500 to spend, looking for a good dslr camera
- Thread starter Zaco32
- Start date
zaco - at your price point, there are a couple of choices:
1) a used or refurb'd Panasonic GH1 (body-only prices starting at $426.50 at Amazon)
Hacked, the GH1 can produce video like this with the right lenses and technique (NSFW): https://vimeo.com/43625636
2) or a used or refurb's Canon T2i (body-only prices starting at $493 at Amazon)
The T2i can produce video like this with the right lenses and technique: https://vimeo.com/32655795
With the GH1, you'll have a few dollars left over for an adapter and used lenses (I recommend old Nikons or Canon FDs). The T2i is pretty much restricted to Canon EF lenses.
Hope this is helpful,
Bill
1) a used or refurb'd Panasonic GH1 (body-only prices starting at $426.50 at Amazon)
Hacked, the GH1 can produce video like this with the right lenses and technique (NSFW): https://vimeo.com/43625636
2) or a used or refurb's Canon T2i (body-only prices starting at $493 at Amazon)
The T2i can produce video like this with the right lenses and technique: https://vimeo.com/32655795
With the GH1, you'll have a few dollars left over for an adapter and used lenses (I recommend old Nikons or Canon FDs). The T2i is pretty much restricted to Canon EF lenses.
Hope this is helpful,
Bill
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The Olympus E-PL1 goes for about $300 new with a kit 14-42mm lens, but the video is only 720p and you get a lot of jelly if you're not on a tripod. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OFunXV03Mg
For the GH1 what does it mean by "body" and "body only"? Will I need something else?
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Body-only means no lenses at all. If you have lenses already, or have researched good lenses to buy elsewhere (often quite cheaply), it can be a good deal.
I got my e-mail notification today that my epl-1 will arrive on Tuesday
I'm excited .I advise that you should read the Professional reviews on www.dpreview.com before investing your money in any of the great suggestions mentioned above . You can get full tech specs , look up terms in the glossary and get a real feel for what you will need to know .
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I don't know anything on lenses, so I rather it a dslr camera that is ready to go out of the box.
I got my e-mail notification today that my epl-1 will arrive on Tuesday
I advise that you should read the Professional reviews on www.dpreview.com before investing your money in any of the great suggestions mentioned above . You can get full tech specs , look up terms in the glossary and get a real feel for what you will need to know .
I've had mine for about two weeks now and so far I'm loving it for normal photography, though I ran into the limitations of the default kit lens pretty early on. (I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for shooting videos, though.)
I've heard that the 14 - 42 underperforms for video , but that the epl-1 is equipped with the most advanced JPEG engine of any camera in its generation . I've decided , after extensive research , to go ahead and build my system out with the MFT format . I'll be purchasing the Panasonic GH-3 for my main motion picture camera ,and using the epl-1 as my back up . I plan on buying the 20 mm f2.0 for video on my epl-1 , along with the http://http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-VF-3-Electronic-Viewfinder-PEN/dp/B005FQSXFI/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1343005565&sr=8-8&keywords=epl-1+viewfinder
If your knowledge of DSLRs is pretty limited already you might run into some frustrations early on. Why not opt for a dedicated HD handicam instead? It can take months of practice with one to become familiar with all the settings and knobs and whirly-bits in a DSLR.
+1
DSLRs are cheap but one of the trade-offs is that that their fiddly and temperamental and it requires good lens and good lighting in order to make their picture look cinematic. Honestly, if you're not interested in cameras or willing to learn how to use them, don't buy a DSLR. I bought the T2i and barely scraped the surface of what it could do as a video camera because, frankly, I wasn't interested. I ended up using it as a stills camera and then, somehow, contrived to lose it.
Some camcorders will look shitty and that's probably not what you're looking for either. Why not put your money towards finding someone with gear who'd be willing to help shoot your movie? Most DSLR filmmakers will get onboard for a couple of hundred bucks.
Or, if you are interested in cinematography, buy a DSLR and start reading and learning about how you operate them. Then you'll understand which lens to buy. The kit lens is a perfectly acceptable place to start, but if you are interested you'll quickly exhaust its limitations and want to move on to something different.
I advise that you should read the Professional reviews on www.dpreview.com before investing your money in any of the great suggestions mentioned above . You can get full tech specs , look up terms in the glossary and get a real feel for what you will need to know . If you are unwilling to invest the time in learning the technical side of your craft , then a simple point and shoot is a better camera for you . However , if you are after an interchangeable lens camera , which will challenge you to expand your horizons while offering you a better result in your finished product , it will be necessarily to learn the ins and outs of a camera system . It has taken me two years to transition from shooting motion picture with an FS 100 , to get to the point that I feel confident enough to purchase my first DSLR and start setting up a system for production . I am entering my second year of College and will be applying to Film Schools very soon . IF you are gonna do it , be disciplined and do it right . There are no short cuts .
I want to learn all that I can. I just don't have the budget to piece a camera together.
The best advice I can give? Learn enough about how cameras work so you know what the cheapest piece of kit is that you can get away with using to get the results you want. Otherwise you're just throwing your money away for features you might not even use. Do this before plinking down $500 or more on a camera.
Used Canon T2i with kit zoom lens is a great place to start.
After you've made a few tests, you can scrape together $90 for a used Canon EOS 50mm f1.8 and start really playing with cinema looks...
Build up some lighting kit over the next couple months.. clamp lights, work lights, etc.
After a few months you will have a good prime lens, a zoom, a camera and a few lights.. next you need to upgrade your tripod!
After that you may want to spend some time deep diving into you computer needs. Really learning your editing software etc...
Once you have HIT the limits of your gear you may want to consider "hacking" your camera with Magic Lantern... which moves you to the next level camera geekdom..
Then you can start cruising pawnshops\ebay for M42 lenses (m42 is a screw lens mount that is readily and cheaply adaptable to the T2i, lots of selection.) To correct an earlier post, you CAN adapt almost ANY lens to the T2i easily, just not old Canon FD ones, and a few other mounts.
After you've made a few tests, you can scrape together $90 for a used Canon EOS 50mm f1.8 and start really playing with cinema looks...
Build up some lighting kit over the next couple months.. clamp lights, work lights, etc.
After a few months you will have a good prime lens, a zoom, a camera and a few lights.. next you need to upgrade your tripod!
After that you may want to spend some time deep diving into you computer needs. Really learning your editing software etc...
Once you have HIT the limits of your gear you may want to consider "hacking" your camera with Magic Lantern... which moves you to the next level camera geekdom..
Then you can start cruising pawnshops\ebay for M42 lenses (m42 is a screw lens mount that is readily and cheaply adaptable to the T2i, lots of selection.) To correct an earlier post, you CAN adapt almost ANY lens to the T2i easily, just not old Canon FD ones, and a few other mounts.
Don't be afraid of DSLRs just because you know nothing about lenses.
If you're willing to read some (a lot?) things on the web and put it into practice, you just can't go wrong.
DSLRs are the cheapest route to approach cinematic resultats.
The body is what contains the sensor (the digital equivalent of film) and every electronic that goes with .
The lens is what will project the light in front of you onto that sensor. There's really nothing complicated in this. Your next step will be understanding exposure (aperture and shutter speed) and off you go. Everything else will fall into place with time.
The thing with DSLRs is that you can build equipement on it. Whenever you have budget you can buy a lens, a rig or any other accessory that you feel will suit your needs.
I'd say buy a used on and if you don't like it, you can always sell it for around the same price (as long as you take good care of it).
If you're willing to read some (a lot?) things on the web and put it into practice, you just can't go wrong.
DSLRs are the cheapest route to approach cinematic resultats.
The body is what contains the sensor (the digital equivalent of film) and every electronic that goes with .
The lens is what will project the light in front of you onto that sensor. There's really nothing complicated in this. Your next step will be understanding exposure (aperture and shutter speed) and off you go. Everything else will fall into place with time.
The thing with DSLRs is that you can build equipement on it. Whenever you have budget you can buy a lens, a rig or any other accessory that you feel will suit your needs.
I'd say buy a used on and if you don't like it, you can always sell it for around the same price (as long as you take good care of it).
Okay, thanks guys for being so helpful. I really want to get the cinema look the first time around. I don't usually have this much money at one time, so I just want to get the right equipment. Is there maybe a list someone could out together to piece together a dslr with the best equipment for 500?