Congratulations on wanting to buy your first DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera–a camera with interchangable lenses! I know it is overwhelming, so I won’t do that to you. Just a few basics to consider!
What do you want to photograph?
Are you interested in mostly photographing your family? Wildlife? Architecture? A little of everything? Is cost a factor? I wouldn’t go crazy and purchase the most expensive camera if you have never used a DSLR or even an SLR! The bells and whistles on it can be overwhelming and you will be buying more than you need. Buy a car that will get you from point A to point B at first! Here is the REAL in my humble opinion. The lenses matter the most. Telephoto, Prime, wide angle, macro! An entry level camera will usually come with a “Kit” lens. A multipurpose lens to get you used to photography with a DSLR. These are versatile, but may not yield the creative results you may be looking for! However, you will learn how to use it, push it to it’s limits and learn that maybe you would like lower Fstop lens OR a greater focal length to achieve that photo you are looking for! That is what is fun about learning photography! WARNING! When it comes to lenses…you can’t have it all in one lens!
A good portrait lens to begin with is a Canon F1.8 50mm lens. Loved that lens! Then you can graduate to the Canon F1.4 50mm lens!
It’s all about the lens…for the most part
As I mentioned in the previous blog post, I do think lenses are the most important choice when buying a camera. If you think you would eventually like to build your lens collection, then I would buy the lenses that would give me the option to expand into a semiprofessional or professional line camera body. Without going into too much detail about Crop Sensor Cameras and Full Sensor Cameras, I would buy the lenses that would fit a Full Sensor DSLR. You will be able to use them on the cropped sensor camera OR a full sensor camera. You can read more about those HERE and maybe rent a camera body and/or lens before you buy <<<A GREAT TIP!
In my camera purchase journey, when I bought a new camera body, it always had an upgrade that I needed. A full sensor, dual card slot, higher ISO, wireless capabilities. If I had that all at first, I would not have known what to do with it and therefore spent more money for nothing. Digital cameras are small computers and like computers, the software needs to be updated until it doesn’t anymore. Then, you buy another that is compatible with your computers software 😉 It doesn’t end, right?? But, photographers love new equipment and love learning and that is fun-