Best camera to buy

System

a. Canon EOS400D Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
b. Nikon D40x Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
c. Nikon D80 Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
d. Olympus E-410 Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
e. Or which other model.

Used for amataur photography, landscape, sports, family and vacations.
250 pics a month.

Manfr3d

depends on your needs and what gear you already have - there is no such thing as "best"

cmason

My first recommendation is to NOT buy the kit with the lenses. Buy your choice of lens separately from the camera. Kit lenses are notoriously poor quality.

Second, go hold and try out each of these models. The best camera is the one you use, so purchase the one you enjoy picking up, holding. The one where the buttons are right where you need them, the one that makes sense to you to use, not the one that requires the manual everytime you use it.

ziggy53

d22 wrote:

a. Canon EOS400D Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
b. Nikon D40x Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
c. Nikon D80 Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
d. Olympus E-410 Digital SLR Twin Lens Kit.
e. Or which other model.

Used for amataur photography, landscape, sports, family and vacations.
250 pics a month.

I'm not convinced that any of the "twin lens kit" lenses are worth investing in.

Any of the cameras you mention will do a fair job of all the tasks mentioned, except for sports.

For sports I suggest:

Nikon D200/D300
Canon 30D/40D

The latter camera from either Canon or Nikon would be an improvement over the former.

For lenses I suggest that you could start with two lenses to cover many of the situations in the categories you list:

Nikon 17mm - 55mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S DX Nikkor
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G AF-S VR ED-IF Nikkor
or
Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8D ED Nikkor

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM
or
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

cmason

Those lenses ziggy mentions are wornderful, perfect lenses. They also are quite expensive.

If you are choosing the kit to reduce cost, I would suggest the following for Canon that are far better than the kit lenses, but won't break the bank:

Canon 28-135 IS USM (3.5-5.6)
Tamron 28-75

Canon 70-300 IS USM
Canon 70-200 f4 L

The Tamron makes a wonderful choice for the Nikon as well.

kini62

I'd change the 410 to the E510 (Oly) as it has IS and is only about $100 more.

It's the least expensive of the group you have and there is nothing wrong with using the kit lenses for a while if you're budget limited.

The Oly kit lenses are very good optically and you'd be covered from 28-300mm.

Gene

MooreDriven

My first recommendation would be to visit your local camera store and hold each camera. I did a lot of research before going into a store with the intent to purchase a D40, only to find that it was too small for me. It's a great camera, but if it's not comfortable in your hands, your less likely to use it.

My second recommendation is to ask yourself how much time you plan to spend learing how to use the camera and craft of photography. This is assuming you are graduating from a point and shoot, with limited knowledge of photography. This is where I was at in February. If you just want a glorified P&S, then I would stick with a D40 like model and kit lens. That will meet your needs, with the ability to add lenses later, and still get some excellent shots.

If I were starting again, I would buy either the D80 or D300 and the 18-200 VR. The 18-200 will give you a lot of flexibility for the type of photography you plan to shoot. The lens has been debated a lot on several forums. So love it, some hate it. I fall in the love it camp. Especially on vacations and family outings. As you can tell, I prefer Nikon. You won't go wrong with a Canon solution either.

Finally, I think the kit lenses are a good start if your on a tight budget.

Good luck.

Dale

swintonphoto

kini62 wrote:

I'd change the 410 to the E510 (Oly) as it has IS and is only about $100 more.

It's the least expensive of the group you have and there is nothing wrong with using the kit lenses for a while if you're budget limited.

The Oly kit lenses are very good optically and you'd be covered from 28-300mm.

Gene

I agree - the oly kit lenses are great optically. The 410 is great if you want something very small. However, the 510 has sensor shift IS, and is a bit more sophisticated in its image processing. I am biased because I have two E-500's. I love them. Great price for a feature packed product. And both of them have live preview and the oly dust reduction system.

groovyone

Take a look at the Sony A100 also. I loved mine and shot 7000 or so pics with it before upgrading to my A700. I spent a lot of time figuring out what I wanted to shoot and what features were going to fit me the best, and the A100 at the time was the only 10MP 'entry' level camera and the built in image stabilization sealed the deal for me since I shoot 99% handheld. Now, about 15 months later, there are even more options out there!

Red J

If you go Nikon, seriously consider the D80/18-200 VR combo.

Arvan

Don´t forget the pentax K10D with 16-45 maby..Great combination

swintonphoto

I honestly think the best thing do do when trying to decide is to go try all of them. Two of my brothers and I did that. One walked away with a 30D, the other a D80, and I left with an E500. We are all very happy with our choices. Go play with them, one will just feel right.

kelsow

The best lens testing site I have found so far is http://www.slrgear.com/reviews/showcat.php/cat/6

Check out the specs on the "kit" lenses for the Nikon and see what they have to say.
I hope this will help in your decision, it certainly did for me.

Joves

I love my D80 but, you may not. As was said go to a store and, fondle each camera. See which works in your hand best. The D80 will be fine for anything you choose to shoot. If you are coming from film then there will be a learning curve with any of these Dslrs, if you came from P&S cameras then you will still have to learn, mostly to get out of the auto modes.