SLR cameras buying tips (Trinity: live, cost, vacation)

[nitynity]

Is it worth buying an SLR camera these days? We are going on a vacation to CA, lot of mountains,nature and scenarios. We have an Iphone and galaxy S6 which has a decent camera. Thinking about getting an SLR just for the trip. I am not really into photography. So not quiet sure if it's really worth the money plus the carrying hassle.



Any tips or models to consider?

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by nitynity

Is it worth buying an SLR camera these days? We are going on a vacation to CA, lot of mountains,nature and scenarios. We have an Iphone and galaxy S6 which has a decent camera. Thinking about getting an SLR just for the trip. I am not really into photography. So not quiet sure if it's really worth the money plus the carrying hassle.



Any tips or models to consider?

If you're not into photography and you're not sure it's worth the money, then don't buy one. Digital SLRs aren't cheap and neither are the lenses.


If you can't use an SLR manually (i.e. setting f-stops & shutter speeds yourself) then definitely don't drop the money on a camera that you don't really want. I don't think you'll be pleased with the results unless you know how to get the most out of it.

[turf3]

You can buy a Pentax K1000, or a Canon FTb, plus a variety of lenses, on the used market, for short money these days. No automatic controls other than an integrated light meter. This is what I learned photography with.

[shelbelle72]

I wouldn't buy one just for a vacation. There is a learning curve with DSLRs to get the full benefit.

[Ablebodied]

Originally Posted by nitynity

Is it worth buying an SLR camera these days? We are going on a vacation to CA, lot of mountains,nature and scenarios. We have an Iphone and galaxy S6 which has a decent camera. Thinking about getting an SLR just for the trip. I am not really into photography. So not quiet sure if it's really worth the money plus the carrying hassle.



Any tips or models to consider?

Get something like a Canon SX720hs for about $250 and get nice stills and video. A point and shoot with a minimum learning curve. I would never depend on cell phone video. Lightweight and you’ll get a lot more keepers.

[EDS_]

Get a DSLR, a lens or two an extra battery and a good card and start shooting. Teach yourself to work around aperture priority setting and a few tweaks. You don’t have enough time to learn to shoot full manual simply forget that.

The light gathering ability of just decent glass on a DSLR v a phone is like comparing The Trinity to The Mississippi rivers.

[some1livesinamerica]

I used to be somewhat interested in photography many years ago, have other things to do these days. To answer op's question "Is it worth buying an SLR camera these days?"
If you have the money, why not. If this is your first dslr, buy an entry level dslr, go take some pictures and see if you like it or not. For example, Canon EOS Rebel SL2 DSLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm

https://www.amazon.com/Canon-Rebel-D...6FQZHD1T74TX8F
This camera will meet most of your needs during your trip. After taking some pictures, if you really feel like you want to get into photography and you have the money(a full frame body dslr + a full frame lense) will cost you around $3,500. For example,

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00STQ7276...ing=UTF8&psc=1
Once you buy the tripod and couple ND filters, you are looking at around $5k

[some1livesinamerica]

[some1livesinamerica]

the benefit of a dslr over a phone camera is that it gives control over many of the parameters such as aperature, focal length, shutter speed, iso and etc. If you know how to adjust those parameters, under the right condition, you can capture some amazing pictures. I shot the pic above many years ago, there is no way you can take a pic like that without using a dslr and a tripod.

The reason that photography can become a very expensive hobby is that once you start getting serious about it, at some point, you will want a full frame camera and full frame is not cheap. For shooting landscape, you need a local length preferably under 24mm. For regular shooting, 24-70mm. For portrait, aperature under 2 is ideal. And for shooting wild animals, you need those long zoom ones. You can easily spend over $10k if you want to own 3 or 4 full frame lens.
The upside is when it comes to full frame lens, unlike the body, camera manufacturers don't often introduce new versions of the same lens, so when you spend $2k to buy a full frame lens, it will hold its value pretty well over time.

a perfect example is the nikon 14-24mm, i drooled over this lens a decade ago, it was listed for $1900, now it is listed for $1700 on amazon. Over all these yrs, nikon never released a new version of this iconic lens.
https://www.amazon.com/Nikon-AF-S-NI...ywords=14-24mm

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by some1livesinamerica

the benefit of a dslr over a phone camera is that it gives control over many of the parameters such as aperature, focal length, shutter speed, iso and etc. If you know how to adjust those parameters, under the right condition, you can capture some amazing pictures. I shot the pic above many years ago, there is no way you can take a pic like that without using a dslr and a tripod.

The reason that photography can become a very expensive hobby is that once you start getting serious about it, at some point, you will want a full frame camera and full frame is not cheap. For shooting landscape, you need a local length preferably under 24mm. For regular shooting, 24-70mm. For portrait, aperature under 2 is ideal. And for shooting wild animals, you need those long zoom ones. You can easily spend over $10k if you want to own 3 or 4 full frame lens.
The upside is when it comes to full frame lens, unlike the body, camera manufacturers don't often introduce new versions of the same lens, so when you spend $2k to buy a full frame lens, it will hold its value pretty well over time.

a perfect example is the nikon 14-24mm, i drooled over this lens a decade ago, it was listed for $1900, now it is listed for $1700 on amazon. Over all these yrs, nikon never released a new version of this iconic lens.
https://www.amazon.com/Nikon-AF-S-NI...ywords=14-24mm

You can take a lens built in the 70s and put it on a camera body made yesterday as long as the mounts are compatible (obviously you'd have to focus it manually). That's the beauty of lenses.