SUPERCOMPLETE GUIDE TO BUY YOUR FIRST SLR CAMERA

Everyone begins to give their first steps in SLR photography with great enthusiasm but, you will be surprised to know that most of those who subsequently leave do so as a result of a first "badly raised" contact with SLR photography. I explain. In SLR photography it is not worth starting with any camera. A good start in photography requires a good camera. And no, with "good camera" I do not mean an expensive camera or high performance. I mean a " proper " camera . A successful camera for the type of user who will use it. Someone who has never used an SLR camera in their life should not start, at first, with a reflex of 2,000 euros designed more for the professional user. Not even when there are aspirations of evolution towards the professional sector. The camera is just an example. There are endless aspects that the amateur or beginner photographer usually does not know, and that unfortunately nobody explains to us when we are starting. Do I tell you any more?

BEFORE STARTING

Before I begin I want to explain one thing: the following article is a completely subjective personal contribution. Ask other photographers out there and they will give you different opinions. Nothing happens. All opinions are respectable. But this is perhaps one of the most extensive and detailed articles that I have prepared in the many years I have been with the blog. In it you should find the answer to most of the questions you will have when purchasing your first photographic equipment. Second, this article has taken me a lot of work and, at the very least, I would like you to read it sitting. If you pass your eyes between the lines you will not get anything clear. Here you will find a lot of useful information but for that I recommend that you prepare a cup of your favorite drink and sit down to read the article comfortably and quietly. No hurries Finally, if you enjoy reading this article or find it minimally useful, I would be very grateful if you would like to leave it on Facebook, Twitter or Google+. You will find the buttons below and to the left of the article. And now, let's go to the mess.

BUDGET

A very common mistake among buyers SLR cameras "first-time" is to devote 100% of the budget to the acquisition of the camera, when in reality, the camera alone will not give us more than a simple and limited photos. Apart from the photographer's worth, much of the merit of a good photograph has the accessories that accompany the camera and the lens that is attached to it. If you melt 100% of your budget in the most expensive camera that you can afford, then after a few weeks or months you will start to get bored of the photos you take, you will start to think that you were wrong about the camera, or that you may not be as good a photographer as you had originally thought, when none of this is true. The only certainty is that a good camera alone limps. A good camera requires a good lens, Moral? Divide your budget into 2. Dedicate half to buy the best SLR camera you can afford (remember, face doesn't always mean good ). Leave the other half in the piggy bank, which you will need later to acquire complementary material that you will need.

OBJECTIVE

The goal is the mother of the lamb. After the camera, the objective is the most important material element in a photographer's team. I dare to say even that it is as or more important than the camera. Why? The objective is the first place through which the image passes (the light). It runs through it, from end to end. During this journey of light through the interior of the lens, the light undergoes modifications, changes and alterations that make the image one or the other. Shooting with the same camera and in exactly the same conditions, two different lenses can give us two completely different photographs: one with straight lines and the other with slanted lines; one with more light and the other with less; etc. This goes beyond the merely visual. Two visually different images can tell us two stories or make us feel two completely different emotions too. As you can see, the objective is of key importance, and yet it is the great forgotten of most amateur photographers. Why does this happen? Well, simply because when we are beginning in photography, we dream of throwing a glove at a SLR camera, we observe it from the window and usually see it with a serial lens attached to it. Most SLR cameras can be purchased with and without a lens, but if one does not have much idea and has to choose between camera WITH lens (life solved) and camera WITHOUT lens (oooooo again start again: I have to investigate, inform me, search forums, blogs, videos on YouTube, ask a friend, then another and another, compare, aim up, aim down), it is normal for one to buy the built-in camera + objective kit. It seems that this way we have the problem solved But no. Actually, we have done nothing but postpone it. Sooner or later we would end up realizing the reality: the objective of the kit is basic, very, very basic, and hardly allows us to capture a "normal" photograph. If we want to get photographs as impressive as the ones we see there, most of the time we will need a lens of those who are loose, of those who never come in the camera kit. This objective point matches the previous budget. If you leave some money in the piggy bank soon, as soon as you start to mess with the camera and you realize that you need to spread your wings as a photographer, you can inform yourself, choose the lens that best suits your photographic style, and without more you will go to the store for him, piggy bank in hand

ACCESSORIES

I am an inveterate minimalist in all facets of my life, and in photography I would not be less. I am opposed, therefore, to the abundance in photographic material without it being justified. I don't like people getting obsessed with filling up the backpack with the pottery they don't even use. I fully respect those who carry all kinds of cachivaches while actually using it, however, I have the conviction that in photography you do not need to have absolutely all the accessories to be able to take a photograph of which you can be proud. That said, I will not hide that some accessories you will need. Nor can we go to the opposite extreme and want to do without all the accessories. Some accessories will make your life easier as a photographer. Again, this is something to keep in mind from day one, so don't melt all the paste at once. Find out calmly what photographic accessories exist, what they are for, and decide if you need them or not. Of course, buy only what is really going to be useful.

NEVER GET CARRIED AWAY BY THE SELLER'S ADVICE (EXCLUSIVELY)

It is very common for the user to go to a store, usually an electronics store or department store, approach the seller and ask something like “ How can I ask you a question? You see, I like photography and I was thinking of jumping from a compact to a SLR. What camera would you recommend? " In the past, the seller, owner of a photography shop and being a photographer by profession, would have asked us a series of questions and we would have recommended the one that according to his objective criteria could be the ideal reflex for our case. Today, in 90% of cases, we will be attended by a professional who belongs to one of two groups:

1. A commercial that, victim of the pressure that his boss puts under him to reach a minimum of sales / profits, takes you by the arm and takes you to the bottom of the section, where he has stacked the cameras that provide him with more profit margin, or perhaps those that nobody buys and that there is no way to give them output. With a kind smile the commercial will look at you and pointing the finger at the aforementioned camera and will say “ Here is the best SLR camera in the world. Did you want something else, apart? "
2. If you have better luck, you will find a commercial that although you will not want to lie intentionally, the poor man does not know about photography or his company has prepared him to sell / advise on cameras. He will attend you with a kind smile and will recommend anything he thinks is good. The day before the boy would have been recommending a dishwasher and, the next day, you will find him in the furnaces or smoke hoods section.

When I say don't get carried away by the seller's advice, I don't mean that he has bad intentions, at least not always. There will be everything. There are good and honest camera vendors and there are some that are not, there are very qualified and there are not. Like life itself. What I am saying is that the vendors who serve you in stores where most users buy cameras are not always 100% qualified people in photography. Sure there are exceptions, but to heal you in health I recommend that in addition to the opinion of the seller you look for others, from consulting the opinion of other sellers in other stores, even if you are not going to buy in them, simply to contrast the first opinion, to seek articles and topics on social networks, on the Internet, in blogs, forums, YouTube videos, etc.

WHERE TO BUY?

In the past, to buy a loaf of bread you went to a bakery and, to acquire a camera, you went to a photography shop Currently, there are many shops where you can buy your SLR camera. For power, you can buy your photographic equipment even in the supermarket. So, as you go for the camera you take advantage and bring some lettuce and tomato for salad if you see what is missing at home. Jokes aside, I am a great supporter of online shopping. I still like to visit physical stores and shops, especially to see the camera live, feel it if I can, maybe try it, but the benefits offered by buying online can not be found today in any physical store. I list just a few examples of the benefits of shopping online:

- You don't have a salesman that overwhelms you with phrases like “ Do you need a helping hand? Come on, look at this. Let me recommend that. Believe me, you'll thank me . ” I am an introverted buyer. When I want to make a purchase decision I like to be left with my ball, I like to take it easy.

- Some online stores, Amazon type, allow you to see ratings and opinions of other buyers who have bought that same camera or accessory. In a physical store, impossible.

Usually, not always but usually I find a better price in online stores. These save many fixed costs that physical establishments have to face, which gives the online store the possibility of offering you a more competitive price.

If you ask me about the store where I usually make my photographic purchases, I will tell you what it is. But I recognize that I am very little objective in this matter. I am a fan of this particular store, so, to give you an answer as “rational” as possible, let me first tell you what I am looking for in an online store to be able to buy from it. Mainly 2 things:

1. Competitive prices. And who doesn't, right?
2. Excellent after-sales service and customer service. If I do not like the product, I like being able to return or claim and receive a correct treatment.

In my case, Amazon responds to these 2 demands in a spectacular way, so for some time all, absolutely all my photographic purchases (as well as recommendations) I make them on Amazon. The day I stop being satisfied I will say it, but for now I could not ask for more

WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A SLR CAMERA?

After years buying SLR cameras and recommending them to thousands of readers who follow BdF, I have perfected what has been my list of requirements. I believe that every “first SLR camera” has to have the following characteristics:

- Price below 500 Euros.

- Popular brand and model: compatibility with more lenses and accessories, ease of repair and finding information on the Internet, ease of finding video tutorials, etc.

Good comments and opinions from other verified buyers on sites like Amazon.

Wait Mario. Don't you ask for anything in megapixels, ISO or frames per second? Do not. Look: in the 21st century it is quite difficult to find a digital SLR camera in which megapixels are scarce. Who may want to look with magnifying glass at the technical features of one camera and another is the user who wants to dedicate himself to this in a professional way, but for the common of photographers who enjoy this as a passion, most digital SLR cameras today in day they respond perfectly to most of the technical requirements. Dear reader, what you have read here should allow you to make a perfect choice of your first SLR photographic equipment, however, I need to tell you a little trick that has always helped me when it comes to acquiring or recommending a SLR camera.

MY PERSONAL TRICK

Before explaining the trick, a bit of context: the majority of brands take out a specific SLR camera model for sale and, after a while, a year, two at most, improve that model by adding features here and there, they assign it a different code or sequential number, and they put it on sale for a high entry price. At the same time, the previous model is reduced in price almost immediately. Two things happen:

1. Most of the time, the price difference between the new model and the one that is immediately previous is important.
2. Almost always, the difference in performance and technical characteristics does not usually justify such a difference in price.

Here comes the personal preference factor of each at the time of purchase. Some people do not mind paying a higher price simply to have 24 megapixels instead of 14 (more than enough). There are those who are able to pay more for the mere fact that the camera has a GPS chip or is able to connect to the Internet to upload photos directly to social networks. Ohhhhhhhhhhh !! In my case I prefer to keep the more than enough 14 or 16 megapixels, even less if necessary, dispense with the GPS module, and in return, to enjoy a magnificent objective of a great opening (50mm of f / 1.8 for example) thanks The money I save by staying with the previous camera model. My trick is that I practically never buy or recommend the purchase of the last SLR camera . I do not like to take "the last shout" in anything I prefer to make an intelligent purchase (at least that is what I consider it) staying with the immediately previous shout which 12 months ago was "the last shout" too, and to be able to dedicate the rest of my budget to objectives and accessories that I am missing.

ONE LAST TIP BEFORE BUYING A REFLEX CAMERA

After many years of advising and recommending photographers of all kinds on the subject of photo cameras, I can say that one of the biggest barriers that make many people stay without taking photos is usually what is known as “analysis paralysis”. You intend to buy a camera, you get into Amazon and you look at one. You like. A few minutes later, another one catches your attention. Do a little more research and more options begin to appear. When it finally seems that you already have a decided SLR team, you tell a friend and he puts his hands to his head because, according to him, the best brand of cameras has always been, is, and will remain his, that of the camera he has, and any other brand is poop I know this feeling. I have been able to experience it in the first person in my beginnings as a photographer, but when more the one that has lived has been during all these years at the head of the Photographer's Blog, seeing how many of our readers are made a mess before the complicated decision of which camera to buy . What many do not fall into is that, while they think and rethink which camera to buy, they are not doing what they are most passionate about: photographing . My last advice is that you don't get obsessed with the camera you are going to buy. Try to follow the advice and recommendations that I have explained back in this article, and do everything possible to get the best SLR camera you can afford. But do it fast. Don't be there analyzing, making a decision, then undoing it, again and again, indefinitely. Remember that your goal is not to be the owner of a great and beautiful SLR camera. Your goal is to take great pictures. The camera is a simple medium. Not the goal.

MY RECOMMENDATION ON SLR CAMERAS

At this point in the article you already know a lot about buying a first SLR photography equipment. But if you have not yet decided on a particular brand and model, here are my two most absolute recommendations for any beginner photographer who wants to start in SLR photography for the first time. I will recommend two models in particular, the Nikon D3300 and the Canon 1300D. Both cameras are ideal to start in the SLR world with good footing. There is more to see the high score that the two have by their current users on Amazon.

NIKON D3400 (+ RECOMMENDED ACCESSORIES)

This is my number 1 recommendation for anyone who wants to start in SLR photography at the hands of a prestigious brand like Nikon. This camera highlights its sensor with 24 megapixels, capable of capturing photographs that can then be printed and enlarged without losing quality; ISO sensitivity of up to 25,600, very useful for shooting in low light environments; editing and retouching of photos and videos within the camera itself without using a computer; Full HD 1080p video recording (with an interesting “slow motion” option); Wi-Fi connectivity to shoot sneakily from the smartphone, and endless other features. Best of all is its price, hard to find in SLR cameras with included lens, and less than the quality of the D3400. Here I leave you a small selection of photographs taken with the Nikon D3400, they will serve as a sample for you to see the incredible capabilities of this SLR. At Amazon you can get it for a fairly affordable price. I know that in addition to the camera you will have to make more decisions to buy accessories , so I take the freedom to propose what would be my favorite options, all in the same pack. The pack costs less than 800 euros on Amazon , and includes:

- Nikon D3400, my best recommendation on SLR cameras for amateur photographers.

- Objective 18-55mm as standard. Basic, but it does its job.

- 50mm objective f / 1.8. One of the best goals I've met and tried to date. Ideal for almost any type of photography, although if you use it for portraits, family photos, friends, etc., you will succeed

- Tripod with ball head. Very easy to handle Ideal for traveling and transport while remaining very robust and solid.

16 GB memory card, of the best brand and with the highest possible speed.

There are SLR cameras that, for beginners alike, only the camera costs 800 euros. Here you have the complete pack. You can get it from the following link . If you prefer the camera alone, without the accessories (only with the basic 18-55mm lens), you can find it on Amazon for about 450 euros in the following link .

CANON EOS 2000D (+ RECOMMENDED ACCESSORIES)

Another excellent option that has not stopped reaping very good opinions since it came out. Canon carefully chose elements of its best SLR cameras to date and put them together in this small but bully SLR called 2000D. In it you will find a 24 megapixel sensor, much more than enough for the daily use of the amateur photographer, with 24 megapixels gives you plenty to print in large formats without loss of quality; an autofocus based on 9 points; along with more features such as WIFI connectivity that make it one of the best SLR for beginner photographers to date. The 2000D not only excellently fulfills what is expected of a SLR camera but exceeds it, offering an ISO of up to 12,800 forced, compatibility with wireless SD Eye-Fi memory cards and a very, very light weight, something rare in A traditional SLR camera. Your biggest advantage? Its price, hard to match for the benefits it offers. What if we take a look at the photographic quality of this camera? Here are some pictures taken with the Canon 2000D. If in addition to the camera you are going to want accessories, I recommend the following pack, similar to the previous one but with a specific lens for Canon in this case: The pack costs you 700 euros at Amazon , and includes:

- Canon 2000D

- Objective 18-55mm as standard.

- 50mm objective f / 1.8. One of the best goals I've met and tested to date. Not for nothing I call it "The King of Objectives." It suits you for most situations, but its strong point is portraits, family photography, etc.

- Tripod with ball head. Very easy to handle Ideal for travel and transport but robust and solid at the same time.

16 GB memory card, of the best brand and with the highest possible speed.

You can access the pack at the following link . If you want only the camera with the basic objective of 18-55mm, without the rest of accessories, you can find it on Amazon for less than 400 euros in the following link . And yes I am giving closure to this article. I hope you find it useful and help you start enjoying your passion for photography as soon as possible. If you liked the article, I would be very happy if you recommended it on Facebook, Twitter or Google+.