Buying Digital SLR cameras

In a previous article I talked about the benefits of buying an SLR camera over a compact camera. In this article I am going to discuss the Digital SLR camera that might be suitable for your requirements.

If you look at the specifications of a number of digital SLR cameras you will find a lot of features that are common to all of them. Therefore whichever camera you buy will have all the features most hobbyist photographers need such as manual exposure controls and manual focusing. Therefore you will need to think carefully before leaping in and buying one of the more expensive cameras. You will need to ask yourself if you really need the extras that the more expensive models offer.

Perhaps it is easiest if we split the range of digital SLR cameras into three simple areas. These are cameras for hobbyists, professionals or serious hobbyists or professionals with special requirements.

As you step up through the levels one of the first things you will notice is an increase in the build quality. You are also likely to see improvements in burst shooting speeds. At the highest level you will find speeds of ten frames per second. This is a big advantage to the professional sports or wildlife photographer. You are also likely to find the more you pay the better the camera is as you tests its limits. For example as you pay progressively more for a digital SLR you would expect noise to be less of a problem.

Even if you are buying an SLR camera with a lower price tag it is worth considering your future options. Once you buy a particular brand of SLR it can be very expensive to change brands later on after you have invested in a range of lenses and other accessories. This is an area where Canon and Nikon have an advantage over other brands as they offer a greater choice of more advanced models.

For an entry level digital SLR you are likely to find yourself paying between £350 and £800 for a camera body. That is a fair price difference and you need to sit down and consider whether or not the extra cost can be justified. These prices are for the camera body alone. At the cheaper end of the market you with find models such as the Canon EOS 400D, Nikon D40x and the Sony A100. More expensive bodies, but staying below the £800 mark are the Canon EOS 30D, the Nikon D80 and the Pentax K10D.

Moving up a step you will find models such as the Canon EOS 5D, Nikon D200 and the Fuji S5 Pro. These cameras are used by professional photographers whose needs are perhaps not quite as demanding as those of sports and wildlife photographers. This means that they can have slower burst modes and are not quite as rugged in their construction. I am aware of many wedding photographers for example who use SLR cameras in this bracket.

A further step up brings us to the top of the range models. Currently these include the Canon EOS 1D MkIII and the Nikon D2Xs. These cameras are likely to appeal to professional photographers searching for the ultimate quality, where speed of shot is very important and those working in environments where the camera could take the odd knock here and there.

The next article in this series will start to look at what you need to consider when buying a lens.