Brian45 Loc: Melbourne, Australia

Are you saying Canon kit lenses aren't all that good? Maybe stick with the Nikon D3000 series then.

jburlinson Loc: Austin, TX

I'd suggest looking into the Canon EOS M100 -- a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with a 24.2mp APS-C sensor (so called crop sensor, but still bigger than m4/3 or the 1" sensors in your other options.) The camera with a 15-45mm Lens can be had for around $450 new. One big plus is that an adapter is available to enable you to use all the Canon EF lenses.

Downside, it doesn't have a viewfinder. If you want one, you'd have to step up to the Canon M50, for an additional $150. However, the M100 has a tilting touchscreen lcd, which is easy to use and may leave you feeling that a viewfinder isn't all that important.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

EOS Rebel T6 DSLR is a real DSLR that you will be able to use filters, timers, and a host of different lenses on.

I'd suggest you both join a photo club. Most photo clubs have assignments once or twice a month that you can participate in and then they show off several of the photos of the persons that participated and you get good ideas of what's good and what isn't good.

Watch some youtube videos on how to work your particular model of camera, and then watch some on specific photo topics such as portrait, astro, landscape, sports, bird etc photography.

m3x

Are you sure you want a DSLR? If you are not, I have a suggestion for you. I started with point and shoots years ago, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth. Once I had mastered the p+s cameras [or so I thought], I held my breath and bought a DSLR. As the years went by I stuck with mostly Canons because of the anti-shake mechanism in the lenses, not because they were less expensive but because I became familiar with the basic set-up of the camera and then learning curve was shorter. Then about twenty years later I realized that I was tired of dragging around a big DSLR, lenses, a flash, batteries, chargers, etc., and lost the opportunity to quickly get a shot that wasn't waiting for me to get my stuff out, get the right lens, and on and on. I missed many good photo opportunities that way. So I went back to the last p+s camera I had bought: a Sony DSC-RX100. I have been shooting with it ever since. It's gone through a number of iterations and is a little pricey, but after checking it out you may change your mind. Check out the specs and reviews, as well as examples of what it can do. I hardly ever use my DSLR's anymore. I love the little Sony. I have taken many more shots and of equal or better quality of most of my DSLR's. That may be my shortcomings, but maybe not. I have won more "Best in Show" awards at small local galleries with the Sony than have a lot of the $3k heavies. No matter what you do, read the manual, read this site, keep shooting, and they'll be calling Ansel McNasty before you know it . "You have to imagine it before you see it."

Pistnbroke Loc: UK

I think the decision on brand is the most important you will ever make.. if you go one brand and then buy another lens , a flash gun or another camera you are into that brand for life.
Personally I would not go near Canon . The sensors are always smaller or lower pixels than Nikon ...what do people say ..every 3 years Canon brings out a 3 year old camera….I don't like the ergonomics particularly the on/off switch position- if you carnt work it with one hand its no good to me. You also have to consider the cost/availability of second hand lenses and accessories and here I think Nikon wins. Personally after 40 years and membership of the main professional bodies I would go with the best you can afford d3200 or D7100 and an 18-140 lens. Second hand and grey is not a problem. 4/3 no ..I got a Olympus M5 and I call it crapcam..the low light is just terrible.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

You've got to be kidding, right?

Pistnbroke Loc: UK

100% serious ..this is why Canon have such a large market share ...cheap intro cameras and then you just upgrade and you are into that brand for ever. Unless the on/off is by the release I wont buy it .

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

That doesn't hold true for true for Olympus, Panasonic, and Samsung or Leica, Sigma, and Panasonic. Each threesome can interchange bodies and lenses.

alggomas Loc: Wales, United Kingdom.

I'm over 65 and used to recommend SLR's.
Now I would recommend a bridge camera, which has a built in zoom lens. I am not a pupil looker.
You both want to take nice photos perhaps without carrying a lot if additional lenses. ( I'm not stopping you!).
Everyone has their favourites , the sx 500 is fine
I would try the Sony v250h with x 16 zoom bridge camera or the panasonic 200 with 600mm reach and 2.8 throughout.
I am sure that there are more " better quality cameras" out there but these are pretty decent.
I would also go together on a camera course lasting say 6 weeks (2 hours a week say). This will give you a better understanding.
If later you want to go SLR then fine and use the bridge camera as spare.
Good luck because it is not just the camera
You will learn about.....the subject(s) as well!

ytreeide

Several years ago I was in the same position as you. The local community college offered beginning and advanced photography courses in the evening. They were resonable and after the first course you would have learned the basics.

Bobspez Loc: Southern NJ, USA

I recently purchased the Lumix FZ 80 and am quite satisfied with it. I also own a few other bridge cameras and several dslr's and a bunch of lenses. The FZ80 is about $400 new and $325 or so used. It has many, many features including a 20mm to 1200mm lens, 4K video, light weight, the ability to shoot in auto and manual modes, the ability to shoot raw and/or jpg. It's a bit of a learning curve but you can get started quickly and learn all the other stuff as you need and/or want it.

Pistnbroke Loc: UK

Really a bridge camera ..?? How long do you want to wait after you press the shutter before it takes the picture ?
In truth the original poster has given no idea of what he might photograph..holidays at one end or bird photography at the other and without that how can we advise..

Bobspez Loc: Southern NJ, USA

You are a bit behind the times. There's no lag with the Lumix FZ80 for single shots saving in raw + fine jpg. If you have just shot a 6 fps burst (actually takes about 2 seconds to fire 6 shots) saving the shots in both jpg fine and raw, you need to wait about 6-7 seconds for all the files to save before it's ready for another 6 shot burst.

And the price on Amazon just dropped $100 to $299.

https://www.amazon.com/PANASONIC-Camera-Megapixels-20-1200mm-F2-8-5-9/dp/B01MS16V42/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1547670075&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=lumix+fz80&psc=1

The truth is we can advise because this camera does it all, 20mm to 1200mm zoom lens, low light, manual and auto controls for stills and auto control for video, flash, 4K video with the ability to extract 8MP single frames from video, shoots raw, has silent continuous autofocus if desired for stills and video (takes 1-2 seconds to re-focus on a new target without touching anything), and every feature I've ever seen on any camera, and he has a budget of $500.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

Some are as fast as an upper end camera, a lot are not. You are right that the OP does need to to investigate whether or not this will be a problem for them.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

I hope you are still reading all the advice. There is a lot of good advice that you will need to look at. My only other thoughts are if you are truly going to take a serious stab at photography, I would consider a system camera (full frame, APS-C, or 4/3rds) over a bridge camera. It is not that the bridge cameras are not real cameras - they are real cameras. But they are not quite as versatile as system cameras or expandable as Bill from Burkphoto has indicated. I would suggest a system camera over a bridge camera.