Obviously I'm limited by my price range. This will be my first digital SLR, I can't stand not having manual focus. My main needs are for close ups of flowers and plants and then basic landscape shots for my landscape design and native plant nursery. Also, what is a good general lens for these purposes? TIA

BTW, I hope to be able to purchase a Rebel or D50 in several months, so I'm looking to start a lens collection in anticpation of that. Any reccomendations on which of these are better?

I say D1.

Sick, sick camera.

D1 is a great camera for the price!

The best deal I've seen was 2 (Yes 2) D1 bodies for $450(Au) (About $329 USD) in a local Classifieds paper! They both had all the acessories and boxes, manuals etc.

Wow, what a find. I just searched my local papers online, but it's like they don't list all the listings from the paper. I better remember and pick one up, just in case.

No luck in the classifieds. Still looking for a D1 in my price range...

BTW, thanks for all the response, it is very much appreciated, and helped alot!

Have you decided which camera your going to get?

I decided on the D1, it was most reccomended by both Canon and Nikon users. I hope to upgrade to a D1x or D100 later in the year (once I sell my house) and once I get better acquainted with the world of DSLR. Still looking for a D1 in my price range, hopefully I won't have to wait too long.

Cheers!
Natasha

D1 would be the better camera while the D30 would have the better file.



Josef

Both are great cameras, good luck on your camera hunting.

Better file because of better manipulation?

I'm not sure why you choose to lump the D30 in with the 1D. The 1D sells for like $1200 used while the D30 sells for like $350 used. It seems to me that if you're prepared to spend $1200 then you may as well just get a 20D. I don't feel that getting a 1D is a good idea for someone who has never used an SLR before, and I'm kind of surprised that people here recommend it.

mdude85 wrote:
I'm not sure why you choose to lump the D30 in with the 1D. The 1D sells for like $1200 used while the D30 sells for like $350 used. It seems to me that if you're prepared to spend $1200 then you may as well just get a 20D. I don't feel that getting a 1D is a good idea for someone who has never used an SLR before, and I'm kind of surprised that people here recommend it.

No he seid the Nikon D1 not the EOS 1D.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond1/

A used Rebel is going to be really close in price to the three other cameras you are looking at. It will probably be in better shape as well, since the others are older and will most likely have been owned by pros who beat on them. You won't have the heavy-duty build, but that may not matter much to you, and you will get the optical viewfinder and manual focus ability you want.

EOS20 wrote:
mdude85 wrote:
I'm not sure why you choose to lump the D30 in with the 1D. The 1D sells for like $1200 used while the D30 sells for like $350 used. It seems to me that if you're prepared to spend $1200 then you may as well just get a 20D. I don't feel that getting a 1D is a good idea for someone who has never used an SLR before, and I'm kind of surprised that people here recommend it.

No he seid the Nikon D1 not the EOS 1D.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond1/



My bad.

bkriete wrote:
A used Rebel is going to be really close in price to the three other cameras you are looking at. It will probably be in better shape as well, since the others are older and will most likely have been owned by pros who beat on them. You won't have the heavy-duty build, but that may not matter much to you, and you will get the optical viewfinder and manual focus ability you want.

Thats true, why not a d/rebel? Its still a good camera and produces stunning pictures and has a higher MP than the 3 your concidering. Don't let the plastic body put you off, If you don't like silver find a black body version!

Something to concider.

I was looking at some of my old D30 files. As long as you shoot RAW a used D30 is a great way to get into dslr photography. I was disappointed in the rebel viewfinder.

D30 is a great way to get into SLR photography, but you may be disappointed by the poor autofocus and heavy noise at high ISOs. These are probably the only two major drawbacks to this camera. The Digital Rebel handles both of these drawbacks much better than the D30, but the Digital Rebel has many drawbacks of its own, like the exclusion of many "pro" features that you will end up wanting to use just a few months after you buy your camera. If I were you I might consider a 10D or 350D.

I would totally consider a rebel 300d to start (or 10d or 350d) if I could find one for under $400, maybe $450, shipped with lens, charger, and battery. A few posts came close but either it was sold or I got no response. I really should be sticking closer to $350, as its a present, and when we sell our house in a few months, then I plan on buying something better, for $1000 or below. I just want something to get me started in the world of DSLR, and I want it now cause I've been without camera for 2 months now and I'm dying! Where's the digital K-1000? :c)

How much are secondhand Pentax *IST DL or *IST Ds

I recommend either the d30 or the Rebel. The d30 is a super camera, I should warn though that it has a terrible AF in low light otherwise its a great camera in controlled environment. But really the orginal digital rebel is so cheap you would be silly not to look at it. It will also be easier to get fixed if something goes wrong as opposed to one of those other older cameras.

The viewfinder on the d/rebel isen't that bad BTW.

Edit: Didn't see page 2. Redundant post.

Found a D1 at a great price. Thanks to everyone for their response!

Natasha