First time buying a DSLR, looking for advice please

blah

Hi Guys,
I've been taking photos with my Sony DSC-P73 for a few years now, and after saving up all my pennies it's time to start using something more serious. I've got £750 (living in London) to spend. I'm thinking that these are some of the things I should be getting, with some questions attached:

Canon 400D
Kit Lens (I know that people have criticised this but others say it's suitable for beginners?)
Extra Battery
Memory Card (How big/many? 4GB?)

Lenses: If I get the Kit lens with the 400D, will I be able to afford another one? I've been reading up all the threads on the boards here but i'm still pretty clueless. What should I get?

I've looked at all the different recommendations for sellers.
People are recommending ebay a lot, EmilyAndLily, Kea-Photo, URGalaxy. I haven't used ebay before and I've read about horror stories with paypal but I'm might just be willing to take the plunge if it makes a major difference in how much kit I can get.
I'll keep an eye out to avoid "refurbished"/"reconditioned" cameras.
A lot seem to be advertised as 400D/Rebel XTi, if I end up with the Rebel XTi, will that really make that much of a difference?
Another thread linked to a warning about people receiving a bill from customs 2 weeks after they received the goods (and left positive feedback for the ebay seller) Has anyone experienced this?
What's a "Mack Warranty" and is it any use?

A few other things I'd be interesting in getting but I think I can leave until I get delivery of the camera:
Filters
Waterproof kit bag (I think I should buy this in a shop? Get a chance to try it out?)

Any advice/criticism appreciated. What would you do if you were a newbie with £750 burning a hole in his pocket?
Thanks,
Blah

Prenderb

How about investigating Second Hand? A good local camera shop will probably sell you a good piece of kit for reasonable money, giving you some sort of warranty aswell. That might leave you a bit more cash for better lenses.There must be a good shop near ya? Jessops might be worth investigating too.

Personally, I wouldn't buy a camera from eBay, as if there's any sort of grief with it it may be hard to have looked after under warranty - though if you saved a packet you can afford to pay someone to fix it maybe?

As for memory card, buy as much memory as you can afford, it's quite cheap and you won't want to be restricting your file sizes if you've bought the camera for serious pictures.

Extra batteries are always a good idea too.

Lenses are important, but the kit lens would probably be sufficient to start with. Rather than buying all the kit in one fell swoop when you start, I recommend using the first lens, doing what you can with that and buying a new lens as you realise for yourself in what particular way(s) that the kit lens limits your photography. It'll have a little bit of zoom with it, and probably not be fantastically quick in low light, but it will certainly get you by for a while.

Thirdfox

Just one quick thing about memory cards, I find 2 1gb cards much better than 1 2gb card (all your eggs in one basket and all that). You never want to be caught without a card in your camera because it's still plugged into your computer at home (happened to me twice...I just took out my spare one and started shooting with that).

edit: oh and look at investing in a tripod if you're going to do be photographing in less than sunny conditions (kit lens are quite slow )

leinsterman

I've purchased a whole pile of camera gear from Hong Kong over the last year with no problems ... mostly (but not all) Albert@keaphoto.com ... in fact I don't bother with ebay any more since he'll give a discount for buying direct ... and you can still pay with paypal ... just get him to mark down the value for custom, though Hong Kong shops appear to have special no VAT arrangements for shipping to the UK, they guarantee no VAT unlike here in the Republic ... other good vendors are digital-rev, urgalaxy and hong kong supplies (etefore) ... just make sure their feedback rating is higher than 99%... and double check and recent negative feedback for a pattern ...

Your big problem buying using paypal is getting verified ... this can be a bit onerous ... another option with the likes of Kea and some others is direct transfer into their UK bank account ... this is a normal practice ... nothing to worry about with a reputable dealer...

You can buy a mack warranty from most good ebay vendors (all of the above) ... the terms and conditions are better than Canon (3yr international using the same repair shops) ... though I've never had to use one in anger to be truthful ... I have mack warranty on all of my L lenses and my Canon 100mm macro ... www.mackcam.com for more information ...

The 400d is a good choice DSLR as a great many here will say ... for start off lenses ... I'd recommend the Canon 50mm F1.8 and a Sigma 18-125mm and forget the kit lens ... just go for a body... but there are a few other good options worth looking at as I'm sure others will advise ... I have experience of both these lenses so I can recommend.

Good idea getting an extra battery but save a few bob on your back up by buying a non Canon generic one ... they are much cheaper ... and I have had no problems with my one in the 20d ... contrary to what you may hear...

As regard memory my attitude is the bigger the better for general purpose shooting ... and the faster the better for nature and sports ... so it depends on what you intend to shoot ... memory is extremely cheap now and I'd recommend www.7dayshop.com in the Channel Islands ... they are cheap for consumables and memory ... I have an 8GB Extreme III, 4 GB Extreme IV (for sports) and a load of older 2GB card ... in my case I need the capacity for remote travel and my camera shoots 10 frames per second which for RAW shooting won't be long filling a card at a match ... Cards can fail so it is good to go for a backup also ... maybe a 4GB and a 2GB in your case ...

il gatto

I got a genuine Canon battery for €20 on ebay. American seller. They cost €60+ normally.
Memory cards are cheap as chips these days. I got a Sandisk Ultra II (1GB) fir €15 from Topvisionshop.de a few weeks back. Mymemory.co.uk are good value too. Lenswise, I wouldn't bother with the kit lens. For less than that, you can get a Sigma 18-50 f4-5.6 which has a metal mount, a proper focus ring and decent enough (for the price) glass. About €80 online.

blah

Thanks for the advice, I ordered the 400D with a kit lens from Kea-Photo, think I'll need more experience to figure out what the whole deal with lenses is.

blah

Just got my hands on the new camera, paid by UK bank transfer, very handy. As soon as Albert had confirmed the payment was received, he shipped (yesterday morning) and now I have it, just over 24 hours later. It was sent with an invoice for 120 Hong Kong Dollars (£7). Hopefully customs haven't suspected a thing

elven

Woooo, new camera, and another success for Big Albert

Now, get out there and take some pictures...!

City-Exile

Another member of the 400 club.
Well ware!

robbie1876

Wow, 24 hours delivery? Mine took 3 days, 3 of the longest days ever!! I had the tracking page of Fedex nearly worn out by the time it arrived....

Congrats on the purchase, looking forward to seeing some photos!

blah

Brought the box home, opened it and when I took the lens off 3 pieces fell out. I'm assuming there's no assembly required?
There's a rattling coming from the inside of the camera too.



It looks like the box took a knock somewhere between hong kong and london. And I wanted to use it at the red bull air race tomorrow

Thirdfox

That needs to go to a repair centre... bummer.

The rattling might be normal (orientation sensor for the camera).

blah

I sent an email to Albert, with the pics, I'm hoping that the postal insurance will cover the cost of returning it and he'll send me a replacement. I'd rather have a new camera than one that's been repaired. I think it could have been better packaged, the camera box was inside a slightly bigger brown box, with no additional padding.

Thirdfox

...Unless he gave you extra pieces of equipment? (Highly unlikely...) Does the camera turn on and take pictures?

blah

It turns on but doesn't focus at all. one of the pieces is curved plastic glass, which I suppose helps to focus (which I've gotten my dirty finger print on now) :rolleyes:

magicbastarder

that looks like the focusing screen. are there any signs of damage on the box? i've never come across one of those popping out of their own accord.

blah

Here's some of the other pics:


The damage to the outer box



camera box



Unfortunately the security guard in my building didn't ring me when it arrived, as per the exact instructions I had given her :mad: It ended up in the postroom (I work in a big university), and someone else signed for it.

DonkeyStyle \o/

Man that sucks, hard luck

Here's a thread that you might relate to
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055090849

Fajitas!

Yep, is the focusing screen, which isn't removable on the 400D iirc.

DaireQuinlan

Fajitas! wrote:

Yep, is the focusing screen, which isn't removable on the 400D iirc.

The pictures seem to suggest otherwise :eek:

Yeah, I've never had a focusing screen pop out of a camera all by itself, If the camera got a hard knock somewhere between here and HK that was enough to knock a securely fastened internal component out of place there could well be other damage to it as well. From what I've heard, Kea photo is responsible about these things though ?

D.

blah

Albert told me to just airmail the body back to him (with the "extra" pieces), which I did this morning. So hopefully I should have a new body next week.

soccerc

blah wrote:

Albert told me to just airmail the body back to him (with the "extra" pieces), which I did this morning. So hopefully I should have a new body next week.

Did you Airmail or Fedex it back?

If airmail did you register and insure it?

janmc

blah wrote:

Albert told me to just airmail the body back to him (with the "extra" pieces), which I did this morning. So hopefully I should have a new body next week.

Definitely keep us informed! I'm not clicking any 'buy now' buttons 'til I hear how this works out

mdebets

leinsterman wrote:

I've purchased a whole pile of camera gear from Hong Kong over the last year with no problems ... mostly (but not all) Albert@keaphoto.com ... in fact I don't bother with ebay any more since he'll give a discount for buying direct ... and you can still pay with paypal

Sorry to hijack this thread, but how do you buy from Albert without ebay?
Do you just drop him a mail and tell him what you want?
And what sort of discount does he give you if you buy outside of ebay?

blah

I sent it airmail, registered and insured with royal mail.
Albert was quick to reply about the problem and told me to post the body to him and he'd send a new one, so my feeling at the moment is that DHL broke it and Albert's making sure to resolve things.

I bought it through ebay. Although did read on other thread about people who got discounts by emailing Albert directly about kea-photo items seen on ebay (I suppose ebay take a cut?)

soccerc

blah wrote:

I sent it airmail, registered and insured with royal mail.
Albert was quick to reply about the problem and told me to post the body to him and he'd send a new one, so my feeling at the moment is that DHL broke it and Albert's making sure to resolve things.

I bought it through ebay. Although did read on other thread about people who got discounts by emailing Albert directly about kea-photo items seen on ebay (I suppose ebay take a cut?)

Only reason I asked was registered airmail,as opposed to regular mail can take up to 10 days to arrive in HK. Don't think Albert will send replacement until he gets the damaged body back

abelard

mdebets wrote:

Sorry to hijack this thread, but how do you buy from Albert without ebay?
Do you just drop him a mail and tell him what you want?
And what sort of discount does he give you if you buy outside of ebay?

If I could, I'd like to basically echo this question again.

What's the best way to go about dealing directly, just dropping an email? I'd imagine there's some additional security checks you have to go through since you're not going through ebay? And what level of discount could one expect?

Any information is much appreciated!

robbie1876

After I got my 400D from Kea through eBay (which I also had to send back because of a bent CF pin ), I bought a Sigma 70-300 by emailing him directly. The price he quoted was £92 (it was £79 on Kea eBay) plus £10 shipping (versus £30 on eBay), so it worked out very slightly cheaper to buy direct via email and paypal.

blah

Robbie, did kea photo refund you the cost of sending the damaged camera back? Or did you have to write that off?

robbie1876

No, I had to write it off . In fairness, it does state on their eBay page that returns are the responsibility of the buyer, even if the goods they send you are faulty. I guess that is the risk you take buying online. Kea sent me out a brand new body and covered the return postage to me.

In total I spent €718 to get the 400D, including return postage. It can be got for that from bricks and mortar stores in the North, so I'm a little bitter!

Paulw

From emails with Albert on a number of items, I don't think he gives much of a discount if you buy outside of ebay. His prices are already great. He might give a reduced shipping cost etc if you buy a number of items together, but in general his ebay prices are about what he'll charge you outside of ebay.

blah

The replacement body is on its way, should get my grubby little mitts on it this afternoon. I'm refreshing the DHL tracking page constantly!

Thirdfox

Glad to hear you got it sorted out... now if you had bought a Nikon this never would had happened

blah

Finally got it in my hands. All I have to do now is skive off work early and put in the battery, CF, lens etc and start shooting. Only then will I be sure everything is ok.

Thirdfox

Happy shooting! Hope to see shoots on here soon.

Spyral

In total I spent €718 to get the 400D, including return postage. It can be got for that from bricks and mortar stores in the North, so I'm a little bitter!

yup even with the £ cameras and the like are cheaper up the north..

blah

After a few hours playing with it, it all seems to work ok.

And they all lived happily ever after.

The End