Please help!

[jay]

Hi, [will try to be brief!] I currently own an "Advanced Compact" [Panasonic lumix fz50] which has been super. However I think I'm ready for my first SLR and kit.
Problem is I don't know where to start! I have a tight budget... so planning to buy second-hand.
First I was set on the Nikon D80 however I think the Nikon D200 is a better move[?] [Id like to stick with Cannon or Nikon.] Any suggestions or comments?
My big problems come with the lenses [I'm rather confused when comes to this, so please feel free to correct or comment...]
I believe the main lenses I need, will be:
A Wide Angle lens [would a 18mm-55/75mm qualify? Or must it start at about say 12mm or something?]
A Zoom lens 33/75mm-300 [I've heard that wide-angle to zoom range lens, say 18mm-200mm don't give great performance and are generally the price of zoom and wide angle anyway?]
And a Macro lens [though this is not the most urgent lens I shall be needing- will only be getting it if current budget allows, otherwise will purchase it at later stage].
I will also be wanting a camera/lens cleaning kit, a tripod, a good hand held flash, wireless remote shutter and the necessary filters.
So please could you give some advise on the above mentioned items as what to buy for which category, bearing in mind my budget for camera etc is about (maximum) £1200.
Anything appreciated- thanks a million!

[chris-p]

This is a lot of questions.

OK, first of all. Why do you think you will need a wideangle lens, a zoom lens and a macro lens? And why the tripod, flash, remote shutter release, filters and all the other stuff straight away? You're talking about an enormous amount of kit for £1200 and it seems to me like you're spending most of your money on things you don't actually need...

WRT lenses, wideangle depends on how wide. 18mm is fairly wide, certainly wider than your FZ-50. And a zoom lens of the 33/75-300mm range? I've never seen a 33-300mm lens? You're generally right about "superzooms" like the 18-200 style, the quality isn't generally as good but they do have their benefits.

You seem to "need" a lot of equipment without knowing very much about it. I would suggest that you're better off with a cheaper camera and perhaps a lens or 2 which would cost you a lot less than £1200. That way you can learn what you "need" and what you don't.

[ianpinion]

Hi Jay and welcome to the forum.

I would echo what Chris has said. Start off with an entry level dslr and if you can lookout for any that are being offered as a bundle with a standard kit lens and a telephoto lens. Learn how to use them and discover which lens is best to use for each shooting scenario and identify what you like to photograph before you splash out on any more kit. You'll then be in a much better position to know what kit you need to buy and what to avoid. Believe me, you'll accumulate plenty of kit that you will use regularly without having to carry around a whole lot more that you'll hardly ever use.

[swan lover]

I echo whats been said here your buying a lot of kit and not stating what you are going to do e.g. portraits or something else, I still have my basic kit of 18-55 lens & 55-200 and plod alonge nicley, a good flash gun is my next wish item along with a better lens for portrait work, take your time to build your kit, don't be afraid to look for second hand items for your kit if its alens not used often.

[KeithT]

I always use the 50/50 guide to buying a start-up kit. In other words, whatever you spend on a camera body you need to spend the same on a lens. With 1200 quid at my disposal I would divide by three and spend two thirds on camera and lens, e.g. 400 quid on a camera body and 400 quid on a lens, and the remaining 400 quid you can spend on bag, media cards, tripod if you really need one, and cleaning materials (lens cloth, lens fluid, sensor cleaning kit). That's how I have always worked out budgets and seems to cover most things I need.

[jay]

Hi all, and thanks very much for the advice- appreciate it...
To be honest I probably don't need all that kit straight away, It is, as advised, perhaps best to by one here and one there as I do not want to be upgrading again for a long time, which is why im wanting to get a good SLR to start of with, although I probably will be battling for a while to get to grips with it.
As far as a the field/subject[s] that I will be wanting shoot, its mainly 'Urban shots', landscapes, wildlife and horses [taking shots of movement etc in order to advertise the horse[s]- if that makes sense?] So one is not always able to get close, hence Im thinking a good Telephoto lens and tripod is a move to make?
Although I really would love to do some portraiture and macro, its probably not going to be happening to soon, so they can wait. One thing at a time I think...
So a 'Wide Angle' starting at 18mm should be sufficient? If my SLR is not a 'Full Frame' [feel free to elaborate on the that term to for me if you want!] how much difference does it make and should I be worried?
So a zoom to round about 200/300mm should be ok?
Any suggestions as to what to buy for the above for Nikon?
Thanks again

[ianpinion]

Hi Jay,

The terms 'Cropped' and 'Full Frame' refers to the size of the sensor inside your camera. The size of the sensor in each camera is measured as a ratio to the area of a piece of 35mm film camera that is exposed to the light when the shutter is opened to take a picture. If it's the same size in area then this is termed as full frame. If the sensor is smaller in area it is termed cropped and expressed like this, ie. 1:1.6 or 1:1.5 etc.

Hope that's a little clearer for you.

[OldBoy]

The Nikon D200 is a semi-pro camera which is waterproof. I've had one for about five years and it's a cracker with the exceptrion of low light. Mifsuds have one for £399. They also have a Nikon 70-300mm F4.5/5.6 VR AF-G ED which is a cracking lens at £319.

http://www.mifsuds.com/acatalog/Used_Nikon_AF.html

You could team this with a Sigma 17-70mm f2.8-4.0 DC Macro OS HSM Lens - Nikon Fit
at £344.99 from Warehouse Express, which is a well regarded lens by all who have it.

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/buy-...n-fit/p1518706

Notice both these lense have image stablisation so might not need a tripod yet, but if you do then consider the Giottos MTL9351B Adjustable Column Aluminium Tripod and head for £119.88.

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/buy-...ripod/p1025871

Hope that helps.

[jay]

Awesome! Thank you very much!
Ian P, full frame makes some sense to me now- thank you!

[chris-p]

Originally Posted by OldBoy

The Nikon D200 is a semi-pro camera which is waterproof

It's not actually waterproof, it's weather sealed. You can't swim with it!