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General discussion

What dslr should i get for low light, action, video shooting

Aug 22, 2011 3:22AM PDT

I am willing to buy from a $600 range for the body and starter lens kit. Which dslr do you recommend?

Discussion is locked

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DSLR or Compact System Camera
Aug 22, 2011 12:02PM PDT

Of the budget DSLR's, I'd say the Nikon D3100 is the best buy, compared to the Canon T3, Pentax K-x, and Sony A390. In my mind, another very strong performer would be Panasonic's Micro 4/3 camera, the G3. The still photo quality will be very close to the D3100, plus it will be more compact, and with superior movie mode. It will be more money though, since it is new to the market...about $700.

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/D3100/D3100A.HTM

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/DMCG3/DMCG3A.HTM

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RE: DSLR or Compact System Camera
Aug 22, 2011 10:15PM PDT

How is the aperture on both the d3100 and lumix? Should I just buy a lens that is 2.8 or better?

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Lens Aperture
Aug 22, 2011 11:19PM PDT

Both camera's kit lenses come with a maximum aperture of f/3.5 at the widest focal length, and f/5.6 at the longest length. These apertures are typical for standard lenses. In photographic terms, f/2.8 is two-thirds of one stop "faster" than f/3.5, so you can either use a faster shutter speed or a lower ISO. There are two things to be aware of with larger aperture lenses. One, larger aperture zoom lenses are expensive. Two, larger apertures mean a shallower depth of field; focusing accuracy is more critical. Example: if you were trying to take a photo of a few friends who were in a dimly lit room, and you used a D3100 with a 50mm f/1.7 lens...if you were six feet away, the acceptable range of focus is a mere 0.29 feet deep. If any of the friends is outside that range (one friend standing behind the other), they would be out of focus.

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RE: DSLR or Compact System Camera
Aug 25, 2011 12:51AM PDT

Just curious I never asked this, why do you think the D3100 is the better buy compared to the T3i? I'm down to buying a t3i or d3100 since I increased my budget to $800.

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Features
Aug 25, 2011 2:56AM PDT

I wasn't comparing the D3100 to the T3i; they are dissimilar cameras. The T3i has more features and is comparable to the D5100.

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My mistake
Aug 25, 2011 4:08AM PDT

Ah sorry I read the first part as being Canon T3i instead of the T3.*