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| Buying Your First Camera by Vivid Light Staff
Let's face it, for someone new to "serious cameras" the market is pretty damn confusing right now. There are numerous manufacturers, each with multiple models, and every model has dozens of features. Everyone has conflicting advice on what brand is best and what features are important. Then there's the whole digital vs. film argument. So how do you decide? We're going to break it down, explain the important features that are common to all brands, and have you ask yourself some questions on how you want to use the camera. This will give you the ammunition to make an educated choice. As for digital vs. film, that's a topic for another article. Camera Grades The difference lies in the type of user the equipment is targeted for. Price, quality, speed and ruggedness are the chief factors that differentiate one grade of camera from another. For the sake of this article we'll divide equipment up into four loosely defined categories: junk, consumer quality, advanced amateur, and professional quality gear. Bear in mind that many cameras overlap two of these groups. Junk. The name speaks for itself. It's not particularly well built or reliable, and in some cases it's terrible, but it finds a following because it's cheap. Occasionally people fall in love with something because it's junk. The popularity of a particular Russian camera comes to mind. It's so bad that when you take a picture you never know what's going to show up on the film. Some people find this fascinating. Go figure. This equipment is kind of like an old, beat up car. It may get you where you're going most of the time, but it won't do the job particularly well or with any style, and it will eventually leave you stranded.
The down side is that if your photographic aspirations grow, you may find they'll let you down. Advanced features are sometimes difficult to use and often unavailable. These cameras and lenses are the family cars of the world. Reliable and dependable, they're what you find in most garages (and camera bags). Advanced Amateur - Faster, heavier, more rugged, and more capable than consumer grade equipment. These cameras and lenses are designed for photographers who are serious about their photography but don't necessarily make their living doing it. At the upper end of this category are bodies and lenses capable of consistently producing professional quality images. Want to make prints 11x14 or larger? You'll definitely see a difference with this group, a difference that is often noticeable in smaller prints as well. But there is a steeper learning curve to consistently get that quality and this gear is priced higher - sometimes significantly higher than consumer grade equipment. This stuff is so good that pros often use it as backups for their more expensive pro gear. These cameras and lenses are the 4x4 pickups of the camera world. More powerful and able to take more abuse than the average family sedan. They'll work hard without complaint for years and don't mind when the going gets a little rough.
There are no compromises in lens designs either. No sacrifices are made to keep down weight or cost. Speed is a priority. Pros have to use slow fine grained films so their lenses have to be as fast as possible. The only thing that matters is the quality of the image. As a result, pro level telephoto lenses are huge, and heavy enough to club a charging water buffalo. Only the most dedicated amateur would be willing to carry around a pro setup on their vacation. All of this ruggedness and sophistication comes at a price. Professional equipment is expensive, and worth every penny to the folks who make their living using it. These cameras and lenses are the tanks of camera world; big heavy and powerful. No matter how bad the conditions and no matter how much punishment you heap on them, they'll just keep on going through conditions where lesser equipment would break down. But this invincibility comes with a steep price. Questions - be honest: If you're looking to get serious about photography ask yourself what kinds of photography you want to do. When you buy an SLR you're buying into a camera system. That system includes everything from pro telephotos for shooting at great distances to macro lenses for shooting very small items, or even microscope attachments for shooting really small stuff. If you want to push the envelope in any way take a hard look at what each system offers in that area. If you just want to do the vacation stuff, every major manufacturer has quality optics in a variety of price ranges and there are major lens manufacturers such as Sigma, Tokina, and Tamron that offer lenses for a variety of cameras. Opinions The truth is that today's cameras, by and large, out-perform their predecessors in almost every way. They really are that good. But they all work and feel a little differently. Go to camera stores, pick them up, try them. If you're looking to get serious about photography, look at their lens and flash systems. Which ones do what are important to you? Don't get caught up in thinking you need a feature because somebody tells you that you do. Most importantly if someone is condescending, walk out. There's too much competition to waste your time on someone who's not listening.
Common Features Here are some of the common features you'll find out there and what they do for you. Whether that feature is important is entirely up to you. To see a description of features common to most SLRs click here You're Buying into a System But if you have ideas that you might want to go further with photography later on, you have to realize that you're buying into a system. That system includes cameras, lenses, flashes, cables, cords, camera backs, etc. That means you should investigate those parts of the system that correspond with your interests. If you want to do macro work (pictures of very small things) and brand A supports it much better than brand B, that alone should be enough to sway you. Also critical is to find out what doesn't work with the camera you're considering. Just because brand A has a great macro lens doesn't mean that it will work with the camera body you're looking at. The best guide here is the camera's manual or the specs posted on the manufacturer's Web site. Lenses A good lens to team with either of these is the 70-200mm or 70-300mm (actual focal lengths will vary by manufacturer). This allows you zoom in on distant objects, animals, or birds. This is also a good length for shooting local sporting events where you can get fairly close to the action. Most manufacturers offer packages with at least one of these two lenses, and some offer both as a package. Often one or both of the lenses in these ranges will offer macro capability. Macro capability is the ability of the lens to focus on small items very close to the lens. Some examples of macro photography include flower, insect, and model photography. A recent alternative choice is the 28-200mm zoom which combines both of the above lenses, one manufacturer even offers this lens in a 28-300mm configuration. These tend to be consumer quality lenses, good for travel and general use but not great for serious photography. One drawback to lenses in this range is that they often cannot close focus, meaning that you need to be some distance from your subject to take the picture. At 28mm to 300mm, these lenses will cover most of the ranges that a beginning photographer will need. As you progress, your interests will expand and you'll likely start looking at longer or wider lenses. Digital vs. Film Mail Order With mail order the Latin expression caveat emptor (buyer beware) applies in full. Mail order firms run the gamut from flagrant bait and switch shops to well run firms that are above reproach. If something smells fishy, or if they are trying to push you out of the product featured in their ad into something else, then hang up and call someone else. The horror stories involving unscrupulous shops are too numerous to tell and far worse than you can imagine. On the flip side there is a mail order house I have done business with for years. They have never been anything but professional and accommodating. When problems have arisen they've handled them quickly and professionally. The best way to find out who's good and who's bad is to ask people's opinions. New vs. Used Equipment Exceptions to this rule. A woman recently picked up a used Canon Rebel at a yard sale with a 28-80 lens for $100. It was in the original box and the seller admitted he's only used it once or twice because he was confused by all the options. When the price is that low, and the camera is obviously in new condition - what the hell, take a chance. Lenses are another matter. If the lens is clear, works properly, and has no scratches or surface defects in the glass it's hard to go wrong. Shoot a test roll to ensure that everything looks good and you should be fine. Important Extras
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How can one camera cost $200 and another $2,000
A nice step up in quality from your point and shoot camera
Professional equipment is expensive, and worth every penny to the folks who make their living using it
You're buying into a system
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text and photography copyright © 2001 Vivid Light Publishing |
The
one question we've received more than any other so far has been
"what camera should I buy?"
Consumer Grade - Want a nice step up in quality from your point
and shoot camera? Something that will take nice 8x10s that you
can hang on the wall? Light weight, easy to carry, easy to
learn, and easy on the wallet. Welcome to the consumer camera
world. More cameras are sold in this category than in any other
because these cameras are designed to fit the needs of most people
(consumers). Consumer cameras are great tools for folks who want
to take good quality pictures but who don't necessarily want to be
photographers. 
Pro Gear - When pros go out
to shoot they have to come back with the image every time -
no excuses, no re-trys. A pro camera and lens has to work in
130(F) degree heat, minus 30(F)
degree cold, dust storms in the Sahara, constant exposure to moisture in the
rain forest, and then be able to withstand getting run over by a 300lb
ballplayer on the sidelines of an NFL game. These cameras are built
heavy and tough. They feature shock resistant frames made from
exotic metals, multiple gaskets
to seal everything, and they are torture tested for all of the above
mentioned conditions and more. Beyond all that, their mechanisms
and optics must be the fastest and highest quality in the world.
Gear that lets the photographer down simply doesn't last in the pro world. 
How do you want to use it?
If you're looking for a basic consumer SLR any one of the offerings
from the big four will do nicely (Canon, Nikon, Minolta, Pentax).
Just try out each camera with one of the three "standard"
lenses (28-80, 28-105, or 28-200), and pick the one you're most
comfortable with.
Modern SLRs contain a plethora of features. So many that it's
virtually impossible to test them in the store to make sure that
everything is working properly. Reputable stores specializing in
used equipment will usually give some sort of guarantee on equipment
they sell. Unless you or someone you know are very knowledgeable
about cameras I'd stay away from used as a first camera. If you do
buy used, remember that used is used. The seller, whether a shop or
private individual, can't predict when or if that camera will fail so
don't complain if a year later it does.
