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I'm springing for the Canon EOS 30D... Anyone have some "dirt" about it? Maybe the Nikon D200?

I think RM is much more qualified to answer this but Canon is a great Camera. you might want to check out this site http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1019 I have heard good and bad but that stands ture with all cameras. I would love a new D200 but I've found that good lens is the main thing with a camera. Good luck on whatever you decide. Nikon or Canon you can't go wrong.
 
I did the Nikon D200. I'm really glad you responded Tom, because you have been inspirational in my choice to go SLR and LEARN how to take pictures like you. First, I need to become one with the camera and then I'll get some good lenses!

I did read dpreview. I have been on that board for years but the comparisons were unclear when it came to resolution. I like clear pictures. I had some guys at a camera shop show me there's and we took some photos... the Nikon was a sure winner!

Nikon_D200.jpg
 
Thanks for the nice words. I think you made a excellent choice and now lets see some post. I have been taking pictures only three years now and only 1 year with the D70. It takes time to buy lens because they are a larger investment than the camera. I still lust for a good macro and haven't yet decided whatlens to buy. I drift from the norm most of the time so I will probably buy the tokina 100mm macro when it comes back in stock. Good luck with your new camera.
 
Sue used it once and took it away from me..... :lol:
She's been using the D70s and it was time for her to move up.

Excellent camera.

Just ordered another one.......
 
I've been snapp'n squirrels for practice... I'll be at the beach this weekend and I plan on shooting everything there.... well, next weekend technically, so I need to sharpen my skills BIG TIME. I hope this lens gives me the depth of field I'm looking for... the clarity is already astonishing. I like it! I'm off to snag some innocent bystandards...

afv70200.jpg
 
Your wife sounds pretty smart!

This is my first SLR and the Ritz camera store said it might be too much "camera" for a beginner. Pfft... No one else said that. Well, I like it and it's not intimidating at all. It is a huge learning curve but one day, maybe sooner than later, I will master it. I really want to thank everyone here for showing me the quality of pictures obtained on "this" side of photography. Mann this is better than point and shoot any day.
 
LOL I don't think you have anything to worry about. That is the lens of all lens. When you said you got the kit lens we have a defferent understanding of kit lens. Your pictures will be fantastic.. :thumbup: to you and have a good time.
 
There's about a 30 day waiting list for a "Body Only" D200 so I bought a D200 "Kit" that comes with a 18-70mm lens. (The folks at the shop call it a kit lens) It reads "Made in Thailand" :cry:

I went out today and bought a lens I could use for taking shots of the kids and at the beach. I like clarity so they let me plug in some choice lenses and try'em out! (Nice folks at the camera shop) I fell in love with the AS-F VR instantly!!! I didn't know it was the "lens of lenses"

Thanks Tom!
 
Most stores just want to sell you the most you're willing to fork the money out for so I think it's pretty cool of Ritz to forewarn you. However, moving to any DLSR from a point and shoot has a learning curve - unless you just want to stick a lens on and use the auto setting. You bought an excellent camera and I think you know it would be a shame to leave it on auto. Automatic is fine if you need to jump up and get a quick snapshot of something but I found out quickly that the settings the camera gives me on auto are hardly what I'm looking for in the finished product. I'd like to recommend a couple of books to get you going. The first is "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. Lots of pictures (examples) and tutorials in this book to show you how different aperture settings, shutter speeds, ISO settings, white balance, metering, etc work to get the best out of a photograph. Definitely read this one first! Here is the link to it on Ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Understanding-Exposure-by-Bryan-Peterson-NEW_W0QQitemZ4650378871QQcategoryZ378QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


The second is "Learning to See Creatively" by the same author. Link: http://cgi.ebay.com/Learning-to-See-Creatively-by-Bryan-Peterson-2003_W0QQitemZ4625920937QQcategoryZ378QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem This one teaches you quite a bit about composition and capturing the shot the way it should be seen.

Both have helped me out a great deal and I think everyone who is starting out and wants to get a good basic knowledge of DLSR photography should have these.

Good luck with your new camera Steve. It is a fine piece of equipment indeed!
 
I'm happy for you and think you will love both the D200 and 70-200 lens. Don't let the made in Tia land kit lens fool you. For the money it's not a bad lens. I have taken and seen some fantastic pictures taken with this lens. I don't use mine much because I like to take pictures of birds and then Macro. Unless you plan on buying something like the 17-55m 2.8 for a another grand this kit lens in not that bad.
Good luck and can't wait for more pictures. Here are a couple with the kit lens and I know the D200 will bring this lens out more than my D10
 
I agree about the "Auto" mode. I never did like it and that's why I always bought a "point-n-shoot" that had manual mode. In fact, since day one I have not shot in Auto. Although, I have used Aperture Priority. The most significant problems I've had were limits in f/stop, ISO and aperture. It drove me nuts because I was trying to produce pictures my camera couldn't. I consider myself to be confident and a quick learner which is why I sprung for complexity. (by comparison) In fact, I returned to the camera store the day after my purchase and when I was trying out lenses the folks were stunned to see the D200 was set completely on manual. No "auto anything". I appreciate the D200 because it has a full range of capabilities and I want to explore it. I am not completely novice with exposure but I am far from an expert. Like I said, first I need to understand all the camera's functions before I try to take great shots.

I appreciate the books Phil... thanks for the time in putting those links together. I took the pre-test for class and now I'm signed up for the a course in DSLR photography- specifically detailed for the D70/D200. Anyway, those books will come in handy!
 
Dno't yuo konw aynthing? :D



Since you already have a basic understanding of using different aperture/shutter settings for the "creatively correct" exposure you should do fine. I'm learning more everyday and there are plenty of sites out there with people more than willing to help.

Now that you have the two lenses have you considered getting reverse rings for super macro photos? This is a shot I took of a fly using a coupler and reverse rings.

[attachment 29638 fly.jpg]

And I always enjoy doing the soft water shots.

[attachment 29641 water.jpg]

[attachment 29642 water1.jpg]
 
hahaha

I hope to take pictures like that soon. Absolutely incredible! If you have links to these sites I would be very grateful!

Well, spending thousands of dollars one weekend on equipment isn't uncommon in this hobby but every weekend is cumbersome at best! I will have to wait a bit for a good macro lens or even a reversing tube.

Hey, happy Fathers Day and congratulations! Thanks again for your advice.

!evetS (Since we're in to disarrangement)
 
I have taken a few of these. For one, I caught a fly and stuck him in the freezer for a few minutes. You can get off a couple of shots before they come out of it. However, it's so much easier to get a capture of a dead subject because, with this setup, your working distance is only an inch or so. A true macro lens will get you decent results without having to look around for dead bugs :D. However, you can't get this much close up detail with a macro lens.

It's actually a heckuva lot cheaper than you think. You already have the two lenses so all you'll need is a reverse coupler and 2 rings. All can be bought on Ebay for around 25-30 bucks total. I showed Nimrod how to do it here: http://www.findmall.com/read.php?36,281252,282463#msg-282463 Mind you, this is when I first started trying this technique so the shots aren't all that great. You just need to know the ring sizes (filter size) for your 70-200 and the kit lens. Then look for a "coupler" for the 70-200 and a step up ring for the kit lens to go into the coupler. Here is a shot of a dandelion stamen after I got used to doing this.

[attachment 29651 stamen.jpg]

As you can see, shallow DOF is crazy with this setup.

The first site I would recommend would be www.dpchallenge.com . It is a photography challenge website but there are many educated photographers who are more than willing to help in the forums. I've learned a great deal there. I used to go to www.photosig.com, which is a decent place to get critiques on your images, but the admins over there are pretty much a-holes anymore and I won't support a place that is in to such negativity. www.pbase.com is also a decent place for help if you ask for it.

Good luck to you evetS.
 
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