35mm SLR?

[angerisagift]

hey everyone!

I was playing around with an old pentax k1000 and now im itching for a reasonably priced, manual (as much as possible....im sure some automatic features would be nice, but i like the feeling of having done everything that made the picture turn out how it did), SLR, 35mm camera.....but k1000s are discontinued and im really not sure what to get...

so could anyone reccomend a good camera for me? or tell me what to look for? im new to "real" photography so i dont really know what much of anything means at the moment so its hard to compare cameras when i dont know what anything is :o :D

and also, what lenses should i get to start off with? to keep me occupied until i can get money for more?

thanks in advance for your time, i really appreciate how helpful all you GDFers are

-sean

[cjoe]

the nikon f series is really good, solid as rock, you could kill someone with one. blunt force trauma!. I used to have a minolta 7000i, it was a bloody great camera. It had all these expansion cards that you could buy with different presets for different conditions, so it was super-super customisable.

Get a good standard lens (50mm), Pentax-Asashi make reasonable lenses as do Tamron. Really in terms of quality its a case of you get what you pay for.

[angerisagift]

kill someone with it? well thats all i need to hear ill get one now! i just realised i forgot to say that that was all it REALLY needed to do...taking pictures was just a bonus. ;) :D

but really thanks ill check into those

-sean

[Tyger]

what's your budget?

[angerisagift]

im not sure really. i dont want to spend tooo much on it, but i dont really know what 'not too much' is..
ill consider anything at this point, then figure out how much i feel like spending later on

-sean

[cjoe]

kill someone with it? well thats all i need to hear ill get one now! i just realised i forgot to say that that was all it REALLY needed to do...taking pictures was just a bonus. ;) :D

but really thanks ill check into those

-sean

Yes, you may need to buy a license to hold it though, and for godsakes don't take it anywhere near an airport checkin terminal!

Remember: guns dont kill people, ninjas kill people!

[cjoe]

i've used the nikon FM2T before and it is a very good camera, reliable, durable and you can get lenses quite easily for any nikon.
If you want somthing classic, then get a leica M7. Just be prepared to pay for it. Although i'm pretty sure it has a kill rate thats higher than the nikon (more sharp edges)

[angerisagift]

hmm...interesting....but the FM2T is made of titanium....light and strong so i can hit quick and i can hit hard and i can do it again and again....but those sharp edges on the leica might mean i dont need to hit so hard...oh so many factors in finding a good fatal camera...

ill look into these, probably not the leica if its gonna be expensive. im looking for something basic and on the low end of the price range as i am just learning...but any suggestions are good ones.

-sean

[Sketcher]

I actually bought an used Pentax K1000 for my photography classes. I'm thinking about selling it after this semester.

[clairabelle]

we use the pentax cameras in our photography lessons too! if you like them, cos i know i do (easy to use) you can get one off ebay for about £40 dunno how much that is in dollars but i know its cheap! lol just hav a look on ebay u'll get virtually anything you want off there!!!! thats where i got mine! and its never let me down! just make sure that the seller is reliable and has good feedback, the last thing you want is to buy one off someone, send the money and then they dont send the product to you! its happened to me alot, but im wise to it now.......i think lol

[cjoe]

not the leica if its gonna be expensive.
-sean

oh it is.

[willy_flew]

The minolta SI Series is great too. Fully auto, numerous pre programmed functions and fully manual. I had the stsi. I bet now you could pick one up with lenses for couple hundred. Buy xtsi or stsi the qtsi is a glorified p&s and blows.

[Neballer]

If you really want a fully manual 35mm SLR I would suggest a Canon AE-1 program. They're around a $100, the are about a million lenses you can use with it, and you could drop the thing off a 20 story building, have it bounce off a fire hydrant and into a sewer with out anything happening to it.

I have one, it was my very first SLR, and I still use it from time to time. You can shoot infred film with it because it doesn't have any "light" sensors that read the film. Oh, and It was purchased in '81 and still has the original battery.

[Vikia]

I love my K1000 - will always keep it because I have all the lenses and you can make it do exactly what you want. I took it in to have it cleaned professionally and the repairman said to hold on to it. Wonderful camera to learn on.

[angerisagift]

what have you all heard about the Canon EOS ELAN 7NE? a friend of the family has been taking photography courses for a while now and has moved on to a digital SLR. she is willing to sell me her Canon because she doesnt use it. The pentax is probably great for learning because you have to do everything so you have to learn what you are doing, but my friend does tons and tons of research before commiting to something so im convinced this is probably a quality camera.
i just dont know which one to go with
-sean

[Neballer]

what have you all heard about the Canon EOS ELAN 7NE?

I have one, and it's a solid SLR.
My favorite feature is the automatic eye control focusing. It has 7 metering points that you can set to follow the movement of your eye, which is really bad ass when you are shooting action. As with all the EOS camera, you will have a huge selection of lenses to choose from. It takes awesome pictures too:

http://thecreativeforum.com/photopost/data/500/668texture1.jpg

http://thecreativeforum.com/photopost/data/500/668Stupidkidies-med.jpg

http://thecreativeforum.com/photopost/data/500/668h1.jpg

I would recomend picking this up if you have the chance.

[willy_flew]

I would agree....I don't have one but tried one and the eye focus rocks.


http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/controller?act=ModelDetailAct&fcategoryid=138&modelid=9831

[ChargerBill]

The Canon EOS Elan7 is a great camera, and Canon optics are considered to be some of the best in the world. If you can get this at a decent price I wouldn't think twice. I personally have the Canon EOS 10D (fully digital) and I do not go anywwhere without it. I have taken about 19,000 photos with it and have no complaints. IMO you cannot go wrong with just about anything Canon...

[angerisagift]

well just to let you all know, i just bought the Canon EOS Elan7 yesterday night and i cant wait to try it out
thanks a lot to all of you for all of your help and opinions they've been a real help to me

-sean