Any photography buffs here?

I have no experience in Nikons but someone who has will reply soon but this camera is less than £250 and has good reviews

https://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/Nikon/Nikon-Digital-SLRs/Nikon-D40-Lens-Kit-AF-S-DX-18-55mm

https://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000KIX65S/watersphotogr-21/ref=nosim

Having a good camera is only about 1% weight in terms of a good photo.

for what you want it for, i wouldnt bother with a dslr, and i d get a canon G9

I got a Nikon D40X D-SLR for Christmas and it is amazing but I am interested in photography and like taking unusual shots, different light, effects etc.

We also have a Canon Ixus which is fab for day-to-day shots.

I would say a D-SLR can be time-consuming to set up for a shot and it may need taking more than once which is probably not ideal for little people! I would therefore recommend a digital point & shoot, get one with image stabliser, lithium battery and the most pixels you can afford.

I've just looked up the G9 on Amazon - blimey it's fugly?

I agree a good P&S might be a lot better for what you want it for, there's a lot less spontaneity with a DLSR which may ruin the moment (and the reason I've with-held getting one).

Thanks very much both of you!

NickJ I will look at the Canon G9. I understand you have to have a certain eye for taking a good picture but what has nudged me in this direction was that I used an £800 Olympus camera for a friend on Friday (a wedding) and the photos were brilliant, even if I do say so myself.

Do you really think a canon G9 is as good as a dslr?

Sorry cross posts there. Thanks for telling me about the point and shoots - the camera I used on the weekend was really easy to use, but maybe thats because it was so expensive!

Thanks!

A G9 is a "prosumer" camera, its one step below a pro camera, and is far better than entry level dslrs. plus, its 12 MP, so despite the small chip size, you d be able to print images to A3 without any loss of sharpness.

flump, a De Walt drill is ugly, but you dont by a drill for its looks do you? <belm> ?

A what what drilll?? I only like preeeetty things, does it come in pink??

I might look into this G9 thing, would it be better than me getting a Canon 450D do you think Nick? I really is not veh teknikul?

I'm not an expert and lots of people on here are, so take this with a pinch of salt if you like, but I've found that the pictures I get with my DSLR are SO much better. I mainly use it for taking photos of the children- something that one might think it's better to have a point-and-shoot- but really, the fact that you can take action shots so easily is hugely important. I love my camera (Canon 450D).

Obviously I'm not an expert, as I've said, but in your shoes I'd think hard before getting a more basic camera if your heart is set on a DSLR. It would be sad to get something else then always regret it.

if portability and discretion is important to you, yes. A G9 has fully manual, and all kind of auto modes, so you can still shoot action with it, and do all the usualy things you can with a dslr. plus, it has accessories like a lens tube extension, a wide angle extension and various other interesting bits and pieces. I use one for working outside with multiple flash heads just to get the image balanced and then swtich to the camera i want to actually shoot with, just transposing the settings - simply because its much lighter than a 1DS mark III or a medium format digi.

basically, as far as youre concerned, it ll fit in your handbag ?

Bingo!? Thanks for that Nick, will look into it a bit more?