right into the d5300 or d5500. These
are pretty inexpensive to get into and then later on or if the budget allows do the d7200 or d500.
Those lens options will work with them all. I mention the 50mm 1.4 to be able to shoot indoors
with minimal lighting or fast moving kids! The 35mm 1.8 may be good to if the 50mm is too "close"
of a lens.

hdfilmnoir Loc: New Mexico

I like the sggestion of going into a store and getting the feel of the camera in your hands. I started with a Canon 7d because I do a lot of back country hiking and wanted a camera that can take it. I bought mine with two kit lenes. A 18mm-55mm and a 75mm-300mm ,this from advice from a pro friend , gives me a large range of shooting choices. One thing you might want to consider is do you want to point and shoot or do you want to learn photgraphy. Oh ya don't forget the tripod if your serious.

volnqlt Loc: Chandler, AZ

Try Tempe Camera on West University. They have all the cameras mentioned above and very helpful staff. Got my 80D there.

ecurb1105

I endorse the above comments and as a Nikon shooter, would suggest you look at the D7200. That being said, if your son has Canon, maybe pooling lenses would work for your family. As for focal lengths, try an 18-300 to start.

PierreD

I also live in Phoenix and do a lot of wildlife photography (esp. birds & insects). I just purchased the new Olympus OM1 Mark II camera and the Olympus 40-150 F2.8 Pro lens, along with their 1.4 teleconverter.

This equipment is definitely worth looking into: solid build, lots of shooting options, super stabilizer system, almost instantaneous autofocus, and outstanding lens quality. This being a mirror-less camera, it is also lighter and more portable than the traditional big rigs, but not at the cost to quality.