When do you know to move on?

[eysha]

When do you know to upgrade? OK i would love to and have my eye on a Nikon D90, which, given that i know nothing about cameras might be the wrong choice.
At the moment i have a Panisonic FZ38 which i only bought to photograph my artwork and this camera is good enough for that. I wasn't into photography then. However, i have found that reading photographic books and joining Photoradar my interest in photography has emerged and i now want to learn and learn but, i am not happy with my camera. OK if i get a Nikon it will have to be secondhand but when do you know to upgrade? Should i really stick with the camera i have and learn more about photography or move on now?
E.

[James Blonde]

I guess the question you need to ask is, what do you want to do that you can't do with the camera you currently have?

If there are good and justifiable reasons for you to move (and one of those reasons might well be cos a D90 is nice and shiny and I want one!!!!! (I've got one, and love it...!)) then its time to move. If you truly can't justify it, and you can still learn from your current kit, then it might be worth hanging on a bit longer.

I moved from a Nikon F501 SLR to a 3mp Canon compact when digital kicked in, which was fine, but I certainly felt the loss of an SLR! For me, it was about speed, quality and reach - you can't just turn a compact on and take a pic, you can't just instantly take a pic, you can't just fire them off, you can't make a compact better by adding to it (well you can now with the system cameras, if you want to call them compacts!), etc etc. So I guess I knew what I was missing when I upgraded to a D70 at the time.

[MattUK]

How important is photography to you, and how limiting is your current camera?

I started in January last year with a Nikon D5000 and an 18-55mm lens. I dabbled a bit. Then I dabbled a bit more. Then I started looking for places to shoot. Then I started trying different types of shot. Before long, I was using my camera at least once a week, and I was starting to get frustrated with its limitations.

By Christmas, I had a D7000, 3 lenses, a tripod, remote, I'm looking to buy a flash gun, umbrella, diffuser etc etc!

If you can afford to upgrade and you feel like you should and you're going to get good use out of it, then go for it

[eysha]

I hear what you are both saying. I guess i never liked the camera i chose as i find it slow. I tend to do everything quickly and get impatient if things go slow, not just cameras but life in general.
What price could i expect to pay for a second hand D90 and would you advise buying a second hand one?

[Cathus]

People often answer these questions as if you need to justify upgrading, almost like you need permission to go out & treat yourself to a new camera.

I say, if you want new gear & it will give you pleasure (& you can afford it) then go and fill your boots.

[eysha]

I like your thhinking Cathus. Should i really know a lot about photography first though? I am new so know very little.

[chris-p]

It's much easier to see it in hindsight. If you're getting more into it and you can afford it, then upgrade. I started (digitally anyway) with a Canon bridge camera which very quickly became an Olympus E-510. That lasted about a year until I upgraded to a D90.

If you work at it and you're passionate about it, you very quickly outgrow cameras like the FZ38. It's not wrong, just a matter of progression.

Personally, I found upgrading game me a renewed interest and the more advanced interface and increased ease with which I could change settings made me take more control of the camera and I've learned more from my D90 than I did with any previous camera.

In the end, I used the D90 for about 2 months and realised that I'd reached a point that I had little interest in upgrading from any time soon. It's find of like you find your comfort zone.

[Drew Smith]

Originally Posted by Cathus

People often answer these questions as if you need to justify upgrading, almost like you need permission to go out & treat yourself to a new camera.

I say, if you want new gear & it will give you pleasure (& you can afford it) then go out fill your boots.

I agree with Gary but with caveats (isn't that Sturgeon eggs?):

You don't want to be kicking yourself in 6 months time because you bought the 'wrong' camera, so time spent getting to know what you like and don't like is well spent and there are often deals to be had on cameras and on 'kit' deals and the arrival of new cameras can make second hand cameras even cheaper.

If you are prepared to spend at least 400 quid on a new camera then you can't really buy a bad one. Canon have introduced the 1100D which probably makes the 10 megapixel 1000D even cheaper. If you buy second hand then you can pick up a Canon 40D (6.5fps, 10.1 Megapixels high precision AF system, Live View, 3.0" LCD) for the same 400 quid.

Personally I'd buy a good second hand camera from a reputable dealer, you'll get more bang for your bucks.

Then there are the lenses! A good camera is only as good as the lenses you stick on it. So you may want to leave some wriggle room for a decent lens, and which lens depends on what you want to shoot.

Welcome to a potentially never ending drain on your financial resources!

[OldBoy]

It depends on what you want to photograph, budget and how far you want to go. If a DSLR with all the extras like lenses, tripod, bags and lights can soon put a big dent in your budget, but you don't have to buy it all tomorrow. Have you considered a bridge camera which are almost a DSLR but with one lens doing it all. It will give you all the functions of a DSLR without spending a vast sum on lenses.

I started out with a compact then brought a Minolta RD3000 DSLR before moving to a Nikon D70, D200 and the D3, adding lenses as I went along.

[Cathus]

you might find that getting a new camera gioves you extra impetus to a) use it & b) learn more about photography, a lot of people do.

Though just a word of caution, I know someone who upgraded to a DSLR, lost interest & sold the thing to purchase a compact again, but I think generally more people maintain their interest or get even further into photography when they get a new camera. I mean, you'd want to get your money's worth, wouldn't you?