I currently own a D610. I'm trying to move away from entry-level

 

I need more hands...

 

Advice needed. I want to surprise the better half with a decent DSLR for Christmas. Photography used to be a hobby for her before we met, so I'd like to buy her something nice to get her back into the hobby without ruining my checking account.

 

Canon t6 with two lenses Is a really good setup for $400

 

A few years back (maybe 10) I had the plan of just going to Costco and buying whatever package deal they had on sale... until a friend started making more sense. Most of those deals come with a industry standard 18-35mm and a cheap'ish 300mm lens that sucks for mostly everything.

I sorta listened to him and ended up with a Nikon D5000 that came with an 18-55 on crazy sale from Adorama. I bought a used Tamron 28-200 lens for everyday use and a Nikkor 50mm 1.8 for close-ups and indoor.

The 18-35 is great, but limited, the 50mm is mostly useless for anything other than portrait work although it's great glass. The Tamron does EVERYTHING I've ever wanted it to despite being a little slow... but I knew that and chose the Tamron over the Nikkor 28-200 (triple the price) because I just wanted something better than our trusty Sony pointNshoots. That Nikon and Tamron lens are still going strong after 10 years and a couple thousand pics a year when I have the memory to actually grab it on the way out the door to some family or kid event. I've never used the 18-55 and the 50mm has been on the body maybe twice.

Advice freely dispensed... skip "package deals"... buy a body that gets good reviews and splurge a little on one good lens. 28-200 if you don't mind a little extra weight, or 28-105 for an excellent EDC lens. Let the wife figure out how much she wants to "get back into it" and choose her own specialty lenses.

 

I rarely touch my gear these days, but the list is:

Digital:
Pentax *istDS

35mm:
Pentax ME
Pentax MX
Pentax A3
Pentax Super-A
Pentax SP1000
Canon EOS 500
Canon EOS 1000
Praktica FX3
Zorki 4
Zorki 5

120 film:
Agfa Billy Record 6x9


and a **** ton of lenses, mostly K-mount and M42.


Used to take them out and shoot most weekends, but tbh I just lost the passion and the whole lot has been sat in a cupboard for over a year.

 

^ the Nikkor 18-200 VR lens is worth the price of admission if you're not shooting on a tripod. I will admit I love shooting with an 85mm 1.8 prime lens though. I think it is effectively a 100mm lens on a DX format body. It's more work, but the sharpness is ridiculous. No zoom lens can compete with a proper prime lens.

I've been using a 14 year old D80 body. Today I ordered a D5600 body as a Christmas gift for my wife (and myself I suppose). Sam, how do you like the D5000 body? Specs out very close to the one I ordered.

 

The D5000 is nowhere is the same league as your D5600. It is completely outdated, being over 10 years old now.

If it doesn't have the 20MP or 24MP sensor -- I wouldn't touch it. [Nikon rule-of-thumb]

I'm shopping around again for a travel camera for a Portugal/Spain trip. I really don't feel like lugging my D610 or D800 around, and I did really well with the a6000 in Italy. So I might spring for the a6100 this time around. I was also consdiering the rx100 VI, LX100 II, and G1x III, but really hate everything in terms of IQ smaller than APS-C.


I'm personally not a fan of the super-zooms, but the new offerings from sigma and tamron are really impressive. Otherwise I'm shooting on $2000 primes...

What sort of shooting does she do, maniac?




D810 gripped with 35mm 1.4G, D800 gripped with Sigma 14-24 2.8, D610 gripped with 58mm 1.4G, D800 with 105mm 2.8 macro. Fluffy cat in BG.

 

^ Brain you've got about three Miatas worth of bodies and glass there.

 

I sold my miata to buy a D600 and 24-70... no joke.

 

not all those cameras are his.

 

don't ruin the moment.

 

I'll have to talk to her. This was a hobby of hers before we met.

 

shhh. you know you love it when i get my hands on your equipment and push all the right buttons for hours on end.