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I'm buying the T3i real soon (hopefully next Thursday. If not then, two weeks after. Or I'll just sell a bunch of stuff to have the money sooner).

I'm more partial to video than photo, but I'm hoping to take some real nice shots around my town first.

i'm actually really impressed with the video quality i've seen from some SLRs.

the season finale of House last year was filmed entirely with Canon SLRs.

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Check out the Pentax K-X.

pentax cameras are alright. the one major perk is the image stabilization built into the camera body itself vs having to purchase lenses with it.

however, i don't think that i'd recommend one for someone who just wants a starter camera due to the general lack of readily accessible cheap/used accessories. canon and nikon both have tons more options for lenses, flashes, and even third party things which tend to be cheaper and sometimes are of comparable quality.

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oh, i totally understand! i'm the same way with my painting. sometimes i get really bummed about it, cuz there's just not enough hours in the day to do it all!

also, everyone in this thread also needs to keep in mind that the quality of photos has as much or more to do with the quality of the lens you're using as it does the body of the camera. i realize that you're not gonna go out and spend a ton on things, but do yourself a favor and invest in a 50mm 1.8 or 1.4. you can get one for a little over $100 and it is well worth it! another thing to keep in mind is that nikon and canon have used the same mounts for years and years, and you can keep your lenses forever even when your body needs upgraded or wears out.

I was actually going to mention this, it's always good to keep in mind that buying a good camera helps rather than a shitty one, but a lot of your quality (and debt!) will be from your lenses.

Also wow, that T3i video looks awesome.

Edit: Speaking of cameras, holy shit. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/22/technology/22camera.html?_r=1

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oof. because we need more ways for the casual shooter to think they're a professional and not have basic photography skills.

i can see the potential positives associated with that, but i can also see it being annoying as hell.

No more annoying than the 16 year old girls on tumblr with parents that spoil the fuck out of them and get them a $500+ camera. I can see it being a crutch and an advantage but either way it's definitely neat considering it lets you change the focus of your picture after the fact. That's cool technology regardless of who's using it.

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oof. because we need more ways for the casual shooter to think they're a professional and not have basic photography skills.

i can see the potential positives associated with that, but i can also see it being annoying as hell.

No more annoying than the 16 year old girls on tumblr with parents that spoil the fuck out of them and get them a $500+ camera. I can see it being a crutch and an advantage but either way it's definitely neat considering it lets you change the focus of your picture after the fact. That's cool technology regardless of who's using it.

i agree that it's cool, but i see it personally being more of an annoyance to myself. maybe i'm just pessimistic, haha.

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My darling Canon Rebel XT has served me well for the past 3 years. I'd definitely recommend it as a starter camera for learning the basics, getting used to a manual set up, and all around having fun. For a DSLR it's light, compact, not fussy, and relatively intuitive as far as controls go. However, 3 years in I find myself dissatisfied with it's performance. I predominantly shoot concerts with it, and the ISO range maxes out at 1600. But photos taken at 1600 mostly look like shit. So I'm stuck shooting at ISO800 for 90% of concerts. A normally using a shutter range of 1/20 - 1/80, which is so incredibly slow.

I can't complain too much. The $350ish I invested in the body itself, it's certainly worked it's ass off. I'll just be happy to make a large leap to a 7D sometime soon, for the broader ISO range and better focusing element. I should also mention that I'm only pro-Canon out of necessity. It's what I bought first and now I have 3 lenses for it, you kind of just have to go with it.

Like Allison said, much of your results will come from good glass. Get a decent body. Get great glass.

Some of my recent favorites that little Rebel and I have shared together:

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Good luck!

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leica m2.

i hate digital.

For any aspiring photographers out there (myself included): don't let this attitude discourage you. Film certainly has it's benefits. It's also an extremely pricey hobby to practice and learn with. Digital is great to start out on, allowing you to try many different settings, make mistakes, and so on and so forth. These analog purists also use a whole host of other modern technology while sticking their nose up at digital cameras. The hypocrisy is immense.

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I currently have a Rebel XTi, SD1000 (both Canon), a Lomography Fisheye 2 and a Polaroid Onestep 600. Film definitely has it's merits and I absolutely love experimenting with film (the multiple and extended exposure features on the Lomo are fun as hell) but with a tight budget it gets harder and harder to justify buying film and paying for developing (I haven't shot with my Fisheye in probably 2 years). I'd agree that it's best to start digital since you just pay for the camera and lenses and go on your way. Unless you're made of money learning on an analog medium isn't really cost effective or convenient.

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i was just being a debby erm donald downer. in all honesty digital is awesome (the convenience, the options, the light metering, the ability to shoot 1000 photos and delete later, etc etc). for example i went to peru recently. with me i had my leica and my hasselblad, along with 20 rolls of film. i was cursing myself after hiking 5 miles up machu picchu and the whole trip of hiking. was it worth it? to me yes.

at the end of the day it is what you find enjoyment out of. i find it nice to sit back and shoot film. i find it nice to take my time and wait for the perfect photo. for me it is just a godsend to develop a roll over my kitchen sink and hold it up to the light to get a peak of the negatives.

as far as hypocrisy goes well i do have photoshop and in photoshop i do the following. drop photo down to half it's size and select the bottom option (cant remember for reduction or something). go to levels and select the border as my black so it knows what is black. crop the negative edges. save as tif and go to next one. rarely i will have to remove specs of dust using clone tool but that is the extent of my digitalizing. i feel people who do a lot should just shoot digital and be done with it.

call me old fashioned but it is what i enjoy. if you do enjoy film or want to explore it, it is not that expensive because no one shoots film anymore. get a camera, a lens, a light meter, and some film. if you want to go cheap grab a stack of envelopes at your local walmart film lab (the ones for mailing film out) and sharpie out nearly everything, i just mark a line through it all. fill out your info and in the notes put 35mm process only no prints, or 120 etc etc. just put what you want. mail em all off (each roll in a different envelope) and they get sent to a fujifilm lab to be developed.

/end rant

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By no means did I mean to make a personal attack. I just hate when "I only shoot film" photographers shit all over digital photographers. Yes, film requires a specific skill set, patience, and a fat wallet. And film warrants some extremely beautiful (and sharp!) photographs. I certainly respect the medium. And rightfully stay away from it because I'll fuck it up and go broke in the process. Let's all be happy :)

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nah i didnt take any sort of personal attack. i felt bad for being a crabby patty.

and i was most definitely trying to kid, i am not one to ever discourage anyone from photography, regardless if you are shooting on a memory stick or heck glass plates.

i guess while music does not really bother me deep down for some reason the mainstream of 12 year olds with digital cameras (big hunky ones) just bums me out. it shouldnt just like those who say oh this band sucks cause its mainstream is lame as well. idk maybe im lame. somewhere inside me its something i laugh at or put down but in all reality i support anyone wanting to get into the hobby.

but the idea film is just for the wealthy or rich is wrong. you can get a multitude of wonderful cameras for under 100, 200, 300 bucks and if you shot 3 dollar a roll b/w you can develop it at home. you can even use instant coffee to develop! basically if it is something you want to explore dont let the money stop you.

regardless have fun and enjoy what you do. it is your time, money, happiness, so you have to find what you think you will like spending all of that on. its similar to work and school, i have told lots of people over the years find a degree or career that you enjoy. it is not a selfish thing but if you cannot truly find something you enjoy doing or want to spend every day doing you wont be happy. its awesome to have friends and relationships that are happy but if you do not find happiness in your own life you cannot find it in anyone elses. (probably horrible advice coming from a social anxiety, 24yr old engineer who looks like im 12, is named austin powers, and a hermit in my apt, with one serious relationship being a 4 yr highschool/college sweetheart)

/dr phil

wow i blew that out of the water. so cameras.....get one and have fun. start small and see how much you like it and what features you wish you had etc etc. learn from the first one so you can make wise decisions for your second one. get a holga and see if you like film or it is too time consuming or boring or expensive. get a digital and see if it is something you like.

you will figure it out. best of luck.

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I have a Minolta XG-M for film. It takes nice photos and all, and the Tamron telephoto I like to use on it is really fun, but I just can't afford to keep it up. With all the money I spent on film and processing last semester, I probably could have taken a good chunk out of my T3i funding.

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i was just being a debby erm donald downer. in all honesty digital is awesome (the convenience, the options, the light metering, the ability to shoot 1000 photos and delete later, etc etc). for example i went to peru recently. with me i had my leica and my hasselblad, along with 20 rolls of film. i was cursing myself after hiking 5 miles up machu picchu and the whole trip of hiking. was it worth it? to me yes.

at the end of the day it is what you find enjoyment out of. i find it nice to sit back and shoot film. i find it nice to take my time and wait for the perfect photo. for me it is just a godsend to develop a roll over my kitchen sink and hold it up to the light to get a peak of the negatives.

as far as hypocrisy goes well i do have photoshop and in photoshop i do the following. drop photo down to half it's size and select the bottom option (cant remember for reduction or something). go to levels and select the border as my black so it knows what is black. crop the negative edges. save as tif and go to next one. rarely i will have to remove specs of dust using clone tool but that is the extent of my digitalizing. i feel people who do a lot should just shoot digital and be done with it.

call me old fashioned but it is what i enjoy. if you do enjoy film or want to explore it, it is not that expensive because no one shoots film anymore. get a camera, a lens, a light meter, and some film. if you want to go cheap grab a stack of envelopes at your local walmart film lab (the ones for mailing film out) and sharpie out nearly everything, i just mark a line through it all. fill out your info and in the notes put 35mm process only no prints, or 120 etc etc. just put what you want. mail em all off (each roll in a different envelope) and they get sent to a fujifilm lab to be developed.

/end rant

you also have to purchase a decent quality scanner, as well.

i have nothing against film, i just cant afford to shoot it all the time. assuming that those 20 rolls cost you 9.99 each to get processed, that's an extra $200 just for that film from a single trip to be processed. 5 rolls of kodak porta 120 film are $25, give or take. so $300 minumum extra just to use a film camera. plus, even a used m2 is gonna cost you well over what an entry level dslr costs.

again, it comes down to a money thing.

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will check it out when i get home. thanks for the link. and yes it was a christmas present 2 years back but i got a $200 scanner.

if you shoot 35mm and were to shoot b/w (a lot of what ifs) you could shoot tri-x 36exp for $3.59 a roll. develop it yourself for around $1 a roll. all i am saying is do not be afraid to take out your old camera and shoot a roll every now and then. i recently bought and gave a roll to a coworker because she used to shoot (amazing photos btw) in argentina where she is from. she admits that she hasnt picked up her film cameras in 10 years.

and my leica body was $400. now a lens (which i still havent purchased lol, was borrowing ole pops) is another story. anywhere from $200 - $2000.

and yeah the average roll at the local lab in houston (the only one left) is 10/roll. so probably for medium format $1/photo. and don't get me started on how much money polaroid film is now...

slowed down on records and everything else recently because i need a vacuum lol (needed one for year and half lol i want a dyson) and i want to buy a 4x5 camera in a few months.

on second thought yeah it can get expensive. though if you try you can keep it economical. at least to shoot an occasional roll here or there, just to mix it up.

ok back to work....

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