first camera

They are both right! Please keep in mind that this is my opinion, and every photographer will have his or her opinion on this. And they vary greatly! The most important thing to consider in a camera is your ability to control it and your ability to learn how to use it. Other important aspects are (as have been said) light, and megapixels. I am not going to acknowledge the optical zoom vs. digital zoom, because if you are serious about photography, you will NOT have to worry about that. Whether you go with a dSLR or some sort of medium format or large format camera, you will not have digital zoom. One important thing to research as you are shopping around, is how your camera performs under low light conditions. The better the camera performs with high ISO speeds, the better (and more expensive) the camera will be. I use a 40d, and I will be upgrading as soon as my budget will allow for this very reason. A lot of the wedding we shoot end up being in dark churches, and I am not happy with noise produced at high ISO with that camera. I am positive there are photogs that are quite happy with this camera, but that is MY experience with it. If you are just looking for something to learn the basics with, I wouldn't be afraid to recommend you starting out with a smaller dSLR like the Rebel (sorry, I speak Canon) or that "grade" of camera. They are smaller and easier to carry around. The lenses that work for them will mostly work for a larger camera, and if you get serious about your photography, they make excellent back up cameras. (which you will need to have if you pursue it.) So don't be afraid to learn on a smaller camera. Most photographers upgrade several times throughout their career anyway! And you will quickly learn as you study dSLR cameras that your camera body is NOT the most important decision you make anyway. The lenses are. That is where you will want to spend your money in the long run. Investigate the brand of camera you want to invest in, because if you buy a smaller Canon or a Nikon or a Sony now, you will probably have enough money invested in that brand that you will feel married to it when you decide to upgrade your camera body. So it is important to do your homework before that initial purchase. Beyond that, it really depends on what kind of "photography" you plan to do. If you are in a position where you can shoot all your shots on a sunny beach, you can get by with any combination of body and lens you can find! If you are limited to taking shots in the "real" world the rest of us live in, then you will want to do a little research! Good Luck to you! I know it can seem like a tedious task finding the right camera, but believe me, it pays to do your homework!

if i am going to buy a camera i would say i'd look for mega pixels first, the higher the megapixel the better your pictures will be. quality camera has 5 to 12 megapixel. then i would be looking if it has optical zooming features, (not digital zooming). then i would prefer a camera that has has battery that lasts longer. and lastly i would look for good looking camera designs that has all the features i am looking for or close to it.

hi! first i want to aSK YOU how much are you able to spend for a new digital camera? because there are cameras and cameras, and there is a big difference between them. SO if you have about $1000 to spend then I will recommend you to buy nikon D80 or canon 40D because these two are really good DSLR cameras and youwill not have problems with them. but the bad thing is that if you are a brginner you should buy something easier and smaller, but that means that later you must give money again to buy a bigger one!I hope I was helpful to you :)

Asides from the budget I think you should look at different advantages and disadvantages each brand of camera offers. There are a lot of reviews for these DSLR camera and dpreview.com is one site that has a lot of good reviews to look into. Here are some things you should consider in choosing the right camera for you. Price, image quality, size and weight of gear, lens quality, availability of accessories in your area, availability of service center, body or lens image stabilization, availability of third party lens and accessories and value for money. I guess these were the things I considered in purchasing my gear. Each of the brands out there has there advantages and disadvantages. In the end it all goes down to the photographer. Hope this helps you sharlionse.